Enforcing Stricter Laws For Elephants

People love going to zoos to get an up close and person look at non-domestic animals, but a lot of people don’t realize how popular animal poaching is. It is when an animal’s life is taken illegally, usually for valuable body parts, and the numbers of animals killed each year are increasing at alarming rates, for example studies show that: “An average of 96 elephants are murdered for their ivory in Africa , more are being killed for their ivory than being born, says animalmatters.org.

Over the past 40 years, nearly 52 percent of the world’s wildlife has been wiped out of existence. Africa’s large mammal population, alone, has taken a toll of 59 percent since 1970. A majority of this massive deflation has been caused by the astounding abundance of poaching in these regions. Africa's increasing rates of illegal poaching are a result of humanity’s selfish demand for an individual body part such as tusks, pelts, or bones, which can be sold on the black market for large sums of money. Poaching in Africa is not only illegal, but morally wrong. Efforts to end poaching entirely should be a priority, and with help, it can be stopped.

Around the world, there is an abundance of animals that are becoming extinct or endangered due to poaching. Animals such as Rhinos, Turtles, Gorillas, and the Tigers are critically endangered due to vulnerability and have been jeopardized by human activities. Many countries have legalized poaching, but still this problem has increased significantly in the past decade. If the world does not stop this issue countless of animals will become extinct, and our older generation will never be able to see these exotic animals living in their natural habitat. Poaching is happening all around the world and will never be stopped until people are more educated about this crime and what is occurring from it.

Because of the sale of illegal ivory so many elephants' lives are put at risk. If the poaching of elephants and ever-growing trade in illegal ivory is to be seriously addressed, part of the solution to this complex problem must be a return to the full ban on the sale of ivory established in 1989 (Bloody Ivory). Between 434,000 and 684,000 African savanna elephants in 18 countries remain, down 30% in the last seven years. Once again levels of poaching and illegal trade have spiraled out of control. Rates of poaching are now the worst they have been since 1989. There are no easy answers, but a total ivory trade ban is the one strategy we know has worked (Mary Rice). Hong Kong seized 779 elephant tusks three days into 2013, over a ton of ivory,

For about twenty eight years now the Asian elephant has been struggling for existence. They have been classified as endangered species by The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Twenty eight years is quite a large amount of time for an animal to be classified as endangered so The Zoological Society of London decided to look into this issue. Asian elephants have been transferred to captivity for quite some time in the North American region. The Elephas maximus have been captured from these countries in southern Asia and brought over to North America and have experienced many complications that can hinder the genetic diversity of the evolution of the species. Captive populations of the Elephas maximus species may be essential for genetic preservation and aid in decreasing the deterioration of the authentic population (Brenneman et al. 2011).

Although the CITES banned the poaching of Asian and African elephants and international trade in the mid 1980’s, many organizations have been posting anti-ivory trade promotion on their website (Stiles, 309). Websites such as International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), Born Free Foundation, Care for the Wild International, and the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) (Stiles, 309). Many of the southern countries of Africa do not agree with the African elephant ban (Stiles, 309). They’ve been against the ban since around the mid-1980’s (Stiles, 309). People from the southern countries of Africa have been arguing because they don’t believe they should be penalized because other countries don’t know how to handle their wildlife (Stiles, 309). The CITES Conference of Parties voted in favor of Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe to

Recently, the poaching controversy has gained more attention in the news and media due to the killing of Cecil the Lion back in 2015. But what exactly is poaching and why is it illegal? Poaching can be defined as the illegal hunting or capturing of wild animals. Animals are captured and killed for their parts and products that are eventually sold on the black market and to cartels to make medicines, trinkets, and other products. Animals are typically poached for personal gain and value.The the illegal poaching trade in Africa alone has accumulated a worth of $17 billion dollars a year and it keeps growing. Ivory, fur, skin, and bones especially are in high demand and places/people are willing to pay high numbers for these products, so it is no surprise that people continue to hunt them. Due to poaching, the tiger is one of the most endangered species in the world . Tiger parts, such as fur, skin, and bones, are seen as a luxury and are used as commerce on the black market and secretly throughout Asia. Although China has participated in the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species, the laws are commonly ignored and it remains the primary destination for tiger parts. Elephants are also on the brink of extinction and the number hunted per year keeps increasing. Despite international ivory trade being banned in the 1990s, it is still sold on the black market and sought after in Asia; once again, China being the biggest demander. According to Kideghesho in Sage Journals , “widespread poaching coupled with inefficient law enforcement in Tanzania was manifested in the dramatic decline of the elephant population to less than 30% of what it was in 1979, a drop from 316,000 to 85,000 by 1987.” Rhinos are also greatly sought after in Africa. In

