Elephants are by nature fiercely intelligent beasts and experts who study them day in day out already know a great deal about them. And yet a herd of

Elephants' 500km-trek across China baffles scientists

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2021-06-23 23:30:10

Elephants are by nature fiercely intelligent beasts and experts who study them day in day out already know a great deal about them.

And yet a herd of endangered elephants in China has completely dumbfounded scientists globally, while captivating an entire nation in the process.

It's not unusual for elephants to move small distances. But this herd has been lumbering its way across China for more than a year now. The elephants have now strayed almost 500km (310 miles), a mammoth trek from their original habitat.

It's thought that they started their journey last spring from Xishuangbanna National Nature Reserve in the southwest of the country, near the border with Myanmar and Laos.

They've been seen smashing down doors, raiding shops, "stealing" food, playing around in the mud, taking a bath in a canal and napping in the middle of a forest.

They've also been spotted hoovering up crops in their wake and moseying into people's houses - on one occasion, lining up in a courtyard to drink water, successfully turning on a tap with their trunks.