%0 Journal Article
%T The African Elephant (<i>Loxodonta africana</i>): Mini-Review of an Endangered Species
%A Ana Raquel de Sales
%A Rita Sofia Santos Anast¨¢cio
%A M. J. Pereira
%J Natural Resources
%P 317-350
%@ 2158-7086
%D 2020
%I Scientific Research Publishing
%R 10.4236/nr.2020.118019
%X Humankind is responsible for conditioning the
distribution of species, including the African elephant. From its great
physical form to its fascinating social behaviour, </span><i><span style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">Loxodonta africana</span></i><span style=\"font-family:Verdana;\"> can trigger an admiration in some and be undervalued by others, often ending up
being a victim of human activities. Increasingly, the apparent impossibility of
the coexistence of these two species represents a problem for the conservation
of the large African mammal. Here it was reviewed the published bibliography
about the African savannah elephant (</span><i><span style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">L. africana</span></i><span style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">), between July 2015 and
December 2019. The Web of </span><span><span style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">Science (WoS)
database enabled the search for the words ¡°</span><i><span style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">Loxo</span></i></span><i><span style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">donta african</span><span style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">a</span></i><span style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">¡±.
From this research, we obtained 310 articles, 149 of them</span><span style=\"font-family:Verdana;\"> were analysed. </span><span style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">Elephants have characteristics that define
its uniqueness that are constant</span><span style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">ly reported, such as: its cognition and
extraordinary memory, factors that influence its movements and its
distribution, its specific vocalization and the strong dependence on social
connections. Threats to the conservation of the species and the urgency of
interventions are also an important subject of discussion. Poaching for ivory
represents a major obstacle on conservation and has been drastically reducing
the number of elephant populations and causi</span><span style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">ng
future consequences for those who thrive. Law enforcement in r</span><span style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">educing/prohibit
poaching has proven to be insufficient, so there is an urgent need to combat
the demand for ivory. Also, it is necessary to bypass the conflict, promote
tolerance and enable cohabitation. We believe that educating human populations
to better understand the species may be the difference to guaran</span><span style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">tee a future for the species. Conservationists may
be the enablers of these ed</span><span style=\"font-family:Verdana;\">ucational actions, however, to make the
difference, it is necessary to know the species in detail. Mastering
%K Behaviour
%K Ecosystem Engineer
%K Environmental Awareness
%K Human-Wildlife Conflict
%K &lt
%K i&gt
%K Loxodonta africana&lt
%K /i&gt
%K Mitigation Strategies
%K Poaching
%K Wildlife Conservation
%U http://www.scirp.org/journal/PaperInformation.aspx?PaperID=102458