Bushmeat Agony and Ivory: Bushmeat Crisis and Elephant Poaching is only Increasing

Last year alone the conservative estimate for the number of elephants killed in Kenya is 220; while conservationists estimate that 36,000 elephants were poached worldwide last year.  In Kenya, this number is an increase of %400 from two years ago.  These elephants are being killed for their ivory, but this is not the only cause of poaching in Africa; the rampant bushmeat trade of everything from gorillas to antelope is the target of poachers.  Large bushmeat markets in Nairobi and other major cities keep these industrial-like poachers in business, as well as the desire for “exotic flavors” in the US and Western Europe.  This consistent poaching for meat, trophy, and ivory and pushing these fragile populations of African animals to the brink of extinction, and the rest of the world’s desires for these cheap African goods is what keeps the poachers going.

Forest elephant poached for its meat and Ivory in Congo

A poacher putting his catch of bushmeat into a sack for transport.

Smoked monkey for sale in a local market

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