The Onslaught on Elephants [IGNORE]

African elephant poaching has slowly declined in the past five years, but many are still being killed for their tusks. The overall population declined by 110,000 in the last decade.

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African Elephant range

An African elephant tusk can grow to 3.5 meters in length. That's almost as long as a 1964 Volkswagon Beetle.

An African elephant tusk can grow to 3.5 meters in length. That's almost as long as a 1964 Volkswagon Beetle.

In the 1500s, when Europeans first began exploring Africa, researchers believe there were about 26 million elephants on the continent.

The cross-section of elephant tusks display a unique set of cross-hatching lines called Schreger lines.

25

Over the last decade, the total number of elephants in Africa is believed to have decreased by over 18% between 2006 and 2015.

MILLIONS OF ELEPHANTS

20

15

508,325

415,428

By 1913 the elephant population had declined to about 10 million.

10

These lines enable investigators to determine if seized ivory is synthetic, from mammoth tusks or from poached Elephants.

5

0

2006

2015

1500

1600

1700

1800

1900

2000

YEAR

African elephants

There are two types of African elephants, the savanna and the forest elephant. They are as genetically distinct from each other as the Asian elephant is from the woolly mammoth.

3.0m

2.0m

1.0m

Savanna elephants

Loxodonta africana

 

Height: 3.5 meters

Weight: 2,250 - 6,350.29 kg

Estimated number: 352,271

Forest Elephants

Loxodonta cyclotis

 

Height: 2.5 meters

Weight: 2,700 kg

Estimated number: Less than 100,000

Asian Elephants

Elephas maximus

 

Height: 1.8 to 3.8 meters

Weight: 2,750 and 5,420 kilograms

Estimated number: Less than 50,000

Leaflet | Map tiles by Stamen Design, CC BY 3.0 — Map data © OpenStreetMap

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Tanzania

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Elephant population (1996 - 2014)

Tanzania

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Elephant population (1996 - 2014)

Tanzania

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation.

Elephant population (1996 - 2014)

Tanzania

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation.

Elephant population (1996 - 2014)

Tanzania

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation.

Elephant population (1996 - 2014)

Tanzania

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation.

Elephant population (1996 - 2014)

African elephant poaching has slowly declined in the past five years, but many are still being killed for their tusks. The overall population declined by 110,000 in the last decade.

NOTE: We’re not currently using this.