28 Elephants Killed By Poachers, Could Be Extinct in Next Decade

On Wednesday, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) said poachers in southeast Cameroon have killed 28 endangered forest elephants.

The elephants were killed in the Nki and Lobeke national parks in recent weeks, according to the Christian Science Monitor.

The publication reports that there has been a rising demand for ivory in Asia and that has caused Africa's forest elephants to be reduced to 62 percent over the last decade.

According to the publication, Zacharie Nzooh, WWF Cameroon representative in the East Region, said, "Elephants in these two protected areas in the Congo Basin are facing a threat to their existence."

Nzooch also said that the poachers use automatic weapons like AK-47s. He said in February the WWF found 23 dead elephants in the Nki national park that were missing their tusks and that these elephants could disappear in less than a decade if nothing is done.

There are about 2,000 Cameroon forest elephants.

The Cameroon forest elephants are smaller than the Savannah African elephants and they have straighter tusks.

In December, Cameroon deployed 600 soldiers with night vision gear and military helicopters to try protecting the elephants from being poached again.