While the main threat to Asian elephants is loss of habitat, ivory poaching is also a significant problem.
It is estimated that 300-400 Asian elephants are killed for their tusks every year, compared to thousands of African elephants. However, there is roughly only one Asian elephant to every ten African elephants, and unlike their African relatives, where both sexes have tusks, only male Asian elephants possess tusks of any significance, so targeting adult males has resulted in a ratio of just one male to 100 females in some areas. Any poaching of Asian elephants for their ivory can therefore have a very detrimental impact on populations.
On the ground, the popular tourist destination of Kerala State in India is sadly one of the hotspots for ivory poaching in Asia, and Elephant Family has therefore been investing in measures to help the forest department stay one step ahead of the poachers. In the meantime, as a member of the Species Survival Network, Elephant Family provides a voice for Asian elephants on issues relating to the international trade in ivory.
Elephant Family is opposed to any action that could exacerbate the trade in illegal sales of ivory, such as one-off legal sales of confiscated ivory.
But ultimately a combination of measures are required to prevent elephants being killed for their tusks:
- Efforts to prevent poaching and stop the supply of ivory must be improved;
- Law enforcement initiatives need to be enhanced to prevent the illegal trade;
- And much greater awareness of the issue is required to reduce the demand for elephant ivory.
Elephant Family has helped fund the ground-breaking research into the ivory trade in China, which makes recommendations to help significantly reduce the illegal trade. Download - The Ivory Dynasty: A report on the soaring demand for elephant and mammoth ivory in southern China (pdf - 550 kb)
