Elephant 9279 226015639 2008-07-16T13:25:27Z CiudadanoGlobal 4998975 /* African Elephant */ {{verylong}} {{sprotected2}} {{otheruses|Elephant (disambiguation)}} {{Taxobox | name = Elephant | image = Elephant_near_ndutu.jpg | image_width = 250px | image_caption = An African Bush Elephant near the border of the [[Serengeti]] and [[Ngorongoro Conservation Area]] in [[Tanzania]]. | regnum = [[Animal]]ia | phylum = [[Chordate|Chordata]] | subphylum = [[Vertebrate|Vertebrata]] | classis = [[Mammal]]ia | ordo = [[Proboscidea]] | superfamilia = [[Elephantoidea]] | familia = '''Elephantidae''' | familia_authority = [[John Edward Gray|Gray]], [[1821]] | subdivision_ranks = [[Subfamily|Subfamilia]] | subdivision = * See [[Elephant#Family classification|Classification]] }} '''Elephants''' (''Elephantidae'') are a [[family (biology)|family]] in the [[order (biology)|order]] [[Proboscidea]] in the [[class (biology)|class]] [[Mammal]]ia. They were once classified along with other thick skinned animals in a now invalid [[Order (biology)|order]], [[Pachydermata]]. There are three living [[species]]: the [[African Bush Elephant]], the [[African Forest Elephant]] (until recently known collectively as the [[African Elephant]]), and the [[Asian Elephant]] (also known as the Indian Elephant). Other species have become [[extinct species|extinct]] since the last [[ice age]], the [[Mammoths]] being the best-known of these. ==Description== Elephants are the [[Largest organism|largest]] land animals alive today.<ref name="NationalGeographicAfricanElephant">{{cite web|url=http://www3.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/african-elephant.html|title=African Elephant|publisher=National Geographic | accessdate = 2007-06-16}}</ref> The elephant's [[gestation]] period is 22 months, the longest of any land animal. At birth it is common for an elephant calf to weigh {{convert|120|kg|lb}}. An elephant may live as long as 70&nbsp;years, sometimes longer. The largest elephant ever recorded was shot in [[Angola]] in 1956. This male weighed about {{convert|12000|kg|lb}},<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sanparks.org/parks/kruger/elephants/about/faq.php|title=Frequently asked African Elephant questions|publisher=South African National Parks | accessdate = 2007-06-16}}</ref> with a shoulder height of {{convert|4.2|m|ft}}, a metre (yard) taller than the average male African elephant.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sandiegozoo.org/animalbytes/t-elephant.html|title=Animal Bytes: Elephant|publisher=San Diego Zoo | accessdate = 2007-06-16}}</ref> The smallest elephants, about the size of a calf or a large pig, were a prehistoric species that lived on the island of [[Crete]] during the [[Pleistocene]] epoch.<ref>[[Dorothea Bate|Bate, D.M.A.]] 1907. On Elephant Remains from Crete, with Description of ''Elephas creticus'' sp.n. Proc. zool. Soc. London: 238-250.</ref> Elephants are symbols of wisdom in Asian cultures and are famed for their memory and high intelligence, where they are thought to be on par with [[cetaceans]]<ref name = "fusukt">{{cite web|url=http://tursiops.org/dolfin/guide/smart.html|title=What Makes Dolphins So Smart?|publisher=Discovery Communications|accessdate = 2007-07-31}}</ref> and [[hominids]].<ref name = "hfezyk">{{cite web|url=http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/ap/ar/2001/00000062/00000005/art01815|title=Cognitive behaviour in Asian elephants: use and modification of branches for fly switching |publisher=BBC|accessdate = 2007-07-31}}</ref> [[Aristotle]] once said the elephant was "the beast which passeth all others in wit and mind".{{fact}} Elephants are increasingly threatened by human intrusion and poaching. Once numbering in the millions, the African elephant population has dwindled to between 470,000 and 690,000 individuals.<ref name="WWF">{{cite web |url=http://www.panda.org/about_wwf/what_we_do/species/about_species/species_factsheets/elephants/african_elephants/index.cfm |title=WWF: African elephants|accessdate=2007-06-09|date=[[2007-03-28]]}}</ref> The elephant is now a protected species worldwide, with restrictions in place on capture, domestic use, and trade in products such as [[ivory]]. Elephants generally have no natural predators, although lions may take calves and occasionally adults.<ref>A. J. Loveridge, J. E. Hunt, F. Murindagomo &amp; D. W. Macdonald. (2006) Influence of drought on predation of elephant (''Loxodonta africana'') calves by lions (''Panthera leo'') in an African wooded savannah. Journal of Zoology 270:3, 523–530</ref><ref name="PlanetEarthEpisode7">{{cite episode | title = Great Plains | series = Planet Earth | airdate = November 2006 | number = 7 | serieslink = Planet Earth (TV series) | url = http://www.bbc.co.uk/sn/tvradio/programmes/planetearth/prog_summary.shtml}}</ref> In some areas, lions may regularly take to preying on elephants.