China watches on as a herd of elephants wanders from town to town, causing over $1 million in damage

For more than a month, 15 elephants including three calves have dominated China's domestic media as they marched through towns and villages with no clear destination in sight. Key points: China has 1 per cent, or about 300, of the world's wild Asian elephants Their habitat is largely confined to the southern parts of Yunnan Officials are trying to lure the lost elephants home with food bait Asian elephants are native to the south-western province of Yunnan, but one herd has migrated unusually far northward this year, leaving a trail of destruction as they marched through farms and villages. The plight of the herd has caused great concern among China's online community, with live streams closely following the elephants' progress and drones monitoring from above. Loading "It's hard to tell the exact reason for this specific herd's migration, but if talking about the bigger picture, the biggest challenge for Asian elephants in Yunnan is habitat loss," said Pan Wenjing, the Forest and Ocean Project Manager for Greenpeace. Local media says the herd of 15 elephants has caused over 400 incidents and more than $1 million in damage since wandering out of a nature reserve area in mid-April.