Are elephants mammals? – AZ Animals

From its long, lithe trunk to the loud trumpeting sounds, the elephant has a lot to admire. But what do you know about these huge creatures? Where do they live? How big can they get? Are elephants mammals?

Discover the answers to all these questions and a few more interesting points that will make you admire these animals even more.

Are elephants mammals?

The answer to this question is yes. In fact, elephants have the honor of being the largest land mammal in the world.

There are two types of elephants: African and Asian. They both have long bodies, large ears, and a sturdy body with light gray or dark gray skin. Apart from the fact that African elephants live in Africa and Asian elephants in Asia, there are other differences between these two huge creatures.

First, male and female African elephants have tusks, whereas only male Asian elephants can have tusks. Also, look at the head of each elephant and you will see that the Asian elephant has two large bumps on its head, while the African elephant has a rounded head.

The African elephant has larger ears than the Asian elephant. Next time you visit the zoo, look at the ears of an African elephant. Their ears are shaped like the African continent!

Another notable difference is that African elephants are larger in size than Asian elephants. Male African elephants can weigh up to 13,300 pounds. In addition, male Asian elephants weigh up to 8,800 pounds.

An adult African bush elephant can grow up to 13 feet in height. African bush elephants are the largest of the two African species. An adult Asian elephant grows up to 9 feet tall. Although one view is taller than the other, both elephants view the world from a great height!

Elephants give birth to young

After a 22-month gestation period, this mammal gives birth to a live baby, also known as a calf.

Other female elephants in the herd crowd around the female to protect her while she gives birth. The female elephant remains standing during birth, so the calf falls to the ground at birth. Ouch! But the calf is still inside the amniotic sac, which gives it some cushioning when it lands on the ground. The pouch usually breaks when the female elephant starts cleaning her newborn.

Elephant calves are only three feet tall and weigh about 250 pounds. The baby elephant can only get up a few minutes after birth. Standing up immediately makes the calf less vulnerable to predators. In the first couple of hours of life, the calf learns to walk and move with its mother. This is essential for survival in the environment.

Elephants feed their young

Newborns and young mammals are fed from the mother. The baby elephant feeds its mother every now and then throughout the day. In total, they breastfeed for about an hour each day. At about 6 months old, the baby elephant, along with its mother, begins to sample vegetation and other food sources in the area. He can continue to breastfeed while the weaning process is complete.

Elephants are warm blooded

Elephants, like other mammals, are warm-blooded. Warm-bloodedness means that this animal maintains a constant body temperature regardless of the ambient temperature. Compare this to a reptile like a black rat, snake, or lizard. Reptiles are cold-blooded, which means that their body temperature changes depending on the environment in which they live. They cannot maintain a high body temperature like mammals.

Both Asian and African elephants live in hot habitats. So these warm-blooded animals have to take action to keep their cool.

The only thing elephants do to keep their cool is to flap their ears. The ears of an African elephant are 6 feet high and 5 feet wide. So, you can imagine what kind of breeze they get by flapping their ears! Scientists have carefully studied the process of flapping in the ears and found that cool air is absorbed by the thin skin on the ears. This causes cooler blood to flow through the rest of the body.

Another way to keep these massive mammals cool is to take a bath. They collect water from a pond or stream and spray it with their trunk on their backs. When the water evaporates, it cools their skin.

There is a misconception that elephants drink water through their trunk as if you were drinking juice through a straw. Elephants drink water through their mouth, but they can use their trunk to suck some of the water out of their mouth to throw it out.

Have you ever seen a video of an elephant raising clouds of dust around its body? If so, then you have observed a different way in which the elephant cools down at high temperatures. Dust settles on the elephant’s skin, helping to reflect harsh sunlight. Pretty smart, right?

Elephants have hair

Hair growth is another characteristic of a mammal. Do elephants have hair ?! Yes it is! They have bristly hair on their head and tail. Of course, elephants don’t have the thick wool of a grizzly bear or a musk ox. Like other mammals, the elephant has a coat that helps it survive in its particular habitat.

Next: New Research: Sisters Are Better Than Brothers for Elephants

FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)

How many species of elephants are there?

There are 3 types of elephants. They are African bush elephant, African forest elephant and Asian elephant.

Endangered elephants?

Unfortunately yes. The Asian elephant is listed on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Habitat loss and human poaching are factors in the decline of their population.

The African bush, or savannah, elephant is also considered endangered. The decline in population is the result of poaching. These elephants are hunted for their fangs.
The African forest elephant is endangered. Their population is declining due to the fact that they become victims of poaching by people due to ivory tusks.

How long do elephants live?

Elephants have a long life. African elephants can live from 60 to 70 years. Asian elephants live for up to 48 years.

Are elephants lonely?

No, but some elephants live in large groups or herds. Males tend to live with several other male elephants. Females, along with their young, form large herds with other females. Although male herds are smaller, they usually live near larger herds of females.

Are elephants shy or aggressive?

Elephants are usually peaceful mammals. They eat roots, leaves, bark and other vegetation in their habitat all day long. But if a hen with a calf or a herd of females with calves feel threatened by their calves, they become aggressive.

Note that the size of a healthy adult elephant prevents most predators from attacking it. A predator or pair of predators may try to attack an adult elephant that is elderly or sick. Elephants are especially vulnerable to predators such as hyenas, crocodiles, and lions.

A herd of female elephants can attack a predator and trample it to death so that it does not attack a calf in the herd.