NEW DELHI — India’s wild elephant population estimates have dropped sharply by a quarter, a government survey incorporating a new DNA system has found, marking the most accurate but sobering count yet.

India is home to the majority of the world’s remaining wild Asian elephants, a species listed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and increasingly threatened by shrinking habitat.

The Wildlife Institute of India’s new All-India Elephant Estimation report released this week puts the wild elephant population at 22,446 — down from nearly 29,964 estimated in 2017, a fall of 25 percent.

The survey drew on genetic analysis of more than 21,000 dung samples, alongside a vast network of camera traps and 667,000 kilometres (414,400 miles) of foot surveys.

But

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