Laws forbidding the capture and taming of wild animals in Sri Lanka has meant that the number of domestic, native working elephants has declined. Officials believe the financial crisis in Thailand will make the elephants relatively cheap.

Working elephants used to be a relatively common sight in Sri Lanka, in Buddhist temples, at festivals and in the countryside transporting logs. However, the numbers have fallen by more than half in the past 60 years and there are now only about 400 working elephants left in Sri Lanka.

The shortage was caused by legislation which banned the capture of elephants in the wild.

As the older generation died off there was no way of replacing them, as working elephants rarely have a chance to breed and only seven have been born among domesticated elephants in the past 50 years.

The deputy wildlife director, Nandana Atapattu, said that more than 100 Buddhist temples were looking for elephants which are considered sacred and are an integral part of the religious processions.

Mr Atapattu said they were planning to start by bringing in 10 elephants from Thailand. He said that Thailand, which has experienced a financial crisis, would provide the elephants at a cheap price because of the weakness of the local currency.

In Sri Lanka, the most sought-after elephants can cost up to $80,000.