This article is written by Lorraine Miller

A low rumble echoes through the air as a large female Asian elephant walks across the dirt track in front of me, her mahout following close behind. They meander slowly up the path to the veterinary centre, stopping on the way for the gentle giant to browse on a nearby tree.

The Southern Thailand Elephant Foundation is a first of its kind in Southern Thailand, offering free veterinary care to the elephants in the region to improve their welfare and protect their future.

This animal health charity, established in 2017, operates a state-of-the-art elephant hospital, nestled in the lush natural mixed-forest countryside of Phang Nga Province. Staffed by local Thai veterinarians, the hospital, which received its first patient in July 2022 has eliminated the arduous four-hour truck journey that once separated ailing elephants from urgent medical care.

The site also benefits from a veterinary laboratory, an isolation unit and two mobile clinics, which enable the charities expert elephant vets to reach remote and urgent cases.

I watch at a distance as Dr Aon shows the elephant and her mahout to a free stall. She prepares her equipment and begins to evaluate her new patient. 

“Sometimes the conditions we see are very obvious, but some illnesses can also be very difficult to diagnose.” Dr Aon says as she reaches for a small torch from the veterinary tray beside her.

She explains that this female elephant has a corneal ulcer, which will require treatment for several days. She calls the three volunteers over from behind her and shows them the ulcer, asking them what treatment they would prescribe.

The Southern Thailand Elephant Foundation not only treats sick and injured elephants but educates the next generation of elephant veterinarians. The charity offers both international volunteer opportunities for vets and vet students to gain valuable experience and collaborates with Thai universities to provide internships for local vets to learn about elephant health, care and welfare.

Veterinary volunteers and interns spend time shadowing the charities expert elephant vets at the hospital, attend emergency call outs in the mobile clinic and perform basic tests in the onsite laboratory to determine diagnoses. They may also be called upon to take samples, read vital signs or observe elephants who need constant monitoring.

“It truly has been a once in a lifetime experience that is hard to put into words, but my life and my medicine has been changed for the better after being around the amazing people at STEF” says Megan Pounder, a veterinarian from Canada, who volunteered at the hospital in March this year.

The foundations dedication to elephant welfare is not limited to immediate care but is a holistic commitment to protecting these remarkable beings and maximising their welfare. The charity partners with academic institutions, elephant health organisations and experts in the field to offer training and support to those caring for Asian elephants in the region, to safeguard the wellbeing of these incredible animals. Recently STEF hosted a foot care course run by elephant expert and STEF advisor Lee Sambrook, who trained elephant carers in elements of foot care such as nail trimming and emphasized the importance of routine maintenance and preventative care. He also discussed the benefits of positive reinforcement training and husbandry alterations that can also encourage positive foot health such as regular movement and enclosure additions such as sand piles. 

“The foot care workshop at the veterinary hospital was a fantastic success that saw elephant carers from all over Southern Thailand come together to learn new skills to benefit the welfare of the animals in their care.” Stated STEF UK Chair Dr Merry Smith.

The specialist elephant hospital also has plans for an intensive care unit to treat very young animals that may need their help. The veterinary centre often treats elephant calves that are suffering from Elephant Endotrophic Herpes Virus (EEHV), a deadly disease that affects young animals with a very low survival rate.

“If we can get to the calves quickly enough and treat them appropriately as soon as possible, they stand a much better chance of survival” says Dr Smith. “Having a dedicated intensive care unit for these cases would be a huge benefit for these young patients.”

The Southern Thailand elephant Foundation has also hosted local school groups to teach children of all ages not only about elephant health, care and welfare but about the history of the Asian elephant within Thai culture and the importance of caring and protecting them whether they are in the wild or in human care.

As I walk around the site it is clear how much dedication and commitment it takes to run the hospital, which is funded entirely on donations. Members of the team are treating elephants, teaching students, tending to the grounds and collecting browse for their larger-than-life patients. Members of staff will even work into the night to provide the very best of care for their elephant charges.

Founder of the Southern Thailand Elephant Foundation, Jakrapob Thaotad insists the charity was created not only to ensure optimal health and welfare for elephants in the region but to support education on the Asian elephant, to improve healthcare and highlight the importance of these incredible animals to Thai people.  “Asian elephants are an emblem of Thailand’s cultural heritage, symbolizing longevity, loyalty, and strength. Our efforts are fuelled by a responsibility to ensure their survival and well-being.”

