Asian Elephant
Large herds of elephants once roamed freely throughout Asia’s forests and grasslands. Today, Asian elephants have been extirpated from approximately 95 percent of their historical range and remain in only 13 countries, mostly in small, isolated populations. Current population estimates of wild Asian elephants range from 45,000 to 50,000 individuals, but this is a rough estimate, as it is exceedingly difficult to count low density populations of elephants dispersed across large areas and densely forested landscapes. Continued population declines are human-driven, caused by habitat loss and fragmentation, resulting in human-elephant conflict, poaching, and mortality from human infrastructure such as highways, canals, railways, roads, and electric power lines.
Protecting Elephants
Asian elephants have been included in Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) since the treaty went into effect on July 1, 1975. The species was listed as Endangered through the Endangered Species Act in 1976.
Although the CITES Appendix I inclusion prohibits international commercial trade in this species, there are instances where trade may occur. The FAQs below provide guidance on how to legally buy, sell, or otherwise trade in elephant ivory to ensure that our domestic markets do not contribute to the decline of elephants in the wild.
Asian Elephant Conservation Fund
International Affairs supports conservation of Asian elephants by collaborating with national governments, U.S. agencies, and non-governmental partners by providing financial and technical assistance for protected area and habitat management, human-elephant conflict mitigation, applied research, law enforcement, and community education and outreach.
Read project summaries supported by the Asian Elephant Conservation Fund from 1999 to the present.
