Why do we try to preserve wild animals? Why do we set aside delightful scenes of nature? Why do we establish open spaces and national parks? Would it not be better to accept here and now that man in his dominion over all the lesser creatures has every right to divest the land of animals, trees, or anything else which may stand in his way, or hinder him in exploiting the earth for the alleged well-being of mankind? Vast sums are spent in the larger continents to control domestic animal diseases; greater sums are spent in denuding the face of the earth of its natural cover, so that there can be more room for cattle, crops, factories and cities, in an attempt to meet the insatiable clamour of millions of human beings. Should we not pause to assess what irreplaceable assets are being endangered by this scramble and to what extent those assets contribute to men's peace of mind?

In 1985 many African elephant populations, which had been monitored for a decade or more, were either in rapid decline or down to a fraction of their former size. The author examines regional trends and information on key populations with reference to the critical factors affecting the survival of the African elephant, most significantly poaching and the illegal trade in ivory

The future persistence of African elephants over the 80 per cent of the species's range that remains outside protected areas is increasingly uncertain in many parts of the continent. Conflict between elephants and agriculturalists is already widespread and can lead to displacement or elimination of elephants, causing a further decline in their range and numbers. ‘Protectionist’ conservation groups have recently attempted to play down the importance of human–elephant conflict, contending that it has been greatly exaggerated by those advocating sustainable use of wildlife. The future of elephants in ecosystems over much of the continent will depend largely upon the attitudes and activities of humans. The realities of survival faced by rural Africans may mean that little attention will be paid to a debate taking place on conservation philosophy in the developed world. Therefore, the IUCN African Elephant Specialist Group (AfESG) is investigating how human land use can be integrated with the needs of elephant populations in Africa's biogeographical regions. Findings from these studies will be used in attempts to benefit elephant conservation and management in the 37 African elephant range states.

In the eight years of Idi Amin's rule, law enforcement in the national parks and reserves completely collapsed, and poaching and human encroachment increased. Last year, Robert Malpas, working for the New York Zoological Society and World Wildlife Fund/IUCN, and with some help from ffPS, spent nine months on a survey of Uganda's national parks and reserves to determine just how bad the situation really was. He found the elephant situation so desperate in both the Rwenzori and Kabalega Falls National Parks, except in one area, that there is no certainty of their survival in either even if the poaching can be controlled.

Captain Keith Caldwell, in his admirable report of a faunal survey in Eastern and Central Africa conducted in 1947, says: “… Were one of the old hunters who operated fifty years ago to visit Eastern Africa to-day, he would find vast districts in which he used to shoot completely denuded of game; in fact, it is probable that the game areas have been reduced by half, and the game within many of those left by 75 per cent.”

That, I think, is a fair estimate: a reduction of the fauna of Eastern and Central Africa to between a half and one-quarter of what it was half a century ago. The same applies more or less, but mostly more, to the whole of Africa south of the Sahara. The question before us now is what will be the state of this unique assemblage of fauna, including many species found nowhere else in the world, at the end of the next half-century?

The black rhino will be exterminated soon in northern Tanzania if poaching is not stopped, says the author, after surveying eight national parks and game reserves, either from the air or on the ground, or both. Tanzania is making great efforts to stop the poaching, but essential equipment is desperately short, and much more outside help is needed.

Human-elephant conflict, in particular the damage caused by elephants to smallholder crops, is a major challenge to the conservation of African elephant Loxodonta africana. Conventional tools used to address this problem are capital intensive and require high levels of expertise. In recent years simple, affordable farm-based elephant deterrents, using locally available materials, have been encouraged by a number of human-elephant conflict researchers. There are very few published studies demonstrating the performance of these deterrents, however, and little is known about levels of uptake among smallholder farmers. We trialled a number of such farm-based elephant deterrents with local farmers in three sites within Laikipia District, Kenya. Levels of crop raiding declined after the introduction of treatments but not significantly when compared with control farms. Variable levels of uptake among the participating farmers made it difficult to draw clear conclusions from the trials. However, participating farmers were positive about the deterrent effect of the tools introduced, corroborated by their willingness to make financial commitments towards sustaining future trials. Availability of household labour, local politics, and insecurity were identified as important barriers to uptake of some of the deterrents introduced. Household labour availability should be a key consideration in future endeavours to trial farm-based elephant deterrents.

About 3000 elephants live in the Laikipia/Sambnru region of northern Kenya – the largest remaining population outside the country's formal protected areas. The elephants occasionally kill or injure people, damage the crops of small-scale farmers, drive cattle away from water sources and cause a range of other problems for the human population. As a result, a number of elephants have been shot for control purposes in recent years and others have died as a result of poisoning, snares or spearing. The author examines the conflict between elephants and humans in areas of differing land use and makes suggestions for resolving at least some of the problems.

These extracts from a memorandum by two scientists resident in Kenya describe the desperate situation to which poaching has brought the black rhino in East Africa. Dr Hillman is Chairman of the IUCN/SSC African Rhino Group.