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About The Author

Lorraine Miller is a zoologist and author from the UK. She is the director of Great Ape Consultancy and alongside her work promoting positive animal welfare, she works with the B-Corp travel company ‘Flooglebinder’ to facilitate conservation and sustainability focused travel. She also works with several animal charities including the Southern Thailand Elephant Foundation and Wild Welfare as well as publishing books and articles focused on conservation education. She also has a huge passion for marine life and is a PADI rescue diver and licensed marine mammal medic.

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More Article by Lorraine Miller

• Orangutan Haven – A Holistic Approach to Conservation in Sumatra

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How are methane-eating microbes responding to climate change? Are they physiologically adjusting to temperature changes and other stressors to influence the amount of methane entering the atmosphere? This is the tale of three species of bacteria and a class of archaea that gain energy from methane instead of sunlight and respond differently to thrive in a changing climate.

Methane is a greenhouse gas that traps heat, warming the planet and contributing to climate change. It is metabolized by Archaebacteria and methanogenic archaea, which feed on decaying organic matter in oxygen-poor environments such as wetlands, permafrost, and cattle ranches, releasing methane in the process. The amount of methane released by these bacteria is rising as climate change alters conditions.

In the muck and mire, alongside the methane-producing bacteria and archaea, are methanotrophs, which consume methane. Nature thrives on cycles. These bacteria are located in aerobic (oxygen-rich) muck above anaerobic sediment. Methanotrophs represent one of Earth’s most vital methane sinks, metabolizing up to 90% of the methane produced in wetlands and atmospheric methane in soils into proteins and sugars.

How are methane-eating bacteria responding to climate change? Are they physiologically adjusting to temperature changes and other stressors to influence the amount of methane entering the atmosphere?

Researchers recently went to a bog, removed the top layer, and brought methane-eating bacteria back to the laboratory. Culturing methanotrophs is a hazardous undertaking because these bacteria require an enormous amount of oxygen and hydrogen. The amount of oxygen is often less than optimal for bacteria because scientists are concerned about their safety due to the risk of explosions. 

Three methane-eating bacteria from the genus Methylobacter were collected from the bog. These were common methanotrophs found in wetlands worldwide. Under varying conditions, researchers observed the amount of methane consumed, the growth rate of the bacteria, and the internal changes within the cells. The quantity of methane the bacteria consumed depended on their condition. The bacteria consumed more methane when the temperatures were either warmer or cooler than they were accustomed to, because they had to expend a lot of energy to repair issues in their cells.

At 60 degrees Fahrenheit, one species of bacteria consumed a significant amount of methane to compensate for the less-than-ideal temperature. Methane consumption decreased by 30 percent when the temperature was increased to 70 degrees, yet the growth rate remained consistent. Researchers observed that as the temperature decreased, the bacteria consumed more methane and produced additional ribosomes to metabolize more proteins. The increase in protein production allowed the bacteria to maintain their processing speed even when the temperature dropped. Methane consumption increased with diminishing temperatures.

Some bacteria increased methane uptake when the environment became too warm. As the molecules increased their motion, more methane was used to repair damage or increase the rigidity of the cell wall. 

How methane-eating bacteria will affect global methane emissions in the future remains as murky as the bog muck from which these methanotrophs came. The study found that depending on the type of methane-eating bacteria that dominates the ecosystem will indicate the reaction when the temperature rises. The good news is that methanotrophs are diverse in every ecosystem. The one most fit for the situation (or needing the most repairs) will increase methane consumption. Fortunately, there is another domain of microbes eating methane.

Archaea, a domain of primitive prokaryotes distinct from bacteria, derives its name from the Greek word meaning old and primitive. These single-celled organisms produce methane through anaerobic cellular respiration. Conversely, Methanoperedens are archaea that decompose methane in soils, groundwater, and the atmosphere to form complex carbohydrates.

Researchers recently sampled Methanoperedens from underground soil, aquifers, and riverbeds. They were surprised to find packets of DNA within single-celled organisms, known as extrachromosomal elements, that transfer genes often via viruses between bacteria and archaea. These packets allow microbes to have on-hand beneficial genes from neighboring organisms.

The extra-chromosomal elements are a relatively large conglomeration of diverse genomes assimilated from many organisms held within one organism and named “Borgs” after the assimilation of many planet parts in Star Trek.

The archaea cell already consumes methane. It possesses an arsenal of genetic elements to draw from, allowing the cell to have a higher capacity should conditions change. Said the lead author, “It basically creates a condition for methane consumption on steroids, if you will.”

