The recent Asian elephant range expansion in Yunnan, China, is associated with climate change and enforced protection efforts in human-dominated landscapes

A recent range expansion of Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) in Yunnan, China, is linked to climate change and enforced protection efforts. Researchers found that the probability of elephant observations increased significantly with rising air temperatures and human density between 1959–2021, driving their movement toward warmer, high-latitude regions with greater human presence. While precipitation's impact varied over time—positive in the past decade but negative more recently—enforced protection policies have transformed human-dominated areas into preferred habitats for elephants. The study highlights the need to expand protected zones or create new reserves and corridors northward while implementing barriers to mitigate human-elephant conflicts amid rapid global change.

Bai, D., Wan, X., Zhang, L., Campos-Arceiz, A., Wei, F., & Zhang, Z. (2022). The recent Asian elephant range expansion in Yunnan, China, is associated with climate change and enforced protection efforts in human-dominated landscapes. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, 10. https://doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2022.889077