NAKHON RATCHASIMA: A meeting of officials and local villagers will be held on Monday to discuss relocating gaur - the huge wild oxen also known as Indian bison - from Khao Phaeng Ma National Park in Wang Nam Khieo to nearby Phu Luang Wildlife Sanctuary, said governor Wichian Chantaranothai on Sunday.
The meeting will be attended by wildlife experts, Khao Phaeng Ma National Park officials, representatives of the natural resources and environment office of Nakhon Ratchasima, chiefs of Wang Nam Khieo, Pak Thong Chai and Pak Chong districts, the Khao Phaeng Ma conservationist group, and community leaders.
Mr Wichian said that during his visit to Khao Phaeng Ma National Park last week, local people told him that the gaur population has steadily increased to around 250-300 in a 5,000-rai area.
The dense population has caused some gaur to stray outside the national park boundaries and forage for food in villagers' plantations, causing damage to farm produce. He said the confrontation between local villagers and the gaur has grown each year.
As a result, the governor said, he came up the idea of relocating some of the gaur from Khao Phaeng Ma to Phu Luang, a much larger area about eight kilometres away. It would be difficult, however, to herd the gaur past the community and plots of farmland that lie between the two areas.
The problem will be raised for discussion at tomorrow's meeting, Mr Wichian said.
The gaur is classed as a 'vulnerable' species, or one that may become endangered in the near future.
September 7, 2016
(Video YouTube/indiTales)
Poachers in Thailand kill a Gaur, flee when rangers patrol the area. pic.twitter.com/bzuOTongEz
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