Elephants are at an increased risked of extinction with the prospering Ivory trade. The ivory trade is illegal. Yet, this doesn’t stop the want for the beautiful ivory tusks in black markets around the world.
Asia is known to use the ivory tusks for jewelry, art, and chopsticks. Though the details on the tusks are beautiful, the way the tusks are acquired should make anyone sick.
| image credit: Rainforest Alliance/Rainforestalliance.org |
Hunters in Africa, track and kill elephants to take their tusks. Whole herds of elephants are destroyed for the pleasure of knowing the hunters will make a killing off of the tusks. Once the tusks are transported through Africa, the price for the tusks increases substantially. (1)
The Illegal Ivory trade is prominent in Africa. Countries like Chad, Central African Republic, South Sudan, and the Democratic of the Congo have trades increasing with the increased slaughtering of the Elephants becoming more grotesque.
Elephant populations have severely depleted since the 20th century. With the loss of habitat, poaching, and conflict, the Elephants are suffering some of the largest losses in population since their population was recorded. (2)
Even though the Elephant is the largest land animal, hunters kill them without remorse or worry. Whenever there is a populous area of Elephants, hunters aren’t far behind. Elephants are found in Africa and parts of Asia, yet, if the illegal ivory trade doesn’t stop, elephants may be the next endangered species to one day disappear.
We know the stories of animals that have gone extinct and how some animals today only live in captivity. If our species was threatened, we wouldn’t stand by and just watch.
In the United States, Americans are fighting over everything, especially with the current presidential race. Police are being targeted by civilians and civilians are being targeted by police. I don’t need to give you a list of the violence happening around the world. Turn on the television or your computer; the world is in a war with itself.
Humans and animals are fighting for their lives. Between wars and natural disasters, the world seems to be falling apart.
In the recent years, I’ve started following the Christian church, again. I lost my faith after a traumatic event and stayed away for many years, but I feel that I’ve learned so many things from Christians that I need to share some of what I’ve obtained.
When I go to Bible Study on Friday, I sit around a table with around fifteen to twenty people. Every one of the people is very religious and keep God close. I find their opinions very aspiring and many times make me think.
Since I started going to Bible Study, I’ve been analyzing the Book of Genesis with the group. I find the creation story one of the most amazing stories in the bible. God created the heavens and the Earth. Man came into being as the result of God’s hard work and peace existed on Earth for a short while. Adam was happy and lived the life of Riley.
God soon saw that Adam needed a companion and God put Adam into a sleep where God took one of Adam’s ribs and created a woman. Adam now had a companion in the Garden of Eden. Yet, evil lurked in the background and tempted both the man and woman, leading them into sinning. Their punishment was banishment from the Garden of Eden, the only home they knew of.
Though the story seems harsh, I started to understand some things about the world and how people think. The evil deeds we do today could be a result of allowing the devil in. Killing animals because it’s profitable is not something God created man for. To be racist against people of different skin color or religious belief were not the intentions of this world.
Even if you’re not religious, understanding that there are people out there starting wars and participating in illegal activities because they know it’s profitable isn’t acceptable. Killing the Elephants will have consequences. I don’t know to what extent the consequences will be, but I know from history that the actions we do today will come back and haunt us tomorrow.
Elephants aren’t endangered yet, but that doesn’t mean they won’t be tomorrow. Every year, 30,000 African Elephants die at the hands of poachers because of the demand for ivory. (1) The National Geographic has one of the best visual aids I’ve seen that tracks the illegal ivory trade. (To find out more, click here).
Why do we need ivory? Besides the money poachers get, what makes killing innocent animals so enjoyable? Elephants were put on this planet for a reason, taking them away may not be the greatest idea.
If you would like to help save the Elephants, visit the World Wildlife Fund website. WWF has active initiatives in Africa to help save the Elephants habitat and stop the illegal ivory trade. Donations can go to rangers who risk their lives to save the Elephants. Otherwise, you can adopt an Elephant by purchasing one of the six adoption kits.
Donating isn’t the only way to save the Elephants and stopping the illegal ivory trade; you can make a difference by spreading the word to others. One of the best tools we can have is to know the correct information. There may be a time that we have to use that knowledge to save the world’s largest land animal.
References
1. Dicesare, Kevin. "Tracking the Illegal Tusk Trade." National Geographic. National Geographic Partners, 2016. Web. http://www.nationalgeographic.com/tracking-ivory/map.html
2. Jayasinghe, Nilanga, Ginette Hemley, Jan Vertefeville, and Bas Huijbregts. "Elephant." WorldWildlife.org. World Wildlife Fund, 2016. Web. http://www.worldwildlife.org/species/elephant
