On 14 September, Da Nang’s Special Forest Management Board announced the detection of a nine‑elephant herd – seven adults and two calves within the Quế Phước wildlife sanctuary. The discovery was confirmed through a network of 30 camera traps deployed at 15 strategic sites after a 2025 tip from local residents in Nà Lau about possible elephant activity.
Director Lê Hoàng Sơn explained that the cameras captured the herd moving across the reserve on 9 April, with the images only recently analysed after exhaustive review of hundreds of memory cards. The two calves, estimated to be between two and five years old, are the youngest recorded in the area and signal successful natural reproduction. This herd surpasses the previous high of six individuals recorded nine years ago, marking the largest elephant group ever documented in the sanctuary.
The management employs dual monitoring approaches: a systematic grid of camera traps to assess overall species composition, and targeted traps at feeding sites, water sources, and movement corridors to monitor key fauna. Besides Asian elephants, the cameras recorded other threatened species such as large pangolins, Trường Sơn pangolins, brown and gray snub‑nosed langurs, white pheasants and star pheasants.
Complementary technologies, including drones and SMART software, supported 520 patrols in the first four months of the year, leading to the removal of numerous illegal camps and traps. By restricting human access to core elephant habitats, the board has maintained a healthy, mobile herd and gathered critical data to delineate priority protection zones and refine patrol routes, reinforcing the reserve’s conservation effectiveness.