Ivory Poaching Research Articles

Elephants rest more when the poaching risk is high and do not recover the lost time within a diel cycle

Poaching for ivory has caused disturbances in the behaviour of elephants. The nature and magnitude of such disturbance are not yet fully understood. Here, we studied the daily activity cycles of 10 elephants tracked for a minimum of two years each in the Samburu ecosystem in Kenya. The elephants were tracked over a spatial or temporal gradient of poaching risk in their distribution area. Laikipia Samburu landscape is shared with humans and is a mosaic of land ownership and management practices, all of which lead to varied levels of illegal killing. Using movement data of elephants tracked on various dates between 2002 and 2016, we studied the daily activity cycle when they were in their different core areas. Using Generalized Additive Models, we found that elephants moved less around midday in high poaching areas. Despite the adaptive shift in activity times, elephants were moving for fewer hours per day in areas with higher risk, reducing total movement daily in risky areas or times. The elephants lost one hour daily from their usual movement time when they went into high-risk areas, which they did not compensate for despite increased activity at dawn and dusk. The level of illegal killing was the best explanatory variable for altering the activity cycle. We infer that such risk avoidance behaviour culminates in the potential reduction of foraging efforts in a risky area. A deficit in their activity time may have consequences for their social life, reproduction, or overall foraging success, aspects of elephant ecology that are not fully understood yet. We discuss the results in light of the increasing need for more fine-scale temporal analyses of the influence of risk on the diel activity of elephants for sites that achieve both movement data and verified records of causes of elephant deaths.

Land use drives differential resource selection by African elephants in the Greater Mara Ecosystem, Kenya

Understanding drivers of space use by African elephants is critical to their conservation and management, particularly given their large home-ranges, extensive resource requirements, ecological role as ecosystem engineers, involvement in human-elephant conflict and as a target species for ivory poaching. In this study we investigated resource selection by elephants inhabiting the Greater Mara Ecosystem in Southwestern Kenya in relation to three distinct but spatially contiguous management zones: (i) the government protected Maasai Mara National Reserve (ii) community-owned wildlife conservancies, and (iii) elephant range outside any formal wildlife protected area. We combined GPS tracking data from 49 elephants with spatial covariate information to compare elephant selection across these management zones using a hierarchical Bayesian framework, providing insight regarding how human activities structure elephant spatial behavior. We also contrasted differences in selection by zone across several data strata: sex, season and time-of-day. Our results showed that the strongest selection by elephants was for closed-canopy forest and the strongest avoidance was for open-cover, but that selection behavior varied significantly by management zone and selection for cover was accentuated in human-dominated areas. When contrasting selection parameters according to strata, variability in selection parameter values reduced along a protection gradient whereby elephants tended to behave more similarly (limited plasticity) in the human dominated, unprotected zone and more variably (greater plasticity) in the protected reserve. However, avoidance of slope was consistent across all zones. Differences in selection behavior was greatest between sexes, followed by time-of-day, then management zone and finally season (where seasonal selection showed the least differentiation of the contrasts assessed). By contrasting selection coefficients across strata, our analysis quantifies behavioural switching related to human presence and impact displayed by a cognitively advanced megaherbivore. Our study broadens the knowledge base about the movement ecology of African elephants and builds our capacity for both management and conservation.

Unveiling poaching patterns and threat sources for informed conservation in southeast Angola

Poaching poses a significant threat to wildlife and ecosystems in southeast Angola, yet comprehensive studies to inform effective conservation strategies have been lacking. This novel study systematically assesses the spatial distribution and influencing factors of poaching activities in the region. Utilizing data from extensive patrolling efforts and predictive modeling, the hotspots and risk zones for wire-snares, gin traps, elephant poaching, and poaching camps are delineated. Our findings reveal distinctive socio-political and geo-ecological patterns governing each type of illegal activity. Wire-snares and gin traps display clear socio-political correlates, with proximity to towns and villages influencing their prevalence. These findings advocate for strategic placement of patrol stations and underscore the need for expanded law enforcement efforts to mitigate these threats. Conversely, elephant poaching for ivory exhibits transboundary influences, with heightened risk zones along international borders. This highlights the urgency of collaborative, transboundary management strategies to counteract external drivers of elephant poaching. Geo-ecologically, closed habitats dominated by woody vegetation, such as shrublands and closed woodlands, are favored for wire-snares and gin traps, likely due to reduced detection risk. Riparian habitats emerge as high-risk areas for elephant poaching and fishing camps, highlighting their importance for targeted conservation interventions. The fine-scale spatial analysis guides resource allocation and law enforcement strategies, while the identification of distinct threat sources informs proactive measures. To curb local demand-driven poaching, community-based conservation and alternative livelihood initiatives are recommended.

