African elephants are being born without tusks due to poaching

African elephants are being born without tusks due to poaching

The species could become extinct in some areas, with those elephants that do survive evolving to be almost completely tuskless...

An increasing number of African elephants are now born tuskless because poachers have consistently targetted animals with the best ivory over decades, fundamentally altering the gene pool.

In some areas 98 per cent of female elephants now have no tusks, researchers have said, compared to between two and six per cent born tuskless on average in the past.

Almost a third of Africa’s elephants have been illegally slaughtered by poachers in the past ten years to meet demand for ivory in Asia, where there is still a booming trade in the material, particularly in China.

Sad outcome for such majestic creatures.

Well done filthy humans...
I curse all wildlife hunters to burn in hell for eternity
liberace ex horadrim

a reply to: loam

Makes sense. If you have an individual with a tuskless mutation, and the only reason that elephants are being poached is because of their tusks, then the tuskless one will tend to survive and breed and the tuskless genes will spread and there will be more tuskless offspring.

It's like the moths that darkened in color as an adaptation to tree bark darkened by pollution.

And depending on how the genetics work out, if we ever stop poaching for ivory, the tusked elephants might come back.

a reply to: loam

Research Topic

a reply to: ketsuko

I do find nature's insistence on equilibrium to be fascinating.

But I find it still very sad we can't seem to save these guys.

Yesterday's post on this very topic" www.abovetopsecret.com...

a reply to: ketsuko

Shhhht, you cant say that... you are implying evolution, and pretty soon just talking about it will lead you to be burned at the stake.......

Where are all the capitalists and fundamentalists to stand up for destroying animals in the name of profit or ego??

a reply to: CB328

You mean China?

originally posted by: Hellhound604
a reply to: ketsuko

Shhhht, you cant say that... you are implying evolution, and pretty soon just talking about it will lead you to be burned at the stake.......

Evolution of adaptation? The elephants aren't becoming a new species so much as they are adapting to best survive their present environment. The reality is that tusks are enormously helpful to elephants which is why they have them, but if the tusks are getting them killed off, the lesser suited but still able to survive tuskless elephants are becoming the more suited to survive at present.

originally posted by: CB328
Where are all the capitalists and fundamentalists to stand up for destroying animals in the name of profit or ego??

How many people do you know who have actual elephant ivory? Most buyers aren't actually in the US although we do account for some of it.

a reply to: loam

This saddens me deeply. I've always respected these monolith sized animals and to see the effect poachers are having on them on a biological genetic scale is horrifying to me.

It goes to show how evolution can respond quicker than many of us assumed possible.

Thanks for sharing!

a reply to: ketsuko

Misread post please ignore

a reply to: Ohanka

Highly unlikely. We still haven't managed to make dogs a new species separated completely from wolves. There are genetic differences, but the two still interbreed with viable offspring. They are much closer then lions and tigers or horses and donkeys.

a reply to: loam

Rattlesnakes are being born without rattle now too. My father is in Arizona, and sees many without rattles. Even in large dens which pretty much means it is evolution to survive- due to assholes pumping gas in every crevice they can find to drive them out and kill them. Sad.

a reply to: Spacespider

Real hunters don't murder animals for profit or ego. Capitalist bastards do that.

originally posted by: ketsuko

originally posted by: Hellhound604
a reply to: ketsuko

Shhhht, you cant say that... you are implying evolution, and pretty soon just talking about it will lead you to be burned at the stake.......

Evolution of adaptation? The elephants aren't becoming a new species so much as they are adapting to best survive their present environment. The reality is that tusks are enormously helpful to elephants which is why they have them, but if the tusks are getting them killed off, the lesser suited but still able to survive tuskless elephants are becoming the more suited to survive at present.

Both. Evolution is adaptation over time taken to extremes. The elephants are not becoming a new species yet. But if you had two populations of the same species of elephant, one with poachers and one without, then over time you would have two species of elephants, tusked, and tuskless. They would probably be able to interbreed for a spell, just like lions and tigers, but over time breeding would fail. they would continue to evolve to match the needs of their habitat. If one of the sub populations were further north, for example, they might again develop hair like the wooly mammoth. If they lacked sufficient food, they'd get smaller. For some reason, Indian elephants have smaller ears. Who knows what would happen? But this is a textbook case of how evolution works.

a reply to: schuyler

I saw a picture where they colored the tusks bright pink that would not come off so the ivory tusks were worthless to the poachers....but this result with more tuskless elephants is very interesting...and it makes sense

A perfect example of evolution in action.
Great post, OP. A real-world, and recent evidence, in how relevant and important it is.

Wow remember genetics from school? You can cut the tail off of mice for generation after generation and still they are born with tails. Outside influences that effect genes will cause mutations but not physical trauma. Never. And evolution takes millions of years.


Elephants are never born with tusks. Like babies with no teeth.
The tusks grow later in life as a sign of maturity.
There is no tuskless gene in African elephants.
Both males and females have them.
Female Asian elephants seldom have tusks and if they do they are very short and weak.

There is so much that is incorrect in that article that can be disputed by simple high school biology.
Geez ....