The first ever “red list” assessment of the African elephant as two separate species – the forest elephant and savanna elephant – has found that both are threatened with extinction, according to an updated review of the world’s most at-risk plants and animals. Photograph: Tony Karumba/AFP/GettyThe forest elephant has been classified by the IUCN as critically endangered, while the savanna elephant is listed as endangered. The majority of critically endangered forest elephants are in the Congo basin in Gabon, west Africa, while Botswana has the largest population of savanna elephants. Leading international conservation bodies such as Cites, which regulates the international trade in endangered species, does not recognise the two types of African elephants as separate species. Photograph: Michael Lorentz/AFP/GettyHe had previously warned that not recognising the forest elephant as a separate species could be condemning it to extinction.

Source: The Guardian March 25, 2021 13:00 UTC