YUNAN PROVINCE,China (CNN) -- Wild elephants have been visiting fields in some villages of southwest China's Yunan Province for the last several days, destroying a multitude of crops.
A farmer in Mansaihao Village, Jinghong City, said she has lost two hundred banana plants, more than 30 three-year-old rubber trees and three acres of corn.
Another farmer named Ma Hongjun said fourteen wild elephants began to visit his farm on March 1 and had trampled more than 1000 banana plants.
"We kept watching at night, on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, but it was futile as there was nothing you could do to prevent such giant creatures from doing whatever they wanted to do," said Ma.
He could receive 10 yuan in compensation for each damaged plant from the government, but he would still sustain a loss of nearly 60,000 yuan, he said.
The Chinese government began to distribute five million yuan annually in compensation for losses caused by wild animals from forests in Xishuang Banna Dai Autonomous Prefecture from 2004.
Jiangcheng Hani and Yi Autonomous County has also seen wild Asian elephants wandering around villages. According to authority, the number of wild elephants residing near Dongzhen Town has climbed to 23 since the first 10 wild elephants entered the town area last October.
The local government has organized a work team to detect trails left by wild elephants and at the same time inform villagers of how to avoid conflict with elephants.
Asian elephants, distributed mainly in southeast Asia, are the largest living land animals in Asia. The elephants are listed as the first-class animal under the state protection in China.