Very high intelligence and good memory, as a result of which they are easy to train.

Previously, elephants were used for military purposes, but today they are depicted on money, logos of famous brands, as well as on coats of arms and flags.

In this article you will learn interesting facts about elephants in general, as well as about their physical and moral characteristics in particular.

How long do elephants live?

Before answering this question, it is important to determine the conditions in which the elephant lives.

For example, free elephants live for about 60 years. But in captivity they live up to 80 years of age.

This is due to the fact that in the wild, elephants constantly face dangers, natural disasters and poaching.

An interesting fact is that one of the most famous elephants named Lin Wang lived 86 years. Thanks to this, he was included in the Guinness Book of Records as the elephant that lived in captivity for the longest number of years.

Lin Wang participated in military operations and performed in the circus arena, but spent most of his life in the zoo.

Elephant pregnancy

Interesting facts related to elephant pregnancy are very popular, so let's understand the basics of this issue.

First of all, it must be said that a female elephant can only become pregnant on certain days of the year, although they can mate at any time. Pregnancy in an elephant lasts longer than in all land mammals, as much as 22 months.

A newborn elephant weighs about 100 kg and is born completely blind. For the next 10 years of his life, he is still considered small and needs constant protection.

Only after reaching 15 years of age can elephants live independently and create their own families.

What do elephants eat

Typically, elephants eat leaves and grass. However, during the dry and rainy season, fruits, berries and even tree bark can also become food for them.

Under natural conditions, these giants eat approximately 300 kg of vegetation every day. Elephants spend about 16 hours a day searching for and eating food.

However, in captivity they eat half and sometimes three times less. Elephants enjoy eating vegetables, bread and even grains.

Elephants need a lot of fluid for normal body function, so they drink 100-300 liters of water a day.

When they are sick, they drink even more.

Trunk, tusks and ears

Below are interesting facts about the most noticeable parts of an elephant's body.

• An elephant's trunk does not have a nasal bone.
• Because the elephant's trunk is made up of 150,000 different muscles, it is extremely flexible and strong.
• At one time, an elephant can pick up 6-8 liters of water with its trunk and then pour it into its mouth.
• An elephant can easily lift up to 300 kg with its trunk.
• The length of the trunk is approximately 1.5 meters.
• Thanks to their trunk, elephants can easily and easily swim across rivers. To do this, they are completely immersed in water, and their trunk is held high above the surface.
• If elephants have to dig something or carry heavy objects, in addition to their trunks, they also use their tusks. The length of the tusks is from 2 to 2.5 m, with a weight of about 100 kg.
• An elephant's ear weighs 80-90 kg, and is an excellent thermostat for this animal. During the hottest part of the day, elephants flap their ears to the sides, thereby avoiding overheating. In cold weather, on the contrary, they try to press their ears to their body in order to retain heat longer.

Are elephants afraid of mice?

An interesting fact is that there is a strong belief that elephants are afraid of mice. Legend has it that the elephant is afraid that a mouse will get into its trunk and disrupt the main processes of life.

For the first time, such a statement was made by the Roman philosopher Pliny the Elder. However, modern scientists have completely dispelled this myth.

In fact, elephants are simply irritated by any sudden movements near them. That is, if the mouse sat in one place, it would not disturb the elephant in any way.

Smart animals

Scientists have proven that elephants have extremely developed self-awareness and extremely good memory. Moreover, they, like , are able to distinguish their reflection in the mirror.

As for memory, one interesting fact cannot fail to be mentioned. The fact is that elephants accurately remember the many kilometers of trails along which they walk, and then walk along them for a long time.

Mental abilities of elephants

• An elephant's brain weighs about 5 kg, making it the largest of any animal.
• Elephants are capable of experiencing a wide variety of things. Therefore, joy, sadness and compassion are all well known to them.
• Elephants are highly trainable and can obey many commands from people.
• Through ultrasound, elephants can warn their relatives about various dangers.
• An interesting fact is that elephants have their own burial ritual. When one of the members of the herd dies, his fellow tribesmen throw earth and stones at the dead body. After this, they sit next to the deceased for several days, thus expressing their grief.