<ref>Hemson, Graham (2003) The Ecology and Conservation of Lions: Human-Wildlife Conflict in semi-arid Botswana. Ph. D. Thesis, University of Oxford.</ref> The word "elephant" has its origins in the Greek ἐλέφας, meaning "ivory" or "elephant".<ref name="COED">{{cite book |last=Soanes |first=Catherine |coauthors=Angus Stevenson |title=Concise Oxford English Dictionary |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=0-19-929634-0 |date=2006}}</ref> ==Zoology== [[Image:Comparative view of the human and elephant frame, Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins, 1860.jpg|thumb|right|Comparative view of the human and elephant frames, c1860.]] ===Species=== The [[African Elephant]] [[genus]] contains two (or, arguably, three) living [[species]]; whereas, the [[Asian Elephant]] species is the only surviving member of the [[Asian Elephant]] [[genus]], but can be divided into four [[subspecies]]. African elephants, at up to {{convert|3.9|m|ft}} tall and weighing {{convert|7500|kg|ton}},{{Fact|date=June 2008}} are usually larger than the Asian species and they have bigger ears. Both male and female African elephants have long tusks, while their Asian counterparts have shorter ones, with those of females vanishingly small. African elephants have a dipped back, smooth forehead and two "fingers" at the tip of their trunks, whereas the Asian have an arched back, two humps on the forehead and only one "finger" at the tip of their trunks. African elephants are further subdivided into two populations, the [[African Bush Elephant|Savanna]] and [[Forest Elephant|Forest]], and recent genetic studies have led to a reclassification of these as separate species, the forest population now being called ''Loxodonta cyclotis'', and the Savanna (or Bush) population termed ''Loxodonta africana''. This reclassification has important implications for conservation, because it means that where previously it was assumed that a single and endangered species comprised two small populations, if in reality these are two separate species, then as a consequence, both could be more gravely endangered than a more numerous and wide-ranging single species might have been. There is also a potential danger in that, if the forest elephant is not explicitly listed as an endangered species, poachers and smugglers might be able to evade the law forbidding trade in endangered animals and their body parts. The Forest elephant and the Savanna elephant can hybridise – that is, breed together – successfully, though their preferences for different terrains reduce such opportunities. As the African elephant has only recently been recognized to comprise two separate species, groups of captive elephants have not been comprehensively classified and some could well be hybrids. Successful hybridisation between African and Asian Elephant species is much more unlikely, as is animal hybridization across different genera in general. In 1978, however, at [[Chester Zoo]], an Asian elephant cow gave birth to a hybrid calf sired by an African elephant bull (the old terms are used here as these events pre-date the current classifications). "[[Motty]]", the resulting hybrid male calf, had an African elephant's cheeks, their ears (large with pointed lobes) and legs (longer and slimmer), but the toenail numbers, (5 for each front foot, 4 hind) and the single trunk finger of an Asian elephant. His wrinkled trunk was like that of an African elephant. His forehead was sloping with one dome and two smaller domes behind it. The body was African in type, but had an Asian-type centre hump and an African-type rear hump. The calf died of infection 12 days later. It is preserved as a mounted specimen at the British [[Natural History Museum]], London. There are unconfirmed rumours of three other hybrid elephants born in zoos or circuses; all are said to have been deformed and none survived. ====African Elephant==== {{main|African Elephant|African Bush Elephant|African Forest Elephant}} [[Image:Crossing elephant .jpg|thumb|right|Elephant crossing a river, [[Kenya]].]] [[Image:Baby elephants3.jpg|thumb|right|Female [[African]] elephant with calf, in [[Kenya]].]] [[Image:African Bush Elephant Mikumi.jpg|thumb|right|African bush (savanna) elephant in [[Mikumi National Park]], [[Tanzania]].]] The Elephants of the genus ''[[Loxodonta]]'', known collectively as African elephants, are currently found in 37 countries in Africa. African elephants are distinguished from Asian elephants in several ways, the most noticeable being their ears. Africans' ears are much larger. The African is typically larger than the Asian and has a concave back. Both African males and females have external tusks and are usually less hairy than their Asian cousins. African elephants have traditionally been classified as a single species comprising two distinct subspecies, namely the savanna elephant (''Loxodonta africana africana'') and the forest elephant (''Loxodonta africana cyclotis''), but recent [[DNA analysis]] suggests that these may actually constitute distinct species.