Characteristics Of An Asian Elephant

The elephants tusk is a modified tooth made of ivory, they are used for digging, debarking trees, moving object and making contact with one another. The elephant uses it’s large ears, that can be up to 180cm wide, to cool their blood and distribute it around their bodies to decrease their body temperature by fanning themselves. Their big ears also contain many blood vessels that give off body heat to help the African elephant survive the hot weather.

Many people argue that they should be allowed to be kept in the small enclosures because they are well taken care of. This isn't the case. They may be healthy physically from being in a small enclosure, and not having any responsibilities besides getting up to eat or drink, but they are being destroyed mentally. Their enclosures are too small for them to have a normal life. Animals should have adequate space to live and raise their offspring, which means that the animal has enough space to perform its natural functions, happily. Zoo’s do not allow animals the proper space that they need, thus causing many issues. For example, zoo enclosures for polar bears are one-millionth the size of its range in the wild, which can reach up to 31,000 square miles. In addition, cramped enclosures for elephants create stress and dangerous situations. This is mainly because they are forced to be in close quarters with other elephants that may

Elephant populations suffered a drop in numbers that carried the species into the endangered animals list. At the beginning of the twentieth century, about ten million elephants lived in Africa. Presently, the ten million is reduced to half a million because of illegal hunting and habitat loss. Studies of the population show twenty-two thousand were killed in 2012 and twenty-five thousand in 2011. When comparing the death rate to the natural population growth, there is a possibility the largest mammal on Earth could be extinct soon (Vaughan 1). Because the elephant is the largest animal to walk on land, the greatly increasing human population affects the elephant population first. They live in some regions of the world that have the densest human population which continues to grow, which therefore continuously decreases their own population (Bryner 1). As the human population swiftly increases, the elephant population in turn, decreases. This is so because they cannot cohabitate the same living space. Elephants and humans cannot cohabitate because they would kill each other due to the inability to communicate. About population recovery, the Animal wildlife foundation states, “Populations of elephants- especially in Southern and Eastern Africa- that once showed promising signs of recovery could be at risk due to the recent surge in poaching for the illegal ivory trade”(1). Poaching presents one of the main issues that make recovery so difficult for these animals.

For about twenty eight years now the Asian elephant has been struggling for existence. They have been classified as endangered species by The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Twenty eight years is quite a large amount of time for an animal to be classified as endangered so The Zoological Society of London decided to look into this issue. Asian elephants have been transferred to captivity for quite some time in the North American region. The Elephas maximus have been captured from these countries in southern Asia and brought over to North America and have experienced many complications that can hinder the genetic diversity of the evolution of the species. Captive populations of the Elephas maximus species may be essential for genetic preservation and aid in decreasing the deterioration of the authentic population (Brenneman et al. 2011).

The Bush elephant has to make annual migrations to find suitable conditions, these migrations can be up to several hundred kilometers. The Bush elephants usually migrate from a permeant water source at the beginning of the rainy season, then return during the dry season (once what water holes begins to dry up). When the water is scarce the elephants will dig holes in water beds using their trucks, feet and tusks. Once enough water emerges to use their trunk to suck up the water. They usually prefer to be near water sources. The Bush elephant needs 200-300 kg of food a day and 160 liters of fresh water a day. They are herbivorous. The diet of the Bush elephant consist of: roots, bark, twigs, shrubs, roots, herbs, grass, tree foliage and some

The population consists of two main species of Elephant, the Asian and the African. The Asian elephant is divided into three subspecies: the Indian, Sumatran, and the Sri Lankan (“Asian Elephant”). African elephants are split into

The white rhinoceros and the Asian elephant possess many similar characteristics, including the way they look, yet also possess many differences such as the two continents they live on. There are five living species of rhino (black, white, Indian, Javan and Sumatran) and only two of the elephant (African and the Asian). All are in jeopardy of extinction with their slow rate of breeding, poaching and in the rhinoceroses, their territorial behavior.

Elephants are an endangered species and their fatality rate is rapidly inclining. According to Graham Boynton, there happens to be fewer African elephants being

Although there is a wide array of animal species that live in Asia, the Elephant is one of the most prized and sought after animal species in the continent because of its large impact on culture and society. Elephants are one of the smartest animals on the entire planet and they have a very big cultural significance also. They are very friendly with humans as well, which makes them an even more likeable animal. Their cultural significance goes back to the Buddhist days and has carried on all the way to today. Elephants are becoming an extinct animal and are an endangered species as pronounced by the IUCN. Asian elephants are herbivores and are considered the biggest land animals in all of Asia. The average life span of an Asian elephant is 60 years and they have trunks that contain 60,000 muscles, which is why they use it for so many things. Most Asian elephants have tusks, which they can use to debark trees and help protect them from various other things such as predators. The skin color of elephants is usually gray and is smoother then the skin of an African elephant.

Over the last 100 years, African elephant populations have declined from 3-5 million to 470,000-690,000 and Asian elephant populations have declined from 100,000 to between 35,000 and 50,000. Habitat loss and conflict with people are among the biggest threats to their continued survival. Elephant habitat is being replaced by farms and villages. Not only are elephants being pushed into smaller and smaller areas, but the crops that are planted by farmers (sugar cane, cassava, rice) are very tempting for elephants. As a result, elephants frequently raid and destroy crops and villages. People are often injured and killed by elephants during conflict. Elephants are killed in retaliation for the damage that they cause.

The reason the elephants are endangered are because of poachers. The poachers shoot down the elephants. Once the elephant is safe to walk up to, they saw off the tusks and leave. They saw

Adult elephants consume about 250-300 pounds of food in a day. Adult African elephant are usually between 10-13 feet from their feet to their shoulder, they are the largest mammal on land.African elephants live from 60-70 years.Sometimes death is caused when they lose all

With an estimated 600 elephants, Addo has one of the highest population numbers of African elephants in the world. Each Addo elephant is, surprisingly, individually named and identified by the wrinkles on the face, unique notches, tears or vein patterns in the ears. There are seven distinct family groups in the park with smaller subgroups. Due to isolation, and a small original population size, genetic diversity is low amongst the Addo elephants; the majority of elephants are related. Many of the original 11 did not have tusks, and most likely survived because there was no attraction of ivory.

First , The author avers that elephant are aware of approching death one of the popular beliefs is that when elephants become old and weak, they know that and go to the specifec location usually near the water to die alone.this poin is challanged by the lecturer . She points out that is not assume , becuse when elephant be older their teeth become weak , so ther looking for soft food in which elephant

The study and research of reproduction in elephants is increasingly critical in consideration of the quickly dwindling population numbers and estimates. The current Asian elephant population is estimated to lie between 50,000-70,000 across the world, with 15,000 of these individuals in captivity. African elephant population numbers are low as well after serious culling through hunting and poaching. These numbers make the low reproduction rates a great concern as elephants do not currently sufficiently reproduce at an adequate rate to sustain population size.12