Some more interesting facts about elephants

1. Did you know that an elephant's sense of smell is 4 times better than that of bloodhounds?
2. However, the vision of these mammals is much worse. An elephant can examine any object at a maximum distance of 25 m. In ancient times, hunters sat on a tamed elephant and penetrated into the middle of the herd in order to look out for their prey.
3. An elephant's heart beats at 30 beats per minute and weighs about 25 kg.
4. Previously, elephants were used for fighting purposes. Their menacing appearance and gigantic size terrified the enemy. However, then inventive minds came up with an antidote: they coated the pigs with a flammable substance, set them on fire, and directed them at the elephants. The pig's squeal and the frantic speed with which they rushed towards the elephants led the latter into panic.
5. Every 10 years, elephants are updated.
6. One working tusk can determine whether an elephant is right-handed or left-handed.
7. Elephants spend only about 3 hours a day sleeping, and spend the rest of the time searching for food.
8. Males prefer to live alone, while female elephants live in families.
9. If a herd of elephants begins to starve, then the female elephants separate from it and look for food on their own.
10. On average, during her entire life, a female elephant gives birth to about 9 cubs.
11. And this is a very interesting fact. Females do not give birth to their young alone. During childbirth, there is always another elephant present, who immediately takes the newborn so that the mother does not accidentally crush him.
12. Elephants have the ability to hear sounds through the vibration of their legs at a distance of 50 km.
13. An elephant tooth weighs 3 kg.
14. Immediately after birth, baby elephants do not know how to control their trunk. And only at the age of two does this thing begin to obey them.
15. If an elephant gets sick, its relatives look after it and bring it food.
16. If an elephant accidentally finds a lonely baby elephant, he will “adopt” it, rather than abandon it alone to certain death.
17. When an elephant's teeth wear out, it dies.
18. The pattern of veins on elephants' ears is unique and can be compared to human fingerprints.
19. Thanks to their good memory, elephants can remember their offenders for many years and, on occasion, take revenge on them. So don't offend these little ones.
20. Elephants are unable to jump.
21. Interesting fact: only the elephant, among all animals, can stand on its head.
22. Fun fact: elephants love to drink beer and can even make their own beer. To do this, they throw various fruits into the pit and then wait until they begin to ferment.
23. Elephants are unpredictable and can attack for no apparent reason. Therefore, no matter how cute the animals may seem to us, remember that the wild has its own laws, which in no case should be violated.

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Last week, representatives of several African and Asian countries agreed to jointly protect elephants. Among other things, the agreement provides for cooperation in the search and arrests of poachers and expansion of the powers of environmental agencies of the countries of the Black Continent in the fight against criminal gangs hunting the largest land animals on the planet.

Elephants are in danger of extinction. Every 15 minutes, one elephant dies at the hands of poachers on the Dark Continent. If the extermination of the largest land animals continues at the same pace, then by 2025 there will not be a single elephant left in the African shrouds.

Tanzania, for example, has already lost half of its elephants over the past three years. In 2009, according to various estimates, from 70 to 80 thousand elephants lived in this African country, that is, almost a quarter of the entire elephant population of Africa, and now - half that.

According to the US Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell, the trade in elephant tusks, rhinoceros horns, skins and other trophies from illegal safaris has doubled in the past five years to reach $10 billion. In terms of profitability, this type of criminal activity is in fourth place.

Not only animal activists, but also politicians must fight poachers. Money from the sale of ivory, which in Africa is often called the “white gold of jihad,” finances terrorist organizations. Including Al-Shabaab, which became notorious for the recent hostage-taking in a shopping center in Nairobi.

There are the most incredible rumors about elephants. Before defending them, it would be a good idea to first understand what is true and what is fiction in them.

1. Elephants use their trunks as straws when drinking.

Elephants actually use their trunks at watering holes. They actually take water into their trunk, but then transfer it to their mouth. By the way, elephants drink a lot - on average from 140 to 230 liters per day.

2. Elephants love peanuts.

This is a pure myth, because the largest land animals do not eat peanuts either in the wild or in zoos. Considering the size of elephants, it is not surprising that O they eat most of the time. They spend 16-18 hours daily doing this activity. There is nothing in peanuts that repels these animals or is contraindicated for them. It’s just that the nuts are very small, and in order to get enough of them, even 25 hours in a day are not enough for elephants.

3. Elephants are the only animals that cannot jump.

It's true that adult elephants can't jump, but they aren't the only ones who can't. There are many other mammals that also cannot jump. For example, sloths, hippos and rhinoceroses. True, unlike elephants, hippos and rhinoceroses can simultaneously lift all four legs off the ground while running.

