Avid photographer Darmin documents elephant photos as part of his passion. — Photos by Darmin Labido
From capturing random images, photographer now focuses on documenting elephants and their activities.
PHOTOGRAPHY has always been a passion for Darmin Labido (pic), who usually picks up his camera after teaching hours. Initially, he only captured random images to fuel his hobby.
Everything changed seven years ago when he spotted a herd of 20 to 30 elephants walking along Kalabakan Road in Sabah.
“The whole area used to be a forest, which was their home. But development took place, and a road was built in the middle, dividing their former habitat into two areas.
“I believe they were just following their usual trail in search of food and ended up on the road. That was my first experience seeing elephants live. It was surreal,” said the 50-year-old, who teaches at SK Umas-Umas in Tawau.
He has a photo of that moment as proof, along with many other sightings.
Elephants have now become his subject of interest, and he has since documented their activities.
With his jumbo collection of photos, Darmin actively shares the mammals’ “cuteness” on social media.
Recalling his first encounters, Darmin, who has taught Bahasa Malaysia at the school for 27 years, said he had to stay at the teachers’ quarters for the first seven years due to poor road conditions.
“I never came across an elephant while staying there. Now that the road has been improved, I have moved and drive to and from work, about 50km away from my home.
“It was only 10 years ago that I began to see elephants in the wild. I guess they are moving out to find food as their habitat has grown smaller due to development and more oil palm plantations.
“Some say only the lucky ones will see elephants in the wild, so my first time was very exciting. I still get excited whenever I see them, even today,” said Darmin.
Sightings of Sabah’s iconic Bornean elephant, or pygmy elephant, have become common lately, with many “visiting” villages around Felda Umas, Benta Wawasan (Dumpas), Kalabakan, and Luasong, which used to be their habitat.
Since the mammals have begun venturing out of their habitat, Darmin said signboards have been erected at elephant crossings to caution motorists.
Currently, they seem to be attracted to the exposed edible palm hearts, which grow out of chopped non-productive palm oil trees. The palm heart is a delicacy in various cuisines and is known for its tender and mild flavour.
An elephant walking past heavy machinery in the background. Sightings of Sabah’s iconic Bornean elephant have become common lately, with many ‘visiting’ villages around Felda Umas, Benta Wawasan (Dumpas), Kalabakan, and Luasong, which used to be their habitat.
Often, the elephants are seen feasting on these crops, not minding the heavy machinery involved in development or tree replanting works.
While acknowledging that human-elephant conflict exists, mainly due to competition for space, Darmin said there have been no reports of elephant killings or abuse in the area.
“I sometimes see postings about villagers complaining about elephants ‘trespassing’ into their plantations and causing damage, but that is as far as it goes.
“Of course, they call on relevant bodies and authorities to help manage the issue. But alternatively, they build fences to stop elephants from coming in,” he said.
Recently, the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species listed Borneo elephants, a distinct subspecies of Asian elephants, as endangered. In total, there are just about 1,000 left, including 400 breeding adults, primarily found in Sabah, with a small population in Indonesia’s Kalimantan.
The IUCN has called for urgent conservation efforts to protect these genetically unique elephants.
This species, which was separated from other elephant populations tens to hundreds of thousands of years ago, are smaller and have distinct skull shapes.
The Borneo elephants’ peaceful nature has earned them the nickname “gentle giant”.
According to the IUCN, pygmy elephants have unfortunately lost about 60% of their forest habitat in the last 40 years, primarily due to logging and the planting of commercial oil palm trees.
