eBay is still selling ivory products despite a company ban in 2009. JohanWElzenga / Getty Images
New research found that elephant ivory is still being sold on the online marketplace eBay, despite a company ban in 2009.
<p>In 2008, eBay conducted the vast majority of online trade in <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/endangered-species" target="_self">endangered animals</a>, the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/21/us/21animals.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">New York Times</a> reported. After intense pressure from <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/conservation" target="_self">conservationists</a> over elephant poaching, the popular online shopping site banned selling ivory via its Animal and Wildlife Products policy, <a href="https://e360.yale.edu/digest/ebay-bans-ivory-sale-after-pressure-over-elephant-poaching" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Yale Environment 360</a> reported.</p><p>However, illegal goods are still being trafficked on the website today through vague or mislabeled listings, researchers from the <a href="https://research.kent.ac.uk/dice/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology at the University of Kent</a> found. Code words like "bone" are used as a cover description to disguise and misrepresent illegal listings as non-restricted materials, the study noted. Also complicating enforcement is the fact that "ivory" can be used to describe the color of any product, making enforcement searches using the word unproductive, <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/05/business/ebay-ivory-sales-continue-scli-intl/index.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">CNN</a> reported.</p><p>Study co-author David Roberts is well versed in the illicit <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/ivory-trade" target="_self">ivory trade</a>. He previously developed an <a href="https://peerj.com/articles/cs-10/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">algorithm identifying illegal elephant ivory</a> on eBay with a 93 percent accuracy, studied the <a href="https://peerj.com/articles/3048/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">behaviors of ivory sellers</a> on the online platform and examined the <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/oryx/article/code-word-usage-in-the-online-ivory-trade-across-four-european-union-member-states/55F53864C8288E0689245BD9FBAE6E8C" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">use of code words</a> across four European Union countries.</p><p>In his most recent research, published in the journal <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1940082920974604" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Tropical Conservation Science</a>, Roberts and his team investigated the discrepancy between how vendors described the objects in their listings versus what the study's authors identified as the actual materials, which they achieved by studying the images provided in the listings.</p>
<p>The researchers focused on listings for netsuke, carved objects attached to the cord of Japanese kimonos, which are offered on eBay UK, a <a href="https://www.kent.ac.uk/news/environment/27536/elephant-ivory-continues-to-be-disguised-and-sold-on-ebay" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">University of Kent statement</a> said. Netsuke are often made of ivory, and the researchers found that authentic elephant ivory was most frequently — and misleadingly — described as bone in netsuke listings, the statement said.</p><p>The authors identified mislabeled ivory by looking for Schreger lines in netsuke listing images, Roberts told EcoWatch. Schreger lines are a unique overlapping pattern found in elephant ivory. This pattern allowed them to identify authentic ivory without having to obtain the physical items for analysis, which would be ethically undesirable, the Kent statement said.</p><p>According to Keith Somerville, a professor at the <a href="http://commonwealth.sas.ac.uk/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Institute of Commonwealth Studies at the University of London</a> and author of "Ivory: Power and Poaching in Africa," certain elephant populations around the world are being hunted for their tusks. Globally, the world's largest land animal has also suffered due to habitat loss, poaching and confrontation with humans.</p><p>"<a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/elephants-poaching-africa-botswana-2601907339.html" target="_self">Illegal ivory trade is a major threat</a>," Somerville emphasized. There is no accurate estimate for how many animals are killed each year for ivory because "it is all underground." Somerville estimated that as many as 20,000 elephants might be killed annually for the black market.</p>
<p>"They have to kill the elephant. No other way to remove the ivory. They are shot or poisoned and the tusks hacked out," he told EcoWatch.</p><p>In late 2019, an eBay trader was jailed after being repeatedly caught selling ivory on the site, <a href="https://www.lincolnshirelive.co.uk/news/local-news/ebay-elephant-tusk-3439291" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Lincolnshire Live</a> reported. The trader shipped ivory products mislabeled as jewelry and wood carvings. During sentencing, the presiding judge said, "Without an illegal ivory market there would be no need for the capture of elephants in the wild. That market feeds the destruction of elephants," reported Lincolnshire Live.</p><p>In addition to ivory, Roberts' team also saw "all sorts of illegal wildlife or <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/wildlife" target="_self">wildlife</a> that violates their terms and conditions for sale on sites such as eBay, including a case of rhino horn, traditional Asian medicines, rare orchids and cacti, exotic skins, [and] shells to name a few," Roberts told EcoWatch. While ivory buyers and sellers use code words and disguise their trade with closed group communications, trade in "less charismatic species happens out in the open with no code words" on these websites, Roberts warned.</p><p>An eBay spokesperson told CNN that the company is a founding member of the Coalition to End Wildlife Trafficking Online and works with the World Wildlife Fund and the International Fund for Animal Welfare.</p>
<p>"We have global teams dedicated to upholding standards on our marketplace, and over a recent two-year period we blocked or removed over 265,000 listings prohibited under our animal products policy," the spokesperson told CNN.</p><p>Still, Roberts and fellow researchers returned to eBay a month after their initial search and found that only 1.3 to 6.9 percent of genuine ivory netsuke listings had been removed by eBay. More than half were already sold, and half of the unsold items were re-listed.</p><p>"If eBay was effectively enforcing its policy... on ivory, these items would have been removed," CNN reported the researchers saying.</p><p><a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/illegal-wildlife-trade-facebook-2640791262.html?rebelltitem=5" target="_self">eBay is not the only commerce service</a> facilitating online <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/wildlife-trafficking" target="_self">wildlife trafficking</a>, but it is a major site on which ivory can be found relatively easily, Roberts told EcoWatch. "While detecting illegal sales of ivory items can be particularly difficult, companies like eBay have the resources and data that could be mobilized to tackle the challenge of <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/illegal-wildlife-trade" target="_self">illegal wildlife trade</a>," Roberts said in the Kent statement.</p><p>He suggested tackling the illegal <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/wildlife-trade" target="_self">wildlife trade</a> online by making items more difficult to find, removing illegal listings and enforcing existing bans. Ultimately, Roberts called upon eBay and other technology companies to help develop algorithms for automating illegal product identification, he told EcoWatch. He also advocated for better reporting mechanisms that result in illegal listings actually being removed.</p>
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Endangered African forest elephants are seen in the Dzanga-Sangha Forest Reserve in the Central African Republic.
USO / Getty Images
USO / Getty Images
By Rocky Kistner
Despite their massive size, African forest elephants remains an elusive species, poorly studied because of their habitat in the dense tropical forests of West Africa and the Congo.
<p>But the more we learn about them, the more we know that forest elephants are in trouble. Like their slightly larger and better-known cousins, the bush or savannah elephants (<em>Loxodonta africana</em>), forest elephants (<em>L. cyclotis</em>) face rampant poaching for their majestic ivory tusks and the growing bush meat trade. <a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/gabons-forest-elephant-population-plunges-80-percent-in-a-decade/" target="_blank">More than 80%</a> of the population has been killed off in central Africa since 2002.</p><p>Today fewer than 100,000 forest elephants occupy their dwindling habitat. Conservationists worry they could soon head toward extinction if nothing is done.</p>
<img lazy-loadable="true" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDg5ODAzNy9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY2NzIzNDU5OX0.OnyGQNeL6FOEv21ak82PVLYHdYwMYVnxHGwEGlsckL0/img.jpg?width=980" id="54eb6" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="6e96323c67af3238b0afdd5194180bb4" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="2048" data-height="1365" />
Richard Ruggiero / USFWS
<p>And now a new threat has emerged: A study published this September found that <a href="https://science.sciencemag.org/content/early/2020/09/23/science.abc7791" target="_blank">climate change</a> has resulted in an 81% decline in fruit production in one forest elephant habitat in Gabon. That's caused the elephants there to experience an 11% decline in body condition since 2008.</p><p>But other research, also published in September, suggests a possible solution to both these crises.</p><h1>Elephants and Carbon</h1><p>It all boils down to carbon dioxide.</p><p>Forest elephants play a huge role in supporting the carbon sequestration power of their tropical habitats. Hungry pachyderms act as <a href="https://bassconnections.duke.edu/project-teams/mega-gardeners-tropical-forests-modeling-seed-dispersal-forest-elephants-2018-2019" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">mega-gardeners</a> as they roam across the landscape searching for bits of leaves, tree bark and fruit; stomping on small trees and bushes; and spreading seeds in their dung. This promotes the growth of larger carbon-absorbing trees, allowing forests to sequester more carbon from the air.</p><p>A July 2019 <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41561-019-0395-6" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">study</a> by ecologist Fabio Berzaghi, a researcher at the Laboratory of Climate and Environmental Sciences in France, estimated that if forest elephants disappeared African forests would lose 7% of their biomass — a stunning 3 billion-ton loss of carbon.</p><p>And they're not unique in this oversized role, although the closest equivalent lives in an entirely different type of habitat.</p><p>Last year a team of researchers led by Ralph Chami, an economist and assistant director at the International Monetary Fund, published a <a href="https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/fandd/2019/12/natures-solution-to-climate-change-chami.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">groundbreaking report</a> on the monetary value of great whales, the 13 large species that include blue and humpback whales. The study accounted for whales' enormous carbon-capturing functions, from fertilizing oxygen-producing phytoplankton to storing enormous amounts of carbon in their bodies when they <a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/10/26/927955797/after-a-whale-dies-what-happens" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">die and sink to the seafloor</a>. After also including tourism values, Chami's study estimated each whale was worth $2 million, amounting to a staggering $1 trillion for the entire global population of whales.</p>
<img lazy-loadable="true" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDg5ODE3My9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY2NzY4MTIwOH0.jAXmEdaSTS-J3bj1Az6npMY30p31ey9CPPhU9TbSMqY/img.jpg?width=980" id="3454c" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="268c9364ebabdf3da78903d065299383" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="2048" data-height="1365" />
Kaitlin Thoreson / National Park Service
<p>"It's a win-win for everyone," Chami says of his economic models, which place a monetary value on the "natural capital" of wildlife, including the carbon sequestration activities of whales and elephants. "By allowing nature to regenerate, [elephants and whales] are far more valuable to us than if we extract them. If nature thrives, you thrive."</p><p>Soon after the publication of Chami's whale study, Berzaghi called and asked if the economist could run the numbers on forest elephants too. Chami agreed, and this September they <a href="https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3686168" target="_blank">published the results</a>. The elephants, they calculated, are worth about $1.75 million each due to their forest carbon sequestration value alone.</p><p>Even more importantly, they found that if forest elephants were allowed to rebound to their former populations, their carbon-capturing value would jump to more than <a href="https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/fandd/2020/09/how-african-elephants-fight-climate-change-ralph-chami.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">$150 billion</a>.</p><p>And as climate change worsens, Chami says forest elephants will become even more valuable in terms of their carbon sequestration role — and as individuals. "The loss of their habitats has the impact of causing them more stress and to have fewer babies," he says.</p><h1>Turning Numbers Into Action</h1><p>Despite these stunning, if theoretical, numbers, the researchers knew they needed a financial plan that could be implemented and sustained in the real world.</p><p>That starts with keeping elephants alive.</p><p>Poachers receive pennies on the dollar for elephant tusks that, once they finally reach consumers, can fetch prices of up to <a href="https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/fandd/2020/09/how-african-elephants-fight-climate-change-ralph-chami.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">$40,000</a> on the illegal ivory market.</p>
