Once common throughout Africa and Asia, elephant populations have
experienced significant declines over the last century. The greatest
threat to African elephants is poaching for the illegal ivory trade,
while Asian elephant populations are most at risk from habitat loss and
resulting human-elephant conflict.
Elephants need extensive land areas to survive and meet their ecological
needs, which includes food, water, and space. On average, an elephant
can feed up to 18 hours and consume hundreds of pounds of plant matter
in a single day. As a result, as they lose habitat, they often come into
conflict with people in competition for resources.