Elephants seem to have a gigantic part in the modern culture. The wisdom of elephants as they get older is something that we see reflective in people. The calmness and strength of the elephant are virtues that many cultures would love to see as part of their own selves. One of the most famous among all elephants is Dumbo from the early movies of the Disney. Dumbo is an adorable elephant born to a circus mom. However, all of the other elephants and animals make fun of him due to his enormous flappy ears. On the bright side, Dumbo is able to overcome that problem and even learns to fly with his big ears. He teaches us the value of friendship and of finding good things within ourselves instead of just giving up. In reality, an elephant is …show more content…
In order to preserve and increase the number of the elephants in Asia, these animals should be protected and reintroduced to the wild and their habitats must be restored and expanded. One of the greatest threats to Asian elephants in Asia is the loss of habitat. Throughout the tropical regions of Asia, humans have cleared large areas of forest and river valleys for settlement (AMNH.org, par. 3). The World Wildlife Fund states that large industrial and development projects such as dams, tea and coffee plantations, roads, and railway lines have broken up what was once elephant habitats into small fragments (par. 1). This fragmentation process hinders the seasonal migration and breeding of the clan. In addition, habitat loss also affects the elephant’s diet. According to National Geographic, an adult elephant consumes up to 300 pounds of food every day (par. 5). “These hungry animals do not sleep much, and they roam over great distances while foraging for the large quantities of food they require to sustain their massive bodies,” (National Geographic, par. 6). Without having a big chunk of land for the elephants to graze and roam around, their lifestyles and well-being would be in danger. According to Choompol Ngampongsai, wild elephants in Thailand are mostly confined to small protected areas that are unable to support the complete home range of an entire
The scientific name for the asian elephant is Elephas Maximus. The length of an Asian elephant is up to 5.5-6.5m, of an adult this includes trunk, head and the body. Asian elephants can live up to 60 years in the wild bit up to 48 years in captivity. Elephants are herbivores this means they only eat plants and vegetables. They spend sixteen hours a day eating and consume about 300-600 pounds of food everyday and drink 40 - 50 gallons of water. Elephants only sleep for two hours a day.Unlike African elephants, where both males and females have tusks, generally only Asian elephant males have ivory tusks some females have small tisks called tushes.
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.
Keeping animals in a man made and man run site can make this impossible for these animals. Dr. Hone also states,”some of these collapses have been sudden, dramatic and unexpected or were simply discovered very late in the day.” Dr. Hone is expressing that when species go extinct, scientists do not realize it quick enough to do anything about it. If for some reason, elephants went extinct in the wild, we wouldn’t have a problem. If we see a species start to go extinct, we can also know how to help them and what with from the study of these animals as I explained in the second paragraph. In the Zoo, the animals will be fed correctly and will not be hunted by other
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).
Poaching has been increasing for many years. The number of poaching cases throughout the decades have been increasing. In the 1970’s and 1980’s, the ivory demand grew drastically making poaching for ivory increase throughout these years (Stiles, 309). CITES recommended to use a system called Monitoring the Illegal Killing of Elephants (MIKE) in which helped monitor the illegal killing of elephants (Stiles, 312). Also, to try and qualify the number of those elephants killed by poachers (Scriber). The system has been working well that now monitors between 30 and 40 percent of the elephant population
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
According to the text Killing Fields Poachers kill 6000 to 12000 elephants a year and there are 400,000 to 500,000 elephants
Sadly, Schwarzenegger's message is true. Ninety-six elephants are killed every single day. This roughly translates to an elephant being killed every 15 minutes. At this rate, none will be left roaming wild and free in 2025, says iworry. Http://iworry.org There's no denying that poachers, in Africa and Asia alike, have a strong incentive to kill elephants and steal their tusks. As reported in The Week, "A single male elephant's two tusks can
As they do not have the same freedom they would do in the wild, they show behaviours such as head weaving and bobbing (Maple, 2013). These show a more precise indication of poor welfare (Kleiman, 2010). The constant movements in their bodies can cause implications such as arthritis and joint pressure (Rees, 2013). However, being kept in zoos means that they do not face the daily issues that occur in the wild (Maple, 2013); drought, poaching, starvation, predation, illness and loss (Wemmer, 2008). The stereotypic behaviours that Elephants show are caused by the area lacking the correct enrichment and space (Kleiman, 2010). However, it can also be related to the amount of stress due to noise pollution of human interaction around the enclosed area (Rees, 2013). In the wild, elephants can live up to the age of 50, where-as in zoos; they do not live long (Allen, 2010). Another issue is that in the wild, if an elephant saw someone or something they did not like, they have the chance to escape or move, where as in captivity they are secured into one place and so can become highly stressed (Maple,
These elephants have a skillful trunk and large molars which allow them to gather and process a wide variety of vegetation, including grasses and herbs, leaves, fruit, farm crops, and bark. Elephants need to eat an average of one hundred and fifty kg per day to survive. They also need to drink water at least once or twice a day which is why they are always near a source of fresh water. Elephants use their tusks to pull bark off of a tree or to dig up roots out of the ground and then they pick up their food with their
Just imagine life without any elephants, wiped out just like the dinosaurs. In the early 1980’s, there were more than a million reported elephants in Africa. Tragically, during that decade, 600,000 elephants were destroyed for ivory products. Today, conceivably no more than 400,000 elephants remain across the continent. Elephants are facing a very real threat of extinction; In fact, the African elephants are listed on the
Many organizations have been made to benefit the elephants with protective measures. The AWF is there to ensure that through projects and activities, they can aid the species in need. “Another highly successful AWF program is the Elephant Awareness Campaign. Its slogan, ‘only elephants
African elephants, weighing up to 6.6 tons and measuring up to 10 feet from their shoulder to their back, they are the largest land mammal on earth. They posses a trunk, like a combination of the upper lip and nose, and it has many uses. The tip of the trunk has two extensions, which are used as fingers to help move and pick things up. Elephants large ears serve many uses as well. They help radiate heat, and they can be used to communicate. By flapping their ears, they can signify aggression or joy. With their big ears, like a conjunction of the soles their feet and their trunk, they can hear other elephants from over 2 miles away. Under ideal conditions, an elephant's range of hearing can increase to over 6
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
“ Elephant numbers fell dramatically in the 19th and 20th centuries” ( Elephants). Due to poaching and ivory trade the Elephant population had been dramatically dwindling. Habitat loss is another major contributor to the decrease in these extraordinary animals. There are many different things you can do to help slow their decline in population. Raising awareness about this problem could help us save the Elephants.