A few weeks ago, I was watching a science documentary about various animals in the wild. One of the animals that have earned my admiration is the elephant. I wondered why such a majestic creature was never considered to be king of the jungle, never mind its peacefulness. It is large, with thick skin that takes a long time to penetrate by the sharp teeth of its predators. The gentle giant, however, can be made to fall prey when a hoard of lions attack it together. Lions also see better at night, while elephants panic in the dark. Despite its weaknesses, I still find the elephant worthy of a regal title. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a gentle but firm leader rather than a fierce, bloodthirsty one?

A deadlier – and perhaps even the deadliest – predator of elephants is humankind. African forest elephants are dying out because of poachers, who only care about the ivory. For the past ten years, 60 percent of the elephant population in Africa has already been eradicated. The gentle giant is hurtling towards extinction, something that we should be very concerned with.

In countries, such as Congo, Gabon, Cameroon and others, African forest elephants face imminent danger in a landscape that has proven to be very deadly for them. The elephants now take only a quarter of the original two million square kilometer area that they once inhabited. The habitat has not degraded as the forests are still there. So, the real problem is really poaching.

Poachers are pretty persistent folks, who continue to slay African forest elephants for a little money. Hopefully, conservationists and other people would be able to stop them before all the gentle forest giants are gone.