<img lazy-loadable="true" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDg5ODE5Ni9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY2Nzk1NTQ4MH0.ax9AMSlFDlDCK-N4OJ0tvVmeCotvfG07JVUZ0L2JoME/img.jpg?width=980" id="24525" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="ed53cc1035e64fd20e63bcf62d67be61" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="1920" data-height="1080" />
Gavin Shire / USFWS
<p>Chami says that pales in comparison to the $1.75 million an elephant could be worth for its carbon sequestration services, an amount that works out to roughly $80 a day over an elephant's 60-year average lifetime.</p><p>But how do you deliver that value to the people who live near elephants, including people who perhaps currently poach the animals? Chami turned to worldwide carbon markets, which encourage countries or companies to offset their greenhouse gases by investing in restorative measures in other parts of the world.</p><p>To activate that proposed value, Chami brought together a group of conservation, business technology and economic experts to develop a pilot project that could promote the protection of forest elephants in Africa. Together, they aim to create a legal framework and a secure financial distribution system that would use of carbon markets to pay local communities to protect forest elephants. Individual elephants would be tracked using satellite technology to ensure their safety. As long as the elephants remain alive, communities could receive regular payments from a carbon market funded by corporations, individuals and governments to offset their pollution. Elephants could become "living assets" for countries that protect them.</p><p>Those assets could add up. Chami says the population of 1,500 elephants in Gabon's Loango National Forest would provide $2.4 million in annual revenue.</p><p>"We need to build a market around living elephants," Chami says. "The poachers can become the caretakers."</p><p>That's an exciting concept to wildlife experts, who have already had some success empowering communities through tourism. But for elephants that live in remote areas of African forests, tourism is less of an option. A market that places a value on elephants for their global carbon sequestration and climate contributions opens a new opportunity for support.</p><p>"It potentially changes how people think of the value of elephants," said <a href="https://www.cms.int/en/page/ian-redmond" target="_blank">Ian Redmond</a>, a renowned African conservationist who's working with Chami and others to fund forest elephant protection efforts.</p><p>Redmond says he's thrilled about this new plan because it incentivizes locals to protect their natural resources, not exploit them.</p><p>"It's a gamechanger, not just for its ecological benefits, but for poverty reduction," he says. "It's a mechanism of change for people in the forest for people who before now only get money if they kill something. Now there's an economic incentive to protect the elephants and their carbon-rich habitat so everyone benefits, locally and globally."</p><p>The trick, the experts say, is getting money dispersed fairly and securely to local communities. Chami's team says the revolution in new secure financial networks such as blockchain, the building block of digital monetary systems like Bitcoin, can help establish a monetary system that can be more efficient and transparent than traditional banking systems. Africa's ahead of the curve when it comes to dealing in these <a href="https://www.dw.com/en/africas-quiet-cryptocurrency-revolution/a-55199637" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">new digital monetary technologies</a>, which, though not perfect, can be a positive anti-corruption tool in the murky world of international carbon markets and debt swaps sometimes linked to <a href="https://www.clarmondial.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/Transparency_International.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">fraud and influence peddling.</a></p><p>Walid Al Saqqaf, a startup founder and technology expert who produces the weekly podcast <a href="https://insureblocks.com/about-us/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Insureblocks,</a> is working closely with Chami and conservationists like Redmond to tap into global carbon exchange markets and create a framework for local funding efforts. Al Saqqaf says the secure nature of <a href="https://insureblocks.com/ep-128-blockchain-supporting-natures-solution-to-climate-change-insights-from-the-imf/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">blockchain technology</a> can attract international governmental agencies as well as private sector banks and insurance companies who will increasingly want to offset carbon footprints by investing in carbon-sequestering natural resources. "We take a toxic asset such as carbon and transform it into carbon for social good," Al Saqqaf says.</p><p>The group is setting up technology, legal and science working groups to develop a cohesive plan that could go into effect next year, although the conservation team says it's too early to announce specifics of the pilot program. They say they are in early discussions with African governments hoping to protect their elephants as well as private enterprises interested in offsetting carbon emissions.</p>
<h1>A Ticking Clock, But Forward Motion</h1><p>Meanwhile the threats from both climate change and poaching continue. A study published this June found that, despite efforts to reduce the ivory trade, <a href="https://africanelephantjournal.com/research-shows-rampant-poaching-of-african-elephants-is-not-declining/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">elephant poaching rates</a> remain "near their peak and have changed little since 2011."</p><p>The rapidly growing risks of extinctions, fueled in part by climate change, have pushed the team to quickly get their ground-breaking plan up and running. "We are in a race against time," Al Saqqaf says.</p><p>While the work on elephants remains on the drawing board, Chami's earlier study on the economic value of whales has already started generating real-world action. A G20 working group <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344424788_CLIMATE_CHANGE_AND_ENVIRONMENT_POLICY_BRIEF_NATURE-BASED_SOLUTIONS_TO_CLIMATE_CHANGE_TOWARDS_A_BLUE_CARBON_ECONOMY_FUTURE" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">recommended this year</a> that member countries take whales into account for their climate mitigation and ecosystem values. In Chile a national initiative is using Chami's economic model to help design a project called the <a href="https://www.filantropiacortessolari.cl/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/6.-Sonia-Espa%C3%B1ol.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Blue Boat Initiative</a>, a sophisticated satellite and sea-based plan supported by the Chilean government to protect whales from ship collisions.</p><p>"The valuation of ecosystem services is very relevant because it allows us to show the oceans are not only a raw material," says Patricia Morales, general manager of Fundacion Cortes Solari, a private foundation that supports the Blue Boat Initiative and other climate and environmental issues. "We need to move from the current paradigm to the blue economy."</p><p>Chami says the positive global response to their work is rewarding, but it's far from complete. His team — which plans to apply this methodology to other species — knows the dire state of the natural world, and the challenges of creating new international funding and conservation models are huge. But Chami and his colleagues say that by "translating science into dollars," researchers can build a powerful market-based mechanism that can reverse society's incentive to destroy the natural world.</p><p>"We need to learn to live in balance with nature," Chami says. "Our sustainability depends on protecting our ecosystems."</p>
<p><em><a href="https://therevelator.org/author/kistner/" target="_blank"><em>Rocky Kistner </em></a><em>is an environmental journalist and a former broadcast television and radio reporter and producer. He writes for a variety of online publications and lives near DC, raising two daughters and a beagle named Wilma.</em></em></p><p><em>Reposted with permission from <a href="https://therevelator.org/climate-change-forest-elephants/" target="_blank">The Revelator.</a></em></p>From Your Site Articles
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Like many other plant-based foods and products, CBD oil is one dietary supplement where "organic" labels are very important to consumers. However, there are little to no regulations within the hemp industry when it comes to deeming a product as organic, which makes it increasingly difficult for shoppers to find the best CBD oil products available on the market.
<p>Here you can learn about the importance of organic hemp oil, why it's better for the environment, and which CBD companies actually make trustworthy products with sustainable farming processes. origins which weigh heavily on many consumers who want to buy a product that's produced in the best way possible for not only themselves to ingest, but for the environment as well through sustainable farming methods. </p><h2>What Is CBD Oil?</h2><p>First things first, CBD stands for cannabidiol, and it's a cannabinoid found within cannabis sativa plants. This plant compound is believed to have many potential benefits, and it is primarily derived from hemp plants via a CO2 extraction process. </p><p>Since CBD is extracted from industrial hemp, which contains only trace amounts of THC (the psychoactive component in cannabis plants), this means that CBD won't make you feel high like marijuana, which has much higher levels of THC that causes psychoactive effects. Instead, the effects of CBD are much more subtle and promote a general sense of calm and relaxation in most users.</p><h2>What Makes a CBD Oil Organic?</h2><p>In terms of organic labels, perhaps the most important (and prominent) certification comes from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). This government organization has been labeling foods as "organic" for many years, but what exactly does this certification entail? Essentially, a label indicating that a product is "USDA Organic" or "Certified Organic" means that at least 95% of the ingredients are obtained from organic sources.</p><p>For a crop to be considered organic by the USDA, it must be grown without the use of industrial solvents, irradiation, genetic engineering (GMOs), synthetic pesticides, or chemical fertilizer. Instead, farmers rely on natural substances and <a href="https://www.usda.gov/media/blog/2012/03/22/organic-101-what-usda-organic-label-means" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">mechanical, physical, or biologically based farming</a> techniques to cultivate healthy and organic crops.</p><p>Before the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill, no hemp-derived products could be dubbed as "certified organic" since the hemp plant and its extracts were still categorized as a Schedule I Controlled Substance. However, it's still difficult for CBD companies to obtain a USDA certified organic label for their products due to the legal grey area that still surrounds CBD extracts. </p><p>Because of these challenges, and due to the fact that industrial hemp has only recently become an agricultural crop, very few CBD oils are USDA certified organic. Rather, many CBD products contain hemp extracts from plants that were grown in organic conditions but may not be federally certified.</p><h2>What are the Best Organic CBD Oil Brands?</h2><p><em>Each product featured here has been independently selected by the writer. If you make a purchase using the links included, we may earn commission.</em></p><em><br></em>