Evidence indicates that whenever methane emissions rise, bacteria and archaea are poised to increase their methane consumption. They take the energy of methane to combine carbon dioxide and water into carbohydrates, sequestering carbon at the base of the ecosystem’s food pyramid. We can tip the balance from too much industrialization towards more natural environments, such as wetlands, grasslands, fields, forests, and natural river-beds.

By replacing hard surfaces and heat islands with vegetation and soils, we can better tackle the challenges of climate change, create more habitats for industrious microbes, and initiate the process of cooling the planet. We must allow more rainwater to infiltrate the ground to sustain life during periods of drought. Let’s restore the natural cycles of water, carbon and methane, and allow nature to heal the planet with the aid of methane-eating bacteria and borg-packing archaea.

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Dr. Rob Moir is a nationally recognized and award-winning environmentalist. He is the president and executive director of the Ocean River Institute, a nonprofit based in Cambridge, MA, that provides expertise, services, resources, and information not readily available on a localized level to support the efforts of environmental organizations. Please visit www.oceanriver.org for more information.

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References

• Kjørstad, E. (2023, February 4). These small bacteria eat huge amounts of methane. How will they respond to climate change? Sciencenorway.no. https://www.sciencenorway.no/bacteria-climate-methane/these-small-bacteria-eat-huge-amounts-of-methane-how-will-they-respond-to-climate-change/2150152​
• Sanders, R. (2022, October 20). Like the Borg of Star Trek, these ‘aliens’ assimilate DNA from other microbes. Innovative Genomics Institute. https://innovativegenomics.org/news/borg-assimilate-dna/​
• Tveit, A. T., Söllinger, A., Rainer, E. M., Didriksen, A., Hestnes, A. G., Motleleng, L., Hellinger, H.-J., Rattei, T., & Svenning, M. M. (2023). Thermal acclimation of methanotrophs from the genus Methylobacter. The ISME Journal, 17, 712–719. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41396-023-01363-7
• Schoelmerich, M. C., Sachdeva, R., Waldburger, L., West-Roberts, J., & Banfield, J. F. (2022). Borg tandem repeats undergo rapid evolution and are under strong selection to create new intrinsically disordered regions in proteins. bioRxiv. https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.05.18.492195
• Rinke, C. (2022). Mystery find of microbial DNA elements called Borgs. Nature, 610(7930), 464–465. https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-022-02975-3

Please note that the forth reference is a preprint and has not yet undergone peer review.

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More from Dr. Rob Moir

• The Sultans of Swag Versus Looking at Clouds from Both Sides Now
• Restoring The Climate with Native Plants and Deeper Soils
• Hope for Right Whales
• Cooling the Gulf of Maine Surface Ocean Waters
• Touch the Earth Lightly, Use the Earth Gently
• Easter Island, Hard Work & Good Cheer for a Changing Climate-Challenged World
• Cooling Our Planet: New England’s Battle with Climate Change
• Land & Sea Change for Earth Day, Expanding The Climate Change Narrative
• The Earth and Three Blinkered Scientists
• Fallen Forests and Rising Ocean Fury
• What If There Was a Right Whale National Marine Sanctuary?
• Atlantic Ocean off Florida Spawns a Giant Sargassum Blob Due to Climate Change & Nutrient Pollution
• Emerald Bracelets to Solve Three of the World’s Greatest Environmental Problems
• Slowing Water for Greener Neighborhoods
• Put Down the Federal Stick to Build a Greener Future
• Of Mousy & Elephantine Cycles, Managing The Climate Crisis After Glasgow COP26
• Melting Greenland Ice Sheet, Sea Ice Formation, and the Flow of The Gulf Stream
• A Whale of a Pattern of Thought and Organizing Principle for Community-Based Environmental Management

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Interview by Andi Cross
Photography by: Adam Moore & Marla Tomorug
Support from: Elewana Collection, Tarangire Treetops, Land & Life Foundation

The Randilen Wildlife Management Area (WMA), located on the eastern border of Tanzania’s Tarangire National Park, serves as a vital buffer zone for one of Africa’s most treasured ecosystems. Spanning 312 square kilometers, Randilen protects critical wildlife corridors and sustains the delicate balance of its surrounding landscape. Its proximity to Tarangire—a park renowned for its massive elephant herds and seasonal migrations—makes Randilen a key link in the northern safari circuit and a cornerstone of eco-tourism. Its success relies heavily on partnerships with operators like Elewana Collection’s Tarangire Treetops lodge, who facilitate a harmonious balance between responsible tourism and community-driven development for the Maasai people who call this land home.

