Fearing statues of giraffes, elephants giving up intent on destroying plantations

Strange to giraffes, tall creatures from Africa, the elephant herd might avoid going to farmers' plantations to feed.

Dholaguri Tea Plantation , Assam, India, erected a three-meter tall giraffe statue at the entrance to ward off elephants, preventing them from eating crops, Newsflare reported on October 31. Giraffes are herbivores, adults can reach up to 6m tall, is the tallest group of animals living on land.

The 20-25 herd of elephants headed towards the tea plantation turned after seeing the fake giraffe.

Giraffes are not native Indian creatures but come from Africa. Therefore, elephants will feel strange to this tall creature and may become more cautious when moving near the giraffe statue.

"We heard that the elephant was afraid of a giraffe, so he placed this wooden statue here. The statue was erected about a week ago. From that day on, we discovered the elephant changed its direction after seeing the statue. We will observe a few more days to conclude whether this method is successful or not, " said Alok Borborah, assistant manager of plantations.

According to reports, a herd of 20-25 elephants heading towards the tea plantation turned away after seeing fake giraffes. A farmer working at the plantation said that they might erect one or two statues. Each statue costs about 700 USD.