Park ranges drove a large elephant herd back into a Thai forest by shouting.

Footage shows the jumbos, estimated to be at least 15 in total, attempting to leave the woods in Surat Thani province's Kaeng Krung National Park on February 8. The herd was seen walking in groups of at least five, with formations shielding the babies between two adults.

Officers were heard crying out to the animals in the background to scare the creatures from moving closer.

A park ranger said they eventually led them back into the deeper part of the sanctuary but they had to monitor the area closely to keep them away from the roads, farms, and villages.

Teerayut Pharitanon said: ‘There could be a problem if they entered the village. The herd was big and it would take more officers to control them.

‘It's better to do some preventions like this. It would be a bigger operation to search for them and return them to the forest.'

Thailand has an estimated 2,000 Asian elephants living in the wild where they wander freely among protected forests.

There is sometimes conflict when they come into contact with humans on roads and in villages so wildlife rangers are tasked with monitoring their movements.