African Elephant

The African Elephant

The common name is the African Elephant, the scientific name is Loxodonta

Africana, the phylum is Vertebrata, the class is Mammalia, the order is Proboscidea,

and the family is Elephantidae. The Closest Relatives to the African Elephant are: the

Asian Elephant, Mammoths, Primitive Proboscidean (mastodons), sea cows, and

Hyraxes. Scientists believe that the African Elephant evolved from one of its closest

relatives, the Sea Cow.

The geographical location and range of the African elephant covers all of

central and southern Africa. In Ethiopia there are isolated populations that exist

around Lake Chad in Mali and Mauritania. Also in Kenya, Rhodesia, Tanzania,

Zambia, Uganda, Zaire, and in National parks located in South Africa, as well as

several other countries. African Elephants, originally, were found in all of the

Sub-Saharan African habitats except desert steppes. Elephants still occupy diverse

habitats such as: temperate grassland, tropical savanna and grass lands, temperate

forest and rainforests, tropical rainforests, tropical scrub forests, and tropical deciduous

forests despite their drastic decline in numbers. However, their migratory patterns and

habitat use have changed, due to the fact that they are restricted to protected areas.

The elephant can exist in many types of environments but it prefers places that have

many trees and bushes, which the elephant needs both for food and shade. They also

like warm areas that have plenty of rainfall. This ensures plenty of food, shade, and

water. The elephant prefers a habitat of mixed woodland and grassland which gives

them an opportunity to eat a variety of vegetation.

African Elephants are considered herbivores, they are both browsers and

grazers; they will eat rough sticks, stems and leaves of plants as well as grasses,

sedges, and fruit. Their favorites are mangoes, berries and coconuts. An elephant eats

up to 500 pounds of vegetation every day and drinks up to 50 gallons of water daily.

Elephants must consume these giant quantities of food, due to their poor digestive

system. The small intestine is 82 feet long, the large intestine 21 feet long, and the

rectum adds a further 13 feet. The problem with the digestive tract lies in their gut;

elephants have too few symbiotic bacteria. These are the organisms which help break

down the cellulose of plant cell walls by producing enzymes called cellulases. The

most remarkable feature of the elephant's digestive system is its 5 feet long appendix,

bigger than the stomach. Proteins, starches, and sugars are digested in the appendix.

The elephant will excrete almost 200 pounds a day of semi-digested food.

Elephants live together in strong family units which might have as few as two or

as many as twenty members. When the group gets too big, it splits up; but the groups

stay in close contact. Elephant life revolves around this unit which is usually headed

by the oldest female. The family offers protection, aid, comfort, and teaching to all of

its members. Within the units are cows, calves, and bulls. The male bulls are very

solitary and most of the time travel only with other males, except during mating season

when the bulls travel with the pack looking for a mate. The males remain with the

family unit until they are about fourteen and then leave the family to join the other

males.

The African elephant usually gives birth to one calf every four years. The

gestation period is approximately twenty to twenty two years. The newborn calf,

which weighs 200-300 pounds and stands about three feet high, is cared for by all of

the females in the pack, not just by the mother. The calf may nurse as long as eight

years, or until its tusks are too long for the mother. It takes about 14 to 15 years for an

elephant to fully mature. They grow to about 10-13 feet tall and 7.5 meters in length

and weigh as much as 7 tons. The family will remain together throughout their lives.

The elephant's body has many special features which it has adapted throughout

the centuries to help it survive in its environment. The most important part of the

elephant's body is its trunk. An elephant uses its trunk for many things. With it, the

elephant can pick up objects that weigh as much as 600 lbs. This powerful trunk is

also used to beat off attacking animals and sometimes mother elephants use their

trunks to swat their babies. The trunk, which is very flexible, can curl over the

elephant's head so that the elephant can give itself showers and dust baths. The trunk

also curls towards the elephant's mouth so it can eat and drink. At the end of the trunk

the elephant has finger-like projections similar to the human thumb and forefinger.

With this the elephant