ELEPHANT POACHING IN AFRICA
Illegal Hunters Are Killing African Elephants At An Alarming Rate. Photo: nickandme|2006
Illegal Hunting Is Endangering The Last Of The Wild Elephants In Africa
The African elephant ranks among the most majestic animals in the world. Not only is the elephant earth’s largest land animal, but it is also one of the most intelligent creatures, and its life span is almost as long as ours. When elephant mothers are pregnant, they carry their their unborn babies for more than twice as long as a human mother does. Elephants live in family groups where they take care of one another.
Unfortunately, illegal hunting, or poaching, of elephants has increased greatly over the last 10 years. So many thousands of elephants are now killed all over Africa each year that the animals are in danger of vanishing from the wild.
The poachers’ reason for killing the elephants is to sell their ivory tusks, which bring a high price in China and other Asian countries where the ivory is carved into ornaments and jewelry. The tusks are so valuable that more and more poachers are willing to risk their lives to get them—and the rangers who try to protect the elephants are being overwhelmed. Often the poachers have better equipment—including helicopters—than the rangers do.
Until recent decades, millions of elephants roamed the forests and grasslands of Africa. Now there are fewer than 450,000, and the numbers are dropping fast. It is clear that African countries can’t stop this problem on their own; people all over the world need to help. One of the most effective actions would be for China to stop purchasing ivory.
Extra for kids: If you’d like to learn more about how the elephant fits into its food chain, visit our siser website, What Eats?, to read about what eats an elephant?
