ADOPT AN ELEPHANT

African elephants are the world’s largest land animals, and found across sub-Saharan Africa. Males can weigh up to 6,000kg and stand over three metres tall. By monitoring elephants in the wild, we have just started to understand the range of complex emotions these creatures experience. They live in close-knit family groups, caring for and protecting their young. And, just like humans, they mourn the loss of family members.

African elephants face a number of threats in the wild, edging them closer to extinction. From illegal killing for the ivory trade, habitat destruction as human populations expand, to retaliatory killing for destroying crops – these factors have played a part in the overall decrease in elephant numbers.

WHAT'S INCLUDED IN YOUR ELEPHANT ADOPTION

Help protect elephants in the wild with an animal adoption, and you'll receive an exclusive adoption pack containing a soft toy, the animal’s story, species fact sheet, personalised certificate and glossy photo. Plus, we’ll send you our Adopt! magazine twice a year with updates on all our animal adoptions – perfect for animal lovers.

Adoptions last one year (those paid by monthly direct debit roll over until cancelled).

ISSUES AFFECTING ELEPHANTS TODAY

There are two sub-species of African elephant, the savannah and the forest elephant, which highlights the diversity of their habitat range. However, they are being driven into smaller, fragmented areas, mainly due to human activity.

Despite years of campaigning, poaching for ivory and trophy hunting are still major issues affecting elephants today. Some countries allow the controlled trade in ivory which has enabled traffickers to exploit loopholes and continue killing elephants for their tusks. Trophy hunting also generates large amounts of money and is permitted in many countries across Africa, yet the local communities receive little, if any, of the proceeds. In Kenya, where trophy hunting is banned, eco-tourism has proved to be a successful alternative, allowing animals and humans to co-exist together.

Further threats are also posed by everyday human-wildlife conflict. Driven by human population growth, more of the elephants’ natural habitat is being lost to settlements and agricultural use. If elephants eat the crops, local farmers will retaliate by shooting the elephants. Born Free works to provide solutions to these problems and promote co-existence.

ADOPTING AN ELEPHANT WILL HAVE A MASSIVE IMPACT

Funds from your adoption will support our work in Kenya, but Born Free also works to protect wild elephants in Ethiopia and Cameroon.

Babile Elephant Sanctuary in Ethiopia aims to stop poaching and reduce human-elephant conflict with savannah elephants.

Banyang-Mbo Wildlife Sanctuary in Cameroon carries out conservation activities and engages with local communities to promote the need to save their forest elephants.

Amboseli Elephant Research Project in Kenya conducts field research to support its population of savannah elephants. The study provides insights into their behaviour and intelligence that can inform the conservation of this species.

The question is, are we happy to suppose that our grandchildren may never be able to see an elephant except in a picture book?Sir David Attenborough

By supporting Born Free you will help us to:

Stop elephants being poached and killed for their ivory

Support ranger patrols to monitor and protect elephants in the wild

Develop ideas to overcome human-elephant conflict, like chilli fences to protect crops

Encourage tolerance of elephants amongst local communities and promote co-existence

Lobby governments and campaign against trophy hunting

ADOPT THE AMBOSELI ELEPHANTS

The Elephant Family are a large herd who live in Kenya’s Amboseli Park, at the foot of Mount Kilimanjaro.

They are monitored by the Amboseli Elephant Research Project – the longest-running project of its kind in Africa. Your adoption will help protect them.

Help us keep this threatened family safe.

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ADOPTION PACK DELIVERY INFORMATION

All UK orders are sent via Royal Mail 2nd class delivery and normally received within three working days. Please allow up to 28 days for delivery on overseas orders. Please note, we cannot hold orders for delivery on a specific date.

Orders do not need to be signed for, but if you have requested the optional toy, the box won’t fit through the letterbox so you will need to be available to accept the delivery. A card will be left if you’re unavailable.