The population consists of two main species of Elephant, the Asian and the African. The Asian elephant is divided into three subspecies: the Indian, Sumatran, and the Sri Lankan (“Asian Elephant”). African elephants are split into

Poachers have killed very many elephants. Including one of Africa’s most beloved elephants, was also killed by a poisoned arrow by poachers, who cut off his face to remove his massive tusks. All of these slaughters have killed off most of Africa’s elephant population, and for what? For statues. More than 100,000 African elephants were killed for their tusks during a three-year period. These murders have to be stopped. Rampant poaching between 1979 and 1989

The reason the elephants are endangered are because of poachers. The poachers shoot down the elephants. Once the elephant is safe to walk up to, they saw off the tusks and leave. They saw

poaching—and because it is overlooked, human beings are internationally at the expense of the importance of an animal. When discussing poaching, the poverty of various people is ignored, the beauty within the making of cultures is dismissed and the amount of people murdered in the name of conservation is not being exposed. Poaching has been demonized and portrayed endlessly as inhumane—but often, the inhumanity resides with the negative consequences on the native people affected by the establishment of national parks and the consequences for hunting animals within or near the said parks. Due to the creation of wildlife reserves and national parks, human rights have been belittled and blood spilling within the countries that aren’t rich enough

Outside of the potential cooperation problems between local and national governments, there is also the cultural issue that many farmers and villagers do not respect elephants. Because elephants are creatures of habit, they follow the same migration paths that their ancestors have for decades. Due to the increased agriculture in African villages, elephants often cross right through small farms or villages, destroying crops and small structures. Many African villagers who have had these encounters with elephants do not understand the Western fascination and obsession with saving an animal they perceive as a large, more destructive cockroach.

Making Ivory farms where Elephants will be bred then some will be killed for Ivory using humane methods and would save money for governments of the world. Governments around the world have wasted valuable resources trying to evaluate the pros and cons of the trade. This solution would end this because it would create jobs for those who work at the farm and it would also please the Ivory demand. It would also keep some elephants out in the wild. It will stop the need for poaching wild elephants too, which would keep the population of elephants at a good level. huge demands fuels poaching and trafficking, both of which, according to IFAW are as dangerous as global arms, human and drug trafficking. Many people have died both protecting and killing

Animal poaching has a bigger price tag than the trophy sitting on the shelf. Poaching is causing iconic animals of many continents and of our oceans to become endangered or even extinct. These animals that people have come to love and fantasize over may be gone before we are (Africa). Elephants, rhinos, lions, and zebras are the animals thought of the most when it comes to animal poaching, but many animals are poached. They are killed for only one quality, like their horns or skins and the rest of the animal is left behind. Poaching is a massive business that is ran by international networks, it’s estimated to make hundreds of millions of dollars (World). Not all wildlife trade is illegal, but it becomes a crisis when an increasing amount of illegal poaching is done and it directly threatens the survival of species in the wild (World). Since 1960 97.6% of the Black Rhino population in Africa has been poached and lions are extinct in seven African countries (Africa).

There are organizations around the globe designed to stop elephant poaching. Their intent is to sway people’s opinions to help with the world-wide problem. Only a global ban on the sale of ivory would take the heat off of these massive creatures. Solutions might include, addressing the involvement of international criminal institutes by means of strong law enforcement at both national and international levels along the full extent of the supply. Closing down domestic (national) markets in ivory, would also be beneficial. Countries could embrace the trade ban, and educate consumers in order to stem the demand for ivory (Bloody Ivory; January 11, 2013).