<ref>{{cite journal | last =Roca | first =Alfred L. | coauthors = Nicholas Georgiadis, Jill Pecon-Slattery, and Stephen J. O'Brien | title =Genetic evidence for two species of elephant in Africa. | journal =Science | volume =293 | issue =5534 | pages =1473 | publisher = | date =[[24 August]] [[2001]] | doi =10.1126/science.1059936 | pmid =11520983}} </ref> This split is not universally accepted by experts<ref>{{cite web | last =African Elephant Specialist Group | title =Statement on the taxonomy of extant Loxodonta | publisher =IUCN | date =December 2003 | url =http://iucn.org/themes/ssc/sgs/afesg/tools/pdfs/pos_genet_en.pdf | format =pdf | accessdate = 2006-12-08 }}</ref> and a third species of African elephant has also been proposed.<ref>{{cite journal | last =Eggert | first =Lori S. | coauthors = Caylor A. Rasner, David S. Woodruff | title =The evolution and phylogeography of the African elephant inferred from mitochondrial DNA sequence and nuclear microsatellite markers | journal = Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences | volume =269 | issue =1504 | pages =1993–2006 | publisher = | date =2002-10-07 | doi =10.1098/rspb.2002.2070 | id = ISSN: 0962-8452 (Paper) 1471-2954 (Online) }} </ref> Under the new two species classification, ''Loxodonta africana'' refers specifically to the Savanna Elephant, the largest of all elephants. In fact, it is the largest land animal in the world, standing up to {{convert|4|m|ft}} at the shoulder and weighing approximately {{convert|7000|kg|ton}}. The average male stands about {{convert|3|m|ft|0}} tall at the shoulder and weighs about 5500 to {{convert|6000|kg|ton}}, the female being much smaller. Most often, Savanna Elephants are found in open [[grassland]]s, [[marsh]]es, and lakeshores. They range over much of the savanna zone [[Sub-Saharan Africa|south of the Sahara]]. The other putative species, the Forest Elephant (''Loxodonta cyclotis''), is usually smaller and rounder, and its tusks thinner and straighter compared with the Savanna Elephant. The Forest Elephant can weigh up to {{convert|4500|kg|lb}} and stand about {{convert|3|m|ft|0}} tall. Much less is known about these animals than their savanna cousins, because environmental and political obstacles make them difficult to study. Normally, they inhabit the dense African rain forests of central and western Africa, although occasionally they roam the edges of forests, thus overlapping the Savanna elephant [[Territory (animal)|territories]] and hybridizing. In [[1979]], [[Iain Douglas-Hamilton]] estimated the continental population of African elephants at around 1.3 million animals.<ref>{{cite book | last =Douglas-Hamilton | first =Iain | title =The African Elephant Action Plan | publisher = | date =1979 | location =unpublished report}}</ref> This estimate is controversial and is believed to be a gross overestimate<!--Please check if this is what the original source says-->,<ref>{{cite book | last =Parker | first =Ian | authorlink = | coauthors =Amin, Mohammed | title =Ivory Crisis | publisher = Chatto and Windus, London | date =1983 | pages =184}}</ref> but it is very widely cited and has become a ''de facto'' baseline that continues to be incorrectly used to quantify downward population trends in the species. Through the 1980s, ''Loxodonta'' received worldwide attention due to the dwindling numbers of major populations in East Africa, largely as a result of poaching. Today, according to [[IUCN]]’s African Elephant Status Report 2007<ref>{{cite book | last =Blanc | first =JJ | coauthors =Barnes, RFW, Craig, GC, Dublin, HT, Thouless, CR, Douglas-Hamilton, I, Hart, JA, | title = African Elephant Status Report 2007: An update from the African Elephant Database | publisher = IUCN, Gland and Cambridge | date = 2007 | pages =276 | url = http://iucn.org/themes/ssc/sgs/afesg/aed/pdfs/aesr2007.pdf | id = ISBN 978-2-8317-0970-3|format=PDF}}</ref> there are approximately between 470,000 and 690,000 African elephants in the wild. Although this estimate only covers about half of the total elephant range, experts do not believe the true figure to be much higher, as it is unlikely that large populations remain to be discovered.