elephant

Elephants are the largest land animal in the world. There are two main species – Asian and African.

Asian elephants are smaller than their African cousins, and Intelligent and sociable, they live together in family groups and are usually led by the oldest female. Their most distinctive feature is of course their long trunks which can be very powerful, but also very delicate when needed to forage for food.

They need to eat a lot and can spend two thirds of a day feeding. They eat grasses, tree bark, roots, leaves and the like.

Their ivory tusks help with digging, stripping bark from trees and fighting. Not all male Asian elephants have tusks! But both males and females can have tushes, which are incisor teeth that grow to just below the bottom lip.

An elephant’s ears are used to keep the animal cool as they radiate heat, and Asian elephants have smaller ears than African ones. Despite the fact that their trunks are sophisticated long noses, Asian elephants have a finger at the end enabling the elephant to handle small items. African elephants have two fingers at the end of their trunks.

Elephants spend almost 22 months pregnant with a calf. That’s the longest amount of time for any mammal! Female elephants (cows), give birth to one calf every two to four years.