4. Elephants never forget.

The largest land animals actually have excellent, but still not phenomenal, memory. The basis of their learning process is imitation. They have the heaviest brain among land animals, which weighs 5 kg. After training, they are able to distinguish and carry out over 60 commands. Elephants remember their trainers well and can remember them after many years.

5. Elephants are too heavy to swim.

On the contrary, elephants love water very much and can detect its smell at a distance of up to 8 km. Not only do they love water, but they are also excellent swimmers. There are cases when they used their trunks as breathing tubes for diving.

1. Elephants “hear” with their feet.

Elephants have excellent hearing, but African elephants, in addition to this, are able to detect earth tremors using special sensitive cells on the soles of their feet. Elephants not only hear a sound, but can also determine the direction from which it is coming.

2. The elephant's closest relative is an animal similar to a guinea pig.

Gray hyraxes are small, furry, rat-like mammals that live in the mountainous regions of Africa and along the coast of the Arabian Peninsula. Oddly enough, elephants and hyraxes actually have a lot in common in the structure of their toes, teeth and skull. Biologists believe that they had a common ancestor who lived about 60 million years ago.

3. In Chinese, “ivory” means “elephant tooth.”

Even though elephants' tusks are actually elongated incisors, they do not fall out like they do in humans. In China, where the ivory trade is thriving, not everyone understands that elephants are killed to obtain it. According to surveys, about 70% of the inhabitants of the Middle Kingdom do not know this.

4. Elephants have unusually thick skin.

The scientific term pachyderm, used to refer to the order of mammals that includes elephants and rhinoceroses, comes from the Greek word pachydermose, which translates to “thick-skinned.” Despite its great thickness, elephant skin is unusually sensitive. So much so that the elephant feels when... a fly lands on its back.

Elephants' skin is not only sensitive, but also vulnerable. Elephants can get sunburned and therefore hide in the shade or throw sand on their heads and backs to protect their skin from the sun.

5. Elephants are very sociable and social animals.

An elephant herd usually consists of 10-15 female elephants and calves. It is headed by the most experienced elephant. Having reached the age of maturity - 12-15 years, males leave the herd and return only to mate with a female. By the way, the process of bearing offspring in elephants is the longest among land animals. Pregnancy lasts 22 months.

Elephants greet each other by carefully touching the mouth of their interlocutor with the tip of their trunk. They sleep standing up and for only two to three hours. They can’t go any longer because they have to eat.

The elephant is the largest land animal of the class mammals, such as chordates, of the order Proboscis, of the elephant family (Elephantidae).

Elephant - description, characteristics and photos

Elephants are giants among animals. The height of the elephant is 2 - 4 m. The weight of the elephant is from 3 to 7 tons. Elephants in Africa, especially savannah ones, often weigh up to 10 - 12 tons. The elephant's powerful body is covered with thick (up to 2.5 cm) brown or gray skin with deep wrinkles. Elephant calves are born with sparse bristles, while adults are practically devoid of vegetation.

The head of the animal is quite large with ears of remarkable size. Elephant ears have a fairly large surface area; they are thick at the base with thin edges; as a rule, they are a good regulator of heat exchange. Fanning the ears allows the animal to increase the cooling effect. An elephant's leg has 2 kneecaps.

This structure makes the elephant the only mammal that cannot jump. In the center of the foot there is a pad of fat that springs with every step, which allows these powerful animals to move almost silently.

The elephant's trunk is an amazing and unique organ formed by a fused nose and upper lip. Tendons and more than 100 thousand muscles make it strong and flexible. The trunk performs a number of important functions, simultaneously providing the animal with breathing, smell, touch and grasping food. Through their trunks, elephants protect themselves, water themselves, eat, communicate, and even raise their offspring. Another “attribute” of appearance is the elephant’s tusks. They grow throughout life: the more powerful the tusks, the older their owner.

An elephant's tail is about the same length as its hind legs. The tip of the tail is framed by coarse hair, which helps repel insects. The elephant's voice is specific. The sounds that an adult animal makes are called grunts, moos, whispers and elephant roars. The lifespan of an elephant is approximately 70 years.

Elephants can swim very well and love water activities, and their average speed of movement on land reaches 3-6 km/h.

When running short distances, the elephant's speed sometimes increases to 50 km/h.

