Want to save Africa's elephants? Close all ivory markets

• Much
 forest 
elephant 
habitat
 lies
 within 
countries
 with
 a
 history 
of 
civil
 unrest
 and
 poverty, 
both
 of
 which 
increase
 the 
incentive 
for
 poaching.

• Logging
 roads
 are
 penetrating
 the
 equatorial 
African
 forests 
at
 a
 rapid
 rate,
 making
 remote
 areas 
more
 accessible,
 and
 bringing
 in
 workers
 who
 kill
 elephants
 for
 bush meat
 as
 well
 as
 ivory.
 Despite
 the
 current 
ivory
 trade 
ban,
 in
 some
 Congo
 basin
 forests,
it
 is
 estimated
 that
 10%
 of 
the
 elephant 
population
 is
 poached
 annually. 
If
 trade 
resumes,
the 
level
 of 
illegal 
killing 
will
 increase,
as
 tusks
 will
 be
 smuggled
 to
 countries
 where
 sales 
are
 profitable
 and
 legal.

• The 
ivory
 of
 forest 
elephants
 is
 denser
 than
 that
 of
 savannah
 elephants,
and
 more
 desirable 
to
 carvers.
 Like
 the
 Asian
 elephant’s
 similarly
 ‘hard’
 ivory, 
it
 fetches 
a
 higher
 price
 on
 the
 ivory
 market 
than 
ivory 
from
 savannah
 elephants.

• Forest
 elephants
 are
 difficult 
to
 census
 due
 to 
their
 dense 
habitat.
Therefore,
very
 few
 populations 
are
 being
 monitored 
and
 extensive
 poaching
 could
 occur 
before
 it
 was
 detected.
 For
 this 
reason 
forest
 elephants
 will
 be
 particularly 
vulnerable 
if
 trade
 resumes.

• Found
 in
 Central
 and
 West
 Africa, 
forest 
elephants
 may
 number 
from
 as
 few
 as
 24,000 
to
 as
 many
 as
 209,000. 
The
 dramatic 
difference
 between
 these
 responsible
 estimates
 of
 their
 numbers 
underscores 
the
 need 
for
 better
 understanding
 o f
this 
species
 in 
the
 face
 of 
alarming
 evidence
 about
 current
 trends 
in
 habitat
 loss
 and
 poaching.

• The
 forest
 elephant
 (Loxodonta 
cyclotis) is
 morphologically 
distinct
 from
 the
 savannah
 elephant
( Loxodonta africana)
 –
smaller 
in 
size,
 smaller 
more 
rounded
 ears,
and
 straighter, 
thinner,
 more
 dense
 tusks.

• The
 average
 family
 size
 of
 forest 
elephants 
may
be
 smaller 
than
 that
 of
 the
 savannah
 species,
 but
 there
 are
 few 
data 
on
 functional 
group
 sizes 
for
 elephants
 in
 the
 forest.
 Data
 from 
one
 forest
 clearing,
 Dzanga‐Sangha 
National
 Park
 and
 Special
 Reserve,
 in
 the
 Central
 African
 Republic ,
suggest
 a
 group
 size
 of 
only
 3.2
 individuals
 compared
 to
 an
 average
 of
 10
 in
 Manyara
 National
 Park,
Tanzania.

• DNA
 analysis
 has
 shown
 that
 African
 savanna
 and
 forest
 elephants
 are
 genetically
 different ,
reinforcing 
clear
 ecological
 differences.
Some
 debate
 continues 
among
 scientists
 as
 to
 whether
 they
 should
 be
 considered
 distinct
 species 
or
 not.

Elephants have remarkable memories. In the wild, they appear to remember for years the relationships with dozens, perhaps hundreds of other elephants, some of whom they may see only occasionally. They also have an impressive memory for places to drink and to find food. This information gets passed on from generation to generation.

The elephant’s trunk combines both nose and upper lip and transforms them into a single powerful organ that is able to touch, grasp and smell. It is strong enough to uproot a tree, sensitive enough to pick up a pea-sized fruit from the ground, and long enough to reach foliage high in the trees. The trunk is also used to drink by sucking up water and squirting it into the mouth. The trunks are also useful for greeting, caressing, threatening, and throwing dust over the body. The elephant's trunk has about 15,000 muscles and it takes baby elephants quite some time to learn to master its use.

Elephants’ ears act as cooling devices. They can measure up to 2 square metres and they are equipped with an intricate web of blood vessels. When the animal flaps its ears, the blood temperature lowers by as much as 5°C.

Wrinkles help elephants keep their body temperature down. Wrinkles increase the surface area, so that more skin becomes wet when the animal bathes. All the cracks and crevices trap moisture, which then takes much longer to evaporate. A wrinkly elephant keeps cooler for longer than it would with smooth skin.

Elephants live in a social hierarchy dominated by older females. Females travel in long-lasting social units of about half a dozen adult females and their offspring, with the unit being led by a single older female, the matriarch.

Males do not maintain long-term social bonds, remaining in the unit only into their teens. They then live out their lives in loose bachelor groups or wandering on their own.