South Sudan war puts wildlife in danger

Tiang migration on the Jonglei plains, South Sudan.

Renewed fighting in South Sudan is threatening to push much the country’s wildlife to extinction, with poaching of elephants on the rise and both side accused of butchering antelope and other animals to feed their troops.

Elephants

In the 1970s, South Sudan was home to an estimated 80,000 elephants. The following decades of civil war had a catastrophic impact on elephants and other wildlife populations. Researchers think there may be less than 2,500 survivors remaining in the country.

Giraffe in Badingilo Park, South Sudan.

The numbers of giraffes, seen here in Badingilo Park, have also dropped dramatically.

Elephant ivory

A trafficker arrested in South Sudan shows the ivory tusks he was selling.

Ivory bracelets

Worked ivory bracelets seized in Juba, South Sudan.

Giraffes in South Sudan

Giraffes in South Sudan.

Tiang migration

The migration of tiang, also called Senegal hartebeest or korrigum, is the second largest migration on the continent, behind the wildebeest migration in the Serengeti.

Bushmeat

A trafficker displays antelope bushmeat in South Sudan.

Elephant with GPS/satellite collar in South Sudan

An elephant affixed with GPS/satellite collar walks alone in South Sudan.