<ref>{{cite journal | last =Blanc | first =JJ | coauthors = Barnes, RFW, Craig, GC, Douglas-Hamilton, I, Dublin, HT, Hart, JA, Thouless, CR | title = Changes in elephant numbers in major savanna populations in eastern and southern Africa | journal =Pachyderm | volume =38 | issue =38 | pages =19–28 | publisher =IUCN/SSC African Elephant Specialist Group | date =January-June 2005 | url = http://iucn.org/afesg/pachy/pdfs/pachy38.pdf#page=22 | accessdate = 2006-12-08 }}</ref> By far the largest populations are now found in Southern and Eastern Africa, which together account for the majority of the continental population. According to a recent analysis by IUCN experts, most major populations in Eastern and Southern Africa are stable or have been steadily increasing since the mid-1990s, at an average rate of 4.5% ''per annum''.<ref>{{cite journal | last =Blanc | first =JJ | coauthors =Barnes, RFW, Craig, GC, Douglas-Hamilton, I, Dublin, HT, Hart, JA, Thouless, CR | title = Changes in elephant numbers in major savanna populations in eastern and southern Africa | journal =Pachyderm | volume =38 | issue =38 | pages =19–28 | publisher =IUCN/SSC African Elephant Specialist Group | date =January-June 2005 | url = http://iucn.org/afesg/pachy/pdfs/pachy38.pdf#page=22 | accessdate = 2006-12-08 }}</ref><ref>Blanc ''et al''. 2007, op. cit.</ref> Elephant populations in West Africa, on the other hand, are generally small and fragmented, and only account for a small proportion of the continental total.<ref>{{cite book | last =Blanc | first =JJ | coauthors =Thouless, CR; Hart, JA; Dublin, HT; Douglas-Hamilton, I; Craig, GC; Barnes, RFW | title = African Elephant Status Report 2002: An update from the African Elephant Database | publisher = IUCN, Gland and Cambridge | date = 2003 | pages =308 | url = http://iucn.org/themes/ssc/sgs/afesg/aed/pdfs/aesr2002.pdf | id = ISBN 2-8317-0707-2 |format=PDF}}</ref> Much uncertainty remains as to the size of the elephant population in Central Africa, where the prevalence of forest makes population surveys difficult, but poaching for ivory and bushmeat is believed to be intense through much of the region.<ref>{{cite web | last = Blake | first =Stephen | title = Central African Forests: Final Report on Population Surveys (2003-2005) | publisher = CITES MIKE Programme, Nairobi | date = 2005 | url = http://www.cites.org/common/prog/mike/survey/central_africa_survey03-04.pdf | format =pdf | accessdate =2006-12-08}}</ref> [[South Africa]] elephant population more than doubled, rising from from 8,000 to over 20,000, in the thirteen years after a 1995 ban on killing the animals.<ref>[http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/02/080225-AP-south-afric.html South Africa to Allow Elephant Killing]</ref> The ban was lifted in February 2008, sparking controversy among environmental groups.<ref>{{cite web | last = | first = | title = South Africa to sanction killing of elephants | publisher = CNN | date = 2008-02-25 | url = http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/africa/02/25/south.africa.elephants.ap/index.html | format =pdf | accessdate =2008-02-25}}</ref> ====Asian Elephant==== {{main|Asian Elephant}} [[Image:Thrippunithura-Elephant4 crop.jpg|right|thumb|An [[Asian elephant]] named ''Sri Hari'' during [[Sree Poornathrayesa temple]] festival, [[Thrippunithura]].]] [[Image:Decorated Indian elephant.jpg|thumb|A decorated Indian elephant in [[Jaipur]], [[India]].]] The Asian elephant, ''Elephas maximus'', is smaller than the African. It has smaller ears, and typically, only the males have large external tusks. [[Image:1890 - Elephante.jpg|thumb|left| '''"O Elephante" - Hand-coloured engraving drawn by H.Gobin and engraved by Ramus - Printed in France by the "Lamoureaux de Paris" and Published for Magalhães e Moniz Editores in Portugal - 1890''' (''From the Dr. Nuno Carvalho de Sousa Private Collections - Lisbon)]]'' The world population of Asian elephants – also called Indian Elephants – is estimated to be around 60,000, about a tenth of the number of African elephants. More precisely, it is estimated that there are between 38,000 and 53,000 wild elephants and between 14,500 and 15,300 domesticated elephants in Asia with perhaps another 1,000 scattered around zoos in the rest of the world.