According to a new study, illegal ivory trade continues to be a problem in Africa and is driving the elephant population down at a dangerous rate.

The study, titled "Illegal killing for ivory drives global decline in African elephants," found that since 2010, an average of 35,000 elephants per year were killed in Africa. Between 2010 and 2013, an average of 7 percent of the continent's elephant population died every year. According to the researchers, if elephant poaching continues at this rate, there could be no more wild elephants in 100 years.

"We are shredding the fabric of elephant society and exterminating populations across the continent," George Wittemyer, the study's lead author, from Colorado State University, told BBC News.

One kilogram (2.20 pounds) of ivory is worth "thousands of dollars," BBC reports. The market is growing in Asia.

"If this is sustained, then we will see significant declines over time," said Julian Blanc, a study researcher who works for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

"The other thing to bear in mind is that different areas are affected differently. There are still healthy growing populations in parts of Africa, Botswana for example, but in other places, the poaching levels are devastatingly high, and that is particularly the case in Central Africa."

In the last 10 years roughly, Central Africa has seen its elephant population decrease by 60 percent.

"We are talking about the removal of the oldest and biggest elephants," Wittemyer said. "That means removal of the primary breeding males and removal of family matriarchs and mothers. This leaves behind orphaned juveniles and broken elephant societies."

Conservationists are asking people to care about what is happening and take the necessary steps in order to stop elephant poaching.

"The world needs to decide how much further effort it wants to put into the conservation of this magnificent species and, if so, be prepared to mobilize the necessary human and financial resources to deliver -- and we are seeing some encouraging signs in this regard," John Scanlon, secretary-general of CITES, said. "We need to ... tackle all links in the illegal ivory trade chain -- improve local livelihoods [for those living with elephants], strengthen enforcement and governance and reduce demand for illegal ivory."

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Follow Scharon Harding on Twitter: @ScharHar.

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