A team from the Wokha Forest Division deployed a thermal drone on the night of October 5 to locate a herd of an estimated eight to ten wild elephants near agricultural fields in Seluku village, marking the first recorded use of thermal drone imagery to track elephants in Nagaland.
The drone was launched after villagers reported elephant activity close to their fields. The team found the herd in the forest adjoining Seluku and immediately notified village authorities and the Village Council of Koio so that residents could exercise caution while working in the fields.
Led by Range Forest Officer Lansothung Lotha, the operation included Forest Guard Bibenthung Ngullie and community members Mhaden E Odyuo and W Nchumbemo Kikon. After inspecting the forest and field edges on foot, the team flew the thermal drone over the canopy. The elephants’ body heat was visible despite dense vegetation and darkness, allowing the crew to estimate the herd size based on the thermal scan and field observations.
The Forest Department said the new monitoring approach will help locate elephants under forest cover and track their movements, enabling communities to be alerted and potential human‑elephant conflict areas to be identified in advance. The drone was flown at a safe height to avoid disturbing the animals, and the department is training frontline staff in drone operations so the technology can be extended to other conflict‑prone areas. Residents are advised not to approach or provoke elephants and to report sightings to the Wildlife Control Room at 1800‑2020‑878 or to the nearest forest office.
