How are elephants useful to mankind? (Any three points)
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Answer:
1. Elephants plant trees and fight climate change. Studies have shown that elephants help protect forest health in central Africa by distributing the seeds of trees. Because they roam over such great distances, elephants play a key role in spreading tree seedlings far and wide.
2. Protecting elephants increases security. Poaching and wildlife trafficking undermine the safety of local villages by causing violence between hunters and communities. But at the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy in Kenya, rangers are trained and credentialed as police reservists, who respond to both wildlife and non-wildlife crimes in the area.
3. Elephants support other species. Elephants are “ecosystem engineers”: They push over trees to maintain savanna ecosystems, excavate waterholes and fertilize land, which helps other animals thrive.
4. They’re a tourist attraction. A thriving tourist trade enables elephants to bring in money for local communities.