Long-term trends in elephant mortality and their causes in Kenya

High mortality poses a serious threat to sustainable conservation of the African elephant (Loxodonta africana). Using detected carcass data collected by the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) during 1992-2017, we analyze temporal and spatial variation in elephant mortality in Kenya. We investigate the major mortality causes and means used to kill elephants, carcass category, tusk recovery status, variation in mortality with elephant age and sex classes, differences between inside and outside protected areas (PAs), the Proportion of Illegally Killed Elephants (PIKE) and the overall mortality rate (MR — the number of dead/number of live elephants in a given year). In total 9,182 elephant deaths were recorded during the 26 years. Elephant mortality increased over time and was attributed primarily to natural (33.1%) and human-related causes, particularly ivory poaching (31.5%) and human-elephant conflicts (19.9%). Elephant mortality varied across Kenya’s 47 counties in correspondence with variation in elephant population size and was the highest in the leading elephant range counties of Taita Taveta, Laikipia, Samburu and Meru. Mortality was higher for males and adults and outside the protected areas. Most elephant carcasses had tusks (75.1%) but a few did not (12.5%). Yearly PIKE values peaked in 2012, the year with the highest poaching levels in Kenya during 1992-2017. MR increased throughout 1992-2017. Temporal variation in elephant mortality probability was significantly influenced by human and livestock population densities, average annual maximum temperature and total annual rainfall and the strength of these influences varied across the seven leading elephant range counties of Kenya. Natural processes are increasingly contributing to elephant mortality likely due to climate change and the associated food and water stress, exacerbated by contracting range. Enhancing anti-poaching and strategies for mitigating climate change impacts and human-elephant conflict and reducing range contraction while sustaining habitat connectivity can help reduce mortality and promote elephant conservation. Strengthening enforcement of international wildlife laws can further reduce illegal trade in tusks and killing of elephants.

Combating the Use of Cyanide Poison in Ivory Poaching

Malicious, commercial or retaliatory poisoning of wildlife is increasing across Africa, including the killing of elephants (Loxodonta africana) to supply the illegal ivory trade. Regional differences exist in the types of poisons used by poachers and in Zimbabwe cyanide has become more commonly employed in recent years – sourced illegally from its commercial use in the gold mining industry. Cyanide is potent, so can be rapidly lethal in small quantities and is also not too difficult or costly to source illegally. It is therefore a relatively low-risk option for any ivory poacher, even individuals not involved with criminal syndicates. On the positive side, however, cyanide has far fewer bio-accumulative and cycling properties in ecosystems than more frequently used poisons like pesticides. Detection and subsequent proof in a court of law, of the illegal use of cyanide in elephant carcasses, can be problematic to distinguish conclusively from other causes of sudden death. Therefore, proactive strategies to combat wildlife poisons are far more successful and the one proposed here against cyanide provides a good model. It encourages the establishment of strong intelligence networks to enable the arrest of poachers in possession of poisons before they are deployed in the field, and effective application of laws which now facilitate convictions for poaching. A key element in prosecution under recently revised Zimbabwean laws is proving that illegal possession of cyanide in the relevant circumstances includes the intent to use it for ivory poaching. Zimbabwe's legal experience in this respect could prove especially valuable to other countries facing similar threats of poison being used illegally to kill any wildlife species.

Orphaning stunts growth in wild African elephants.

