Asian elephants are classified as “Endangered” under the IUCN Red List because populations are thought to have declined by at least 50% in less than a century. There are fewer than 50,000 wild Asian elephants living today.
As the largest land mammals in Asia, elephants play crucial roles as seed-dispersers and ecosystem engineers. But the greatest threats to this species today include –
- Habitat loss and fragmentation
- Deaths due to human activities
- Poaching for skins, parts, and live calves