World Elephant Day 2023: Date, History, Facts about Elephants

World Elephant Day is observed on August 12 to honour one of Earth’s most magnificent mammals, which embodies prehistoric beauty, theological relevance, and environmental significance. The number of elephants has decreased by 62% over the past decade, and they may be extinct by the end of the next decade.

According to estimates, 100 African elephants are poached every day. Thousands of elephants have been killed because of the demand for ivory in Asian markets. World Elephant Day was created to raise awareness and effect change for the conservation of these magnificent animals. Since its inception in 2012 by Patricia Sims, the Elephant Reintroduction Foundation of Thailand, and more than one hundred elephant conservation organisations worldwide, World Elephant Day has reached millions of people who love elephants and want to assist in any way possible.

World Elephant Day is a day when organisations and individuals can unite to raise awareness about the threats elephants face.

This potent, collective global movement provides a means of establishing and endorsing conservation measures that will make the world a safer place for elephants and their habitats so that future generations can appreciate them.

World Elephant Day Messages, Slogans and Quotes

International Day of Action for Elephants in Zoos 2023: Date, History, Facts, Activities

The background of World Elephant Day

Throughout the annals of civilization, elephants and humans have made great strides forward. Due to the vastness of the African elephant’s natural habitat as well as its size and threatening demeanour, it has largely resisted domestication and captivity. In contrast, the Asian elephant, which has coexisted with humans for over 4,000 years, is held in high regard and is associated with numerous cultural and spiritual practises. Elephants are a national symbol in Thailand, where a national holiday is dedicated to them and they can even receive a royal title from the monarch.

Despite the preceding, there is still a great deal we do not know about elephants. They have the largest brain of any land animal, which enables them to be intelligent, conscious, social, and empathetic — characteristics that we humans strive for. Humans and elephants share many similarities, and elephants may be more similar to us than any other animal. However, we are jeopardising their future and endangering their vital biodiverse habitats in Asia and Africa.

Elephants are a keystone species for their respective ecosystems because they support thriving ecosystems and promote biodiversity. According to the World Elephant Day website, “to lose the elephant is to lose an environmental steward and a species from which we can learn much.”

We can save elephants by enforcing stronger local- and international protection policies and legislation for wild elephants against poaching and the illegal trade of ivory, promoting better management of their natural habitats, educating people on the elephant’s vital role in ecosystems, improving the treatment of elephants in captivity, and, if necessary, reintroducing captive elephants into wildlife reserves to allow a natural replenishment of endangered populations. These are merely a few of the objectives of elephant conservation organisations around the globe.

Space and time are running out for elephants. Before it’s too late and they’re all gone, we must work together to prevent senseless poaching and the trafficking of ivory, and to establish protected natural sanctuaries where elephants and other wildlife can thrive.

5 Interesting Facts About Elephants

Elephant tusks are essentially enlarged incisor teeth that appear around the age of two in elephants.

Elephants require up to 150 kg of sustenance per day, which is roughly equivalent to 150 bags of chips.

The Asian elephant is an endangered species, with fewer than 40,000 individuals remaining in the wild.

There are less than 400,000 African elephants left in the globe, making this species endangered.

In Thailand, there were over 100,000 elephants at the turn of the last century, but there are now fewer than 4,000.

WORLD ELEPHANT DAY DATES

Year	Date	Day
2023	August 12	Saturday
2024	August 12	Monday
2025	August 12	Tuesday
2026	August 12	Wednesday
2027	August 12	Thursday