Historic

Historically, elephants are thought to have roamed most of the African continent. But, humans have been hunting them for food and ivory since ancient times.

Sources: Shoshami & Tassy (1996); Iian & Oria Douglas-Hamilton (1992); & IUCN (2012)

1900

2012

10 MILLION+

ELEPHANT POPULATIONRANGE DECLINE

1980s

population size

5 MILLION

The ivory trade, beginning in Roman times and continuing with the European coloni-zation of Africa, significantly reduced the elephant’s range by the turn of the last century.

The legal and illegal hunting of elephants continued throughout the 20th century. By 1979, the elephant population of Africa was around 1.3 million, but by the end of the 1980s it had been cut in half. 

1.3 MILLIONto 600,000

Today, elephants exist in only isolated pockets—confined mostly to protected lands. The international ban on ivory has helped, but recent trends suggest a new surge in elephant poaching has begun.

450,000