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.eleaid.com/index.php?page=asianelephantdistribution | title = Asian Elephant distribution | publisher = EleAid | accessdate = May 2007}}</ref> The Asian elephants' decline has possibly been more gradual than the African and caused primarily by poaching and habitat destruction by human encroachment. Several subspecies of ''Elephas maximus'' have been identified, using [[morphometric]] data and molecular markers. ''Elephas maximus maximus'' ([[Sri Lankan Elephant]]) is found only on the island of [[Sri Lanka]]. It is the largest of the Asians. There is an estimated 3,000–4,500 members of this subspecies left today in the wild, although no accurate census has been carried out recently. Large males can weigh upward to 5,400&nbsp;kg (12,000&nbsp;lb) and stand over 3.4&nbsp;m (11&nbsp;ft) tall. Sri Lankan males have very large cranial bulges, and both sexes have more areas of depigmentation than other Asians. Typically, their ears, face, trunk, and belly have large concentrations of pink-speckled skin. There is an [[orphanage]] for elephants in [[Pinnawala]] [[Sri Lanka]], which plays a large role in protecting the Sri Lankan Elephant from [[extinction]]. [[Image:Re-exposure of elephant - lahugala park1.jpg|right|thumb|Right|Elephant In Sri Lanka]] ''Elephas maximus indicus'' ([[Indian Elephant]]) makes up the bulk of the Asian elephant population. Numbering approximately 36,000, these elephants are lighther grey in colour, with depigmentation only on the ears and trunk. Large males will ordinarily weigh only about 5,000&nbsp;kg (11,000&nbsp;lb), but are as tall as the Sri Lankan. The mainland Asian can be found in 11 Asian countries, from India to Indonesia. They prefer forested areas and transitional zones, between forests and grasslands, where greater food variety is available. The smallest of all the elephants is the [[Sumatran Elephant]], ''Elephas maximus sumatranus''. Population estimates for this group range from 2,100 to 3,000 individuals. It is very light grey in colour and has less depigmentation than the other Asians, with pink spots only on the ears. Mature Sumatrans will usually only measure 1.7–2.6&nbsp;m (5.6–8.5&nbsp;ft) at the shoulder and weigh less than 3,000&nbsp;kg (6,600&nbsp;lb). It is considerably smaller than its other Asian (and African) cousins and exists only on the island of Sumatra, usually in forested regions and partially wooded habitats. In 2003, a further subspecies was identified on [[Borneo]]. Named the [[Borneo pygmy elephant]], it is smaller and tamer than any other Asian elephants. It also has relatively larger ears, longer tail and straighter tusks. ===Body characteristics=== ====Trunk==== The [[proboscis]], or trunk, is a fusion of the nose and upper lip, elongated and specialized to become the elephant's most important and versatile appendage. African elephants are equipped with two fingerlike projections at the tip of their trunk, while Asians have only one. According to biologists, the elephant's trunk may have over forty thousand individual muscles in it,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.upali.ch/anatomy_en.html |title=Anatomy of the elephants | accessdate = 2007-06-16}}</ref> making it sensitive enough to pick up a single blade of grass, yet strong enough to rip the branches off a tree. Some sources indicate that the correct number of muscles in an elephant's trunk is closer to one hundred thousand.<ref name="EIRTrunk">{{cite web |url=http://elephant.elehost.com/About_Elephants/Anatomy/The_Trunk/the_trunk.html |title=Elephant Information Repository: The Trunk | author = Paul MacKenzie | accessdate = 2007-06-16}}</ref> Most [[herbivores]] (plant eaters, like the elephant) possess teeth adapted for cutting and tearing off plant materials. However, except for the very young or infirm, elephants always use their trunks to tear up their food and then place it in their mouth. They will graze on grass or reach up into trees to grasp leaves, fruit, or entire branches. If the desired food item is too high up, the elephant will wrap its trunk around the tree or branch and shake its food loose or sometimes simply knock the tree down altogether. The trunk is also used for drinking. Elephants suck water up into the trunk (up to fifteen quarts or fourteen litres at a time) and then blow it into their mouth. Elephants also inhale water to spray on their body during bathing. On top of this watery coating, the animal will then spray dirt and mud, which act as a protective sunscreen. When swimming, the trunk makes an excellent [[Snorkel (swimming)|snorkel]].<ref name = "qvhxbt">{{Citation | last = West | first = John B. | author-link = <!--http://physiology.ucsd.edu/faculty/jwest/fullCV.html--> | title = Snorkel breathing in the elephant explains the unique anatomy of its pleura | journal = Respiratory Physiology | volume = 126 | issue = 1 | pages = 1–8 | year = 2001 | url = http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=MImg&_imagekey=B6T3J-42SPN0Y-1-7&_cdi=4948&_user=10&_orig=search&_coverDate=05%2F31%2F2001&_sk=998739998&view=c&wchp=dGLzVlz-zSkzV&md5=47a1f5f9745e29f15d73a7f73c376a41&ie=/sdarticle.pdf | doi = 10.1016/S0034-5687(01)00203-1 }}</ref><ref name = "pkxbpv">{{Citation | last = West | first = John B. | author-link = <!