China's famous herd of wandering elephants have stopped for a well-earned rest after a record 300-mile trek across the country following their escape from a nature reserve.
The 15-strong group of wild Asian elephants has been wandering towards the city of Kunming, in Yunnan province, since April 16 when they broke out of a nature reserve in Xishuangbanna Dai prefecture.
They are now in the countryside in the Xinyang Township, around 55 miles south-west of Kunming, and were spotted looking exhausted as the group lay down in a forest with their legs and trunks sprawled out over the ground.
The herd appear to be sleeping in a pyramid shape as one baby elephant can be seen clinging onto an adult's leg whilst one rests its trunk on another.
The elephants have come as close as two miles from the southern-most suburbs of regional capital Kunming, sparking fears they could enter the city and cause chaos.
Roads have been blocked using lorries while 18 tons of pineapples and corn have been scattered in an attempt to lead the elephants away from the city's Jinning district.
The wild animals caused have caused mayhem by walking down urban roads and sticking their trunks through residential windows in Kunming, despite officials' efforts to divert them away from the populated southwestern city of seven million people.
Elephants are given the top level of protection in China, allowing their numbers to steadily increase even as their natural habitat shrinks, and requiring farmers and others to exercise maximum restraint when encountering them.
It means that the herd will not be destroyed, while wildlife officers are also keen to avoid using tranquilizers on the infants.
Government orders have told people to stay inside and not to gawk at them or use firecrackers or otherwise attempt to scare them away.
Animal experts told Xinhua news agency that it is unclear what has motivated the elephants' migration, which is the longest ever recorded in China.
But they said it is possible that the pack leader 'lacks experience and led the whole group astray.'
The initial herd consisted of 16 elephants, but two of them turned around during the trek and went home. A calf was then born during the walk, bringing the total to its current 15.
Music: Come With Us - Nat Keefe & Hot Buttered Rum
Source: Daily Mail, Pexels, Xinhua
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The 15-strong group of wild Asian elephants has been wandering towards the city of Kunming, in Yunnan province, since April 16 when they broke out of a nature reserve in Xishuangbanna Dai prefecture.
They are now in the countryside in the Xinyang Township, around 55 miles south-west of Kunming, and were spotted looking exhausted as the group lay down in a forest with their legs and trunks sprawled out over the ground.
The herd appear to be sleeping in a pyramid shape as one baby elephant can be seen clinging onto an adult's leg whilst one rests its trunk on another.
The elephants have come as close as two miles from the southern-most suburbs of regional capital Kunming, sparking fears they could enter the city and cause chaos.
Roads have been blocked using lorries while 18 tons of pineapples and corn have been scattered in an attempt to lead the elephants away from the city's Jinning district.
The wild animals caused have caused mayhem by walking down urban roads and sticking their trunks through residential windows in Kunming, despite officials' efforts to divert them away from the populated southwestern city of seven million people.
Elephants are given the top level of protection in China, allowing their numbers to steadily increase even as their natural habitat shrinks, and requiring farmers and others to exercise maximum restraint when encountering them.
It means that the herd will not be destroyed, while wildlife officers are also keen to avoid using tranquilizers on the infants.
Government orders have told people to stay inside and not to gawk at them or use firecrackers or otherwise attempt to scare them away.
Animal experts told Xinhua news agency that it is unclear what has motivated the elephants' migration, which is the longest ever recorded in China.
But they said it is possible that the pack leader 'lacks experience and led the whole group astray.'
The initial herd consisted of 16 elephants, but two of them turned around during the trek and went home. A calf was then born during the walk, bringing the total to its current 15.
Music: Come With Us - Nat Keefe & Hot Buttered Rum
Source: Daily Mail, Pexels, Xinhua
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/patryn.worldlatestnews
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