<h2>Why Organic Hemp Oil Matters</h2><p>Hemp is a unique plant, not only for its rich cannabinoid content, but also for its ability to absorb a wide variety of components in soil. But this trait poses great risks when it comes to the creation of CBD products derived from hemp.</p><p>Because hemp has a high capacity for compound uptake, this means that the plants can retain <a href="https://www.remedyreview.com/industry/lab-test-results/" target="_blank">harmful chemicals like pesticides</a>, heavy metals, and other residual solvents. This is especially true when it comes to synthetic chemicals that are more toxic to humans, and difficult to remove once they have been absorbed by the hemp plant.</p><p>Organic farming practices help reduce the risk of hemp crops absorbing harsh chemicals that may later end up in CBD oil after extraction. When you're taking CBD as a wellness supplement to help alleviate your symptoms or improve your overall well-being, the last thing you want is to ingest compounds that might negatively outweigh the benefits of CBD. This is an important reason to look for third party lab test results when shopping for CBD products since these certificates of analysis can show the full cannabinoid and terpene profile of a hemp extract, as well as test results that search for the presence of any residual solvents.</p><p>In addition to creating a better end product, organic farming practices are also better for the environment. Sustainable and organic farming methods may <a href="https://www.helpguide.org/articles/healthy-eating/organic-foods.htm" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">reduce pollution, conserve water, reduce soil erosion, increase soil fertility, and use less energy</a>. The use of natural pest deterrents as opposed to chemical pesticides is also better for nearby animal populations and ecosystems.</p><h3>Organic vs. Natural</h3><p>While there are only a select few companies offering certified organic ingredients in their products, almost every brand in the CBD market creates "natural" products. The term "all-natural" or "plant-based" does not mean that a product is organic, and since hemp oil is a natural derivative of hemp plants, these products are often referred to as all-natural. However, there are some synthetic CBD oils that should be avoided because they are chemically constructed and may produce unwanted side effects that are not caused by naturally derived CBD extracts.</p><h2>What are the Benefits of Organic CBD Oil?</h2><p>There's a long list of potential CBD oil health benefits, and some of the most common wellness advantages include:</p><ul class="ee-ul"><li><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2503660/" target="_blank">Chronic pain relief</a></li><li><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4604171/" target="_blank">Anti-anxiety effects</a></li><li>Better sleep</li><li><a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/inner-source/201901/cbd-oil-mental-health-should-you-take-it-too" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Improvements in mood</a></li><li>Internal balance and regulation</li></ul><p>When dealing with pain, inflammation, sleep issues, and mental health struggles, it can be hard to find sufficient treatment options. The use of certain prescriptions can cause unwanted side effects, yet they are often the only solution for patients with these medical conditions. In search of other therapies, people have started to flock towards CBD oil as an alternative remedy for a variety of conditions. However, it should be noted that CBD products are not approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and you should seek your doctor's advice before using CBD if you have a serious medical condition.</p><h2>Look at the Labels Before You Buy CBD Oil</h2><p>When you go online to buy CBD oil, you'll quickly realize there is an overwhelming number of brands that are saturating the market. It can be difficult to determine which products are truly as good as they make themselves out to be. Always look for up-to-date third-party lab tests so you know you are getting a great product, and don't hesitate to contact the brand if you have any additional questions. And if you're intent on purchasing 100% organic CBD oil, it's best to look for certified products or brands that are held to strict regulatory standards.</p><p><strong>Melena Gurganus </strong>is the Reviews Editor at EcoWatch. She is passionate health and wellness and her writing aims to help others find products they can trust. Her work has been featured in publications such as Health, Shape, Huffington Post, Cannabis Business Times, and Bustle.<br></p>
Spruce
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDY4NjI3OC9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYyOTM2NzgzOX0.axY0HjeqRctJsR_KmDLctzDpUBLBN-oNIdqaXDb4caQ/img.jpg?width=980" id="774be" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="8379f35b1ca8a86d0e61b7d4bfc8b46e" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" alt="spruce organic cbd oil" data-width="710" data-height="959" /><p>As one of the best brands in the business, Spruce CBD is well-known for its potent CBD oils that feature many additional beneficial phytocannabinoids. This brand works with two family-owned, sustainably focused farms in the USA (one located in Kentucky and one in North Carolina) to create its organic, small product batches. The max potency Spruce CBD oil contains 2400mg of full-spectrum CBD extract, but the brand also offers a lower strength tincture with 750mg of CBD in total.</p>
$89
CBDistillery
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDcwMjkzNC9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYyMTU4OTM4Nn0.ypRdeDSBcE87slYrFfVrRwtJ2qGIK6FD5jBB4pndTMo/img.jpg?width=980" id="b473b" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="9930b53c9d58cb49774640a61c3e3e75" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" alt="cbdistillery cbd oil" data-width="1244" data-height="1244" /><p>All of the products from CBDistillery are <a href="https://ushempauthority.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">U.S. Hemp Authority Certified</a>, and for good reason. The company only uses non-GMO and pesticide-free industrial hemp that's grown organically on Colorado farms. Its hemp oils are some of the most affordable CBD products on the market, yet they still maintain a high standard of quality. CBDistillery has a wide variety of CBD potencies across its product line (ranging from 500mg to 5000mg per bottle) and offers both full-spectrum and broad-spectrum CBD oils to give customers a completely thc-free option.</p>
$35
FAB CBD
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDY4NjIyNS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY2NDIwOTEyMn0.MlTjz096FJ0ev_-soK7_Z-FeQeJczWoeh9Qi9SSkHsY/img.jpg?width=980" id="04b26" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="76aa4862f44603242e318982acea6646" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" alt="fab cbd oil" data-width="800" data-height="800" /><p>For an organic CBD oil that has it all, FAB CBD offers plenty of variety for any type of consumer. All of its products are made with zero pesticides and extracted from organically grown Colorado industrial hemp. FAB CBD oil comes in five all-natural flavors (mint, vanilla, berry, citrus, and natural) and is also available in four strengths (300, 600, 1200, and 2400mg per bottle).</p>
$39
NuLeaf Naturals
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDY4NjIxOS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY1NzExNTgyMX0.D6qMGYllKTsVhEkQ-L_GzpDHVu60a-tJKcio7M1Ssmc/img.jpg?width=980" id="94e4a" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="3609a52479675730893a45a82a03c71d" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" alt="nuleaf naturals organic cbd oil" data-width="600" data-height="600" /><p>As an industry-leading brand, it comes as no surprise that NuLeaf Naturals sources its CBD extract from organic hemp plants grown on licensed farms in Colorado. The comany's CBD oils only contain two ingredients: USDA certified organic hemp seed oil and full spectrum hemp extract.</p><p>NuLeaf Naturals uses one proprietary CBD oil formula for all of its products, so you will get the same CBD potency in each tincture (60mg per mL), but can purchase different bottle sizes depending on how much you intend to use.</p>
$38.50
Charlotte's Web
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDcwMjk3NS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY0MzQ0NjM4N30.SaQ85SK10-MWjN3PwHo2RqpiUBdjhD0IRnHKTqKaU7Q/img.jpg?width=980" id="84700" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="a2174067dcc0c4094be25b3472ce08c8" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" alt="charlottes web cbd oil" data-width="1244" data-height="1244" /><p>Perhaps one of the most well-known brands in the CBD landscape, Charlotte's Web has been growing sustainable hemp plants for several years. The company is currently in the process of achieving official USDA Organic Certification, but it already practices organic and sustainable cultivation techniques to enhance the overall health of the soil and the hemp plants themselves, which creates some of the highest quality CBD extracts. Charlotte's Web offers CBD oils in a range of different concentration options, and some even come in a few flavor options such as chocolate mint, orange blossom, and lemon twist.</p>
$60
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‘World’s Loneliest Elephant’ Rescued From Cruel Conditions With Help From Cher
30 November 2020
Animals
Kaavan in Islamabad, Pakistan on Sept. 4, 2020. Arne Immanuel Bänsch / picture alliance via Getty Images
With help from music icon Cher, the "world's loneliest elephant" has found a new home and, hopefully, a new family.
<p>The elephant, a 36-year-old male named Kaavan, has lived alone in a controversial zoo in Islamabad, Pakistan since his partner Saheli died in 2012, according to <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/animal-welfare" target="_self">animal welfare</a> group <a href="https://www.four-paws.org/our-stories/press-releases/from-the-loneliest-to-the-luckiest-elephant-kaavan-takes-off-for-cambodia" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Four Paws International</a>. But now, thanks to the efforts of Four Paws, Cher and her NGO <a href="https://www.freethewild.org/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Free the Wild</a>, the Pakistani government and American businessman Eric S. Margolis, Kaavan has landed in Cambodia after a 10-hour flight, where he will enjoy a new life in a <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/wildlife" target="_self">wildlife</a> sanctuary.</p><p>"Kaavan was eating, was not stressed and he even slept a little bit whilst leaning on the wall of the crate!" Four Paws <a href="https://twitter.com/fourpawsint/status/1333328774507728896" target="_blank">tweeted Monday</a> of the successful flight. "He behaves like a 'Frequent Flyer.'"</p>
<img lazy-loadable="true" src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vbWVkaWEucmJsLm1zL2ltYWdlP3U9JTJGbWVkaWElMkZFb0R2QmtYVzRBQThsbHouanBnJTNBbWVkaXVtJmhvPWh0dHBzJTNBJTJGJTJGcGJzLnR3aW1nLmNvbSZzPTE2MyZoPTE1NzMzNWNiNmNlMTdjZDJjODAxYTJlMWVlMzFlMWI3YTQ4MWQ3YWFlOTA1YzE0NWQwZWVlOTgxNDRjOWUyNzcmc2l6ZT05ODB4JmM9MTM5MjE2MDk0MSIsImV4cGlyZXNfYXQiOjE2MTUyNzQ3MzF9.w7gpcbinIUQ1CD4qc6dxKjSVdVMRRSuM3Ewtpn_OtvU/img.jpg" id="da326" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="8f24f0149444c92249de4a8988f61309" />Twitter
<p>But Kaavan's journey to Cambodia was much longer than the 10 hour flight. Kaavan, an Asian elephant, was first gifted to Pakistan from Sri Lanka in 1985 and found his first home at the Marghazar Zoo, according to Four Paws. From 1990 until 2012, he shared his enclosure with Saheli. But then she died after an infection turned gangrenous, <a href="https://apnews.com/article/pakistan-animals-elephants-islamabad-animal-welfare-4c002d8b04544388b065f0500ac9e306" target="_blank">The Associated Press reported</a>. Her body was left in the enclosure for several days after she passed away, Four Paws veterinarian Dr. Amir Khalil said Kaavan was heartbroken by the experience.</p><p>Even before Saheli's death, the Marghazar Zoo was not a pleasant place to live. Kaavan spent most of his 35 years there in chains. But his condition deteriorated after his partner passed away, and wildlife advocates dubbed him the "world's loneliest elephant."</p>
<p>Cher learned about his case on Twitter and decided to get involved, according to <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/cher-pakistan-elephant-kaavan-intl-hnk-scli/index.html" target="_blank">CNN</a>.</p><p>"I thought, 'how can I fix this? How can I save an elephant who's been shackled to a shed for 17 years and who is a thousand miles away?'" Cher told CNN.</p><p>Kaavan's relocation to Cambodia marks the first big rescue for Free the Wild, which Cher co-founded. It is also the first time Four Paws has moved an elephant by plane, the organization said.</p><p>Khalil spent three months preparing Kaavan for the journey, The Associated Press reported. At the start of the process, Kaavan was both malnourished and overweight, and suffered from behavioral problems because of his time spent alone. He started shaking his head for hours, and his nails are cracked and overgrown because the flooring in his enclosure harmed his feet.</p>
<p>Khalil put Kaavan on a diet of fruit and vegetables and helped him to lose a ton before the flight. He also helped him to get more relaxed before the journey, which Kaavan undertook with only mild sedation, according to <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CIMBkLoAbjX/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Free the Wild</a>.</p><p>"Kaavan quickly gained confidence in us and made great progress in a short time. In his case it not only took a village but a whole country to transfer Kaavan to Cambodia," Khalil told Four Paws.</p><p>Cher was both in Pakistan to see Kaavan off and in Cambodia to greet him on his arrival. She sang "A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes," to him before he left, according to CNN. In Pakistan, she also met with Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday, according to The Associated Press.</p><p>"Just Came From Meeting To Thank Prime Minister Imran Kahn For Making It Possible For Me To Take Kaavan To Cambodia," she <a href="https://twitter.com/cher/status/1332296298989580288" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">tweeted Friday</a>.</p><p>She also said that Kaavan's story would be told in a Smithsonian documentary.</p>
<div id="66bbe" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="b2be63265ec60d2bb78c8e758bee8144"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-twitter-tweet-id="1332440451517845504" data-partner="rebelmouse"><div style="margin:1em 0">🐘Kaavan's journey to freedom from captivity in Islamabad to Cambodia will be a 2021 @SmithsonianChan documentary ❤️… https://t.co/zgESUUzD9x</div> — Cher (@Cher)<a href="https://twitter.com/cher/statuses/1332440451517845504">1606513533.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p>In Cambodia, Kaavan will live in the <a href="https://www.cambodiawildlifesanctuary.com/#:~:text=The%20Cambodia%20Wildlife%20Sanctuary%20was,and%20remarkable%20habitat%20of%20Cambodia.&text=The%20sanctuary%20is%20located%20in,covers%20approximately%20One%20million%20acres." target="_blank">Cambodia Wildlife Sanctuary</a>, where there are three other female elephants to keep him company, Four Paws spokesperson Martin Bauer told <a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/11/27/939509981/worlds-loneliest-elephant-moving-to-sanctuary-with-help-from-cher" target="_blank">NPR</a>.</p><p>"The goal is to socialize him," Bauer said. "It will take a while because he has lived on his own for such a long time. But yes, ultimately the goal is to bring him together with other animals because that's what elephants want. They're herd animals, they always form families, and that's also what we plan for him."</p>Kaavan is not the only animal who suffered at the Marghazar Zoo. The Islamabad High Court ordered its closure in May because of cruel conditions. Four Paws is also helping to relocate other zoo animals. It has found new homes for three wolves, some monkeys and all of the zoo's rabbits, the organization said. It will rehome two Himalayan brown bears in December. Margolis, the U.S. businessman, is helping to fund the rescue of the animals, including the bears, and paid for half of Kaavan's flight.