Orphans of several species suffer social and physiological consequences such as receiving more aggression from conspecifics and lower survival. One physiological consequence of orphaning, stunted growth, has been identified in both humans and chimpanzees, but has not been assessed in a non-primate species. Here, we tested whether wild African elephant orphans show evidence of stunted growth. We measured individually known female elephants in the Samburu and Buffalo Springs National Reserves of Kenya, with a rangefinder capable of calculating height, to estimate a von Bertalanffy growth curve for female elephants of the study population. We then compared measurements of known orphans and non-orphans of various ages, using a Bayesian analysis to assess variation around the derived growth curve. We found that orphans are shorter for their age than non-orphans. However, results suggest orphans may partially compensate for stunting through later growth, as orphans who had spent a longer time without their mother had heights more similar to non-orphans. More age mates in an individual’s family were associated with taller height, suggesting social support from peers may contribute to increased growth. Conversely, more adult females in an individual’s family were associated with shorter height, suggesting within-group competition for resources with older individuals may reduce juvenile growth. Finally, we found a counterintuitive result that less rainfall in the first 6 years of life was correlated with taller height, potentially reflecting the unavoidable bias of measuring individuals who were fit enough to survive conditions of low rainfall as young calves. Reduced growth of individuals has been shown to reduce survival and reproduction in other species. As such, stunting in wildlife orphans may negatively affect fitness and represents an indirect effect of ivory poaching on African elephants.

Ivory poaching and the rapid evolution of tusklessness in African elephants.

Understanding the evolutionary consequences of wildlife exploitation is increasingly important as harvesting becomes more efficient. We examined the impacts of ivory poaching during the Mozambican Civil War (1977 to 1992) on the evolution of African savanna elephants (Loxodonta africana) in Gorongosa National Park. Poaching resulted in strong selection that favored tusklessness amid a rapid population decline. Survey data revealed tusk-inheritance patterns consistent with an X chromosome–linked dominant, male-lethal trait. Whole-genome scans implicated two candidate genes with known roles in mammalian tooth development (AMELX and MEP1a), including the formation of enamel, dentin, cementum, and the periodontium. One of these loci (AMELX) is associated with an X-linked dominant, male-lethal syndrome in humans that diminishes the growth of maxillary lateral incisors (homologous to elephant tusks). This study provides evidence for rapid, poaching-mediated selection for the loss of a prominent anatomical trait in a keystone species.

The Conservation of African Elephants under the CITES International Ivory Trade Ban

1989 CITES decision to put a total ban on international trade in ivory and the decisions to allow the 1999 and 2008 one-off-sales have generated polarized debates on whether or not these decisions are the reasons behind increasing levels of poaching in Africa. An undisputed fact is that; international illegal ivory trade has promoted rampant elephant poaching in Africa. What has and is contested is whether the ban or the one-off sales have a role to play in the current elephant poaching and increase in the illegal ivory trade. The Southern African range countries blame the international ivory trade ban for the current ivory poaching levels, while Countries such as Kenya, Benin and Uganda have blamed the sales for reigniting international appetite for ivory. The available evidence suggests that the international ivory trade ban with an unbanned domestic market has promoted poaching and negatively impacted on range countries’ ability to effectively and sustainably protect elephants. Besides the reduction or elimination of revenue, the ban undermined the economic incentives associated with elephant conservation, thereby making elephant conservation unattractive, unachievable and subsequently opening up to poaching and illegal trade.

Insurgency and Ivory: The Territorial Origins of Illicit Resource Extraction in Civil Conflicts

The presence of natural resources makes civil conflicts more likely to erupt, last longer, and more difficult to end. Yet rebels do not always exploit resources wherever they are present. Why? I argue that rebels extract more resources when they compete with governments over territorial authority. Territorial competition facilitates black market access, generates financial pressure, and produces governance incentives for rebels to extract natural resources. I test this proposition in a two-tiered research design. First, I show globally that moderate territorial control predicts more resource extraction by rebels. Subsequently, I focus on the example of ivory poaching which offers a rare glimpse into the usually hidden resource extraction process. I match spatially disaggregated conflict event data to subnational poaching data in conflict-affected African countries. Results show that rebels seeking territorial control substantially increase poaching rates. These findings highlight the strategic conditions under which territorial competition shapes rebel criminal behavior.