--http://physiology.ucsd.edu/faculty/jwest/fullCV.html--> | last2 = Fu | first2 = Zhenxing | last3 = Gaeth | first3 = Ann P. | last4 = Short | first4 = Roger V. | title = Fetal lung development in the elephant reflects the adaptations required for snorkeling in adult life | journal = Respiratory Physiology & Neurobiology | volume = 138 | issue = 2-3 | pages = 325–333 | date = 2003-11-14 | url = http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=MImg&_imagekey=B6X16-49MF0FR-2-7&_cdi=7234&_user=10&_orig=article&_coverDate=11%2F14%2F2003&_sk=998619997&view=c&wchp=dGLbVzb-zSkWA&md5=ad91a1eea54ef52d0a723aeec5232049&ie=/sdarticle.pdf | doi = 10.1016/S1569-9048(03)00199-X }}</ref> This appendage also plays a key role in many social interactions. Familiar elephants will greet each other by entwining their trunks, much like a handshake. They also use them while play-wrestling, caressing during courtship and mother / child interactions, and for dominance displays – a raised trunk can be a warning or threat, while a lowered trunk can be a sign of submission. Elephants can defend themselves very well by flailing their trunk at unwanted intruders or by grasping and flinging them. [[Image:Lightmatter elephanttrunk.jpg|thumb|An elephant can use its trunk for a variety of purposes. This one is wiping its eye.]] An elephant also relies on its trunk for its highly developed sense of smell. Raising the trunk up in the air and swivelling it from side to side, like a periscope, it can determine the location of friends, enemies, and food sources. ====Tusks==== The [[tusk]]s of an elephant are its second upper [[incisor]]s. Tusks grow continuously; an adult male's tusks will grow about 18&nbsp;cm (7&nbsp;in) a year. Tusks are used to dig for water, salt, and roots; to debark trees, to eat the bark; to dig into [[baobab]] trees to get at the pulp inside; and to move trees and branches when clearing a path. In addition, they are used for marking trees to establish territory and occasionally as weapons. Like humans who are typically [[Handedness|right- or left-handed]], elephants are usually right- or left-tusked. The dominant tusk, called the master tusk, is generally shorter and more rounded at the tip from wear. Both male and female African elephants have large tusks that can reach over 3&nbsp;m (10 ft) in length and weigh over 90&nbsp;kg (200&nbsp;lb). In the Asian species, only the males have large tusks. Female Asians have tusks which are very small or absent altogether. Asian males can have tusks as long as the much larger Africans, but they are usually much slimmer and lighter; the heaviest recorded is 39&nbsp;kg (86&nbsp;lb). The tusk of both species is mostly made of [[calcium phosphate]] in the form of [[apatite]]. As a piece of living tissue, it is relatively soft (compared with other minerals such as rock), and the tusk, also known as [[ivory]], is strongly favoured by artists for its carvability. The desire for elephant ivory has been one of the major factors in the reduction of the world's elephant population. Some extinct relatives of elephants had tusks in their lower jaws in addition to their upper jaws, such as ''[[Gomphotherium]]'', or only in their lower jaws, such as ''[[Deinotherium]]''. ====Teeth==== Elephants' [[Tooth|teeth]] are very different from those of most other mammals. Over their lives they usually have 28 teeth. These are: *The two upper second incisors: these are the [[tusk]]s. *The [[Deciduous teeth|milk precursors]] of the tusks. *12 [[premolar]]s, 3 in each side of each jaw. *12 [[Molar (tooth)|molar]]s, 3 in each side of each jaw. [[Image:Elephant.tooth.replica.1.jpg|thumb|right|Replica of an Asian Elephant's molar, showing upper side]] This gives elephants a [[dentition|dental formula]] of: {{dentition2|1.0.3.3|0.0.3.3}} Unlike most mammals, which [[Tooth development|grow]] baby teeth and then replace them with a permanent set of adult teeth, elephants have cycles of tooth rotation throughout their entire life. After one year the tusks are permanent, but the molars are replaced six times in an average elephant's lifetime.