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A captive elephant is seen at Howletts Wild Animal Park in Littlebourne, England. Suvodeb Banerjee / Flickr / CC by 2.0
By Bob Jacobs
Hanako, a female Asian elephant, lived in a tiny concrete enclosure at Japan's Inokashira Park Zoo for more than 60 years, often in chains, with no stimulation. In the wild, elephants live in herds, with close family ties. Hanako was solitary for the last decade of her life.
<p><a href="https://whalesanctuaryproject.org/whales/kiska-alone-again/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Kiska</a>, a young female orca, was captured in 1978 off the Iceland coast and taken to Marineland Canada, an aquarium and amusement park. Orcas are social animals that live in family <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/o/orca/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">pods</a> with up to 40 members, but Kiska has lived alone in a small tank since 2011. Each of her five calves died. To combat stress and boredom, she swims in slow, endless circles and has gnawed her teeth to the pulp on her concrete pool.</p><p>Unfortunately, these are common conditions for many large, captive mammals in the "entertainment" industry. In decades of <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=KvCW9T0AAAAJ&hl=en" target="_blank">studying the brains of humans, African elephants, humpback whales and other large mammals</a>, I've noted the organ's great sensitivity to the environment, including serious impacts on its structure and function from living in captivity.</p>
<img lazy-loadable="true" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDQ1MDQyMi9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYxODMyODUwM30.AyeRUJ4H_QH0GLX-ypQsC_HoJk5DAf9DcYP44Go6GzE/img.jpg?width=980" id="72ff6" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="efdca2380444b7629ae0f338889fd1b6" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="600" data-height="560" />
Hanako, an Asian elephant kept at Japan's Inokashira Park Zoo; and Kiska, an orca that lives at Marineland Canada. One image depicts Kiska's damaged teeth. Elephants in Japan (left image), Ontario Captive Animal Watch (right image), CC BY-ND
Affecting Health and Altering Behavior
<p>It is easy to observe the overall health and psychological consequences of life in captivity for these animals. Many captive elephants suffer from arthritis, obesity or skin problems. Both <a href="https://doi.org/10.11609/JoTT.o2620.1826-36" target="_blank">elephants</a> and orcas often have severe dental problems. Captive orcas are plagued by <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jveb.2019.05.005" target="_blank">pneumonia, kidney disease, gastrointestinal illnesses and infections</a>.</p><p>Many animals <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2017.09.010" target="_blank">try to cope</a> with captivity by adopting abnormal behaviors. Some develop "<a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.applanim.2017.05.003" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">stereotypies</a>," which are repetitive, purposeless habits such as constantly bobbing their heads, swaying incessantly or chewing on the bars of their cages. Others, especially big cats, pace their enclosures. Elephants rub or break their tusks.</p>Changing Brain Structure
<p>Neuroscientific research indicates that living in an impoverished, stressful captive environment <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jveb.2019.05.005" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">physically damages the brain</a>. These changes have been documented in many <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/cne.903270108" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">species</a>, including rodents, rabbits, cats and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1006/nimg.2001.0917" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">humans</a>.</p><p>Although researchers have directly studied some animal brains, most of what we know comes from observing animal behavior, analyzing stress hormone levels in the blood and applying knowledge gained from a half-century of neuroscience research. Laboratory research also suggests that mammals in a zoo or aquarium have compromised brain function.</p><img lazy-loadable="true" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDQ1MDQzNC9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY1MjM0MzI1MH0.fp2ujwrgKdMD09Y4jRTH8cUUCyxtcAmp0M30n4LzHIU/img.jpg?width=980" id="7cb37" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="4c195010067513dfa086c5a0dba564bc" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="600" data-height="803" />
This illustration shows differences in the brain's cerebral cortex in animals held in impoverished (captive) and enriched (natural) environments. Impoverishment results in thinning of the cortex, a decreased blood supply, less support for neurons and decreased connectivity among neurons. Arnold B. Scheibel, CC BY-ND
<p>Subsisting in confined, barren quarters that lack intellectual stimulation or appropriate social contact seems to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1590/S0001-37652001000200006" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">thin the cerebral cortex</a> – the part of the brain involved in voluntary movement and higher cognitive function, including memory, planning and decision-making.</p><p>There are other consequences. Capillaries shrink, depriving the brain of the oxygen-rich blood it needs to survive. Neurons become smaller, and their dendrites – the branches that form connections with other neurons – become less complex, impairing communication within the brain. As a result, the cortical neurons in captive animals <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/cne.901230110" target="_blank">process information less efficiently</a> than those living in <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/dev.420020208" target="_blank">enriched, more natural environments</a>.</p><img lazy-loadable="true" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDQ1MDQzOC9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY3Mjc1MDY3NX0.p5arA29FrUGjKbbesei2JSJ-rJf5opDxm8VGEdDCCRY/img.jpg?width=980" id="eb861" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="d34c18b3323cc4c9f41bbe18d8b5aaf1" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="600" data-height="398" />
An actual cortical neuron in a wild African elephant living in its natural habitat compared with a hypothesized cortical neuron from a captive elephant. Bob Jacobs, CC BY-ND
<p>Brain health is also affected by living in small quarters that <a href="https://doi.org/10.3233/BPL-160040" target="_blank">don't allow for needed exercise</a>. Physical activity increases the flow of blood to the brain, which requires large amounts of oxygen. Exercise increases the production of new connections and <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.aaw2622" target="_blank">enhances cognitive abilities</a>.</p><p>In their native habits these animals must move to survive, covering great distances to forage or find a mate. Elephants typically travel anywhere from <a href="https://www.elephantsforafrica.org/elephant-facts/#:%7E:text=How%20far%20do%20elephants%20walk,km%20on%20a%20daily%20basis." target="_blank">15 to 120 miles per day</a>. In a zoo, they average <a href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0150331" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">three miles daily</a>, often walking back and forth in small enclosures. One free orca studied in Canada swam <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-010-0958-x" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">up to 156 miles a day</a>; meanwhile, an average orca tank is about 10,000 times smaller than its <a href="https://www.cascadiaresearch.org/projects/killer-whales/using-dtags-study-acoustics-and-behavior-southern" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">natural home range</a>.</p>Disrupting Brain Chemistry and Killing Cells
<p>Living in enclosures that restrict or prevent normal behavior creates chronic frustration and boredom. In the wild, an animal's stress-response system helps it escape from danger. But captivity traps animals with <a href="https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1215502109" target="_blank">almost no control</a> over their environment.</p><p>These situations foster <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/rev0000033" target="_blank">learned helplessness</a>, negatively impacting the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1155/2016/6391686" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">hippocampus</a>, which handles memory functions, and the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuropharm.2011.02.024" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">amygdala</a>, which processes emotions. Prolonged stress <a href="https://doi.org/10.3109/10253899609001092" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">elevates stress hormones</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1523/JNEUROSCI.10-09-02897.1990" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">damages or even kills neurons</a> in both brain regions. It also disrupts the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2005.03.021" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">delicate balance of serotonin</a>, a neurotransmitter that stabilizes mood, among other functions.</p><p>In humans, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1006/nimg.2001.0917" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">deprivation</a> can trigger <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2018.00367" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">psychiatric issues</a>, including depression, anxiety, <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2018.00367" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">mood disorders</a> or <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/1073858409333072" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">post-traumatic stress disorder</a>. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s00429-010-0288-3" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Elephants</a>, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.0050139" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">orcas</a> and other animals with large brains are likely to react in similar ways to life in a severely stressful environment.</p>Damaged Wiring
<p>Captivity can damage the brain's complex circuitry, including the basal ganglia. This group of neurons communicates with the cerebral cortex along two networks: a direct pathway that enhances movement and behavior, and an indirect pathway that inhibits them.</p><p>The repetitive, <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.bbr.2014.05.057" target="_blank">stereotypic behaviors</a> that many animals adopt in captivity are caused by an imbalance of two neurotransmitters, dopamine and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2010.02.004" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">serotonin</a>. This impairs the indirect pathway's ability to modulate movement, a condition documented in species from chickens, cows, sheep and horses to primates and big cats.</p><img lazy-loadable="true" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDQ1MDQ0NC9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY0NTk4ODQ5MH0.y-zYv_gEQ-pgdSyytSGEq5Jq3uYWqYR24kKHuEhl7Qo/img.jpg?width=980" id="cf7b3" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="03ebc3885a895e0d497ec39dde96d295" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="600" data-height="375" />
The cerebral cortex, hippocampus and amygdala are physically altered by captivity, along with brain circuitry that involves the basal ganglia. Bob Jacobs, CC BY-ND
<p>Evolution has constructed animal brains to be exquisitely responsive to their environment. Those reactions can affect neural function by <a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/311787/behave-by-robert-m-sapolsky/" target="_blank">turning different genes on or off</a>. Living in inappropriate or abusive circumstance alters biochemical processes: It disrupts the synthesis of proteins that build connections between brain cells and the neurotransmitters that facilitate communication among them.</p><p>There is strong evidence that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0577-11.2011" target="_blank">enrichment</a>, social contact and appropriate space in more natural habitats are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1748-1090.2003.tb02071.x" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">necessary</a> for long-lived animals with large brains such as <a href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0152490" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">elephants</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/13880292.2017.1309858" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">cetaceans</a>. Better conditions <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5543669/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">reduce disturbing sterotypical behaviors</a>, improve connections in the brain, and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/cdd.2009.193" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">trigger neurochemical changes</a> that enhance learning and memory.</p>The Captivity Question
<p>Some people defend keeping animals in captivity, arguing that it helps conserve endangered species or offers educational benefits for <a href="http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.574.3479&rep=rep1&type=pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">visitors to zoos and aquariums</a>. These justifications are questionable, particularly for <a href="https://animalstudiesrepository.org/acwp_zoae/8/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">large mammals</a>. As my own research and work by many other scientists shows, caging large mammals and putting them on display is undeniably cruel from a neural perspective. It causes brain damage.</p><p>Public perceptions of captivity are slowly changing, as shown by the reaction to the documentary <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackfish_(film)" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">"Blackfish</a>." For animals that cannot be free, there are well-designed sanctuaries. Several already exist for elephants and other large mammals in <a href="https://www.elephants.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Tennessee</a>, <a href="https://globalelephants.org/overview/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Brazil</a> and Northern <a href="http://www.pawsweb.org/about_our_sanctuaries.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">California</a>. Others are being developed for large <a href="https://whalesanctuaryproject.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">cetaceans</a>.</p><p>Perhaps it is not too late for Kiska.</p>From Your Site Articles
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A Botswana elephant stands in a body of water. Geschenkpanda / Pixabay
Toxins in water produced by cyanobacteria was likely responsible for more than 300 elephant deaths in Botswana this year, the country's wildlife department announced on Monday.
