Craig's List Harbors Ivory Traffickers

That darling of the internet crowd, Craigslist, harbors ivory traffickers according to the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW). The trade is florishing. Investigators found 615 items from dead elephants in 28 locations over 38 days of listings. The activity amounted to $1.5 million in value. What the study shows is that illegal ivory trade is alive and well in the US; it cannot point the righteous finger at China until the nation cleans up its own act. Activists want Craigslist to specifically prohibit trading in ivory and other body parts from endangered species. Right now elephants are only listed as vulnerable on the Red List but that was in 2008 before the recent spike in poaching. No distinction is made between savannah and forest elephants, now considered by some scientists as separate species. Poaching is being used by criminal syndicates and terrorist to finance their operations.