Elephants are among the most visible of endangered species, and are one of the key ‘flagship’ species for conservation. The African elephant has attracted renewed interest recently because of the suggestion that there are actually two distinct species: the better-known savannah elephant of East and Southern Africa, and the less-studied, smaller, forest elephantof the Central and West African rainforests. This lecture will describe an expedition I led to Ghana, an area where the two forms may once have met, and the genetical and observational work that is being undertaken to resolve the issue. This leads to a discussion of the nature of ‘species’, and of the way in which seemingly academic taxonomic work can be ‘politicised’ by the needs of governmental and conservation organisations.

Lecture given on 1st February 2007.