ivory news stories on Newser

2011: Deadly Year for Elephants

Evann Gastaldo — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 08:39:57 CST

This year will ring out as one of the deadliest for elephants since ivory sales were banned more than two decades ago. Officials seized tusks from a record 2,500 elephants, and while some of those could be from long-dead animals, the news still isn't good. "As most large-scale ivory...

Feds Make $1M Ivory Bust

Rob Quinn — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 13:10:28 CDT

Tusks from large numbers of elephants killed by poachers in west and central Africa ended up in the hands of a Philadelphia art dealer, federal investigators say. The dealer is accused of paying a co-conspirator to travel to Africa, buy raw ivory for carving, and stain it so the specimens...

To Sidestep Ivory Ban, Russia Digs Up Mammoth Tusks

Mary Papenfuss — Mon, 27 Sep 2010 04:00:00 CDT

Russia is turning to the Siberian soil to satisfy an appetite for "ethical ivory." Entrepreneurs are taking advantage of the worldwide ban on elephant ivory and digging up giant woolly mammoth tusks to sell abroad.Michelle Obama has been spotted wearing jewelry made from the ancient tusks of the animal...

Thailand Seizes $2M in Elephant Tusks

Rob Quinn — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 06:00:00 CDT

Thai authorities repeated a warning for tourists not to buy ivory products of any kind in the country after finding a massive haul of tusks at Bangkok's airport Saturday. Officials, acting on a tipoff from authorities in Qatar, uncovered 296 African elephant tusks worth an estimated $2 million in boxes...

Elephants on Verge of Extinction

Kevin Spak — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 13:44:00 CDT

Within 15 years, African elephants could be extinct as a consequence of rampant ivory poaching, conservation experts say. Africa's elephant population numbers just 600,000, and that number appears to be dwindling by about 38,000 a year. That’s faster than the birth rate. One animal welfare group is urging...

Poachers' Poison Slays Rare Elephant

Mary Papenfuss — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 03:39:51 CDT

A rare Sumatran elephant died after eating pineapples spiked with poison by poachers in northwestern Indonesia, officials report. The giant 30-year-old male, its tusks ripped out for the ivory, was the ninth Sumatran elephant found dead in the region in the last three months. At least seven of them were...

Namibia's Ivory Sale Raises Poaching Fears

Peter Fearon — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 07:31:17 CDT

Namibia kicked off two weeks of ivory auctions yesterday, marking the first time in almost a decade that the elephant tusks have sold legally, reports the Times of London. Seven tons brought $1.18 million from Chinese and Japanese buyers, and 108 tons—the equivalent of 10,000 elephants—will...

EBay Bans Ivory Sales

Rob Quinn — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 04:23:31 CDT

EBay will introduce a total ban on ivory sales after the holidays in a bid to prevent elephant poaching, Ars Technica reports. The company banned international sales of ivory on its site in 2007 but critics say it did little to halt the trade in illegal ivory. Conservationists estimate 20,...

Numbers Soaring, S. Africa Mulls Elephant Cull

Lev Weinstein — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 14:19:00 CDT

South Africa's 1995 ban on culling elephants has proven wildly successful—perhaps too successful, writes Karen Lange in National Geographic . As the population has skyrocketed from 8,000 to 13,000 in the years since, starving elephants are now ravaging vegetation and taxing the nation's ecosystem, forcing experts to consider...