Ivory is a material made from the tusks and teeth of animals. It has historically been an important trade commodity and remains so today. Ivory is valued for its smooth texture, creamy white color, and ability to be carved into intricate shapes and designs. But not all ivory comes from the same animal source. When most people think of ivory, elephants come to mind first. However, there are a few other animals that produce ivory as well. In this article, we will explore which animal produces the largest quantity of ivory for trade and consumption.
What is ivory?
Ivory is a hard, white material that makes up the tusks and teeth of certain mammals. It consists mainly of dentine, which is a tissue found beneath the enamel in teeth. Ivory tusks and teeth grow larger over the lifetime of an animal. Tusks are elongated teeth that protrude outside of the mouth, while teeth are contained within the mouth.
Ivory is different than bone because it does not contain blood vessels or nerves. It is made up of criss-crossing collagen fibers that allow it to be strong yet slightly flexible. This flexibility makes ivory ideal for carving into art, jewelry, and other decorative objects.
True ivory comes only from the tusks and teeth of elephants, hippos, walruses, warthogs, and other mammals. Other materials that resemble ivory include bones, teeth, and horns from various animals as well as plastics, composites, and wood.
Key properties of ivory
– Color: Ivory is creamy white to yellowish white.
– Texture: Smooth and velvety. Polished ivory has a glossy look.
– Strength: Ivory is strong yet slightly flexible. This makes it perfect for carving.
– Origin: Only comes from animal tusks and teeth, specifically elephants, hippos, walruses, warthogs, and others.
Elephant ivory
The animal most commonly associated with ivory is the elephant. For centuries, elephant tusks have been harvested and traded as ivory around the world. Elephants have two prominent tusks made of ivory that grow continuously throughout their lifetime.
Elephant tusks
Elephant tusks serve multiple purposes for elephants:
– Digging and lifting objects
– Defense against predators
– Sparring with other elephants
– A display of dominance
Elephant tusks are elongated teeth rooted deep in the skull. They are made up of layers of dentine surrounded by a coating of enamel. The tusks grow continuously at a rate of about 17 cm per year. Tusks can grow up to 3 meters long and weigh over 100 pounds each.
Only African elephants (both savanna and forest elephants) and Asian elephants have tusks. Female Asian elephants are usually tuskless. Male elephants tend to have larger tusks than females.
How much ivory can be harvested from an elephant?
An average male African elephant can yield around 50-60 pounds of ivory per tusk. However, tusks weighing over 100 pounds have been recorded.
Not all of the tusk is used for ivory. The solid tip and base of the tusk do not contain high quality ivory material. Ivory is extracted primarily from the middle sections of tusk that contain softer dentine.
This means a single male African elephant could realistically yield around 90-100 pounds of ivory. For Asian elephants, average ivory yield is about 20 pounds per tusk.
Elephant ivory trade
The global demand for elephant ivory has led to the steady decline of elephant populations over the past century. An estimated 20,000 elephants are killed illegally every year for their tusks. The ivory is often smuggled across borders and sold on the black market.
International commercial trade of new ivory was banned in 1989. Many countries have also passed national bans on ivory trade in efforts to combat the poaching crisis. However, illegal poaching and black market sales still persist to supply ivory demand in certain regions.
Hippopotamus ivory
After the elephant, the hippopotamus is the next largest source of ivory. Hippo tusks are continuously growing front teeth that can reach over 20 inches in length.
Hippo teeth
Hippos have large, barrel-shaped mouths containing 36 teeth. The two front canine teeth are extended into long tusks that protrude up and outward from the mouth.
– The tusks are made of ivory dentine with an enamel coating.
– They serve for combat and display between male hippos.
– Tusks grow continuously at about 5 inches per year.
– They can reach 20+ inches long and weigh over 6 pounds each.
How much ivory from a hippo?
Since only the two front canine teeth are ivory-producing, each hippo can yield approximately 10-15 pounds of ivory.
However, hippo ivory makes up only about 5% of the total global ivory production. Nowhere near the amounts produced by elephants.
Hippo ivory trade
Historically, hippo ivory was a common material used by early Egyptian civilizations for carving artifacts, tools, and art objects. It was also popular in Medieval Europe for use in religious artifacts.
Today, most hippo ivory comes from animals that died of natural causes rather than direct hunting. The conservation status of hippos is vulnerable, so most places have banned commercial hippo ivory trade.
There is a small, legal hippo ivory market that uses ivory from well-managed populations in certain African countries. South Africa produces the majority of legal modern hippo ivory for export.
Warthog ivory
Warthogs are a wild member of the pig family native to Africa. They have curved ivory tusks that protrude from the sides of their mouths.
Warthog tusks
– Warthogs have two sets of tusks in the upper and lower jaw.
– Upper tusks are longer, curving outwards and upwards.
– Lower tusks point downwards.
– Tusks are composed of an ivory layer over a dentine core.
– They continuously grow throughout the warthog’s life.
– Upper tusks reach 8 inches long usually.
Ivory yield per animal
Warthog tusks are relatively small, so ivory yield per animal is low. Each warthog can produce around 1-2 pounds of ivory from its 4 tusks combined.
Warthog ivory trade
Warthog ivory was traditionally used to make piano keys and organ stops. It was also popular for engraving and carving. Most warthog ivory came from southern and eastern Africa.
It is less commonly found in modern ivory trade. Warthogs have a healthy and stable population so regulated ivory harvesting is possible, but most places have banned warthog ivory trade regardless.
Walrus ivory
Walruses are a marine mammal living in Arctic regions. They have two prominent ivory tusks.
Walrus tusks
– Walruses have two long upper canine teeth that protrude down from the mouth as tusks.
– Tusks are up to 39 inches long and weigh over 5 pounds each.
