Restoring Elephant Habitat Around Udawalawe
Introduction
Saving Ganesh is developing a community stewardship program to restore two mapped elephant habitat routes around Udawalawe National Park in Sri Lanka. Our goal is to recover habitat access while creating dependable conservation income for participating local residents.
Why we began this work
After returning to Sri Lanka following the COVID restrictions, our team observed elephants in poor body condition and clearing along routes we understand to have been used by elephants. Ground surveys and drone footage helped us map breaks in two routes and identify areas for further investigation. These observations prompted a proposal that brings habitat restoration and local livelihoods together.
A landscape that needs connections
Our concern extends beyond Udawalawe to the wider landscape toward Lunugamvehera, Yala and Kumana. The immediate proposal focuses on two mapped routes. Their precise alignments, land status and present elephant use still need to be confirmed; restoring them would not by itself establish a continuous connection across the whole landscape.
What earlier evidence tells us
A 2017 environmental assessment prepared by Sri Lanka’s Road Development Authority recognized elephant connectivity between Yala, Lunugamvehera and Udawalawe. It described seasonal movement in response to food and water and identified forest encroachment as a pressure on elephant habitat and neighboring communities.
Dahaiyagala and the northern connection
In February 2021, Trunks & Leaves published an account of renewed clearing at Dahaiyagala, north of Udawalawe. This is a separate northern connection toward Bogahapattiya and Bogahapalessa, rather than the route toward Lunugamvehera and Yala. The account adds historical context; any overlap with our mapped routes must be checked.
Conservation as a livelihood
We propose voluntary, lawful agreements that pay participating households to keep agreed areas available as habitat. Residents could also earn wages for restoration, vegetation maintenance and monitoring. Where safe and viable, guiding and village accommodation could provide additional income. Core stewardship payments would not depend on tourism.
Our next step
The next step is feasibility and pilot preparation: verify the routes and land rights, consult affected households, establish habitat and elephant-health baselines, and prepare a locally costed pilot. We will assess whether the restored areas provide useful habitat access and whether neighboring communities benefit.
Project status
Proposed program at feasibility and pilot-preparation stage. Our maps and field footage provide a starting point. Habitat agreements, implementation approvals, final costs and beneficiary numbers remain to be established.