Elephants are the largest living land animals on Earth
today. There are two types of elephant, the Indian and the African. The
African elephant are the larger of the two and its ears are bigger. In
Asian elephants, only males have tusks, but both males and females of
African elephants have tusks and are usually less hairy than their Asian
cousins.
The threat to the African elephant presented by the ivory
trade is unique to the species. Larger, long-lived, slow-breeding
animals, like the elephant, are more susceptible to overhunting than
other animals. They cannot hide, and it takes many years for an elephant
to grow and reproduce. The Asian elephants' decline has possibly been
more gradual than the African and caused primarily by poaching and
habitat destruction by human encroachment.
Elephant hunting, both legal and illegal, has also had some unexpected consequences on elephant anatomy. African ivory hunters, by killing only tusked elephants, have given a much larger chance of mating to elephants with small tusks or no tusks at all. The propagation of the absent-tusk gene has resulted in the birth of large numbers of tuskless elephants, now approaching 30% in some populations. Tusklessness, once a rare genetic abnormality, has become a widespread hereditary trait.
Another threat to elephants' survival in general is the ongoing cultivation of their habitats with increasing risk of conflicts of interest with human cohabitants. These conflicts kill 150 elephants and up to 100 people per year in Sri Lanka. The Asian elephants' demise can be attributed mostly to loss of its habitat. For African elephants, a technique was introduced successfully in 2011 that largely prevented savannah elephants from raiding farmers' croplands. Beehive fences were put around farming areas scaring the elephants away from the areas and providing the farmers with an additional source of income. Some farmers also mix elephant poo and chili to a brick and dry it. Then the put it on fire and the elephant runs away from the farmers crop becouse of the smell.
Elephant hunting, both legal and illegal, has also had some unexpected consequences on elephant anatomy. African ivory hunters, by killing only tusked elephants, have given a much larger chance of mating to elephants with small tusks or no tusks at all. The propagation of the absent-tusk gene has resulted in the birth of large numbers of tuskless elephants, now approaching 30% in some populations. Tusklessness, once a rare genetic abnormality, has become a widespread hereditary trait.
Another threat to elephants' survival in general is the ongoing cultivation of their habitats with increasing risk of conflicts of interest with human cohabitants. These conflicts kill 150 elephants and up to 100 people per year in Sri Lanka. The Asian elephants' demise can be attributed mostly to loss of its habitat. For African elephants, a technique was introduced successfully in 2011 that largely prevented savannah elephants from raiding farmers' croplands. Beehive fences were put around farming areas scaring the elephants away from the areas and providing the farmers with an additional source of income. Some farmers also mix elephant poo and chili to a brick and dry it. Then the put it on fire and the elephant runs away from the farmers crop becouse of the smell.
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