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| DEER PARK HOTEL'S
MAHOUT CLUB WINS GOLD FOR CONSERVATION |
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"The Mahout Club provides a
unique opportunity for visitors and local stakeholders
to gain respect and understanding of indigenous wildlife."
–
PATA Judging Committee in the Gold Awards 2006. |
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The
Mahout Adventure Club has swept the Gold award at the 2006 PATA
Awards for its sterling work in elephant and snake conservation.
The adventure club, founded on strong conservation principles,
has revolutionized soft adventure in Sri Lanka for legions of
intrepid adventurers. Its team of highly trained ornithologists,
herpetologists and naturalists, continue to give visitors a
thrilling and informative introduction to wildlife in Sri Lanka.
A must for any visit to the Deer Park hotel!
Known for its rejection of cruel practices like elephant rides
for tourists, the Mahout Club continues with its award-winning
initiatives to safeguard the elephant's well being in Giritale
and Polonnaruwa. Part of this effort involves educating rural
farmers on natural, non-aggressive means of protecting their
fields from trespassing elephants.
Similarly, the Snake Awareness and Conservation Program came
about when the Club discovered that snakes were needlessly being
killed by rural villagers. This was attributed to a lack of
knowledge of the different species of snake and an inability
to identify which were harmful. Mahout team members quickly
addressed this widely held prejudice, by giving lectures and
training sessions at local schools, hospitals and temples. Villagers
were taught the importance of snakes in maintaining the ecological
balance and advised to inform the club if snakes were found
in their homes or fields. Snake handlers were then tasked with
capturing and releasing the snakes into jungles at a safe distance
from human habitation. This initiative continues to save about
thirty to forty snakes a month, many of which are an integral
part of Sri Lanka’s rich ecological heritage.
>> Back to Mahout
Club main
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