Elephant Poaching Research Paper

Poaching is the illegal killing of animals. Many animals, especially elephants are poached by hunters all over the world. Fewer than 100 years ago, millions of elephants lived on Earth. Today, there are less than half a million. Elephants are poached for their tusks made of ivory which is sold and traded all over the world. Poaching has been made so popular that the lives of elephants as a species are at stake. Elephants are endangered because of the effects of elephant poaching. Although trading of tusks was banned in 1989, many people still make a living by trading illegal ivory today. Ivory is used for numerous things, such as “billiards balls, piano keys, identification chops, etc.” (elaid.com). Some people believe that owning ivory will

The killing of even a single species will affect all other animals around it and the community where they live. Many people don’t realize that elephants are the backbone of their ecosystems. When their population changes it affects every single animals around them. Elephants use their large tusks to dig for water during the dry season and they leave dung wherever they live full of seeds which sparks new growth of plant life. In some places seed dispersal is left entirely up to the elephants. Without elephants many other animals would die off during the dry season because there is no way for them to get water on their own. There would also be less vegetation resulting in a lack of food and shelter for other

Elephants and humans once lived in a peaceful co-existence until the late 1800s when the colonization of Africa began. An ivory ban was passed in the 1980s, without this elephants might be extinct today. Ninety percent of ivory traded after this time was obtained illegally. In 1989 elephants were added to the most endangered species list, “today there are probably no more than 35,000 to 40,000 left in the wild.” (Bagheera). A major decline of elephant populations occurred in the 19th century after guns became more popular, resulting in easier slaughter of innocent elephants in both Asia and Africa. Elephants are also in competition with humans for land space, “By 2050, 63% of remaining elephant rangelands will be compromised by humans” (The