ACROSS Africa the illegal slaughter of elephants is accelerating at such a pace—recent estimates put the number killed at 100,000 in just three years—that it threatens to exterminate whole populations. The worst of this butchery takes place in Tanzania, the biggest source of illegal ivory.
Every third poached elephant in Africa dies on the watch of Tanzania’s president, Jakaya Kikwete. His government has made some public efforts to fight poaching over the past year. Among these is a plan to destroy the country’s ivory stockpile of 112 tonnes, worth $50m, rather than sell it off, to place a stigma on the stuff. Billboards warn against the illicit trade and armed search parties have been sent into national parks to scare away poachers. Still, tuskless carcasses keep turning up (see chart).