Elephant

Ivory destruction Despite efforts to destroy ivory, criminals are becoming more organised, ingenious and dangerous. "We have seen more and more organised crime networks moving into the wildlife trade," says Davyth Stewart from Interpol, the international intelligence agency. "Groups who have been traditionally involved in drug trafficking, fire arms and human trafficking are now moving onto wildlife." It's clearly not a fair match: conservationists pitted against criminal gangs. But the wildlife experts say it's a fight they have to take on. They have gathered at the Zoological Society of London to tackle how to halt the rapidly growing trade in animals. The backdrop to these crisis talks is bleak. Thousands of rhinos, elephants, tigers and others have been slaughtered, becoming part of an illegal market that's worth an estimated $19bn a year. Many criminals see it as low risk, high profit, says Mr Stewart. "There is a lower risk of apprehension, it's unfortunate but law enforcement has not invested the resources in attacking wildlife crime as it has in other crimes," he explains. "Even in courts the penalties are much lower. Just last year in Ireland, we saw two people arrested for smuggling rhino horns worth half a million euros. They received a 500-euro fine." Demand and supply John Sellar, the former chief of enforcement at Cites (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species), says the focus of the battle should be shifted away from conservation towards the issue of criminality. "It's about locking up the bad guys," he tells the conference.

Forest elephants in the Central African Republic have become a new target for poaching gangs. Men armed with Kalashnikov rifles have massacred 26 elephants in the Dzanga-Ndoki National Park in the Central African Republic, say conservationists. WWF reported the number of carcasses, quoting its sources in the region. Concern about what was happening in the park was raised earlier this week when it was said that ivory poachers were using a scientist's observation platform to shoot the animals. Elephants regularly gather at the Bai, a large clearing, to drink. Since the shooting, no elephants have been seen in the area, WWF reported. The Dzanga-Ndoki Park, a World Heritage Site, is located in the south-western corner of the Central African Republic (CAR), where it borders Cameroon and the Republic of Congo. It is described as a unique habitat for forest elephants in particular. CAR has witnessed increased levels of violence since the beginning of the year, and conservation groups like WWF withdrew their staff from the Bai are for safety reasons. On Monday, the conservation group issued a warning that a 17 armed individuals, some with heavy-calibre rifles, had entered the park and was heading for the Bai, known locally as the "village of elephants". By the time the armed men had left, the Bai was said to resemble an "elephant mortuary", WWF said. Jim Leape, WWF International Director General, added: "The Central African Republic must act immediately to secure this unique World Heritage Site.