Types of elephants

In the family of living elephants, there are three main species, belonging to two genera:

• genus African elephants(Loxodonta) are divided into 2 types:
  • savannah elephant(Loxodonta africana)

It is distinguished by its gigantic size, dark color, developed tusks and two processes at the end of the trunk. Inhabits along the equator throughout Africa;

African elephant (savannah elephant)

• • forest elephant(Loxodonta cyclotis)

has a small height (up to 2.5 m at the withers) and rounded ears. This species of elephant is common in tropical African forests.

Species often interbreed and produce quite viable offspring.

• Genus Indian(Asian) elephants ( Elephas) includes one type – Indian elephant ( Elephas maximus)

It is smaller than the Savannah, but has a more powerful build and short legs. Color - from brown to dark gray. A distinctive feature of this species of elephants is small quadrangular-shaped ears and one appendage at the end of the trunk. The Indian or Asian elephant is distributed in the tropical and subtropical forests of India, China, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Brunei, Bangladesh and Indonesia.

Indian elephant

Where and how do elephants live?

African elephants live almost throughout the entire territory of hot Africa: in Namibia and Senegal, in Kenya and Zimbabwe, in Guinea and the Republic of Congo, in Sudan and South Africa, elephants feel great in Zambia and Somalia. The bulk of the livestock, unfortunately, is forced to live in national reserves so as not to become prey to barbaric poachers. The elephant lives on any landscape, but tries to avoid deserts and too dense tropical forests, preferring the savannah zone.

Indian elephants live in the northeast and south of India, Thailand, China and the island of Sri Lanka, and live in Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam and Malaysia. Unlike their counterparts from the African continent, Indian elephants like to settle in wooded areas, preferring tropical bamboo thickets and dense bushes.

For approximately 16 hours a day, elephants are busy absorbing food, and they eat about 300 kg of vegetation with appetite. The elephant eats grass (including cattails, papyrus in Africa), rhizomes, bark and leaves of trees (for example, ficus in India), wild fruits, marula and even. The elephant's diet depends on its habitat, as different trees and grasses grow in Africa and India. These animals do not bypass agricultural plantations, causing significant damage to crops, sweet potatoes and other crops with their visits. Their tusks and trunk help them get food, and their molars help them chew. An elephant's teeth change as they are worn down.

At the zoo, elephants are fed hay and greens (in large quantities), and the animals are also given vegetables, fruits, root vegetables: cabbage, apples, beets, watermelons, boiled oats, bran, willow branches, bread, as well as the elephants’ favorite treat, bananas and others. culture. In a day in the wild, an elephant eats about 250-300 kg of food. In captivity, elephant food intake is as follows: about 10 kg of vegetables, 30 kg of hay and 10 kg of bread.

Adults are known “water-suckers.” An elephant drinks about 100-300 liters of water per day, so these animals are almost always located near bodies of water.

Elephant breeding

Elephants form family herds (9-12 individuals), including a mature leader, her sisters, daughters and immature males. The female elephant is a hierarchical link in the family; she matures by the age of 12, and at the age of 16 she is ready to bear offspring. Sexually mature males leave the herd at the age of 15-20 years (African males at 25 years old) and become loners. Every year, males fall into an aggressive state caused by an increase in testosterone, which lasts about 2 months, so quite serious clashes between clans, ending in injuries and mutilations, are not uncommon. True, this fact has its own plus: competition with experienced brothers stops young male elephants from early mating.

Elephants reproduce regardless of the season. A male elephant approaches the herd when he feels the female is ready to mate. Loyal to each other in normal times, the males organize mating fights, as a result of which the winner is allowed to the female. An elephant's pregnancy lasts 20-22 months. The birth of an elephant takes place in a society created by the females of the herd, surrounding and protecting the woman in labor from random danger.

Usually one baby elephant weighing about a hundredweight is born, sometimes there are twins. After just 2 hours, the newborn elephant stands on its feet and happily sucks its mother’s milk. After a few days, the cub easily travels with its relatives, grabbing its mother’s tail with its trunk. Feeding with milk lasts up to 1.5-2 years, and all lactating females participate in the process. By 6-7 months, plant foods are added to the milk.

Did you know that elephants are also left-handed and right-handed? And that they are one of the smartest animals on the planet? No? Here are some more fun facts for you.

