Reuters reports on the massive decline of Congolese elephants due to illegal poaching and the Chinese marketplace for ivory:"China, among the world's main destinations for illegal ivory, was granted permission last month to buy 108 tonnes of ivory stocks from Botswana, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species."A spokesperson for the park says that it is very hard to determine if the ivory sold comes from illegal or legal stocks because of the corruption and mismanagement from the decades of war in the region.
Rebels from the neighboring country of Rwanda have reportedly killed seven elephants this week in Congo's Virunga National Park, the nation's oldest.
Conservationist believe only about 300 elephants remain in the park.
Read the full story: Ivory poachers decimate Congo elephant population
No comments:
Post a Comment