The Best Way to Keep Elephant Populations Stable Over Time Is to Allow Them to Roam Freely, Scientists Find

A new study by a team of scientists with the Conservation Ecology Research Unit at South Africa’s University of Pretoria has found that the best way to keep elephant numbers stable is to let them roam freely in protected areas connected to buffer zones, rather than in “fortress” conservation areas where they have less space.

The conservation of wildlife habitat is essential for the protection of endangered species like the African savannah elephant. One of the goals of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework is for 30 percent of the land on Earth to be protected by 2030. Thus far, 16 percent has been preserved around the world, with Africa having designated 20 percent as protected.

Approximately 410,000 savannah elephants live in Africa, most of whom live in the southern part of the continent, said two of the study’s authors — Celesté Maré, a Ph.D. candidate at Aarhus University, and Robert A.R. Guldemond, a researcher with the Conservation Ecology Research Unit — in The Conversation.

More than 290,000 of the endangered mammals — 70 percent — live in 103 protected areas of differing connectivity, size and protection.

“African savannahs cover 13.5 million km2, almost half of the continent, of which 10% is protected and 2.2 million km2 (16%) sustain globally Endangered savannah elephants,” the authors of the study wrote. “These savannahs are also home to half a billion people, leading to high levels of human-wildlife conflict.”

In their paper, Maré, Guldemond and colleagues examined how populations of southern Africa’s elephants responded to various approaches to conservation.

The study covered approximately 123,553 square miles and was the most extensive growth analysis of any large mammal population in the world.

It revealed that, from 1995 to 2020, the elephant population across southern Africa increased at an average yearly rate of 0.16 percent. That means elephant numbers are the same as they were a quarter century ago.

“This is promising given that globally, savannah elephants are still listed as endangered, meaning that their numbers declined by over 50% within three generations,” Maré and Guldemond said in The Conversation. “Our analysis led us to conclude that the best way to keep overall numbers stable was to allow elephants to roam freely. Keeping elephants in small ‘fortress’ conservation parks may lead to spikes in elephant numbers, but this does not mean the numbers will be stable (more or less the same over time).”

Two approaches are normally used in the establishment of protected areas. One is to create isolated conservation fortresses that keep animals inside while protecting them from people.

The researchers discovered that elephant populations in these small patches of habitat boomed, sometimes to the extent that birth control or translocation became necessary. The potential of these conservation areas to become too packed meant the health of the elephants and the environment were put at risk.

The other model is to form groups of protected habitat linked to buffer areas that have less protection, like communal lands and forestry and subsistence farming areas.

The latter strategy means elephants are protected inside the core areas, with resources available to be shared by wildlife and humans in buffer zones.

“Our findings showed that elephants in large, well-protected core areas were more stable – neither increasing nor decreasing significantly. These populations enjoy strict protection and minimal human impact, while their connectivity to buffer areas allows for natural movement. Links between clusters of protected areas allow elephants to move into buffers when the core populations [get] too high and to return when their environments become unsuitable, or when they face other threats, such as poaching,” Maré and Guldemond said.

The study, “Protecting and connecting landscapes stabilizes populations of the Endangered savannah elephant,” was published in the journal Science Advances.

Maré and Guldemond pointed out that the safety and livelihoods of local communities also need to be taken into consideration in the creation of buffer zones.

“Conservation fortresses often exclude local people and may spark resentment. But buffer areas that surround core protected areas can be established in cooperation with local communities, who can then also benefit economically,” Maré and Guldemond said in The Conversation.

Creating connected protected areas not only gives African savannah elephants more room to roam and a better chance at survival, but it benefits other species of animals and plants as well.

“Populations with more options for moving around are healthier and more stable, which is important given an uncertain future from climate change,” Maré and Guldemond said.