OVERVIEW : There exists two different species of the elephant, the African and Asian Elephant.
African Elephant:
Order: Proboscidea
Family: Elephantidae
Genus and Species: Loxodonta africana and L. cyclotis
Description: African elephants are large land mammals. (2) The african elephant further divides into the savanna and forest elephant (1). The forest elephant differs from the savanna because of its smaller size (1). The Elephant’s strong, muscular trunk helps this animal to grab hold of objects, cool off, and complete other necessary tasks. Asian Elephants have large padded feet which enable them to walk quietly, despite their large size (1). They have large ears that help them stay cool (1).African Elephants can extend 25 feet long and stand up to 11 feet tall, weighing nearly 14,000 pounds (1). African Elephants eat different foods depending on the season. They eat herbs and grasses during rainy season, and all other times fruit and bark (1). Both Elephants constantly splash water over themselves with their trunks to keep cool in the warm climate. Female Elephants can reproduce by the age of ten (1). Elephants travel in herds where the matriarch leads the clan (1). The males usually disperse from the herd (1). The herd mostly wanders in search of food (1).
Asian Elephant:
Order: Proboscidea
Family: Elephantidae
Genus and Species: Elephas maximus (1)
Description: The Asian Elephant amounts to an enormous size reaching 11,000 pounds and 21 feet long (1). They are large animals with a gray coloring that “conceals them in their shady habitat” (1). Most males contain tusks while females do not (1). The African and Asian Elephant use their trunks, feet, and ears for the same purpose. Both African and Asian Elephants have four legs, trunks, eyes, mouth, and tails. These Elephants are herbivores and eat various fruit, grasses, herbs and bark (1). At the Zoo’s Elephant’s also have access to hay unlike their natural resources (1). Female Asian Elephants can reproduce by the age of 14 (1).The Elephant lives a relatively long life of about 60 years but not all (1). Both Elephant’s travel in herds and communicate the same. Gestation is 22 months for both species (5). Note: So far in my research, most differences between the two species lie in their physical features, therefore; I used separation for the description and will not always use this format.
African Elephant:
Order: Proboscidea
Family: Elephantidae
Genus and Species: Loxodonta africana and L. cyclotis
Description: African elephants are large land mammals. (2) The african elephant further divides into the savanna and forest elephant (1). The forest elephant differs from the savanna because of its smaller size (1). The Elephant’s strong, muscular trunk helps this animal to grab hold of objects, cool off, and complete other necessary tasks. Asian Elephants have large padded feet which enable them to walk quietly, despite their large size (1). They have large ears that help them stay cool (1).African Elephants can extend 25 feet long and stand up to 11 feet tall, weighing nearly 14,000 pounds (1). African Elephants eat different foods depending on the season. They eat herbs and grasses during rainy season, and all other times fruit and bark (1). Both Elephants constantly splash water over themselves with their trunks to keep cool in the warm climate. Female Elephants can reproduce by the age of ten (1). Elephants travel in herds where the matriarch leads the clan (1). The males usually disperse from the herd (1). The herd mostly wanders in search of food (1).
Asian Elephant:
Order: Proboscidea
Family: Elephantidae
Genus and Species: Elephas maximus (1)
Description: The Asian Elephant amounts to an enormous size reaching 11,000 pounds and 21 feet long (1). They are large animals with a gray coloring that “conceals them in their shady habitat” (1). Most males contain tusks while females do not (1). The African and Asian Elephant use their trunks, feet, and ears for the same purpose. Both African and Asian Elephants have four legs, trunks, eyes, mouth, and tails. These Elephants are herbivores and eat various fruit, grasses, herbs and bark (1). At the Zoo’s Elephant’s also have access to hay unlike their natural resources (1). Female Asian Elephants can reproduce by the age of 14 (1).The Elephant lives a relatively long life of about 60 years but not all (1). Both Elephant’s travel in herds and communicate the same. Gestation is 22 months for both species (5). Note: So far in my research, most differences between the two species lie in their physical features, therefore; I used separation for the description and will not always use this format.
NEXT BLOG POST: ELEPHANTS HABITAT, GEOGRAPHICAL RANGE, AND MORE!
*Elephant Interesting Fact: The Elephant’s closest relatives are the dugongs, manatees, hyraxes, and aardvarks (1). *
*Elephant Interesting Fact: The Elephant’s closest relatives are the dugongs, manatees, hyraxes, and aardvarks (1). *
Photo site: (2) http://www.awf.org/content/gallery/detail/3779
This is a great start, i always wondered how such a large animal could walk so softly, padded feet, thats awsome. i love how you talked about the two elephants seperate, instead of talking about them in one big mass
ReplyDeleteAre there more species of elephants that are endangered or is it just these two? It is very interesting how elephants can walk so softly.
ReplyDeleteYou said that one male leads a clan. What happens to the rest of the male elephants. Do they go and find another herd?
ReplyDeleteI thought it was very interesting how their gray coloring is like a camouflauge for them because of the type of habitat they reside in. It was also interesting to learn that these elephant have padded feet. I never knew they walked so quietly.
ReplyDeleteI never thought about how much noise an elephant would make when it walks. Are there reasons they want to walk quietly? Is it to hide from other animals? I learned through my research with the panda that they live to different ages if they live in captivity versus the zoo. Is that true for the elephant as well?
ReplyDeleteI would like more about the male elephant. Is he the alpha, is he the only one that can reproduce with the females? I've also been told that elephants rely on memory to remember where water wholes are during the drought season, just some food for thought.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comments! Here are answers to any questions asked...
ReplyDeleteAlyssa- In my research, these are all the species of elephants. The animal, elephant, is on the red list which would be the species listed.
Alex- The matriarch leads the herd which is usually the oldest female elephant. The males travel in the herd but leave at puberty. They then wander alone or join bachelor groups. ( I assume these groups consists of many wandering elephants).
Bekah- In the zoo the elephants have more access to a wider variety of food. They also are safe from potential dangers such as poachers. The Elephant does live to a different age because of their environment. As far as reasons for the quiet walk of the Elephant, I could not find an answer on a valid website. On https://meyerisland.wikispaces.com/elephant?f=print , I found that they have padded feet to support their weight. This answer seems reliable but the website can not always be trusted. Elephants also do not have many predators therefore i do not think they would be hiding from other animals.
Emere- Older males with high levels of testosterone reproduce with the females. The matriarch leads the clan but the males assume aplha roles as well such as mating. I will also covere more in upcoming blog posts.
Hope that answers your questions!
Is there a difference as to how long elephants live in the wild compared to how long they live in the wild (from which ones actually remain)? Do the elephants in the zoos have the same advantages as ones in the wild?
ReplyDelete