Africa's forest animals have no safe place to stay as their population count continues to decline and vulnerable to illegal hunting. Isolated and intact landscapes without active guarding and armed patrols offer unsafe habitats for the creatures.
According to Science Mag, the analysis of the scientists revealed that more than 25,000 of Gabon's forest elephants were killed between 2004 and 2014. Moreover, a similar study in 2013 found out that the population of the said animals has dropped with 62 percent across Central Africa.
The latest study has concentrated on the last stronghold habitat and buffer lands for elephants. Some scientists stated that this "stronghold" slowly erodes. The said habitat was established in 2002 to protect the elephants. The land consists of 7570 square kilometers of Minkebe National Park including 2403 square kilometers of the adjoining buffer zones.
The park was located 48 kilometers from the nearest major road in Gabon in order to be isolated from the public. It took part a large number from the whole population of Africa's elephants. Not anyone could easily arrive to the place, revealed by tropical ecologist John Poulsen, co-author of the study.
The process of estimating the elephant population was conducted through counting the number of dung piles. The study was initially conducted in 2004 and was finally taken out in 2014. The data gathered from 2004 to 2014 proved that the population declined from 35,000 to 7,000. The drastic change and decline was not expected by the researchers.
The main culprit in the massive death of these elephants over the last decade is poaching. As supported by Current Biology, poaching occurs from within Gabon. Gabon's government has addressed the issue only in 2012 by building a national park police. From 2012 to 2015, the guards were able to record 161 poached elephant.
The scientists have further stratified the massive decline of elephants and have found out that poacher from Cameroon is also one of the main cause. The scientists have suggested that urgent enforcement measures and security is needed in order to save the remaining number of elephants.
One of the best solutions to solve the extinction issue in elephants is to decrease the global demands for ivory. Country's persistence in right to ivory trade could continuously induce the decline of elephant's population, as stated by Phyllis C. Lee, an animal behaviorist.
