Conservation science and elephant management in southern Africa

Abstract

6,7 and motivated the control of elephant numbers in some southern African parks. We are concerned that even recent plans to manage elephants continue to focus on controlling their numbers to reduce their effects, and do not address the forces that cause impact and lead to large local populations. Con- sideration of the causes of the elephant problem, as well as advances in conserva- tion sciences, allow us to present a fresh approach to managing the consequences that elephants have for vegetation and habitats. This approach avoids reducing numbers directly and addresses patterns of spatial use to reduce local impacts and limit regional numbers. It emphasizes the cause of the elephant problem and focuses on a systemic rather than a symptomatic treatment.