Elephants in Africa Suffer Large Declines as Poaching Worsens in the Region

Elephant populations in Africa fell about 20 percent between 2006 and 2015 — the worst decline in a quarter-century, according to a new report by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The continent’s elephant population dropped by 111,000 individuals over the last decade. The IUCN said a recent surge in poaching for ivory, which it called “the worst that Africa has experienced since the 1970s and 1980s,” is largely to blame for the decline. East Africa, for example, has lost almost 50 percent of its historical elephant population, according to the report. In West Africa, 12 populations of elephants have been completely lost since 2006. “It is shocking, but not surprising that poaching has taken such a dramatic toll on this iconic species,” IUCN director general Inger Andersen said in a statement. The IUCN also named habitat loss as a major contributor to the decline.