<p>Elephants mysteriously started dying in the country's vast inland Okavango Delta from March this year, alarming conservationists and sparking an investigation. Some 330 elephants have died in the region.</p><p>Officials ruled out killing by poachers who hunt elephants for their ivory, because they died with their tusks intact. They also ruled out anthrax poisoning.</p>
How Did Cyanobacteria Poison the Elephants?
<p>Cyanobacteria are microscopic organisms common in water and sometimes found in soil. Some cyanobacteria produce neurotoxins.</p><p>The cyanobacteria "was growing in pans" or watering holes, the principal veterinary officer of the Department of Wildlife and National Parks, Mmadi Reuben, told reporters.</p><p>Reuben said the deaths had "stopped towards the end of June 2020, coinciding with the drying of pans."</p><p>"However we have many questions still to be answered such as why the elephants only and why that area only? We have a number of hypotheses we are investigating," added Reuben.</p><p>Similar elephant deaths have also been recorded in neighboring Zimbabwe.</p>Climate Change to Blame?
<p>Not all cyanobacteria are toxic but scientists say varieties dangerous to humans and animals are occurring more frequently as climate change drives up global temperatures.</p><p>Southern Africa's temperatures are rising at twice the global average, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.</p>Elephant Paradise?
<p>Africa's overall elephant population is declining due to poaching. But Botswana, home to almost a third of the continent's elephants, has seen numbers grow to around 130,000.</p><p>Botswana's government said it was continuing studies into the occurrence of the deadly bacteria. In the winter, elephants hydrate themselves mainly by eating roots and bark, especially of the baobab tree.</p>From Your Site Articles
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A film by Felix Nuhr.
Thailand has a total population of 5,000 elephants. But of that number, 3,000 live in captivity, carrying tourists on their backs and offering photo opportunities made for social media.
<p>With the corona crisis, tourism revenues have plummeted, and those who make a living from elephants' tourism appeal are struggling even to cover their costs. A single elephant needs up to 250 kilograms (551 pounds) of food a day, costing around €25 ($29.50).</p><p>That's where Lek Chailert steps in. She's buying up elephants and rehousing them at the <a href="https://www.elephantnaturepark.org/" target="_blank">Elephant Nature Park</a> reserve in Chiang Mai. To provide and care for them properly, she founded the <a href="https://www.saveelephant.org/" target="_blank">Save Elephant</a> Foundation.</p>
<p>An elephant usually sells for around 2 million baht — about €54,000, or $64,000 — with young animals fetching the highest prices. But since their income from tourism has dried up, plenty of owners are ready to sell their animals for less. Chailert paid just 7 million baht for seven elephants from a riding center in Chang Puak.</p><p>The Elephant Nature Park now has 91 elephants, which live alongside horses, buffalo, dogs and cats, and are cared for by a human staff of 200. Sadly, it isn't possible to simply release these magnificent beasts into the wild because their natural habitat has long since been destroyed.</p>
<p><em>Reposted with permission from <a href="https://www.dw.com/en/elephants-biodiversity-coronavirus-tourism/a-54541254?maca=en-VAM_volltext_ecowatch-28485-html-copypaste" target="_blank">DW</a>.</em></p>From Your Site Articles
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Coronavirus Shines Light on Zoos as Danger Zones for Deadly Disease Transmission Between Humans and Animals
03 August 2020
Insights + Opinion
An elephant at Roger Williams Park Zoo in Providence, Rhode Island. In Defense of Animals
By Marilyn Kroplick
The term "zoonotic disease" wasn't a hot topic of conversation before the novel coronavirus started spreading across the globe and upending lives. Now, people are discovering how devastating viruses that transfer from animals to humans can be. But the threat can go both ways — animals can also get sick from humans. There is no better time to reconsider the repercussions of keeping animals captive at zoos, for the sake of everyone's health.
<p>COVID-19, the illness that's caused by the novel coronavirus, is the result of human contact with animals, though the exact source remains a subject of debate. The risk of such zoonotic disease transmission drastically increases in any setting <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/apr/08/human-impact-on-wildlife-to-blame-for-spread-of-viruses-says-study-aoe" target="_blank">where wild animals are confined</a><a href="http://theguardian.com/environment/2020/apr/08/human-impact-on-wildlife-to-blame-for-spread-of-viruses-says-study-aoe" target="_blank"> in close proximity to humans</a>, including public display facilities like zoos. Unfortunately, the risks posed by zoonotic transmission go beyond COVID-19. A recent <a href="https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2020-04/uoc-asa041320.php" target="_blank">study</a> found that more than 40 percent of zoo animals in Spain were infected with a parasite that can be passed to humans and causes a disease known as <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/toxoplasmosis/gen_info/faqs.html" target="_blank">toxoplasmosis</a>, which can lead to damage to the brain, eyes and other organs in human beings. Across the U.S., another dangerous zoonotic disease has long been lurking in our midst at zoos: <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/tb/topic/basics/default.htm" target="_blank">tuberculosis</a> (TB).</p>
<p>TB is a deadly, highly infectious disease that has long existed in captive populations of African and Asian <a href="http://www.ecowatch.com/tag/elephants">elephants</a> in zoos and circuses across the U.S. According to the World Health Organization, TB is one of the <a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/tuberculosis" target="_blank">top ten </a>causes of death worldwide, killing millions of people each year. Although TB rates have been on the decline for decades in the U.S., captive elephants represent a persistent <a href="https://slate.com/technology/2015/03/elephant-tuberculosis-epidemic-zoo-and-circus-animals-passing-tb-to-humans-and-one-another.html" target="_blank">reservoir</a> of the virus. Incredibly, "licensees and registrants who own elephants" are <a href="https://www.aphis.usda.gov/aphis/newsroom/stakeholder-info/sa_by_date/sa_2015/sa_10/ct_elephant_tb_policy" target="_blank">not required</a> to test elephants for the virus. Even if they were, these tests, known as "trunk washes," are difficult to conduct and can be unreliable. This means that zoos may be bringing the unsuspecting public into contact with infected elephants. Because TB is no longer common in the U.S., children are not vaccinated against it, making them particularly susceptible.</p>
<p>The risk of elephants transmitting TB to humans is generally greater among those who work closely with elephants, though it is thought that TB can spread from elephants to humans <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3166032/" target="_blank">through air</a> also. The risk of wider contagion, especially to zoo guests, is therefore a possibility. Many zoo exhibits bring people through indoor barns where elephants spend much of their time, separated only by bars and a few feet of space. Even more intimate encounters, such as rides or feedings that enable people to come into direct physical contact with elephants, are particularly concerning given their amplified transmission opportunities.</p><p>TB has long been known as a <a href="https://www.salon.com/2017/02/19/dont-think-about-contagious-elephants-whose-job-is-it-to-combat-and-contain-tuberculosis/" target="_blank">potentially serious issue in U.S. zoos</a>. Many people have been infected over the years, including, as recently as 2019. In 2013, seven staff members were <a href="https://www.oregonlive.com/health/2016/01/officials_identify_tuberculosi.html" target="_blank">infected</a> at the Oregon Zoo in Portland, following an outbreak among three bull elephants. Elephant infections persisted there into <a href="https://www.wweek.com/news/2019/07/10/pregnant-asian-elephant-at-oregon-zoo-may-have-tuberculosis/#:~:text=The%20Oregon%20Zoo%20announced%20today,Chendra%20as%20potentially%20having%20TB." target="_blank">2019</a>. Also, last year, some staff members <a href="https://www.pdza.org/connect/newsroom/press-releases/staff-test-positive-for-latent-tuberculosis/" target="_blank">tested positive</a> for latent TB at the Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium in Tacoma, Washington. Both the Bronx Zoo in New York City and the Saint Louis Zoo in Missouri also have had elephants test positive in recent years.</p>
<p>The threat of deadly disease transmission, however, does not only affect humans. In a process called <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3938448/" target="_blank">reverse zoonosis</a>, diseases such as influenza A virus, herpes simplex 1, measles and methicillin-resistant <em>Staphylococcus aureus</em> (MRSA) have been documented as passing from humans to animals. Regarding TB, <a href="https://tinyurl.com/y9ztj4ls" target="_blank">studies have shown</a> that the causative agent that leads to human infection of TB is also present in elephants, suggesting a reverse zoonosis of the disease from humans to elephants. This opens the possibility that humans could actually be the <a href="https://tinyurl.com/y9ztj4ls" target="_blank">cause</a> of TB infections in captive elephants.</p><p>Another incident of reverse zoonosis occurred at the Bronx Zoo recently. In April 2020 the zoo announced that one of its tigers <a href="https://newsroom.wcs.org/News-Releases/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/14010/A-Tiger-at-Bronx-Zoo-Tests-Positive-for-COVID-19-The-Tiger-and-the-Zoos-Other-Cats-Are-Doing-Well-at-This-Time.aspx" target="_blank">tested positive</a> for COVID-19. While no other cats were tested, the tiger's sister, along with two other tigers and three African lions, developed symptoms including a dry cough, suggesting they might have also been infected.</p>
<p>One of the main reasons that zoos can be hotbeds for deadly disease transmission — which threatens elephants, tigers and other captive animals as well as human beings — is that captive animals can suffer from compromised immune systems due to the confines of captivity, rendering them more susceptible to illness. In many facilities, tigers and elephants are often held in cramped enclosures that bear little resemblance to their natural wild habitats. They can be forced to perform or interact with the public on a daily basis or endure living in solitary confinement. The Bronx Zoo, for example, has forced an elephant named Happy to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/03/nyregion/bronx-zoo-elephant-lawsuit-happy.html" target="_blank">live alone</a> since 2006, a crushing sentence for a highly social species. These types of living conditions can cause a range of physical and psychological ailments, which have been <a href="https://www.idausa.org/campaign/elephants/10-worst-zoos/" target="_blank">well documented</a>. Captive elephants tend to live shortened lifespans in contrast to those in the wild and suffer from diseases and conditions virtually unseen in the wild. The cumulative effect of these factors renders elephants prone to the TB contagion.</p>
<p>The fact that TB has continued to infect captive elephant populations in the U.S. for decades reveals the extent to which zoos are incapable of providing adequate living conditions to prevent the spread of this disease, despite their best efforts. While zoos and their supporters continue to argue that keeping animals captive is necessary to raise awareness and get people to care about them, seeing animals trapped in unnatural environments that prevent them from thriving doesn't do anything to teach us about how they live or how they should be recognized, respected and protected in the wild.</p><p>We can hope that the world will soon return to some semblance of normalcy, but if this pandemic has taught us anything, it's that we can't continue with business as usual when it comes to our relationship with wildlife and the environment — at least not if we want to survive. In the meantime, we can protect captive animals and ourselves by avoiding zoos.</p>
<p><em>Marilyn Kroplick is the president of <a href="https://www.idausa.org/" target="_blank">In Defense of Animals</a></em><em>.</em><br/></p>From Your Site Articles
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Hundreds of sudden elephant deaths in Botswana aren't just a loss for the ecosystem and global conservation efforts. Mario Micklisch / Flickr / CC by 2.0
By Charli Shield
When an elephant dies in the wild, it's not uncommon to later find its bones scattered throughout the surrounding landscape.