Elephants sleep only 2-3 hours a day

For good physical and emotional health, a person needs an average of 8 hours of sleep. When you sleep less, it becomes harder to think, and you feel unwell. Elephants cannot sleep for so long - because they really want to eat :)

Elephants remember almost everything

These animals have a very large brain - it weighs about 5 kg. And it contains a huge amount of information that is stored for many, many years. For example, there was a case in one of the American nature reserves. One day a new elephant was brought there. To the surprise of the employees, one of the local elephants recognized her and was very happy with her. It turned out that the animals knew each other from the circus in which they worked together... 23 years ago.

Do you remember now what you studied, say, in biology lessons in the sixth grade?

Elephants change teeth 6-7 times

In humans, everything is simple - first the dairy ones grow, then they are replaced by the indigenous ones. And if there is something wrong with these, only a dentist can help. In the wild, elephants do not have dentists, and their teeth wear out quickly - because they are very voracious guys. Fortunately, nature took care of everything. New bone formations grow in the back of the mouth and gradually protrude forward.

Elephants hear everything

Their hearing is amazing! Firstly, these amazing animals are able to detect frequencies that are inaccessible to the human ear. And thanks to the unusual cells on the skin of their feet, they are able to determine exactly where the sound comes from.

Elephants flap their ears with joy

Have you also thought that in humans this organ is too inexpressive? Wait, here's another reason for you to be jealous. Do you know how an elephant says hello? He touches the mouth of another elephant with his trunk, and then they can rub their bodies a little more. Mi-mi-mi.

It is a flexible muscular extension of the upper lip and nose. African forest and savannah elephants have trunks that end in two finger-like projections; there is only one such process on the trunk of the Asian elephant. The elephant's trunk performs many functions that are necessary to maintain the animal's vital processes, protect against predators, and communicate within the herd.

The main functions of an elephant trunk and their brief characteristics are listed below:

Helps you eat and drink

All species of elephants use their trunks to grab leaves on tree branches and tear grass out of the soil, then move food into their mouths. Like food, the elephant squirts water into its mouth using its trunk.

Cools the body

During periods of extreme heat, elephants draw water from rivers into their trunks and pour it over their bodies. The trunk of an adult elephant is capable of sucking up to 40 liters of water in one minute and holding up to 9 liters at a time!

Protects from insects and sun

African elephants also use their trunks to take a dust shower, which helps repel insects and protects them from the sun's harmful rays (temperatures in their habitat often exceed 35ºC). To give itself a dust shower, the African elephant sucks dust into its trunk, then bends it over its head and releases the dust onto itself (Fortunately, this dust does not cause the animals to sneeze).

Captures odors

In addition to being used for eating, drinking and dusting, the elephant's trunk is a unique structure that plays a fundamental role in the olfactory system of these animals. Elephants turn their trunks in different directions to better capture scents. Scientists believe that elephants can smell water from several kilometers away.

Allows you to breathe underwater

When they swim (which happens very rarely), elephants raise their trunks above the surface of the water, like a breathing tube. These animals are the only ones capable of crossing deep bodies of water in this way.

Feels vibrations

An elephant's trunk is extremely sensitive and it can sense the movement of herds of animals or thunder from a long distance.

Excellent maneuverability

It is a boneless muscular structure containing more than 100,000 muscles. This is a sensitive and quite dexterous part of the body, so elephants can collect and distinguish objects of different sizes, and in some cases even fight off predators. An elephant's trunk is so strong that it can lift objects weighing about 350 kg. With the help of finger-like processes, this animal is also able to deftly pick up blades of grass or even hold a brush for painting.

For communication

Not only is the trunk used for breathing (and smelling, drinking and feeding), it is also important for communication with other members of the herd, including greetings and petting. The relationship between a mother female and her offspring is protective and calming. Mothers and other members of the herd pet their young in different ways. They may wrap their trunk around the baby elephant's back leg, belly, shoulder and neck, and often touch its mouth. A gentle rumbling sound often accompanies an affectionate gesture.

The elephant's trunk appeared in the process of evolution

This part of the elephant's body gradually evolved over tens of millions of years as the ancestors of modern elephants adapted to the changing demands of their animals. The earliest identified ancestors of elephants, such as Phosphaterium, 50 million years ago, did not have any trunks; but as competition for the leaves of trees and shrubs increased, animals were forced to survive. Essentially speaking, the elephant developed its trunk for the same reason it developed its long neck!