African Forest Elephant

The mysterious forest elephant, a member of the two African elephant species, may be found deep in the thick, humid forests of West and Central Africa. Because of their cautious nature, we don’t actually know the real total number of wild African forest elephants, but we do know that they are a critically endangered species whose numbers have dropped by an estimated 86% in the last 31 years.

The biggest reason for the reduction in the population of these fantastic animals is, sadly, hunting. This practice is prevalent, extensive, and intensive, notably in Central Africa. Aside from elephant poaching, habitat destruction and land-use changes for farming and other purposes have disrupted habitats and increased human-elephant conflict, resulting in losses on both sides. 

African forest elephants now inhabit around 25% of their original living area, which is spread over 20 African countries, the majority of which are in Gabon and the Republic of Congo.