Forest Elephants on a Road to Ruin

For the African forest elephant, a road is a highway to death, says a team of researchers, who trekked more than 8000 kilometers in five African countries to assess the animals' populations. Logging roads have given poachers increased access to the elephants' dwindling sanctuaries in the Congo Basin, and the reclusive animals' numbers are plunging as they are slaughtered for their ivory, the team's 2-year survey shows. "Forests that were formerly safe havens for elephants, such as those in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, are now virtually empty," says Mike Fay, a biologist with the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) in New York.