Elephant attack kills elderly Indonesian

JAKARTA, March 4 (UPI) -- A herd of Sumatran elephants attacked Indonesian villagers in Bengkalis regency Wednesday killing an 83-year-old man, officials say.

A spokesman for the Riau province Natural Resource Conservation Agency says attacks on humans occur because oil palm plantations and other settlements have encroached on the elephants' natural habitat, The Jakarta Post reports.

The spokesman says a team from the conservation agency is being sent to the area to investigate the incident and asks villagers not to attempt to kill the elephants in retaliation.

The Sumatran elephant is the smallest of the Asian elephants and like the Sumatran tiger, is an endangered species.