Ban on African elephant ivory

Due to the loss of its habitat to agriculture and the increased global demand for ivory, the African elephant’s (Loxodonta) population declined dramatically during the 1970s and 1980s. This led the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) to declare the African elephant a “most endangered” species, threatened with extinction. In 1989 CITES banned the international trade of African elephant ivory. While elephant numbers are still relatively low, the ban successfully stopped population decreases in most regions.