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.indyzoo.com/content.aspx?cid=302 | title = Elephant Anatomy | accessdate = 2007-05-28 | publisher = [[Indianapolis Zoo]]}}</ref> The teeth do not emerge from the jaws vertically like with human teeth. Instead, they have a horizontal progression, like a conveyor belt. New teeth grow in at the back of the mouth, pushing older teeth toward the front, where they wear down with use and the remains fall out. When an elephant becomes very old, the last set of teeth is worn to stumps, and it must rely on softer foods to chew. Very elderly elephants often spend their last years exclusively in marshy areas where they can feed on soft wet grasses. Eventually, when the last teeth fall out, the elephant will be unable to eat and will die of starvation. Were it not for tooth wearout, their metabolism would allow them to live much longer. [[Rupert Sheldrake]] has proposed this as an explanation for the [[elephant graveyard]]s. However, as more habitat is destroyed, the elephants' living space becomes smaller and smaller; the elderly no longer have the opportunity to roam in search of more appropriate food and will, consequently, die of starvation at an earlier age. Tusks in the lower jaw are also second incisors. These grew out large in ''[[Deinotherium]]'' and some [[mastodon]]s, but in modern elephants they disappear early without [[teeth|erupting]]. ====Skin==== [[Image:Elephant mugshot.jpg|thumb|right|Skin of an African elephant]] Elephants are colloquially called ''pachyderms'' (from their original scientific classification), which means thick-skinned animals. An elephant's skin is extremely tough around most parts of its body and measures about {{convert|2.5|cm|in|1}} thick. However, the skin around the mouth and inside of the ear is paper-thin. Normally, the skin of an Asian is covered with more hair than its African counterpart. This is most noticeable in the young. Asian calves are usually covered with a thick coat of brownish red fuzz. As they get older, this hair darkens and becomes more sparse, but it will always remain on their heads and tails. The species of elephants are typically greyish in colour, but the Africans very often appear brown or reddish from wallowing in mud holes of coloured soil. Wallowing is an important behaviour in elephant society. Not only is it important for socialization, but the mud acts as a sunscreen, protecting their skin from harsh ultraviolet radiation. Although tough, an elephant's skin is very sensitive. Without regular mud baths to protect it from burning, as well as from insect bites and moisture loss, an elephant's skin would suffer serious damage. After bathing, the elephant will usually use its trunk to blow dirt on its body to help dry and bake on its new protective coat. As elephants are limited to smaller and smaller areas, there is less water available, and local herds will often come too close over the right to use these limited resources. Wallowing also aids the skin in regulating body temperatures. Elephants have difficulty in releasing heat through the skin because, in proportion to their body size, they have very little of it. The ratio of an elephant's mass to the surface area of its skin is many times that of a human. Elephants have even been observed lifting up their legs to expose the soles of their feet, presumably in an effort to expose more skin to the air. Since wild elephants live in very hot climates, they must have other means of getting rid of excess heat. ==== Legs and feet ==== [[Image:Asian elephant eating02 - melbourne zoo.jpg|thumb|Elephant using its feet to crush a [[watermelon]] prior to eating it]] An elephant's legs are great straight pillars, as they must be to support its bulk. The elephant needs less muscular power to stand because of its straight legs and large pad-like feet. For this reason an elephant can stand for very long periods of time without tiring. In fact, African elephants rarely lie down unless they are sick or wounded. Indian elephants, in contrast, lie down frequently. The feet of an elephant are nearly round. African elephants have three nails on each hind foot, and four on each front foot. Indian elephants have four nails on each hind foot and five on each front foot. Beneath the bones of the foot is a tough, gelatinous material that acts as a cushion or shock absorber. Under the elephant's weight the foot swells, but it gets smaller when the weight is removed. An elephant can sink deep into mud, but can pull its legs out readily because its feet become smaller when they are lifted.{{Fact|date=July 2007}} An elephant is a good swimmer, but it can neither [[Trot (horse gait)|trot]], [[jump]], nor [[Horse gait#Gallop|gallop]]. It does have two gaits: a walk; and a faster gait that is similar to running. In walking, the legs act as pendulums, with the hips and shoulders rising and falling while the foot is planted on the ground. With no "aerial phase", the faster gait does not meet all the criteria of running, as elephants always have at least one foot on the ground. However, an elephant moving fast uses its legs much like a running animal, with the hips and shoulders falling and then rising while the feet are on the ground. In this gait, an elephant will have three feet off the ground at one time. As both of the hind feet and both of the front feet are off the ground at the same time, this gait has been likened to the hind legs and the front legs taking turns running.