Taylor Guitars Publishes New Scientific Research on African Ebony

Taylor Guitars has revealed new scientific research showing that African ebony trees depend heavily on African forest elephants for survival. The peer-reviewed study, published in Science Advances, emerged from The Ebony Project, a conservation initiative launched by Taylor’s co-founder Bob Taylor in partnership with the Congo Basin Institute.

The findings show that ebony trees, the source of the dark, durable wood used on nearly every Taylor guitar fingerboard, rely on elephants for seed dispersal. Without elephants, which have disappeared from two-thirds of their historical range due to poaching and habitat loss, ebony seedlings fail to thrive.

The discovery came after years of on-the-ground work in Cameroon, where Taylor first invested in restoring a local ebony mill. His collaboration with UCLA conservation biologist Dr. Tom Smith led to funding for The Ebony Project, which has since planted over 40,000 ebony trees and 20,000 fruit trees to support local communities.

Under the leadership of Dr. Vincent Deblauwe, Cameroonian scientists documented how elephants act as “gardeners of the rainforest.” Ebony seeds passed through elephant dung survive at far higher rates, protected from rodents and spread across greater distances. In forests where elephants have vanished, researchers found almost no young ebony trees.

The implications reach far beyond ecology. Ebony is a prized material for instrument makers, and the decline of elephants threatens its long-term availability. “If guitar players want ebony fingerboards in the future, they need to support elephant conservation in the Congo Basin today,” said Bob Taylor.

The project highlights how the survival of musical instruments is tied to broader ecosystem health. By linking elephant conservation to guitar making, Taylor Guitars is setting a model for how manufacturers can safeguard critical natural resources.

taylorguitars.com