Why are poachers targeting the elephants?

Why are poachers targeting the elephants?

Poaching comes down to the demand for wild animals. Elephants are poached primarily for ivory, and rhinos for their horns. Poaching threatens many species and can contribute to extinction. It can also have a tremendous impact on the environment, especially when a keystone species such as the elephant is targeted.

Why do people want elephant tusks?

People also have been known to use ivory to bribe government officials, because it is rarer than money or gold. Some seek out elephant ivory products for spiritual reasons, believing a bangle or pendant can protect its wearer from harm or bad luck.

Do elephants feel pain in their tusks?

It would be painful. There is a nerve that runs well down the length of an elephant’s tusk. Cutting the tusk off would be painful, similar to you breaking a tooth. Remember that an elephant tusk is a modified incisor.

Can you remove elephant tusks without killing them?

The bottom third of each elephant tusk is embedded within the skull of the animal. This part is actually a pulpy cavity that contains nerves, tissue and blood vessels. However, it too is ivory. The only way a tusk can be removed without killing the animal is if the animal sheds the tooth on its own.

Why is ivory so precious?

We’ve got experts. Q: What makes ivory so precious? It has no intrinsic value, but its cultural uses make ivory highly prized. In Africa, it has been a status symbol for millennia because it comes from elephants, a highly respected animal, and because it is fairly easy to carve into works of art.

Does removing tusks kill elephants?

Not all elephants die when their tusks are removed. It all depends on the factors of how the tusks are removed in the first place. Domesticated elephants are treated if there appears to be some infection after the removal of tusks. In the wild elephants need their tusks to dug up water during the dry season.