Thailand uses a birth control vaccine to curb its elephant population near expanding farms

BANGKOK (AP) — Thailand has begun using a birth control vaccine on elephants in the wild to try and curb a growing problem where human and animal populations encroach on each other — an issue in areas where farms spread into forests and elephants are squeezed out of their natural habitat.

The initiative is part of efforts to address confrontations that can turn deadly. As farmers cut down forests to make more farmland, elephants are forced to venture out of their shrinking habitats in search of food.

Last year, wild elephants killed 30 people and injured 29 in Thailand, according to official figures, which also noted more than 2,000 incidents of elephants damaging crops.

Sukhee Boonsang, director of the Wildlife Conservation Office, recently told The Associated Press that controlling the wild elephant population has become necessary as numbers of elephants living near residential areas rises sharply, increasing the risk of confrontations.

The office obtained 25 doses of a U.S.-made vaccine and conducted a two-year trial on seven domesticated elephants — using up seven doses of the vaccine — which yielded promising results, he said. He explained the vaccine doesn't stop female elephants from ovulating but prevents eggs from being fertilized.

Then, in late January, the vaccine was administered to three wild elephants in eastern Trat province, he said, adding that authorities are now determining which areas to target next as they prepare to use up the remaining 15 doses.

The vaccine can prevent pregnancy for seven years and the elephants will be able to reproduce again if they don’t receive a booster after that time expires. Experts will closely monitor the vaccinated elephants throughout the seven-year period.

The vaccination drive has drawn criticism that it might undermine conservation efforts. Thailand has a centuries-old tradition of using domesticated elephants in farming and transportation. Elephants are also a big part of Thailand’s national identity — and have been officially proclaimed a symbol of the nation.

Sukhee said the program targets only wild elephants in areas with the highest rates of violent human-elephant conflict. Official statistics show a birth rate of wild elephants in these regions at approximately 8.2% per year, more than double the national average of around 3.5%.

About 800 out of the nation’s approximately 4,400 wild elephants live in these conflict-prone areas, Sukhee said.

“If we don’t take action, the impact on people living in these areas will continue to grow until it becomes unmanageable,” he said.

In addition to the contraception vaccine, authorities have implemented other measures to reduce conflict, Sukhee said, such as creating additional water and food sources within the forests where elephants live, constructing protective fencing, and deploying rangers to guide elephants that stray into residential areas back into the wild.

A court-ordered operation earlier this month to remove wild elephants that have repeatedly clashed with locals in northeastern Khon Kaen province sparked a public outcry after one elephant died during the relocation process.

An initial autopsy revealed that the elephant died from choking after anesthesia was administered ahead of the move, officials said.

The Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation carried out the relocation effort, and its director general, Athapol Charoenshunsa, expressed regret over the incident while insisting that protocol was followed properly. He said an investigation was underway to prevent such incidents from happening again.

In this photo released by Thailand Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation, officials use a pair of binoculars to monitor wild elephants after they received elephant contraception vaccines in the Trat province of Thailand, Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026. (Thailand Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation via AP)

In this photo released by Thailand Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation, wild elephants gather after receiving an elephant contraception vaccine in the Trat province of Thailand, Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026. (Thailand Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation via AP)

In this photo released by Thailand Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation, officials prepare elephant contraception vaccines for wild elephants in the Trat province of Thailand, Monday, Jan. 26, 2026. (Thailand Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation via AP)

This photo released by Thailand Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation shows a wild elephant after it received an elephant contraception vaccine in the Trat province of Thailand, Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026. (Thailand Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation via AP)

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — The powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said Friday it was “sensible” for a South Korean government official to express regret for alleged civilian drone flights over North Korea but warned of counterattacks if they recur.

The statement by Kim Yo Jong came after South Korean Unification Minister Chung Dong-young on Tuesday expressed “deep regret” over the alleged flights and stressed that Seoul’s liberal government seeks “mutual recognition and peaceful coexistence” between the war-divided rivals.

North Korea threatened retaliation last month after accusing South Korea of launching a surveillance drone flight in September and again in January.

The South Korean government has denied operating any drones during the times specified by North Korea but law enforcement authorities are investigating three civilians suspected of flying drones into the North from border areas.

The development threatens to further dampen prospects for a push by Seoul to resume long-stalled talks with North Korea amid a deepening nuclear standoff.

Kim Yo Jong said Chung’s comments displayed “sensible behavior” but were insufficient as a government response, demanding stronger measures from Seoul to prevent similar activities in the future.

“I give advance warning that reoccurrence of such provocation as violating the inalienable sovereignty of the DPRK will surely provoke a terrible response,” she said, using the initials of North Korea’s formal name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

“Various counterattack plans are on the table and one of them will be chosen without doubt and it will go beyond proportionality,” she said without specifying.

The Unification Ministry, which handles inter-Korean affairs, said the alleged drone flights ran counter to the government’s principles of reducing tensions and that it plans to take unspecified steps to prevent similar incidents.

Analysts say North Korea’s drone accusations were likely driven by its efforts to dial up anti-South Korea sentiments ahead of the ruling Workers’ Party congress in late February. North Korea could add leader Kim Jong Un’s declaration of a hostile “two-state” system on the Korean Peninsula in the party constitution during the congress, the first of its kind in five years.

There have been no public talks between the Koreas since 2019 and drone flights are a source of animosity between the rivals.

FILE - A North Korean military guard post, top, and a South Korean post, bottom, are seen from Paju, South Korea, near the border with North Korea, on June 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon, File)

FILE - This photo provided by the North Korean government, Kim Yo Jong, sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, delivers a speech during a national meeting against the coronavirus, in Pyongyang, North Korea, on Aug. 10, 2022. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP, File)