August 12 is World Elephant Day

World Elephant Day was founded in 2012 by Patricia Sims and the Elephant Reintroduction Foundation.

Every year on August 12, the world celebrates elephants, but recent years have not been great for these iconic animals.

According to research published last year, the African elephant population dropped by more than 100,000 in just ten years to just over 400,000 today. Poaching for ivory is the top threat to elephants.

However there have been important developments of late. Most notably, China — the largest market for ivory — has banned the elephant ivory trade.

See our elephant news feed to keep track of the latest developments.

This slideshow below comes via Mongabay’s partnership with the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Wild View blog. All photos by Julie Larsen Maher.

Elephants are keystone species in their environment. Photo by Julie Larsen Maher ©WCS

Elephants of all ages are hunted for their tusks. Photo by Julie Larsen Maher ©WCS

Elephants. Photo by Julie Larsen Maher ©WCS

Elephant teeth are made into artwork and trinkets. Photo by Julie Larsen Maher ©WCS

The future of elephants has reached a critical point. Photo by Julie Larsen Maher ©WCS

Nearly two tons of ivory were crushed at Central Park on August 3, 2017, to send a message to poachers. Photo by Julie Larsen Maher ©WCS

Small ivory trinkets at the ivory crush had price tags of nearly $10,000 each. Photo by Julie Larsen Maher ©WCS













