Charities work extremely hard to end the poaching of African elephants, and many people put their lives at risk for this cause. Jack Ashton describes the work of one of these charities, Game Rangers International, through his experiences working alongside them.

As a child, I always thought that the African elephant, an incredible species and the largest land animal on Earth, was one of the strangest. I found it difficult to disagree with my past self after my trip to Zambia, seeing their huge six foot long trunks and their tails that often seem far too small for their immense bodies. These strange features combine to create a species that is amazingly well adapted to life in Africa, and one of the most amazing animals on the planet.

Sadly, they are threatened by poaching and, at current estimates, 100 African elephants are killed every day for their ivory tusks. This threat may seem insurmountable. However, African elephants are a flagship species for conservation, meaning they are regularly chosen to raise support for conservation and therefore receive a significant amount of support from charities. Nowadays, they heavily rely on the protection these charities offer to overcome poaching.

But how do you protect the largest land animal on Earth, which tower above us and roam huge distances? Well, it certainly takes hard work. I was lucky enough to work with the charity Game Rangers International, based in Zambia, who carry out crucial projects to protect African elephants. They use an approach based upon three key areas, and I got to experience the work done for each one:

1. Protect, preserve, prevent

I first went to see how this charity carries out resource protection – where they protect elephants in the wild. To do so, they fund their special anti-poaching unit (SAPU) consisting of three full-time teams, SAPU South, SAPU KAZA, and in the heart of Zambia’s Kafue National Park (the second largest National Park in Africa) is their SAPU North headquarters. On arrival, I was thoroughly surprised to find a series of tents laid out sporadically within the perimeter of a fence. Being the headquarters of an anti-poaching unit, I expected a somewhat different setup. However, when led inside, I found something closer to what I had envisioned; sprawled out maps surrounded by GPS equipment, and whiteboards with reports written all over them. As it turned out, it was far more intense than I could ever have imagined. GRI’s SAPU is set up in a military-like fashion; all three teams gather information on any suspicious activities in the park, with patrols and cameras set up to catch any illegal activity. Once a suspicious activity is identified, rangers are immediately deployed to the location in order to either catch the poacher, or determine where they may have gone to seize any ivory they may have taken – usually with outstanding success.

However, even this cannot eliminate all poaching from the park. There was always one corridor through which poachers could access the park without detection – via Lake Itezhi-Tezhi in the South. Therefore, in 2016, GRI partnered with the WWF to create the Connected Conservation Initiative. This project helped to establish a marine anti-poaching unit based near to the lake. There is now a system of cameras watching 24 hours a day to identify any unknown boats coming in or out of the park, harbouring potential poachers. What surprised me the most was that all the cameras feedback to a surprisingly small room, covered in tv monitors with only enough space for two people to crowd into. If identified, these boats are intercepted, hopefully before any damage is done, and this has been influential in reducing poaching in the Kafue National Park.

Luckily, this work provides excellent results, not only in identifying poachers before they have killed an elephant, but also by deterring potential poachers. Alone, the three teams that SAPU deploys have arrested 710 poachers and traffickers and seized 361 illegal firearms and 372kg of ivory. I left the SAPU impressed, yet shocked. It should not have come to this. However, I had an overwhelming feeling of relief upon leaving as we are lucky that there are people willing to put themselves in danger to protect elephants. My last thought before leaving, though, was “We should not be, but we are at war with poachers”.

2. Educate, engage, empower

But what is the best way to stop poaching? Well, the answer does not solely lie in physical protection, but also stopping it at its source. Poachers do not come from Asia where the demand for ivory is, but they are local villagers who have been offered money to poach an elephant. DNPW estimates that 4,000-6,000 poachers live in households situated around the Kafue Park. We cannot blame them for taking these offers; they need to feed their families, and most cannot afford to say no. Therefore, a huge part of GRI’s work aims to give these locals alternate sources of income, reducing the likelihood that they will need to accept money to poach. GRI’s camp located on the banks of the Kafue river, and just next to Mukambi village, is the charity’s base for this project, and was where I went to experience the next focus of GRI’s work – community outreach.