To understand what sits at the center of this raw and wild place, we met with Samuel Ceremony Mole, a leader within the WMA and a voice for the Maasai community. Samuel shared insights into the Maasai way of life and the role Randilen plays in protecting both its wildlife and the livelihoods of those in its community. For him, the future of this region depends on one simple truth: conservation and community must work together, or neither will have a chance at surviving.

The Maasai Way of Life

“I come from one of the eight Maasai villages that form Randilen, a community-owned Wildlife Management Area (WMA). Our role is to protect and care for its wildlife while respecting the cultures of the people who rely on this land. Established in 2012 and officially gazetted in 2013, Randilen WMA is where and how I focus my time.

But before I tell you all about that, I need to give you a look into the Maasai way of life. We are one of the most well-known ethnic groups in East Africa, celebrated for our rich traditions, culture, dress, and connection to the land. For us, life revolves around livestock, which represents wealth, status, and the ability to provide for our families. Owning cattle is essential—it defines what it means to be truly Maasai. My father, like many elders in our community, had multiple wives and managed a large herd, a hallmark of success in our culture.

Women are responsible for the home—milking cattle, collecting firewood, fetching water (often from far distances), caring for children, and even building the family’s houses. Men oversee the livestock, issuing daily instructions to younger boys about where and when to graze the herds. Elders play a supervisory role, gathering at the village gate as the livestock return each evening to ensure every animal is accounted for. If there’s a loss—perhaps due to an encounter with lions or elephants—it sparks a detailed conversation about what happened in the bush and how to avoid such issues in the future.

Respect for elders and the natural world is at the heart of Maasai traditions. From a young age, we are taught to live in harmony with the environment, balancing the needs of people, livestock, and wildlife. Rotational grazing, where herds are moved to prevent overuse of the land, is one of the practices passed down through generations to preserve our resources. These systems are more vital than ever as climate change and population growth make sustaining our way of life increasingly difficult. Change is not something we dispute here, as we all are witnessing its impacts firsthand.

At the same time, being Maasai is about resilience. We hold steadfast to our customs despite pressures to adapt to modern ways. Whether it’s our brightly colored shukas, our ceremonial gatherings, or our traditional songs and dances, each is a reflection of our strength to hold on to what’s ours. They remind us of who we are and the balance we seek with the world around us. Even as challenges grow, our identity remains potent, and we continue to adapt without losing sight of where we come from.

A Collection of Communities

The WMA concept arose when the government realized that conservation efforts—focused mostly on national parks—weren’t directly involving local communities. By establishing WMAs, the government created a way for communities to engage in conservation while benefiting from it. In Randilen, over 20,000 people across our eight villages have joined forces to protect this land—from preserving wildlife, safeguarding vegetation, and fostering sustainable livelihoods.

Our main focus is on pushing what we call “photographic eco-tourism” rather than sustenance or trophy hunting, which has plagued Africa for a long time. Seven key investors, including Elewana Collection’s Treetops, operate lodges in Randilen, attracting global, eco-conscious visitors. These people contribute directly to conservation through fees paid at one of our three entry gates, generating revenue that sustains both the WMA and the local communities affiliated.

Sixty-five percent of the revenue goes back to the WMA from the Ministry of Natural Resources, with half of that allocated to operational costs—like our 26 rangers’ salaries—and the other half invested in community projects. However, for pastoralist Maasai families, the true value of Randilen lies in its carefully managed grazing system, which is divided into two zones. The first is a yellow zone for grazing and the second is a green core zone for conservation and tourism. We’ve created a rotational grazing system to ensure livestock always has access to grass. This “grass bank” supports their livelihoods by providing a reliable source of grazing, even during deadly droughts, allowing them to fatten their livestock and support their families all the time.

For us, Maasai, grass is life. It’s more valuable than money because it sustains our economy, culture, and way of life. By harmonizing conservation with the needs of the community, Randilen has become a place where both people—regardless of where they are from—and wildlife—including livestock and game animals—can all live, work and flourish together.

The Three Pillars

To ensure the community continues to view Randilen WMA as a valuable resource and shared investment, we focus on three key pillars—a structure I’m incredibly proud of. The first pillar is social value, which encourages the community to see the WMA as their property that they have authority over and a stake in preserving. A significant part of this is addressing human-wildlife conflict, a common challenge here. Many villagers practice mixed farming, raising livestock alongside cultivating crops like maize, which often attracts wildlife. Elephants, while iconic and vital to our ecosystem, are the most destructive, posing a significant threat to farms when they wander beyond the WMA’s boundaries.

