Ice Ivory to White Gold: Links Between the Illegal Ivory Trade and the Trade in Geocultural Artifacts

The United Kingdom, with the introduction of Ivory Act 2018, is at forefront elephant protection, and it hoped that governmental commitments, made in 25 Year Environment Plan, will see increased protection for other species risk due to illegal wildlife trade. However, one currently falls outside regulation Convention on International Trade Endangered Species Wild Fauna Flora (CITES) can be directly linked ivory trade: mammoth. woolly mammoth became extinct more than 10,000 years ago, but genus Mammuthus, since its appearance Africa c.5 ma, was most successful megafaunal groups, radiating into 10 found across Northern Hemisphere from Siberia Crete. As world warms permafrost melts, tusks are being uncovered Hemisphere, particularly Siberia’s Republic Sakha (Yakutia). There close similarities between elephants mammoths, leading conservationists fear increase “ice ivory” heralds a new threat our wider understanding “woolly” world.