A Global “Tusk”: Forest Elephants and Carbon
Global warming is gradually impacting our climate for the worse. Luckily, forest elephants, along with the towering trees that live in their habitat, are contributing to the prevention of global warming. Global warming is the process by which the production of carbon containing, heat trapping greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide and methane, increases in the atmosphere resulting in an overall increase in temperature on the Earth’s surface. The result is detrimental to our world in the long run, and therefore it is imperative that we search for ways to protect our planet from such climate change.
The tall trees found in the tropical forest habitat where forest elephants live are also known as late-succession trees and can store a significantly larger amount of carbon than other trees. Because of their large size, these trees will need to absorb more carbon dioxide from the environment in order to synthesize sufficient nutrients through the process of photosynthesis. Thus, it is recorded that plant-rich environments are responsible for sequestering 25% of carbon emissions. However, when trees are subjected to deforestation and wildfires, they can turn into carbon sources. Therefore, it is important to keep our forests free from harm if the goal is to mitigate climate change.
Forest elephants are our allies in the prevention of global warming. They help promote the growth of these large trees by feeding on smaller trees and, therefore, allowing more space for the late-succession, carbon-storing trees to flourish. Because of poaching and habitat loss, forest elephants have experienced a huge decline in their overall population. Researchers hypothesized that if forest elephants are able to recover to their former numbers and cover their former range, the amount of carbon dioxide sequestered as a result of their activities could be equivalent to that absorbed by 250,000 trees which is comparable to 14 times that absorbed by Central Park in New York City. The feces of forest elephants also serve as fertilizers to keep the trees healthy and flourishing. Thus, forest elephants offer significant contributions not only to wildlife but also, more generally, to our planet Earth.
In fact, forest elephants themselves are storers of carbon due to their large size. An average forest elephant’s body weighs approximately 3000 kg. It is estimated that about 24% of a forest elephant’s body weight, or 720 kg, is due to carbon. It is also important to note that the average lifespan of forest elephants ranges from 65 to 70 years. That’s years of potentially having a positive effect on global warming.
As beneficial as they may be, forest elephants are experiencing a dangerous decrease in their numbers due to poaching and habitat loss. This can ultimately have a detrimental effect on our environment. Thus, a suitable means of action for combating climate change would be to protect our forest elephants and the forests in which they live. Climate change needs to be solved, but with friendly tusks on our side, elephants can surely make a difference.
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Chami, Ralph, Connel Fullenkamp, Thomas Cosimano, and Fabio Berzaghi. “The Secret Work of Elephants.” Finance and Development, (Winter 2020): 58–62.
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