The killings of three rare, wild gaur in Nakhon Ratchasima raise two concerns that should command swift and high-level action. Local police in Wang Nam Khieo district immediately began investigating the shootings. Provincial governor Wichian Chantharanothai actively entered the picture, a distinct step in the right direction. Important issues are at stake, apart from the obvious killing of protected animals.
Gaur, bos gaurus, or krathing in Thai), are sometimes called Indian bison. They are bovines, the largest cows and bulls. Since 1986, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has listed gaur as "vulnerable" on the group's Red List of endangered species. Overall, the species is decreasing although in Thailand they are enduring, if not exactly thriving. There are herds and small groups in Khao Yai National Park, and visitors often spot them grazing. It is best not to approach these animals, which can become dangerously cantankerous.
It appears last week's killings were a clash between humans and wild animals, rather than outright poaching for profit.
However, that is on the basis of early evidence. The first gaur was shot and killed on Nov 8 inside a tapioca farm in the district. The owner of the farm reportedly admitted to police he shot and killed the animal because it was foraging in his fields. He has been arrested and charged with violations of animal and species-protection laws.
The other two gaur were found shot dead in the forest which is not far away from a successful wildlife protection project. The one-tonne male was found untouched except for the gunshot wounds. But the 500kg female had been butchered, with only the head and skeleton left behind. Wildlife experts therefore correctly wonder if the pair were killed to supply the voracious, growing and despicable trade in exotic species on the Thai borders.
Civilised people may find it hard to believe, but the trade in meat and animal parts in the Golden Triangle is referred to as the new trafficking -- worse, in the opinion of many, than the drug smuggling which made that area infamous.
Last week, a joint publication of the World Wildlife Federation and the wildlife protection monitors TRAFFIC released a sobering report. Growing numbers of tourists are visiting the Golden Triangle area of Myanmar, Laos and China to buy items such as ivory, rhino horns, and leopard and tiger skins.
Restaurants cater to the same twisted tastes of people who come to buy body parts. Delicacies include bear paws, pangolin -- and gaur. Gaur meat and gaur "souvenirs" such as the horns, detached from the body, are in the top 10 of most-requested items in this wildlife trafficking cornucopia.
Whether the three gaur killed last week was because of poaching or human-animal misunderstanding is important. It is entirely possible both are involved. Human encroachment on the territory of wild animals is nothing new. The worst examples are in the South, where villagers have killed many elephants they found stomping through their vegetable gardens.
Such killing of valuable wildlife has almost ceased. Farmers and wildlife experts have combined, with official help, to seek means to separate animals from humans.
The solutions are many, ranging from fences to more imaginative methods. Provincial authorities should begin a programme in Nakhon Ratchasima to educate farmers about the gaur.
If the killings have anything to do with poaching for the Golden Triangle markets, police and game wardens must act swiftly and aggressively. This trade, involving the wanton killing of wildlife and protected species, revolts all decent people and must be stopped. This killing of gaur and other vulnerable animals cannot be tolerated anywhere in the country.
