Rarest elephant subspecies or species

The rarest elephant subspecies or species is the Sumatran elephant Elephas maximus sumatrensis. Smaller and paler in colouration than the Sri Lankan and Indian elephants, it is the only subspecies or species of elephant officially categorised by the IUCN as Critically Endangered. Numbering no more than an estimated 2,400-2,800 individuals in the wild, the population of this subspecies has declined by approximately 80% during the past 75 years (75 years being equivalent to three generations of elephant). The rapid decline of the Sumatran elephant is believed to be due to a range of different factors acting together, including hunting and habitat loss, with over 25% of suitable habitat for elephants on the island having been lost in the past 25 years alone, leaving behind very small, fragmented areas that are often of insufficient size to sustain elephants.