Poaching and the ivory trade have left the African Forest Elephant on the brink of extinction, researchers report.
According to a new study conducted by a team of international researchers, the African forest elephants are on the brink of extinction owning to poaching and ivory trading. The study finds 62 percent of the elephants have already been killed for their ivory in the last ten years. The study was undertaken by researchers from the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and several other conservation organizations.
"The analysis confirms what conservationists have feared: the rapid trend towards extinction-potentially within the next decade-of the forest elephant," said Samantha Strindberg of the Wildlife Conservation Society and the study's lead author.
Research material for the study included data compiled from surveys and fieldwork and included contributions from over 60 scientists between 2002 and 2011 across the span of five African countries, including Cameroon, Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon and the Republic of Congo.
"Historically, elephants ranged right across the forests of this vast region of over 2 million square kilometers (more than 772,000 square miles), but now cower in just a quarter of that area," said John Hart of the Lukuru Foundation and the study's co-author. "Although the forest cover remains, it is empty of elephants, demonstrating that this is not a habitat degradations issue. This is almost entirely due to poaching."
Findings of the study are published in the scientific journal PLoS One.
