African Wildlife - The Numbers

Africa is home to some of the most recognized and beloved animals on our planet including elephants, lions, cheetahs, and rhinos. Unfortunately, almost every single one of these beautiful animals is in serious danger of going extinct if we do not aggressively tackle the perils they currently face. Habitat loss, poaching, trophy hunting, human encroachment and human conflict are pushing these animals further and further towards no longer existing in the wild. 

Let's take a look at some of the animals, the perils they face, and their current numbers.

ELEPHANTS

​Savannah, African, and Forest Elephants in Africa are all facing the possibility of extinction in the wild. There are approximately 415, 000 elephants left in the wild. Elephants face a variety of perils in the wild including habitat loss, poaching, trophy hunting, and human-animal conflicts resulting in death. 

HABITAT LOSS - Elephants continue to lose more and more of their land as human settlements continue to expand and grow. As the human population grows, more land is needed to accommodate the growing population which includes housing and land for crops. This land is being taken from elephants forcing them to congregate in smaller areas often leading to trouble finding food and watering holes.
HUMAN CONFLICTS - Because of the loss of land, elephants and humans are now coming into regular contact which is yielding disastrous results. Elephants are trampling crops in search of food and water which ultimately causes conflict with humans leading to the possibility of elephants being killed.
POACHING - Because of the incredible value put on ivory, poaching continues to be a problem elephants in the wild face. Although conservation efforts have helped to curb illegal poaching in recent years, it remains a serious problem.
TROPHY HUNTING - While they argue that the money spent on these trophy hunts is funneled into local communities and conservation projects, the facts state otherwise. Wealthy folk from around the world pay thousands of dollars for the opportunity to shoot and kill these beautiful animals solely for the purpose of collecting a hunting "trophy" to proudly display on their return home. Trophy hunting is one of the most despicable "sports" on this planet contributing to the population decline of some of the most vulnerable animals in Africa.

CHEETAHS

Cheetahs hold the record for fastest land mammal on the planet making them easily recognized among other big cat species. Unfortunately, cheetahs have also been pushed out of 95% of their habitat leaving them with very little space to roam, hunt, and nurture their young. There are reportedly anywhere between 6500 and 10, 000 cheetahs remaining in the wild.

HABITAT LOSS - Cheetahs have been driven out of anywhere between 75 - 95% of their natural habitat because of continued human encroachment. 
TROPHY HUNTING - Once again, trophy hunting poses serious risks to cheetahs and their survival. If a mother cheetah is accidentally slaughtered while hunting for example, the cubs left behind will die as they are unable to fend for themselves. 

PANGOLINS

Pangolins hold the distinction of being the only mammals in thew world that have scales. Unfortunately, those scales are in demand across Africa / Asia for their purported medicinal benefits putting pangolins in a dangerous situation as they are completely unable to escape humans. As they are nocturnal & solitary animals, it is impossible to get census data on their numbers but researchers estimate demand for their scales will continue to grow exponentially.

POACHING - Pangolins are the most trafficked animals on this planet. Demand for their scales continues to grow as the pangolin numbers continue to decline. Initiatives are in place to help protect the pangolins and intercept illegally trafficked scales but there is much work to do to end the illegal wildlife trade of pangolin scales.

BLACK RHINOS

​All subspecies of black rhino are listed as critically endangered as their numbers have sharply declined in the last 50 years. There are approximately 5000 or less of these beautiful animals left in the wild. Rhinos face unprecedented perils in the wild, all of which are human induced with the most recognized peril being poaching for their horns.

POACHING - Poaching is the leading cause of rhino endangerment. Their horns are a prized possession believed to have medicinal qualities but also worth astounding amounts of money through the illegal black markets. People will go to great lengths to acquire ivory, risking their lives to poach these animals. It is imperative to devalue ivory to truly save the black rhino from extinction.

MOUNTAIN GORILLAS

Mountain gorillas have a plethora of protections in place to help rehabilitate their numbers but there is still much work to do as their population rests somewhere around the 500 mark. These incredibly intelligent mammals have been pushed out of nearly their entire habitat while also being subjected to civil unrest, disease, and illegal poaching.

POACHING - It is illegal to hunt mountain gorillas but this hasn't stopped poachers in the bush meat trade. 
DISEASE - Much like human civilizations that have no contact with the outside world, mountain gorillas are incredibly susceptible to human disease and as humans continue to encroach on their habitat, it puts them at further risk of illness leading to death.
HUMAN ENCROACHMENT - As human settlements continue to expand, gorillas are coming into contact with us more leading to habitat loss and the possibility of disease transmission. 

Other Notably Vulnerable / Endangered Animals in Africa include,

• Rothschild Giraffes
• Lions
• Addax
• African Wild Dogs
• Ethiopian Wolves
• Pygmy Hippos

To put things into perspective, my teeny tiny city of Windsor Ontario, Canada has roughly 225, 000 inhabitants. That is more population than all of the animals on this list combined throughout all of Africa. This is indicative of how serious this problem really is.

It is evident that Africa's wildlife is in serious trouble and without a global commitment to protecting them, we will witness in our lifetimes the extinction of some of the most recognized and beloved animals on our planet. We must tackle habitat loss through continued protection of ecosystems. We must continue to work tirelessly to address illegal poaching and hold those accountable for their participation. We must devalue ivory and pangolin scales to address illegal wildlife trafficking. We must ban trophy hunting once and for all as it does absolutely nothing to address conservation.

There is so much as a planet that we can be doing and must be doing in order to preserve Africa's wildlife for future generations.

HAPPY VEG