Upon arriving, I had a feeling of déjà vu when I was presented with yet another series of tents, one of which contained a tiny kitchen. As it turned out, there was a resident troop of baboons nearby, so someone had to be in the kitchen at all times to chase them away whenever they risked a stealthy attempt to steal tomatoes. Those based here work in Mukambi and other nearby villages, empowering the locals to make an income and educating them. They do this through a weekly radio show reaching over 65,000 people, as well as helping women’s groups in each village to make intricate models and bags to sell at tourist hotspots around the park. They also teach in local schools through both lessons and simply through the medium of games – when I went, I thought I was acceptably good at playing football, until children 10 years younger showed me that I was, in fact, hopeless! I was lucky enough to take part in the teaching and helping to make all kinds of animals out of beads and wire with the women’s group.

These projects may not seem like one of the most important ways to reduce poaching on first glance. However, when combined, this work helps these local people to make a living, allowing the families there to live comfortably together in a happy, tight-knit village. As a result, if someone from abroad were to offer someone from Mukambi (or another village) money to poach an elephant, they would say no, as they now value elephants and live in harmony with them. It is an amazing village and I found it a privilege to work amongst its residents. My thoughts upon my time there were not always about the crocodiles layering the banks of the Kafue river, or about the lion pride I would sometimes see crossing the road, or even the hippos I could hear within meters of my tent at night, but often just about how happy this village was with the little it had. Family, friends, and nature. This was all that they needed.

3. Rescue, rehabilitate, release

However, even with these amazing projects in place, elephants are still poached. Usually it is the largest individuals which are killed, and unfortunately since elephant herds are highly matriarchal, they are reliant upon the largest, elderly females. These matriarchs possess knowledge on where the best feeding grounds are, best water sources, and best ways to avoid predation. Therefore, if the matriarchs are poached, the young elephants of a herd cannot fend for themselves. This led me onto GRI’s last project - wildlife rescue. This is where they rescue vulnerable elephants from the wild and rehabilitate them, with the aim of rewilding them once again. Finally, this gave me a chance to understand what this work was all about.

Just outside Lusaka, Zambia’s capital city, lies Lilayi elephant orphanage in a game reserve containing no predators. This is where I worked for a few days and, I confess, this was the part of the trip that I was most excited for! Having seen endless videos of baby elephants playing in the mud and being all too cute, I could not wait to see this in real life. However, before I could see them, the day I arrived I was told about their back stories, and these really opened my eyes. There were only four orphans, but the stories were horrific. The youngest was less than 6 months old (and not much taller than my knee) and had to wear a coat to keep it warm. They called this elephant Number 43 as their superstitions mean they don’t name orphans until they are sure they will survive. Each of these were separated from their families at an age when they could not survive alone, which is why GRI had taken them in. The story that resides in my memory the most was that of Mkaliva, who was around 2 years old. She was found in the middle of a powerful river having fallen off a ledge after being separated from her herd which was decimated by poachers, killing all the elders.

Now they rely on their care in the orphanage, but these young beings are far from easy to look after. It is an extremely busy job looking after these orphans as they require huge amounts of food and milk to grow, and people must sleep in the boma with the elephants to keep them comfortable throughout the night. It is literally a 24-hour job. This is, however, all rewarded when these orphans grow and strengthen, at which point they can be moved to a release facility in Kafue Park. Here, they are released into the wild with armed rangers each day, yet sleep in the facility at night. As they grow, they venture further out into the wild until they become rewilded. Sometimes, however, the herd that an orphan may join is the one they are being encouraged to leave. One teenage elephant present while I was there still resides around the perimeter of the release facility, having become the matriarch of the orphaned elephants. This is one of 49 orphaned elephants that have been successfully rescued and rehabilitated by GRI since 2007.

It is a job that sounds desirable, but it is very demanding. Having to look after any animal is not ideal as humans can never provide the exact conditions given to them in the wild, but this project gives these orphan elephants a second chance at life – and it’s sad to say that the first chance they had was taken away by humans. Luckily, GRI and many other charities work to give them this second chance. It is safe to say that I was thoroughly impressed by the work that GRI undertakes. It is difficult, but crucial. If we are to win the war against poaching, these charities are imperative.

It should not have come to this, but it has. The work of these charities will become ever more important in the future, for both Africa’s wildlife and its villages. If they are properly funded, there is every chance that they could be a keystone to stopping poaching of the largest land animal in the world.

For more information, go to Game Rangers International’s website.

How to save an elephant

Charities work extremely hard to end the poaching of African elephants, and many people put their lives at risk for this cause. Jack Ashton describes the work of one of these charities, Game Rangers International, through his experiences working alongside them.

1. Protect, preserve, prevent

2. Educate, engage, empower

3. Rescue, rehabilitate, release