Human–elephant conflict is a significant problem in Africa, undermining biodiversity conservation and development efforts. Early warning of crop raiding and a coordinated response from landholders and wildlife authorities are important for effective management of this conflict. Mobile phones have spread rapidly in rural Africa and could potentially be used to improve communication and increase the effectiveness of responses to crop raids by elephants. We analyse changes in patterns of communication around human–elephant conflict incidents before and after the arrival of mobile phone technology in Laikipia County in north-central Kenya, and the performance of mobile phone communication in a trial at three sites. We show that mobile phones can improve communication and reduce human–elephant conflict where there is good mobile coverage and widespread adoption. Conservation projects have much to gain from engaging with mobile phone technology.

The ancient volcanic crater of Ngorongoro in Tanzania, 10 miles across and 2,000 feet deep, is one of the show places of East African wildlife. Formerly a part of the great Serengeti National Park, it was separated in 1959 on the recommendation of a Government Committee of Enquiry, and, together with the Eastern Serengeti, established as a Conservation Area with a total area of 3,200 square miles. This followed Professor Pearsall's ecological survey of the Serengeti in 1956, financed by the FPS, the report of which was published in ORYX, August 1957. In this article the retiring Conservator of the Ngorongoro Conservation Area describes how, helped by money from the British Government, Ngorongoro has developed in five years from “a doubtful starter” to one of the successes of East African conservation. Members of the FPS East African tour will visit the Crater in February.

The scientific community now agrees that, more than anything else, it is the killing of African elephants for the ivory trade that has caused the very dramatic declines in elephant populations witnessed over the past decade. Based on samples of ivory trade data, recent population modelling and field data, the authors discuss the implications of the ivory trade for the future survival of viable populations of African elephants.

Fauna & Flora International (FFI) celebrates its centenary in 2003. It was founded as the Society for the Preservation of the Wild Fauna of the Empire (SPWFE) in London in 1903. This paper analyses the events, people, and debates behind its formation and early development. It discusses why the Society was formed, how it worked, and what its main concerns were. It considers the nature and success of the Society's work from 1903 to 1914 in influencing the British Colonial Office's policy on issues such as game reserves, hunting and wildlife clearance for tsetse control in Africa. The SPWFE drew together an elite group of colonial administrators, hunters and other experts on game in Africa, and was effective in lobbying the Colonial Office about preservation. Many of its concerns, and ideas about how to address them, are similar to those that are current today, a century after its establishment.

It is encouraging to report that, except for some forms of less than specific rank, no animal of East Africa has become extinct and most species are still abundant. There is still time to save the interesting fauna in its natural habitat, provided reserves are chosen wisely.

In 1953–54 the senior author worked with the Royal National Parks of Kenya in making ecological studies and in surveying the position of the wildlife resource and the national parks in that country (Petrides, 1955, 1956). In 1956–57 both of us undertook similar work in a neighbouring territory Uganda, under the sponsorship of the Uganda National Parks and the Uganda Game Department (Petrides and Swank, 1958). These studies were under Fulbright research awards of the United States government. In addition, visits en route were made to all major countries, from Capetown to Cairo, in the eastern half of Africa. Most important national parks and game areas were seen.

One of the most important aspects of the conservation of nature is its relation to a world problem: that of producing food and raw material in quantities sufficient to balance increases in population. This problem may, of course, be considered from various points of view. I shall consider it mainly from the point of view of an ecologist, starting from the fact that because the amount of highly productive land under cultivation is diminishing rather than increasing, it will be necessary to turn to regions at present marginal or undeveloped in order to produce any considerable increase in production.

Near the northern border of Tanganyika lies the Serengeti National Park—an area of 4,480 square miles and one of the most important nature reserves of the world. It may be considered in three parts: the Western Serengeti, a corridor between the Grumeti and Mbalageti rivers which approaches Lake Victoria but does not quite reach it: the Central Plains: the Crater Highlands, including Ngorongoro.

In Kenya knowledge of the relative severity of threats to protected areas and the vulnerability of these areas to any threats is lacking. Such information is required, however, for assessment of the effectiveness of management of the country’s protected areas, and to help identify critical management and policy weaknesses and priorities for improving management and allocating resources. We therefore studied the relative severity of threats to Kenya’s 50 protected areas and their relative vulnerability to such threats based on the perceptions of protected area managers. Ten threats were identified by these managers, of which the most severe were illegal bushmeat hunting, poaching of large mammals, human–wildlife conflicts, human encroachment, and loss of migration corridors and dispersal areas. Thirty-two (64%) protected areas were vulnerable to over half of the threats, 54% vulnerable to over six of the threats and 32% vulnerable to over seven of the threats. Protected areas in marine, forested/montane and inland wetland ecosystems were regarded as highly vulnerable to the perceived threats. Protected areas adjacent to urban/industrial and agricultural areas were vulnerable to most of the threats. Our findings demonstrate that protected areas in Kenya are increasingly threatened, that major threats needs to be mitigated, and that prioritization of protected areas for strategic actions is required for effective management.