DNA key to save Cambodian elephants

Scientists are to run DNA tests on elephant dung sent from Cambodia to help work out numbers and monitor wild populations in the formerly war-torn nation. Rangers have collected almost 600 elephant dung samples from the Cardamom Mountains in the country's south-west, a former stronghold of the Khmer Rouge. The specimens have been packed in test tubes and are due to arrive next month in, where they will be analysed by biologists at London DNA testing company DNA Solutions. Elephant biologist Joe Heffernan said getting a more accurate picture of population size would help conservationists work

out how many elephants were being poached.

Mr Heffernan, from conservation group Fauna & Flora, which is leading the project, said it was surprisingly difficult to count elephants in the wild. Despite their size, they can silently "disappear" into forests, and a person can be within metres of one without even knowing it. "That's just how they've avoided being poached," Mr Heffernan said. "The ones that are left are probably the sneakiest." The current guesstimate of Asian elephant numbers in the Cardamom Mountains is between 200 and 500. Because each animal has a unique DNA profile, the scientists can use genetic testing to work out numbers. The size of the droppings provides clues about age, while the DNA fingerprinting will reveal details about sex ratios. Wildlife lovers are particularly worried about the numbers of male elephants because their tusks are highly sought-after by ivory poachers.

Asian elephants can be distinguished from their African counterparts by their smaller ears. All Asian elephants, and some African elephants — depending on the country — are considered endangered. DNA Solutions hopes to use genetic samples from Asian elephants at local Zoo's to develop a DNA profiling system before the Cambodian samples arrive. The laboratory will provide its services at cost for the elephant conservation project. "We do mainly relationships work," director Vern Muir said. "But paternity testing doesn't give the personal satisfaction that something like this does."