Conservation and Management Strategy for the Elephant in Kenya

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[ TOP RIGHT ] Plate 10.
Samburu with elephants in the Ewaso Ng’iro
- Lucy King, Save the Elephants
Threat: A factor which causes either a substantial decline in the numbers of individuals of a species, or a
substantial contraction of the species’ geographic range. Threats can be divided into proximate and ultimate threats.
Proximate threats are immediate causes of population decline, usually acting on birth or death rates (e.g. habitat
loss). Ultimate threats are root causes of proximate threats, and are almost always anthropogenic (e.g. habitat loss
(a proximate threat) might be driven by human population growth (an ultimate threat)).
Translocation: Capture, transportation and release of animals from one part of their range into another
(reintroduction is a specialised form of translocation where the recipient area is part of the historic range but where
elephant no longer exist).
Tusk: Permanent second upper incisors composed mostly of dentine. The tusk is one source of real ivory. In
Loxodonta, both sexes usually have tusks. They grow throughout life at a rate of about 17 cm/year, averaging 61 kg
at 60 years in bulls and 9.2 kg in cows; record-weight = 106 kg, record length = 355 cm. In Elephas, only some males
have tusks.
Vision: An inspirational and relatively short statement that describes the desired future state for the species
(i.e., it describes in broad terms the desired range and abundance for the species, its continuing ecological role, and
its relationship with humans). The Vision is an essential part of the species conservation strategy process in that
stakeholders should discuss explicitly what it means to save a species and use the answer to this question to develop
the associated Goals. The Vision should, therefore, be derived from a range-wide analysis of a species’ status and a
detailed presentation of the long-term, range-wide conservation needs of the species (informed by the threat
analysis).
Vulnerable: IUCN Red List category of threat. A taxon is given this status when it is facing risk of extinction in
the wild; when the best available evidence indicates that the taxon meets the criteria for the category Vulnerable as
defined by any of the IUCN criteria (A to E).
[ BOTTOM RIGHT ]
Plate 11.
A typical sub-unit of
an elephant family: an
adult female, her adult
daughter and their
calves - Cynthia Moss,
Amboseli Trust for
Elephants