State-space models reveal a continuing elephant poaching problem in most of Africa

The most comprehensive data on poaching of African elephants comes from the Monitoring the Illegal Killing of Elephants (MIKE) program, which reports numbers of illegally killed carcasses encountered by rangers. Recent studies utilizing MIKE data have reported that poaching of African elephants peaked in 2011 and has been decreasing through 2018. Closer examination of these studies, however, raises questions about the conclusion that poaching is decreasing throughout the continent. To provide more accurate information on trends in elephant poaching, we analyzed MIKE data using state-space models. State-space models account for missing data and the error inherent when sampling carcasses. Using the state-space model, for 2011–2018, we found no significant temporal trends in rates of illegal killing for Southern, Central and Western Africa. Only in Eastern Africa have poaching rates decreased substantially since 2011. For Africa as a whole, poaching did decline for 2011–2018, but the decline was entirely due to Eastern African sites. Our results suggest that poaching for ivory has not diminished across most of Africa since 2011. Continued vigilance and anti-poaching efforts will be necessary to combat poaching and to conserve African elephants.

Factors affecting detection probability of elephant (Loxodonta africana) carcasses in an African conservation area

Poaching for ivory has led to massive population declines of African savannah elephants (Loxodonta africana). To prioritize anti-poaching efforts, elephant poaching hotspot maps were created. However, these might be biased because they are not corrected for the detection probability of elephant carcasses. Carcass decomposition state was defined as a proxy for detection probability. Detection probability was influenced by the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) influencing live elephant densities across the area. Our results show the importance of accounting for detection probability to achieve true estimates when predicting poaching risk to successfully direct anti-poaching efforts in African conservation areas.

Evidence of a Growing Elephant Poaching Problem in Botswana

Botswana holds roughly one-third of Africa's remaining savannah elephants (Loxodonta africana) [1, 2] and will play a key role in the future conservation of this species. To date, Botswana has been one of the safest countries for elephants, with little poaching reported [3]. Here, we present evidence of a new outbreak of elephant poaching for ivory in northern Botswana. Comparing results from 2014 and 2018 aerial surveys, we found that elephant populations were stable, but numbers of elephant carcasses have increased, especially for newer carcasses dead for less than roughly 1 year. Newer carcasses were clustered in five "hotspots" averaging 3,522km2 in area. We compared elephant populations in hotspots to the immediately surrounding areas and found that since 2014, elephants have decreased by 16% in hotspots but increased by 10% in surrounding areas. Numbers of "old" carcasses, dead for more than 1 year, increased by 78% in hotspots between 2014 and 2018 but decreased by 3% in surrounding areas. To verify that poaching has been occurring, we used helicopters to visit 148 elephant carcasses and assess their cause of death. We confirmed poaching for all 72 newer carcasses assessed. We also confirmed poaching for 62 of 76 (82%) carcasses older than 1 year, primarily in one hotspot. Poached older carcasses were all males aged 30-60 and likely killed for their large tusks. This evidence suggests that ivory poaching on the scale of hundreds of elephants per year has been occurring in northern Botswana since 2017 or possibly earlier.

Outside the Frame: Looking Beyond the Myth of Garamba's LRA Ivory–Terrorism Nexus

There have been widespread reports of elephant poaching by the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) in Garamba National Park (GNP) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), presenting a narrative that ivory poaching funds terror and that both can be solved by the same (military) intervention. This narrative distorts the complex dynamics. It identifies clear villains, edits out other poaching actors, and legitimises particular interventions. Poaching is portrayed as a moral, non-political issue and military intervention is portrayed as a logical outcome. The wider history and current context are neglected. The LRA's poaching threat, relative to other actors, is overemphasised. It ignores how the LRA poaching—real as it was—fits into a history of poaching caused by problems with state capacity and territorial control, including incursions by armed actors. The situation demands solutions that are more complex than merely defeating the LRA. More so, military intervention against the LRA has worsened poaching, due to state military implications in poaching. The article shows how the 'LRA ivory–terrorism' narrative is a discursive tool for particular agendas, which primarily allow particular interventions, legitimisation of resources, or wider readership. In this way, the actors involved create their own echo-chamber, which is less concerned with local dynamics and which does not include practical conservation actors in Garamba. The narrative has also begun to shift.

