Why don’t elephants just stop growing tusks so they don’t get killed for the ivory?

An elephant cannot just decide to stop growing tusks with the result that he/she never grows tusks.

However, evolution is starting to have an effect.

There have always been a few tuskless elephants.

Now the percentage of tuskless elephants is increasing. That’s because tuskless elephants are less likely to be shot by poachers, so they have a higher likelihood of reproducing, and they often produce tuskless elephants.

It’s evolution in action.