Elephant Project
Elephants are among the most intelligent of the creatures with whom we share the planet, with complex consciousnesses that are capable of strong emotions. Across Africa they have inspired respect from the people that share the landscape with them, giving them a strong cultural significance. As icons of the continent elephants are tourism magnets, attracting funding that helps protect wilderness areas. They are also keystone species, playing an important role in maintaining the biodiversity of the ecosystems in which they live.
During the dry season, elephants use their tusks to dig for water. This not only allows the elephants to survive in dry environments and when droughts strike, but also provides water for other animals that share harsh habitats.
When forest elephants eat, they create gaps in the vegetation. These gaps allow new plants to grow and create pathways for other smaller animals to use. They are also one of the major ways in which trees disperse their seeds; some species rely entirely upon elephants for seed dispersal.
On the savannahs, elephants feeding on tree sprouts and shrubs help to keep the plains open and able to support the plains game that inhabit these ecosystems.
Wherever they live, elephants leave dung that is full of seeds from the many plants they eat. When this dung is deposited the seeds are sown and grow into new grasses, bushes and trees, boosting the health of the savannah ecosystem.
Between 1970 and 1990, many thousands of elephants were killed for their ivory, leaving the African elephant populations at an estimated number of 300,000–600,000. Populations remain stable and high in much of Southern Africa, while the threat to eastern populations is increasing as poaching is rising. The latest estimates of the total number of African elephants range between 419,000 and 650,000 elephants.
Threats:
The ivory trade has wiped elephants from most of their former range. An estimated 100,000 elephants were killed for their ivory in Africa between 2010 and 2012. The ivory trade is fueling organized crime and insecurity as traffickers smuggle tusks through the same networks as other high-value illegal goods such as drugs. Ultimately, the trade is driven by demand for ivory in consumer countries, mostly in the East, where it is sought after as a status symbol and an investment.
Additionally, elephants are increasingly being crowded out of their habitats. Humans are encroaching these lands for farming and infrastructural development, which leaves elephants with small patches of disconnected land.
Conservation Solutions:
Conservation efforts within the Samburu National Reserve in Kenya focus on radio-tracking elephants and community conservation carrying out rigorous studies of elephants, including elephant collaring and more recently, sophisticated elephant-tracking techniques. In order to secure a future for elephants in harmony with people, conservation projects of elephants and their environment involve research on movements, ecology, and behaviour, as well as link with community initiatives.
To combat poaching, many groups work with wildlife departments, protected area managers, and communities to assist their efforts to defend elephants against ivory poachers and traffickers. This is done by developing and deploying cutting edge tracking systems to monitor and protect elephants.
Additionally, as a response to the growth of Africa’s human population, which is set to double by 2050, creating enormous pressures for elephants, organizations provide information on elephant movements for landscape planners to protect rangeland and create innovative solutions to prevent elephants from raiding crops.
Information sourced from Save the Elephants