Incipient signs of genetic differentiation among African elephant populations in fragmenting miombo ecosystems in south‐western Tanzania

AbstractHabitat fragmentation can play a major role in the reduction of genetic diversity among wildlife populations. The Ruaha‐Rungwa and Katavi‐Rukwa ecosystems in south‐western Tanzania comprise one of the world's largest remaining African savannah elephant metapopulations but are increasingly threatened by loss of connectivity and poaching for ivory. To investigate the genetic structure of populations, we compared the genotypes for nine microsatellite loci in the western, central and eastern populations. We found evidence of genetic differentiation among the three populations, but the levels were low and mostly concerned the younger cohort, suggesting recent divergence probably resulting from habitat loss between the two ecosystems. We identified weak isolation by distance, suggesting higher gene flow among individuals located less than 50 km apart. In a long‐lived species with overlapping generations, it takes a long time to develop genetic substructure even when there are substantial obstacles to migration. Thus, in these recently fragmented populations, inbreeding (and the loss of heterozygosity) may be less of an immediate concern than the loss of adults due to illegal hunting.

Reach and messages of the world's largest ivory burn.

Recent increases in ivory poaching have depressed African elephant populations. Successful enforcement has led to ivory stockpiling. Stockpile destruction is becoming increasingly popular, and most destruction has occurred in the last 5 years. Ivory destruction is intended to send a strong message against ivory consumption, both in promoting a taboo on ivory use and catalyzing policy change. However, there has been no effort to establish the distribution and extent of media reporting on ivory destruction events globally. We analyzed media coverage of the largest ivory destruction event in history (Kenya, 30 April 2016) across 11 nation states connected to ivory trade. We used an online-media crawling tool to search online media outlets and subjected 5 of the largest print newspapers (by circulation) in 5 nations of interest to content analysis. Most online news on the ivory burn came from the United States (81% of 1944 articles), whereas most of the print news articles came from Kenya (61% of 157 articles). Eighty-six to 97% of all online articles reported the burn as a positive conservation action, whereas 4-50% discussed ivory burning as having a negative impact on elephant conservation. Most articles discussed law enforcement and trade bans as effective for elephant conservation. There was more relative search interest globally in the 2016 Kenyan ivory burn than any other burn in 5 years. Ours is the first attempt to track the reach of media coverage relative to an ivory burn and provides a case study in tracking the effects of a conservation-marketing event.

Inter-generational change in African elephant range use is associated with poaching risk, primary productivity and adult mortality.

Repeated use of the same areas may benefit animals as they exploit familiar sites, leading to consistent home ranges over time that can span generations. Changing risk landscapes may reduce benefits associated with home range fidelity, however, and philopatric animals may alter movement in response to new pressures. Despite the importance of range changes to ecological and evolutionary processes, little tracking data have been collected over the long-term nor has range change been recorded in response to human pressures across generations. Here, we investigate the relationships between ecological, demographic and human variables and elephant ranging behaviour across generations using 16 years of tracking data from nine distinct female social groups in a population of elephants in northern Kenya that was heavily affected by ivory poaching during the latter half of the study. Nearly all groups-including those that did not experience loss of mature adults-exhibited a shift north over time, apparently in response to increased poaching in the southern extent of the study area. However, loss of mature adults appeared to be the primary indicator of range shifts and expansions, as generational turnover was a significant predictor of range size increases and range centroid shifts. Range expansions and northward shifts were associated with higher primary productivity and lower poached carcass densities, while westward shifts exhibited a trend to areas with higher values of primary productivity and higher poached carcass densities relative to former ranges. Together these results suggest a trade-off between resource access, mobility and safety. We discuss the relevance of these results to elephant conservation efforts and directions meriting further exploration in this disrupted society of a keystone species.

