Performance of protected areas in conserving African elephants
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Protected areas have been gazetted to protect natural resources and biodiversity, but evaluations of effectiveness rarely include measures of species population change. We compiled annual site-level spending and elephant population data for 102 protected areas conserving either savannah (Loxodonta africana) or forest (Loxodonta cyclotis) elephants, which showed a median annual population decline of −0.78% across the protected areas. Site-level population change was strongly associated with funding and government effectiveness. Annual funding deficits occurred in 78% of the protected areas, and when comparing necessary levels of annual spend to stabilize elephant populations, we estimate a US$1.5 billion annual funding deficit across all the protected areas. While financial investment can improve elephant conservation outcomes, there is still a need to identify where and how to best finance elephant poaching interventions, requiring a global commitment to improve the socioeconomic impacts of protected areas on local communities and reduce ivory demand.
Original language | English |
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Article number | e13041 |
Journal | Conservation Letters |
Volume | 17 |
Issue number | 4 |
Number of pages | 11 |
ISSN | 1755-263X |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2024 |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 The Authors. Conservation Letters published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.
- African elephant, financing, governance, management costs, population trends, protected areas
Research areas
ID: 400692916