Are Borneo Elephants Facing Extinction?

An assessment by wildlife experts has concluded that agriculture, mining, logging, and other human activities on the island of Borneo have put elephants living on the island in Southeast Asia at risk of extinction. Data from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) indicates that there are approximately 1,000 Borneo elephants remaining in the wild, included in the IUCN's "Red List," which evaluates the extinction risk faced by various animal species. There is a category in the list for animals at extreme risk of extinction that require conservation efforts. The next category includes endangered animals, such as the Borneo elephant, which face a significant risk of extinction if no action is taken. Craig Hilton-Taylor, head of the unit that compiles the Red List at the IUCN, stated, "Their numbers are small and they could easily disappear if we allow things to progress without any conservation measures." The IUCN noted that the range of these elephants, which are generally smaller than African elephants, has diminished over the past seventy-five years, beginning with extensive logging. Since then, elephants have encroached into areas dominated by human habitation in search of food, which can lead to crop destruction and make them vulnerable to being killed by farmers.