To tackle this, we collaborate with partners like The Nature Conservancy, Honeyguide Foundation, and Treetops Lodge to provide farmers with tools such as “chili bombs,” torchlights, and other deterrents to protect their crops. When these methods fail, villagers can call for assistance, and our team responds to safely herd the elephants back into protected areas. These efforts have reduced crop destruction by nearly 20%, building trust between the community and conservation initiatives.

This pillar is quite personal to me, as I lost my brother to an elephant conflict. It’s a tragedy I still struggle to put into words, and the memory of that loss remains a constant in my life. Reconciling this pain with the knowledge of why these animals must be protected is challenging — but I do it because I know elephants are the heartbeat of Africa. They shape ecosystems, support biodiversity, and showcase the beauty of our land to the world. This understanding drives me to push for better tools and programs that help our communities coexist with these magnificent creatures.

The second pillar is education support, a vital aspect of ensuring future success for our community. Beyond sharing revenue with the villages, Randilen WMA provides scholarships for students from low-income families. Village councils review applications and submit the names of eligible children. Today, we support 90 students through secondary school and college, empowering the next generation with opportunities our ancestors could only dream of.

The third pillar is economic empowerment, which ties everything together. By creating tangible benefits for the community through conservation, we ensure that Randilen remains a resource worth protecting. Tourism brings value to the people living here, demonstrating that preserving our land pays off. I’m happy to share that this pillar is in full effect.

Adversity Amidst the Beauty

Challenges are an undeniable part of our work, but we view them as opportunities. One of our biggest is dealing with invasive plant species, which suppress native grasses vital for wildlife and livestock. These species dominate the landscape, reducing the quality and quantity of grazing land. Over the years, we’ve experimented with various methods to control them, including cutting, burning, and uprooting. Uprooting has proven the most effective, and we’ve cleared over 600 hectares because of it. The results show that native grasses are regenerating, creating better conditions for both wildlife and the pastoralist communities that depend on healthy grazing land.

The government’s strong stance against poaching, particularly under the late President Magufuli, has dramatically reduced elephant kills in the region. Since the WMA’s establishment in 2013, we haven’t recorded a single poached elephant—only deaths from natural causes. Today, elephants roam freely in and around Randilen. However, bushmeat poaching of smaller mammals like antelope persists at the WMA’s peripheries. Our rangers and law enforcement partners continue to address this issue, making steady progress in protecting all species.

And I can’t forget to mention climate change, which makes everything more severe. Water sources near communities are drying up, forcing women to walk long distances to find water. These treks often lead to dangerous encounters with wildlife, which can tragically result in injuries and deaths. We see climate change’s fingerprints on other issues, too, like with invasive species and shifting grazing patterns. To address this, we’ve been educating communities about the importance of preserving trees, reducing overgrazing, and how it’s critical that we adapt to these changing environmental conditions.

Everything Is Changing

Life for the Maasai is changing fast, and it’s all tied to a shifting climate and modern influences. Traditionally, we lived a nomadic lifestyle, always moving to find grass and water for our livestock. It’s what shaped our culture for generations, guided by the elders and the rhythms of the land. But now, with droughts lasting longer and grazing lands disappearing, it’s getting harder to live the way we used to. In some places, like Monduli, families are settling down, building permanent homes instead of the traditional bomas made of mud and wood. But in areas like Simanjiro and Ngorongoro, many still live as nomads, moving wherever the grass grows and water flows.

Even our traditions are evolving. Practices like female circumcision, once a part of our way of life, are becoming less common because of government laws and shifting beliefs. Education, which wasn’t a priority for many of us in the past, is now vital. Parents are sending their children to school, and we’re seeing a new generation of educated Maasai. But with that comes its own challenges. Many young people finish school and leave for the cities, chasing opportunities instead of returning home to carry on our traditions. Elders worry that with these changes, our culture might fade away.

But that’s where the WMA comes in, helping us find a balance between the old ways and the new. We’re working to protect our land, promote conservation, and give communities opportunities that connect to wildlife protection. As Maasai, we’ve always lived peacefully with nature—we don’t hunt wildlife or eat bushmeat. That respect is part of who we are, and it’s something we carry forward. At Randilen, we’re making sure our people and the land we love can adapt and thrive together, no matter how much the world changes around us.

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