African Elephant Populations in Rapid Decline

African Elephant Population Declines By 30 Percent

That is between 2007 and 2014. In terms of absolute numbers, the population declined by 144,000 animals in just seven years. I don't know about you but to me, a 30% decline in just seven years seems very alarming.

And the reason appears to be none other than poaching:

Quote:

Much of the decline in the elephant population is due to illegal poaching by people who sell elephant tusks on the Chinese market, as NPR has reported. Past estimates of how many elephants are illegally killed were based on models and incomplete carcass counts, as opposed to comparing population numbers. The new survey finds tens of thousands of elephants are being killed each year.

If we could somehow end that practice, maybe the populations could recover, but look what has happened to the rhinos: one whole species of rhinos is now effectively extinct. A very few individuals remain but they appear to be past the age where they might produce offspring.

BTW, there were previous threads about elephants here and here, but I decided it's better to just start a new one.

via International Skeptics Forum http://ift.tt/2bWEGYV