Conserving elephants depend on a total ban of ivory trade globally

Despite the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) 1989 ban on trading ivory internationally, poaching for ivory has intensified in both Africa and Asia. Populations of African elephant (Loxodonta spp.) and Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) have declined drastically. In response to the rapid decline, the USA and some other CITES countries have banned commercial ivory trading in ivory. The country with the highest ivory consumption, the People’s Republic of China, recently shut down its legal ivory trade at the end of 2017. Nepal has turned the tide of elephant poaching, with no loss of elephants in the last 4 years. This remarkable success has been achieved by imposing a total ban on trade in ivory, supported by strict national legislation that includes significant fines and incarceration for poachers, traders and officials. Elsewhere, elephant poaching continues to increase despite the numerous disincentives already in place. Thus, we propose a global ban on trade in ivory as the only realistic solution to the current unsustainable rate of loss of elephants. The ban should be extended to trade in all products from endangered wildlife.

South Sudan and the Emerging Security Implications for East Africa

South Sudan achieved political independence in 2011, before plunging into a series of civil wars that have culminated with the signing of the Inter-Governmental Authority for Development, IGAD, driven peace agreement. The Sudan People's Liberation Movement, SPLM, Government has not created conducive environment for political stability in South Sudan. Thus, the political and economic crisis has seen the intervention of neighboring countries in internal affairs of South Sudan to pursue their national interests or within the context of regional bodies such as IGAD to achieve the same. From the outset, the independence of South Sudan was necessitated by the USA led war against global terrorism that is more pronounced at the Horn of Africa and in the context of Sudan's civil war. The natural resources in South Sudan has attracted state and non-state actors with global and regional actors directly or indirectly getting involved in reconfiguring the security matrix with diverse outcomes, some of them with unintended outcome. Wildlife trafficking, gold mining, logging, ivory poaching and illegal charcoal production and commercial bush meat poaching, has created war economics and resource conflicts within the region and beyond. Political crisis in South Sudan, especially the most recent one that triggered civil war in 2013, and persisted to date, has received very little scholarly attention especially its regional security implications. This paper seeks to analyse the security ramifications of the ongoing war for East Africa. The paper will examine the emerging security threats and their regional ramifications. In particular, multiple security ramifications such as armed groups, humanitarian crisis, natural resources and refugees' crisis will be examined in detail to draw conclusions on the scope and depth of the emerging security threats in East Africa.

Spatial analysis of aerial survey data reveals correlates of elephant carcasses within a heavily poached ecosystem

Growth of the illegal wildlife trade is a key driver of biodiversity loss, with considerable research focussing on trafficking and trade, but rather less focussed on supply. Elephant poaching for ivory has driven a recent population decline in African elephants and is a typical example of illegal wildlife trade. Some of the heaviest poaching has been in Southern Tanzania's Ruaha-Rungwa ecosystem. Using data from three successive aerial surveys and modern spatial analysis techniques we identify the correlates of elephant carcasses within the ecosystem, from which important information about how poachers operate can be gleaned. Carcass density was highest close to wet-season (but not dry season) waterholes, at higher altitudes and at intermediate travel cost from villages. We found no evidence for an ecosystem-wide impact of ranger patrol locations on carcass abundance, but found strong evidence that different ranger posts showed contrasting patterns in relation to carcasses, some being significantly associated with clusters of carcasses, others showing the expected negative correlation and most showing no pattern at all. Despite a spatial change in elephant carcass locations between years, we find little evidence to suggest poachers have changed their behaviour in relation to key modelled covariates. Our maps of poaching activity can feed directly into anti-poaching control measures, but also provide general insights into how illegal harvest of high value wildlife products occurs in the field, and our spatio-temporal analysis provides a valuable analysis framework for aerial survey data from protected areas globally.

Increasing the effectiveness of conservation messaging by drawing connections with related political, social, and economic issues

ABSTRACTThis article explores whether presenting conservation issues in a manner that makes connections with intertwined issues of violence, economics, social issues, and politics elicits more engagement than does presenting the conservation issues in isolation. Survey data were collected concerning African elephant poaching for ivory and the effect of the palm oil crisis on the orangutan. Some trends, particularly with respect to the elephant issue, support a stronger perceived importance of the issue when presented in a context with other global problems, but some trends support a perception that the conservation issue is actually of diminished importance when presented this way.