Elephant poaching in Burma is on the rise amid an increasing demand for ivory and other products made from elephant parts, such as its skin, which is used in traditional medicine.

A group of alleged elephant poachers including a local village official were detained in Rangoon Division’s Taikkyi township in connection with the recent killing of an elephant.

A wild elephant on Sunday rampaged through Lu Thant Inn village in Taikkyi Township, north of the commercial capital Yangon, destroying six houses and a monastery.

The World Wildlife Fund releases a statement calling on governments in Southeast Asia to actively combat the surge in elephant skinning taking place in Burma.

A strategy to protect Burma's wild and captive elephants well into the next century has been released by the government and international NGO's.

A rainbow-headed snake and a dragon-like lizard are among 163 new species that scientists recently discovered in the Greater Mekong region, conservation group WWF said on Monday, adding rapid development in the area, from dams to mines, was threatening wildlife survival.