Seven wild elephant carcasses have been discovered in a canal near Hadapanvilluwa in Polonnaruwa.

It is suspected that the elephants had drowned and died of suffocation due to a thick layer of water hyacinth floating in the canal after the recent floods.

Local residents reported that at least five of the carcasses were of elephant calves.

They said that the animals drowned while attempting to cross the canal, urging authorities to clear the growth of water hyacinth in the canal.