The future of Africa’s elephants is uncertain because of the greed and corruption of the poaching industry.
There are only about 415,000 African elephants left but it’s thought around 20,000 a year are killed by poachers for their ivory tusks.
Some countries have banned the sale of elephant ivory, including the U.S. and China and yet it still goes on, with the demand being driven by the idea that ivory is a status symbol.
Now a shocking image has been released that shows the true horror of how these animals are killed.
According to the Wildlife Conservation Network Africa’s elephants could disappear from the wild within a generation.
Now a drone-shot image has been released which shows the barbarous nature of poaching.
The image shows the bloody corpse of an African elephant after its been hacked apart by a chainsaw; its severed trunk lies next to it and its tusks are missing.
Taken by award-winning photographer Justin Sullivan, from Cape Town, South Africa, the image is called “Disconnection” and was taken in northern Botswana.
According to reports, poachers use chainsaws to cut off the trunk and tusks, and leave the rest of the carcass behind.
Lifted hunting ban
Botswana has recently lifted a ban on hunting animals with the number of carcasses found estimated to have increased 593 percent between 2014 and 2018, according to The Metro.
Justin’s powerful image has been chosen for the prestigious Andrei Stenin International Press Photo Contest, which will be decided later this year.
“The image has drawn a lot of attention,” Justin said.
“People have obviously reacted with mixed feelings of anger and sadness, especially with the recent lift on the hunting ban in Botswana.
Solve the ‘ecological crisis’
“But this photo has driven some constructive dialogue around how we can promote more sustainable elephant conversation and solve our current ecological crisis.”
The situation is so dire Save the Elephants and Wildlife Conservation Network has set up The Elephant Crisis Fund (ECF) to find the best ideas to end the ivory crisis.
Find out more about the initiative and these magnificent beasts in the clip below.
[arve url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1KhOTsMxeQ” /]
This barbaric practise has to stop. Please share to help spread the word and support the cause to ban the ivory trade completely.
