4/11/2022 COVID Update: The State of Maine no longer requires masking or proof of vaccination to attend any public events, but individual venues are free to do so. For the latest information, visit the Center for Disease Control and Prevention or the State of Maine’s COVID site.
- This event has passed.
Reconciling the Needs of People and Elephants in Asia
October 11, 2016, 7:00 PM
Free
Shermin de Silva will discuss Asian elephants, the sole survivors of the genus Elephas. This six-million-year-old, evolutionarily unique species must now make a living alongside its historic predator — humans — on the most densely populated continent on the planet. More than half the human population lives in Asia, and development is accelerating. With large herbivores in global decline, elephants illustrate many of the issues they face in the 21st century. De Silva will discuss the biology, ecology, and conservation concerns for Asia’s last mega-herbivore. De Silva directs the Udawalawe Elephant Research Project in Sri Lanka, is a postdoctoral fellow at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, and is president and founder of the U.S.-based nonprofit Trunks & Leaves.