Alarming rate of decrease in African elephant count

News: A study, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, has mentioned the alarming population decline of the two African elephant species, the savannah elephant and forest elephant, at various sites across the African continent over about a half century.

1. Savannah elephant populations declined by about 70% on average, whereas forest elephant populations witnessed a decline of 90% on average.

2. Poaching and habitat loss are the main drivers of the population decline.

3. The elephant population decline has been particularly more in the northern Sahel region, which includes countries like Mali, Chad, Nigeria.

4. At the same time, elephant population registered a growth particularly in Southern Africa, especially in countries like Botswana, Zimbabwe, and Namibia.

5. African and Asian Elephants differ on many counts like head shape, tusks, ear size.

6. African elephants have rounded heads, whereas Asian elephants have a twin-domed head.

7. African elephants have larger ear size, whereas Asian elephants have smaller and rounded ears.