– They are composed of dentine layers coated in cementum (not enamel like elephant tusks).
– Walruses use their tusks to pull themselves out of water, dig up food, and display dominance.
Ivory yield
Walrus tusks are substantially smaller than elephant tusks. Each walrus can yield around 5-10 pounds of ivory per tusk.
Walrus ivory trade
Walrus ivory comes exclusively from native Arctic populations in Alaska, Russia, Greenland, Canada, and Norway. It played an important role in medieval European art.
Today, walrus ivory trade is managed through native subsistence hunting and harvesting. The US banned most commercial walrus ivory trade in 1972, but Alaska natives are exempt. Russia implemented a strict quota system for subsistence hunting and ivory exports.
Narwhal ivory
Narwhals are small Arctic whales known for their long, spiraled tusk. This tusk is actually an elongated canine tooth composed of ivory.
The narwhal tusk
– Most male narwhals have one straight, spiral tusk that grows up to 10 feet long from their upper jaw. About 15% of females also grow a tusk.
– The tusk projects forward through the lip.
– It is composed of millions of sensory tubules and up to 10 million nerve endings inside dentine and cementum.
– Narwhals use the tusk to sense changes in salinity, water temperature, and pressure. It also helps them catch prey.
Narwhal ivory yield
Narwhal tusks are thin, long spirals. Each tusk contains only a few pounds of ivory – typically less than 5 pounds.
Narwhal ivory trade
Narwhal ivory was traditionally used to carve vessels in medieval times. It was sometimes passed off as unicorn horn. The narwhal ivory trade today comes from native Arctic hunting like the walrus ivory trade. Most trade is regulated and limited.
Sperm whale ivory
Sperm whales have teeth in their bottom jaw that hold deposits of a waxy, ivory-like substance called spermaceti. This was once collected and traded as ivory.
Spermaceti teeth
– Sperm whales have 20-26 relatively small teeth only in their bottom jaw. They do not use their teeth to feed.
– The teeth sockets contain spermaceti, a waxy oil used in echolocation and buoyancy control.
– Spermaceti hardens over time into a semi-transparent, amber-colored material referred to as “sperm whale ivory.”
– Full teeth with spermaceti could reach 20 inches long and weigh 15 pounds.
Spermaceti ivory yield
The amount of extractable spermaceti ivory is small compared to elephant ivory. Each sperm whale may yield 10-20 pounds.
Sperm whale ivory trade
Spermaceti ivory was used to make decorative items like chess pieces, practical tools likelevels, and specialty chemicals. The spermaceti oil was also highly desired.
This ivory trade is now extinct. Sperm whale products have been banned internationally since the 1970s. Sperm whales remain a protected and endangered species.
Mammoth ivory
Mammoth ivory comes from the tusks of the extinct woolly mammoth. It is dated from the Pleistocene era tens of thousands of years ago but is sometimes found preserved in Arctic regions.
Mammoth tusks
– Mammoths had large, curved tusks up to 16 feet long used for digging, defense, and display.
– Their tusks contained spiral grooves and were thicker than elephant tusks.
– Well-preserved specimens show translucent, yellowish dentine encased in a thin enamel coating.
Ivory yield
Full mammoth tusks are rarely found intact. Recovered specimens usually weigh 20-150 pounds, indicating ivory yields comparable to or greater than elephants per tusk.
Mammoth ivory trade
Mammoth ivory is legal to buy and sell most places since mammoths are long extinct. It has been used decoratively and commercially for centuries, often as a substitute for elephant ivory.
China is currently the major global importer, carver, and re-exporter of mammoth ivory products. Some concerns exist over the illegitimate mammoth ivory market masking illegal elephant ivory. But regulated mammoth ivory helps reduce demand for elephant ivory.
Other animals that produce ivory
A few other animals produce small amounts of ivory that has been used historically but is less common in the global ivory trade.
1. Wild boar
– Wild pigs, like warthogs, have two sets of continuously growing tusks.
– Upper and lower tusks can reach 5 inches long.
– Each boar yields less than 1 pound of ivory per tusk.
– Historically used but not significant today.
2. Dugong
– Dugongs have two short tusks in their upper lip made of ivory.
– Each tusk is only around 4 inches long.
– Very minimal ivory volume per animal.
– Traditionally used to make artifacts and jewelry in the Pacific but scarce today.
3. Orca
– Killer whales have small ivory teeth only in their lower jaw.
– Used to make scrimshaw novelties, now rare.
– No commercial harvesting or trade.
| Animal | Average Ivory Yield | Share of Global Ivory |
|---|---|---|
| Elephant | 90-200 lbs | 95% |
| Hippo | 10-15 lbs | 5% |
| Warthog | 1-2 lbs | |
| Walrus | 10-20 lbs | |
| Narwhal | ||
| Sperm Whale | 10-20 lbs | 0% |
Conclusion
By far, the elephant produces the most ivory compared to any other animal. The tusks of male African elephants can yield well over 100 pounds of ivory each. Asian elephant tusks produce less ivory per animal but still more than any other species.
It is estimated that over 95% of the total global supply of ivory comes from African and Asian elephants. No other animal comes close to the ivory volumes that a single elephant can provide.
Hippos follow behind elephants as the second largest ivory source. But hippo ivory makes up only about 5% of the world supply. Other animals like walruses, warthogs, narwhals, and sperm whales produce relatively small amounts of ivory.
Historically, ivory from many different animals was used extensively. But the prominence of elephant ivory dwarfed that from other sources. Today, elephants remain the primary target of ivory poachers due to the huge amounts of ivory their tusks contain.
While ivory can come from the tusks and teeth of various mammals, elephants carry the most ivory by far. The ongoing threat to elephants for their valued ivory tusks continues to raise urgent conservation concerns worldwide.