The taxonomy of West African elephants is reviewed along with their distribution during 1976-1984 study done in a biogeographical context. At that time they inhabited roughly 232,000 sq km, 6-7% of the area they had occupied at the turn of the century. The diminution of elephant range was greatest in the Sahel and Guinean savannah zone of which only about 2.8% and 2.3% respectively are still inhabited by elephants as compared to 6.7% in the Sudanian and 16% in the Guinean forest zone. Reasons for the decline of elephants in West Africa are analyzed. Accepting inaccuracies of elephant censusing, surviving elephants in West Africa were estimated at roughly 17,000 of which about 5,200 were considered to be forest elephants. Of these only about 11,500 (3,500 forest and 8,000 savannah elephants) live in or around national parks and game reserves. Conservation and chances for survival of elephants are discus