<p>That's one way you can tell other elephants have passed through the area, says George Wittemyer, a wildlife conservation biologist at Colorado State University who's been researching African elephants in Kenya's Samburu National Reserve for more than 20 years.</p><p>Another sign, long-term elephant conservationist Joyce Poole adds, is the presence of tracks worn through the grass leading to its body. "The vegetation will be gone and the carcass will be surrounded by elephant dung because so many elephants will have visited and stayed," Poole says.</p><p>While scientists are yet to pinpoint what exactly struck down a reported 356 elephants in Botswana's Okavango Delta area, what we do know is that these deaths are not only significant for ecologists and conservationists — but elephants themselves. </p>
Elephant Burial Grounds
<p>Highly social creatures that form deep familial bonds, elephants have long been observed gathering at the site where a peer or family member has died — often spending hours, even days, quietly investigating the bodies or the bones of other dead elephants.</p><p>Although the popular idea that dying elephants are instinctively drawn to special communal graves — so-called "elephant graveyards" — is a myth, their tendency to go out of their way to visit the bones and tusks of the deceased isn't unlike human rituals at graveyards, says animal psychologist Karen McComb.</p><p>"They spend a lot of time touching and smelling skulls and ivory, placing the soles of their feet gently on top of them, and also lifting them up with their trunks," McComb, who's been studying African elephants for 25 years in Kenya's Amboseli National Park, told DW.</p><p>The most striking part of watching an elephant experience loss, Poole recalls, is the quietude. She still remembers one of the first elephant deaths she witnessed; a mother who birthed a stillborn calf. That elephant stayed with its baby for two days, trying to lift it and defending it from vultures and hyenas.</p><p>"I was so struck by the expression on her face and her body. She looked so dejected. It was really like, 'Oh God, these animals grieve…'. It was just so different," Poole told DW. </p>Witnessing Emotions in Animals
<p>Not all scientists are comfortable concluding that elephants grieve. Among the more than 30 reports of elephant reactions to death that Wittemyer co-reviewed in <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10329-019-00766-5" target="_blank">a study published in November 2019</a> were accounts of "enormous variation and nuance" he says. "It can be incredibly involved and intricate for extended periods or can be relatively cursory checks."</p><p>In Wittemyer's own experience, it can be difficult not to attribute some kind of emotional experience to the more involved interactions between elephants and their dead.</p><p>He shares the story of an "extraordinary event" involving the death of a 55 year-old matriarch in Kenya in a protected area that happened to be near his place of work. She was visited by multiple unrelated families while she was dying, including another matriarch that exerted such enormous effort attempting to lift her to her feet that she broke her tusk, which Wittemyer says, is "like breaking a tooth." </p><p><span></span>"It was a remarkable example of this heightened emotional state, it was very clearly a very stressful interaction," he says.</p>A Different Sensory World
<p>One factor that limits our ability to fully grasp the way elephants process and respond to loss is our markedly different sensory experiences of the world.</p><p>An elephant's world is fundamentally olfactory — based on smell. Ours is visual. Previous <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25053675/" target="_blank">research</a> has shown elephants possess the most scent receptors of any mammal, and can <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17949977/" target="_blank">use smell</a> to discern the difference between different human tribes from the same local area.</p><p>That could explain why elephants exhibit such interest in sniffing the bones and tusks of others, as a <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1617198/" target="_blank">2005 study</a> from McCombs highlighted. When presented with the skulls and ivory of long-dead elephants and those from other large herbivores, including rhino and buffalo, McCombs and her team found elephants approached and were specifically attracted to the remains of their own species. </p><p>Without access to the smells an elephant picks up on, Wittemyer says "an enormous amount of stuff" could be missed by humans when studying these behaviors.</p><p>While scientists cannot say what the elephants are thinking, it is clear that death — whether of a relative, a close companion, or just another member of their species — has some kind of meaning for elephants. </p><p>And why wouldn't it? Asks Poole, who points to the fact that elephants' survival depends on their social and familial relationships.</p><p>"Through the course of evolution they have evolved these complex rituals to hold families together. Those have to be driven by some sort of positive emotions, otherwise why would they bother?"</p><p>"They recognize that death, for somebody, is a big loss."</p>
<p class=""><em>Reposted with permission from </em><em><a href="https://www.dw.com/en/elephant-deaths-botswana-what-it-could-mean/a-54079677?maca=en-VAM_volltext_ecowatch-28485-html-copypaste" target="_blank">Deutsche Welle</a>.</em><a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/r/entryeditor/2646364470#/" target="_self"></a></p>From Your Site Articles
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In ‘Conservation Disaster,’ Hundreds of Botswana's Elephants Are Dying From Mysterious Cause
02 July 2020
Animals
African bush elephants in the Makgadikgadi Pans Game Reserve in Botswana on Nov. 22, 2016. Michael Jansen / Flickr
More than 350 elephants have died in Botswana since May, and no one knows why.
<p><a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/poaching" target="_self">Poaching</a> has been ruled out, because no tusks have been removed from the elephants' bodies, but it is possible the animals are dying of a disease that could spread to the human population.</p><p>"Yes, it is a <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/conservation" target="_self">conservation</a> disaster — but it also has the potential to be a <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/public-health" target="_self">public health</a> crisis," <a href="https://t.co/FOYIlddwzZ?amp=1" target="_blank">National Park Rescue</a> Director of Conservation Dr. Niall McCann told <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/amp/world-africa-53257512" target="_blank">BBC News</a>.</p>
<div id="9deed" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="101a9cd3a64051511e2bb793a9782a58"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-twitter-tweet-id="1278329244767137792" data-partner="rebelmouse"><div style="margin:1em 0">A catastrophic die-off of elephants is happing in northern Botswana, and no one knows why. It’s vital that a team o… https://t.co/G4VlI5hZJA</div> — Niall McCann (@Niall McCann)<a href="https://twitter.com/NiallPMcCann/statuses/1278329244767137792">1593612416.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p>Botswana's tourism ministry first said that it was investigating the deaths in mid-May, when 12 dead elephants were found over two weekends in the country's Okavango Delta, <a href="https://phys.org/news/2020-05-botswana-probes-mysterious-death-elephants.html" target="_blank">Phys.org reported</a> at the time.</p><p>By the end of May, 169 elephants had died, and that number had more than doubled by mid-June, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/jul/01/more-than-350-elephants-dead-in-mysterious-mass-die-off-botswana-aoe" target="_blank">The Guardian reported</a>.</p><p>"This is totally unprecedented in terms of numbers of elephants dying in a single event unrelated to drought," McCann told BBC News.</p><p>But despite the scale of the deaths, the government has not yet completed testing of the animals to determine the cause, earning the criticism of conservation groups.</p>
<p>"There is real concern regarding the delay in getting the samples to an accredited laboratory for testing in order to identify the problem — and then take measures to mitigate it," <a href="https://eia-international.org/" target="_blank">Environmental Investigation Agency</a> Executive Director Mary Rice told The Guardian. "The lack of urgency is of real concern and does not reflect the actions of a responsible custodian. There have been repeated offers of help from private stakeholders to facilitate urgent testing which appear to have fallen on deaf ears … and the increasing numbers are, frankly, shocking."</p>
<p>The government, meanwhile, attributed the delay to the <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/coronavirus" target="_self">coronavirus</a> pandemic.</p><p>"We have sent [samples] off for testing and we are expecting the results over the next couple of weeks or so," Dr. Cyril Taolo, acting director for Botswana's department of wildlife and national parks, told The Guardian. "The Covid-19 restrictions have not helped in the transportation of samples in the region and around the world. We're now beginning to emerge from that and that is why we are now in a position to send the samples to other laboratories."</p><p>Taolo said the government had confirmed 280 out of 350 reported deaths and is working to confirm the rest.</p>
<p>Local reports indicate that animals of all ages and sexes are dying, with some spotted wandering in circles, a sign of neurological damage. The cause is likely a poison or disease, but experts are not sure which.</p><p>More than 100 elephants died in October 2019 in a suspected anthrax outbreak, Phys.org reported, but McCann told BBC News he had tentatively ruled out anthrax as the cause of the most recent deaths. Cyanide poisoning used by poachers is another possibility, but scavengers are not dying after eating the carcasses, The Guardian pointed out.</p><p>"It is only elephants that are dying and nothing else," McCann told BBC News. "If it was cyanide used by poachers, you would expect to see other deaths."</p>
<p>Botswana hosts the world's largest elephant population at more than 135,000 animals, about a third of all the elephants in Africa, Phys.org pointed out. The Okavango Delta, meanwhile, is home to 10 percent of Botswana's total population, or around 15,000 animals. African elephants are considered vulnerable by the <a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/12392/3339343" target="_blank">International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List</a>. Botswana was considered one of the safest countries for elephants until recently, <a href="https://www.sciencealert.com/hundreds-of-elephants-have-died-in-botswana-for-months-and-we-still-don-t-know-why" target="_blank">Science Alert pointed out</a>. But the government made a controversial decision to <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/botswana-lifts-elephant-ban-2637907016.html" target="_self">lift</a> its elephant hunting ban in May of 2019, and poaching is on the rise. An <a href="http://elephantswithoutborders.org/" target="_blank">Elephants Without Borders</a> study <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S096098221930675X" target="_blank">published in Current Biology last year</a> found that new elephant carcasses in northern Botswana had increased by 593 percent between 2014 and 2018 and that at least 385 elephants had been poached between 2017 and 2018.</p>
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With the coronavirus continuing to spread and self-isolation becoming the norm, it feels more important than ever to embrace the power and beauty of nature. Sure, we can't travel as much these days, but the modern world can still bring the natural world to us.
