This week, we celebrate Halloween, the one day of the year when it’s fun to give ourselves – and our friends and neighbors – a good scare. But, as we finalize our costumes, buy our candy, and finish carving our pumpkins, I’m reminded that, for so many animals, everyday is full of horrors!
This week, in honor of Halloween, we have put together this list of scary wildlife facts to raise awareness of how frightening the situation is for animals here in the U.S. and across the globe:
- Around 129,000 elephants were killed in the three year period between 2012 and 2015, an average of 101 per day.
- There are fewer than 32,000 lions left in the wild.
- There are more tigers in captivity in the U.S. than there are in the wild.
- There are about 10,000 – 20,000 big cats in captivity in the U.S.
- The ivory and rhino horn trades finance the same criminal enterprises that traffic drugs and guns and take part in human trafficking.
- Each year, millions of animals are trapped for their fur across the U.S. while millions more languish on fur farms.
- There are around 15,000 monkeys and other nonhuman primates kept as pets across the U.S..
Born Free is working to make the world a less scary place for wildlife, but we need your help! I invite you to follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram and share these scary facts with friends and family. And, please also consider making a donation to help support our work!
Keep Wildlife in the Wild,
Karen
