100,000 Elephants Killed in Africa by Poachers in 3 Years: Study

Nearly 100,000 elephants have been killed between 2010 and 2012  in Africa for ivory trade mainly intended for China and some other south Asian nations, according to a study by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America.

The organization used a model based on field census of carcasses of elephants  in Samburu, Kenya. The team then factored in population trends of elephants at regional and continental levels to arrive at the mortality rates.

The study says an average 40,000 elephants have been illegally killed annually between 2010 and 2012.

"We are shredding the fabric of elephant society and exterminating populations across the continent," said lead author George Wittemyer, from the Colorado State University, reports BBC.

International Wildlife regulators say that around 20,000 elephants have been killed in Africa in 2013 alone. Elephants are being slaughtered at an unprecedented rate; on average, an elephant is killed every 15 minutes for its ivory, according to IFAW .  

China and South East Asia have been traditional markets for ivory and the demand is driving poachers to kill indiscriminately. The National parks in Africa are a hotbed for militant groups and warlords in the region to fuel their hunger for money and they slaughter elephants in these parks for the lucrative trade. The continuous civil war in the region is abetting the attacks.

Recently, poachers in Africa killed 68 elephants in the Garamba National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo, said park officials; all from April to June. This has forced park officials to beef security and call for military help.

The conservationists warn at this rate the giant mammals may go extinct in the next century.

John Scanlon, secretary-general of Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (Cites) Cites, said: "The world needs to decide how much further effort it wants to put into the conservation of this magnificent species."

He wants authorities to mobilise all human and financial resource to tackle the illegal trade on all fronts.