<p>We've picked some great webcams around the globe to help keep you sane in these trying times. Depending on the time of day or night you're reading this, they should offer you some solace and wonder for the long weeks ahead.</p>
Tembe Elephant Park
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="98e42411fff6f35ef0848be2fc7f896c"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/z5F1a7_dsrs?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span><p>One of several great livecams from <a href="https://explore.org/livecams/" target="_blank">Explore.org</a>. This one brings you to a very popular watering hole on the Mozambique border.</p>Decorah Eagles
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="f7b68d1d59de0180385b1b73b4c3ba09"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/eTAsANPVqB8?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span><p>A rare opportunity to see bald eagles up close and relaxed in Decorah, Iowa.</p>Gorilla Forest Corridor
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="5257bf5001555c6a8fbe90ca51839767"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/rgXWDk7rh4w?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span><p>You may or may not see any critically endangered Grauer's gorillas, but this is a heck of a peaceful site in the Democratic Republic of Congo.</p>Coral City
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="ca851b20efb928199cfe942f412a1ee4"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/fcDAqe0RhKo?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span><p>An urban reef in Miami, Florida that's part habitat, part science experiment and part art project. You never know who might swim by.</p>Cornell Lab’s Panama Fruit Feeder-cam at Canopy Lodge
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="bf75ba8fc1c62cc9cd21f11a80d1c3ab"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/WtoxxHADnGk?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span><p>Pay attention. All kinds of colorful birds fly by to sample the wares that scientists have left out for them at this conservation site in Panama.</p>Big Sur Condors
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="eac275b9c5bb21353baabe6fa8b17145"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/BYfpzcWwieM?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span><p>Two webcams from the Ventana Wildlife Society showcasing the amazing California condors in their care. The birds aren't always on camera, but it's worth sticking around to see them.</p>Big Sur Condor Nest powered by EXPLORE.org
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="c48f531cba2bccbbcc2385087b2e1150"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/scvFA-ShZwc?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span>Otters and More at Monterey Bay
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="5b380adf03fdca8d30209c8a097fb029"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/5JjGc5fN1K0?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span><p>A neverending parade of sea otters, birds, harbor seals and other marine mammals will entertain you at this feed, courtesy of the Monterey Bay Aquarium.</p>Bison Watering Hole at Grasslands National Park
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="7d8a9bec0805ac98b243fbd998755468"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/0ZKl4T7o-m8?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span><p>Again, you never know what wildlife you'll witness onscreen, but the beauty of this site in Saskatchewan can take your breath away.</p>New York University’s Hawk Cam
<iframe width="480" height="270" src="https://ustream.tv/embed/22940835" scrolling="no" allowfullscreen webkitallowfullscreen frameborder="0" style="border: 0 none transparent;"></iframe><p>Oh wow, an urban nest whose residents are mini-celebrities. This includes an active <a href="https://video.ibm.com/channel/e3uYJSDgmbz" target="_blank">chat feature</a>, so it's one more way to connect with fellow enthusiasts.</p>Jellyfish at Monterey Bay Aquarium
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="06b2e809befef9812f09abb6ff610162"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/2gHKDHmgVlU?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span><p>Who knew jellyfish were so Zen? This livecam is about as relaxing as it can possibly get. Get lost in the gentle motion.</p><p>There's more! We found one more essential livestream that we can't embed but it's worth opening a new browser tab to see:</p><p><a href="https://nywolf.org/meet-our-wolves/webcams/webcam-red-wolves-charlotte-jack-family/" target="_blank">Red Wolf enclosure cam</a> — Check out one of the rarest predators on the planet, courtesy of the conservation breeding program at the Wolf Conservation Center, which also maintains <a href="https://nywolf.org/meet-our-wolves/webcams/" target="_blank">several other great webcams</a>.</p><p>Don't find something you like above? You can also try going for a walk to see what wildlife or natural beauties you can find in your neighborhood. After all, self-isolation doesn't mean we have to keep ourselves indoors all day and all night.</p><p>While you're at it, bring your phone and share photos of what you see on <a href="https://www.inaturalist.org/" target="_blank">iNaturalist</a> or other citizen-science platforms — that's one more way to stay connected with your community and avoid feelings of isolation. And you can help collect important scientific information along the way.</p><p>No matter what you do, please just stay safe. The world will still need you when all of this is over.</p>
<p class=""><em>Reposted with permission from <a href="https://therevelator.org/covid-19-wildlife-livecams/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Revelator</a>.</em></p>From Your Site Articles
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Paula Kahumbu attends the TDI Awards during the 2017 Tribeca Film Festival at Spring Studios on April 25, 2017 in New York City. Rob Kim / Getty Images for Tribeca Film Festival
Women have long been at the forefront of the effort to protect the earth and its creatures. Some of them, like Greta Thunberg and Jane Goodall, are household names.
<p>Others, like <a href="http://www.drfisher.umd.edu/PCM_PreliminaryResults.pdf" target="_blank">around 55 percent of the people who hit the streets for 2014's People's Climate March</a>, are anonymous (s)heroes. In between these extremes are many women who have made a significant individual difference as scientists, inventors or activists and who deserve more recognition for their inspiring efforts.</p><p>Here are five women using their unique talents to protect the planet that we at EcoWatch think you should know about.</p>
<p><strong>1. Miranda Wang, Inventor and Entrepreneur, Canada and U.S.</strong></p>
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<p>Only nine percent of the world's <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/plastics" target="_self">plastic</a> is actually recycled. The rest is landfilled, burned or discarded into the environment, where it risks joining the <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/8-million-metric-tons-of-plastic-dumped-into-worlds-oceans-each-year-1882012563.html" target="_self">eight million metric tons</a> that pollute the world's oceans every year. But Miranda Wang is working to change that.<br></p><p>Together with her high school friend Jeanny Yao, Wang developed a method of using chemicals to break down unrecyclable polyethylene film plastics — such as the infamous plastic bag — into reusable compounds, <a href="https://www.mercurynews.com/2019/05/28/recycling-pilot-program-with-local-start-up-in-final-phase/" target="_blank">The Mercury News explained</a>. In 2015, the pair co-founded the company <a href="https://www.biocellection.com/" target="_blank">BioCellection</a> when they were just 21 to put their invention into practice.</p><p>Wang and Yao first met in their Vancouver, B.C. high school's <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/recycling" target="_self">recycling</a> club, where they visited waste plants.</p><p>"[W]hen I visited my first waste plant, the scale of the problem hit me," Wang told <a href="https://www.unenvironment.org/youngchampions/news/story/young-champion-earth-winner-north-america" target="_blank">UN Environment</a>. "All that waste."</p><p>She is now tackling the problem full time as CEO of BioCellection, which is based in Menlo Park, California. She is working on a pilot program with the city of San Jose and its waste handler GreenWaste to integrate her and Yao's innovation into its preexisting system.</p><p>"The long-term goal is to be able to recycle all of the city of San Jose's — and other cities' — polyethylene plastic," Wang told The Mercury News.</p>
<p><strong>2. Dr. Paula Kahumbu, Conservationist, Kenya</strong></p>
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<p>Dr. Paula Kahumbu, who has been called the "life force" behind Kenya's <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/conservation" target="_self">conservation</a> movement, has been working to protect <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/elephants" target="_self">elephants</a> since she was in her early 20s. She and a group of friends measured every piece in Kenya's <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/ivory" target="_self">ivory</a> stockpile to create an ivory "bonfire" in 1989, <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/campaigns/elephant-campaign/dr-paula-kahumbu-interview-africans-must-be-equal-partners-in-a-war-on-elephant-poachers-9123089.html" target="_blank">The Independent reported</a>.</p><p><a href="https://paulakahumbu.org/about/" target="_blank">Since then</a>, she has gone on to earn a Ph.D. at Princeton in ecology and evolutionary biology, to serve as the CEO of Kenyan conservation nonprofit <a href="https://wildlifedirect.org/" target="_blank">WildlifeDirect</a>, and to launch the successful <a href="https://wildlifedirect.org/hands-off-our-elephants/" target="_blank">Hands Off Our Elephants Campaign</a> with Kenyan first lady Margaret Kenyatta in 2014.</p><p>"From spending so much time with [elephants], I know they are not just another animal," she told The Independent. "They are beings with personalities; with families; with feelings. It is such a horrendous injustice to allow them to be slaughtered."</p><p>Hands Off Our Elephants works to tackle the <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/poaching" target="_self">poaching</a> crisis in Kenya by enacting new laws and making sure they are enforced, working directly with communities to develop conservation strategies that benefit humans and <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/wildlife" target="_self">wildlife</a> and building public support in Kenya for elephant conservation. Since it was launched, elephant poaching in the country has decreased by 80 percent and rhino poaching by 90 percent. One of Kahumbu's key insights has been the importance of engaging Africans, and particularly African women, in protecting their continent's unique animals.</p><p>"It can be hard for Africans, and especially African women, to be heard in this male-dominated world of Western scientists and academics," she told The Independent. "Maasai women, who have been studying elephants for 20 to 40 years each; should have Ph.D.s [by now], but they don't. There has been a real failure to develop the capacity of the people who are instrumental on the ground."</p>
<p><strong>3. Artemisa Xakriabá, Indigenous Activist, Brazil</strong></p>
