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Daily Mail​

Year-long great elephant migration ends in Beverly Hills as beasts shock by strolling past Rodeo Drive

It was a most peculiar sight to behold in ritzy Beverly Hills - a herd of 100 elephants marching past Rodeo Drive. At a quick glance you would be forgiven for thinking that the trunked beasts emerging from the dark were the real deal however they are purely very life-like sculptures and part of the Great Elephant Migration project. The herd of beasts have been on quite the journey after they started in Newport, Rhode Island, on July 4 last year and traveled 5,000 miles across the country taking in places from New York City to Miami Beach, the Vegas Strip and Houston. 'They have crossed oceans, highways, beaches and endless plains. Walked clifftops & cobblestones through sand and snow. Made millions of friends and spoken for all animals great and small,' the Great Elephant Migration wrote on its official Instagram. 'Their migration speaks for the millions of wild animals navigating plantations, highways, and urban spaces around the world through their story from India where they live alongside their creators, @therealeleco, who live alongside their real-life counterparts and know them as extended family.' The elephants are made out of West Indian Lantana, an invasive weed that pushes elephants out of their natural habitats in the country. The artwork was created by 200 indigenous artists in the Bettakurumba, Paniya, Kattunayakan and Soliga communities of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve. The art exhibition is a global fundraising project that also aims to raise awareness about the beasts. The Great Elephant Migration website explained: 'In the last 30 years the population of India has doubled to 1.4 billion. 'Remarkably, the population of elephants, rhinos, lions and tigers has also doubled over this period. 'They coexist in extraordinary ways, tolerating each other and constantly negotiating space. 'India's elephants are flagships for coexistence with 80 percent of their range outside of Protected Areas. 'In Gudalur, in the Nilgiri Hills, 150 elephants share space with a quarter of a million people. 'Humans and elephants share the same land, food and water, but still find ways to live alongside each other relatively peacefully. 'A range of beliefs and practices emphasize respect and reverence for nature. India's ancient cultures go hand in hand with a range of modern technologies, from smart fences to AI based monitoring systems. 'Their remarkable relationship with wildlife is ultimately down to a collective empathy for other living beings at a national scale. The elephant sculptures are available to purchase for between $8,000 and $22,000. The website stated that money raised through The Great Elephant Migration will be directed to projects that protect biodiversity and enable people and wildlife to share space. Beverly Hills Mayor Sharona Nazarian welcomed the sculptures this week and said: 'The Great Elephant Migration is more than an art installation. 'It's a powerful sign of unity... and a reminder of our joint responsibility to protect our planet and wildlife.' Spanning four blocks along Santa Monica Boulevard from Rodeo Drive to Rexford Drive, the sculptures will remain on display until August 1.