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<p>The <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/brazil-bolsonaro-amazon-climate-2616170023.html" target="_self">election</a> of right-wing Brazilian President <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/jair-bolsonaro" target="_self">Jair Bolsonaro</a> was a blow to climate action and <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/indigenous-rights" target="_self">indigenous rights</a>. So far, he has overseen <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/amazon-rainforest-wildfires-2639934452.html" target="_self">historic wildfires</a> in the <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/amazon-rainforest" target="_self">Amazon rainforest</a> and <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/brazil-bolsonaro-bill-open-indigenous-land-2645088985.html" target="_self">pushed</a> to open indigenous forest reserves to the mining and fossil fuel industries. But indigenous women are fighting back.</p><p>Among them is 19-year-old Artemisa Xakriabá, a member of Brazil's Xakriabá tribe. In August, she participated in the first Indigenous Women's March in Brasilia to protest Bolsonaro's anti-environment and anti-indigenous policies, <a href="https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/indigenous-activist-bolsonaro-amazon-brazil_n_5db31aece4b079eb95a2d409?ri18n=true" target="_blank">HuffPost reported</a>. She was then chosen by a coalition of South American and East Asian indigenous youth groups to represent their cause at youth climate strikes in New York and Washington, DC last September.</p><p>"We, the indigenous peoples, are the children of nature, so we fight for our Mother Earth, because the fight for Mother Earth is the mother of all other fights," she said in New York, as <a href="https://www.democracynow.org/2019/9/23/brazil_indigenous_climate_activist_artemisa_xakriaba" target="_blank">Democracy Now reported</a>. "We are fighting for your lives. We are fighting for our lives."</p><p>Xakriabá's activism predates Bolsonaro, however. When she was only seven, she helped her classmates reforest 15 riverside areas near their traditional territory in Minas Gerais in southeast Brazil, according to HuffPost.</p><p>In New York, she spoke of the common struggle of all women to protect the earth.</p><p>"I am also here as a young woman," she said, as Democracy Now reported, "because there's no difference between an indigenous young female activist like myself and a young indigenous female activist like Greta. Our future is connected by the same threads of the <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/climate-change/" target="_self">climate crisis</a>."</p>
<p><strong>4. Dr. Maria Caffrey, Scientist and Whistleblower, U.S.</strong></p>
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<p>Dr. Maria Caffrey is another woman who stood up to a climate denying administration.</p><p>In 2012, the National Park Service (NPS) funded a project she had designed to estimate future <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/sea-level-rise" target="_self">sea levels</a> and storm surges at 118 coastal <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/national-parks" target="_self">national parks</a> based on different levels of greenhouse gas emissions, as Caffrey wrote for <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/jul/25/trump-administration-climate-crisis-denying-scientist" target="_blank">The Guardian</a>. She completed the first draft in the summer of 2016, but then President <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/donald-trump" target="_self">Donald Trump</a> took office, and the report was delayed. Finally, a colleague told her that all mentions of climate change had been edited out of her report. Senior officials wanted her to approve the changes, and, if she refused, threatened to release the report without climate references, to delete her name or not to publish it at all.</p><p>"Each option would have been devastating to my career and for scientific integrity. I stood firm," she wrote. "And I prevailed."</p><p>The report was published, but Caffrey paid for her persistence. She received pay cuts and demotions and then, in February 2019, NPS refused to renew her funding, leading Caffrey to file a whistleblower complaint against the administration.</p><p>Caffrey also sued the administration and testified before Congress in an attempt to raise awareness about the silencing of scientists.</p><p>"Money was never really the point of the lawsuit," Caffrey told <a href="https://www.cpr.org/2019/07/29/boulder-climate-scientist-sues-trump-administration-over-matter-of-scientific-integrity/" target="_blank">Colorado Matters</a>. "The point of the lawsuit is to get on the record and show what the Trump administration is doing to scientists and that that's not OK. And so I think it's important that we stand up and we fight back."</p>
<p><strong>5. Nirupabai, Activist, India</strong></p>
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<p>In India, the expansion of <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/coal" target="_self">coal</a> doesn't just hurt the global climate. Government-owned Coal India and its subsidiaries have bypassed local and international law in evicting people from their homes in order to expand mines in the states of Jharkhand, Odisha and Chhattisgarh, according to a 2016 Amnesty International report publicized by <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2016/jul/13/coal-india-accused-of-bulldozing-human-rights-mining-operations-amid-production-boom-amnesty-international" target="_blank">The Guardian</a>. These evictions particularly target indigenous Adivasi communities, including a woman named Nirupabai whose home was bulldozed in 2014.</p><p>"I cried, I screamed, trying to save it," she told The Guardian of the eviction. "All my things, my son's school books, a year's worth of rice, everything was scattered, everything in ruins."</p><p>But Nirupabai has gone on to fight the coal company with every means at her disposal, <a href="https://elle.in/article/nirupabai/" target="_blank">Elle reported</a>. She has picketed company offices, spoken at environmental hearings and she spoke in <a href="https://amnesty.org.in/news-update/cost-coal-using-virtual-reality-tell-story-indias-coal-mining-affected-communitie/" target="_blank">The Cost of Coal</a>, India's first VR film to be acquired by the UN. What she wants is for Coal India to stop expanding until people like her are compensated for the land they have lost.</p><p>"You tell me what will grow on this poor land? Coal is the heart of the earth, but they remove it and say we are the sarkar. What is it that you have in your pocket that you didn't take from our land?" Nirupabai said, according to Elle.</p><p>Nirupabai has won one important victory. Coal India usually does not let women who have been displaced by its activities work in the mines because it deems the work unsafe. But a court order filed by another woman, Ratthobai Rathia, has given her the right to work for the land she has lost. Nirupabai isn't done fighting, however.</p><p>"I will fight for every last inch," she told Elle.</p>
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Botswana Auctions Off First Licenses to Kill Elephants Since Ending Five-Year Ban
12 February 2020
Animals
An elephant in the Okavango Delta, Botswana, on June 15, 2018. Michael Levine-Clark / Flickr
Botswana held its first auction of licenses to hunt elephants Friday since President Mokgweetsi Masisi lifted a five-year ban on the controversial practice in May of 2019.
<p>Masisi's government has argued that legal hunting is necessary to reduce conflict between elephants and humans, but some conservationists fear that reintroducing the practice could actually encourage more illegal <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/poaching" target="_self">poaching</a>, <a href="https://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFKBN20119C-OZATP" target="_blank">Reuters reported</a>.</p><p>"SHAME ON YOU President Masisi, we will not forget," human and animal rights group the <a href="https://emsfoundation.org.za/" target="_blank">EMS Foundation</a> tweeted in response to Friday's auction.</p>
<div id="c62cc" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="SRJ7A91581516310"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-twitter-tweet-id="1225806855944929285" data-partner="rebelmouse"><div style="margin:1em 0">#BotswanaTrophyHuntingNation #StopTheKilling SHAME ON YOU President Masisi, we will not forget @GlobalElephants… https://t.co/9yNhOePSmA</div> — EMS Foundation (@EMS Foundation)<a href="https://twitter.com/emsfoundationsa/statuses/1225806855944929285">1581090103.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p><br>The government was prepared to auction off seven hunting packages permitting the killing of ten elephants each. However, only six bidders were able to put down the reserve fee of 2 million pula ($181,000), according to Reuters. The packets were purchased by expedition operators who will sell them to trophy hunters at a markup, <a href="https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/botswana-elephant-hunting-permits_n_5e3f7b7fc5b6b70887015580?ri18n=true&guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuaHVmZnBvc3QuY29tL2ltcGFjdC9ncmVlbj9ndWNjb3VudGVyPTEmZ3VjZV9yZWZlcnJlcj1hSFIwY0hNNkx5OTNkM2N1WjI5dloyeGxMbU52YlM4Jmd1Y2VfcmVmZXJyZXJfc2lnPUFRQUFBTWkyZ0V3Yy1xSVJiYnF0RHBFWHlMYldxdXNhTW5PYThWU1VHd0w5ZkxzdUt6bk9KOHlzNkVlTTBkOFVXTTg1c1hFX1lzQWx2RjF5VWFnQXk2WUZNODY1aEpHYm5PeTN4bDhNbWFoOUpsQThrS2JUbEZVb0xSQ3hfZlBLdVg2ZGcwZng5R1ozOXRHaktGb25pZm0xRm5ETWdqUUpzc2FSYXJ1TDIwRklTSjBx&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAAdxsvFT3Ak3muDFbPZAuzdV_QALTsMzFxDtjm7Nz9-mE-f63F8-juaTEfveSYG5wqE2Hexiikkkn7ueMpVbNZ5FhPzmGgG1wOSTJFUelZDkdpEXMr9XUQQXaIT5PmMTwHMgb6pln4rISEbZPqOCDUSGubNbG_TpCN5hpuQS1c_h" target="_blank">HuffPost explained</a>. Most trophy hunters who come to southern Africa are from the U.S., and Botswana will allow foreign hunters to shoot 202 of its 272-elephant quota for the year, as well as to export the trophies. The hunting season will officially begin in April, according to <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/botswana-auctions-licenses-to-hunt-70-elephants-in-effort-to-reduce-conflict-with-humans/2020/02/07/d1e34366-4920-11ea-8a1f-de1597be6cbc_story.html" target="_blank">The Washington Post</a>.</p>
<p>Elephant numbers in Africa as a whole have fallen by more than two thirds since 1979, from 1.3 million to only 415,000 in 2015, according to HuffPost. In Botswana, however, the animals' population has been on the rise, increasing from 80,000 in the late 1990s to 130,000 today, Reuters reported. The country now hosts nearly a third of Africa's elephants.</p><p>Botswana's previous president Ian Khama instituted a ban on hunting elephants in 2014, <a href="https://www.afp.com/en/news/826/botswana-holds-controversial-auction-elephant-hunting-licences-doc-1os0km2" target="_blank">according to AFP</a>. But Masisi has turned lifting the ban into a political issue, The Washington Post explained. Rural residents are frustrated with elephants who enter villages and trample crops, and feel that conservationists are mostly foreigners who funnel the proceeds from <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/wildlife" target="_self">wildlife</a> tourism away from the local economy.</p><p>"Elephants have killed a lot of people and destroyed livelihoods. I think government is doing the right thing in reducing their numbers," Tiro Segosebe, who lives in the capital of Gaborone but whose home village is in one of the areas most impacted by human-elephant conflict, told Reuters.</p>
<p>However, <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/conservation" target="_self">conservation</a> groups argue that hunting is not an effective means of curbing conflict between elephants and humans, and that the proceeds from hunting won't actually benefit rural villages. Rosemary Alles, co-founder and president of the <a href="https://march4elephantsandrhinos.org/stop-the-killing-of-272-botswana-elephants/" target="_blank">Global March for Elephants and Rhinos</a>, explained the problems with Masisi's approach to <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/botswana-elephant-kill-auction-trophy-hunt-shoot-extinct-africa-a9325041.html" target="_blank">The Independent</a>:</p><blockquote>"Studies have shown that local communities do not reap the benefits that they are promised from the hunting industry.<br><br>"Killing 272 elephants in Botswana will not control elephant numbers, it will not reduce human-elephant conflict and will not create jobs in areas where opportunities are scarce.<br><br>"Appropriate land-use planning including dedicated migratory corridors will aid elephant dispersal and increase the probability of amicable human elephant coexistence."</blockquote><p>Khama has also criticized his successor's decision.</p><p>"I have been against hunting because it represents a mentality (of) those who support it, to exploit nature for self interest that has brought about the extinction of many species worldwide," he told AFP.</p>
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