<ref>Moore, Tom. (May 2007). "Biomechanics: A Spring in Its Step". ''Natural History'' '''116''':(4) 28-9.</ref> Although they start this "run" at only 8 km/h,<ref>{{cite journal| author= Ren, L. & J.R. Hutchinson | year = 2007 | title= The three-dimensional locomotor dynamics of African (Loxodonta africana) and Asian (Elephas maximus) elephants reveal a smooth gait transition at moderate speed | journal = J. Roy. Soc. Interface | doi=10.1098/rsif.2007.1095| issn=1742-5662 | volume= 5 | pages= 195}}</ref> elephants can reach speeds up to 25 km/h, all the while using the same gait. At this speed, most other [[tetrapod|four-legged creatures]] are well into a gallop, even accounting for leg length. Spring-like kinetics could explain the difference between the motion of elephants and other animals.<ref>{{cite journal | author = Hutchinson, J.R., ''et al.'' | month = Apr | year = 2003 | title = Biomechanics: Are fast-moving elephants really running? | journal = [[Nature (journal)|Nature]] | volume = 422 | pages = 493–494 | doi = 10.1038/422493a}}</ref> ====Ears==== [[Image:Anakotta1.jpg|thumb|left|An [[Elephant sanctuary]] at [[Punnathur kotta]], [[Kerala]], [[south India]].]] The large flapping ears of an elephant are also very important for temperature regulation. Elephant ears are made of a very thin layer of skin stretched over cartilage and a rich network of blood vessels. On hot days, elephants will flap their ears constantly, creating a slight breeze. This breeze cools the surface blood vessels, and then the cooler blood gets circulated to the rest of the animal's body. The hot blood entering the ears can be cooled as much as ten degrees Fahrenheit before returning to the body. Differences in the ear sizes of African and Asian elephants can be explained, in part, by their geographical distribution. Africans originated and stayed near the equator, where it is warmer. Therefore, they have bigger ears. Asians live farther north, in slightly cooler climates, and thus have smaller ears. The ears are also used in certain displays of aggression and during the males' mating period. If an elephant wants to intimidate a predator or rival, it will spread its ears out wide to make itself look more massive and imposing. During the breeding season, males give off an odour from a gland located behind their eyes. Joyce Poole, a well-known elephant researcher, has theorized that the males will fan their ears in an effort to help propel this "elephant cologne" great distances. ===Evolution=== [[Image:ElephEvol.jpg|thumb|left|Evolution of elephants from the ancient [[Eocene]] (''bottom'') to the modern day (''top'').]] Although the fossil evidence is uncertain, scientists discovered genetic evidence that the elephant family shares distant ancestry with the [[sirenia]]ns (sea cows) and the [[hyrax]]es through gene comparisons. In the distant past, members of the hyrax family grew to large sizes, and it seems likely that the common ancestor of all three modern families was some kind of amphibious hyracoid. One theory suggests that these animals spent most of their time under water, using their trunks like [[Snorkel (swimming)|snorkel]]s for breathing.<ref name = "qvhxbt"/><ref name = "pkxbpv"/> Modern elephants have retained this ability and are known to swim in that manner for up to 6 hours and 50 km (30 miles). In the past, there was a much wider variety of elephant genera, including the [[mammoth]]s, [[stegodon]]s and [[deinotherium|deinotheria]]. There was also a much wider variety of species.<ref>Todd, N. E. (2001). [http://www.cq.rm.cnr.it/elephants2001/pdf/693_697.pdf African ''Elephas recki'': time, space and taxonomy] (pdf). In: Cavarretta, G., P. Gioia, M. Mussi, and M. R. Palombo. The World of Elephants, Proceedings of the 1st International Congress. Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche. Rome, Italy.</ref><ref>Todd, N. E. (2005). Reanalysis of African Elephas recki: implications for time, space and taxonomy. Quaternary International 126-128:65-72.</ref> ===Diet=== Elephants are [[herbivore]]s, spending 16 hours a day collecting plant food. Their diet is at least 50% grasses, supplemented with leaves, bamboo, twigs, bark, roots, and small amounts of fruits, seeds and flowers. Because elephants only digest 40% of what they eat, they have to make up for their digestive system's lack of efficiency in volume. An adult elephant can consume 140–270&nbsp;kg (300–600&nbsp;lb) of food a day. 60% of that food leaves the elephant's body undigested. ==Intelligence== {{main|Elephant intelligence}} [[Image:ele-brain.JPG|thumb|Human, dolphin and elephant brains up to scale. (1)-[[cerebrum]] (1a)-[[temporal lobe]] and (2)-[[cerebellum]] ]] With a mass just over 5&nbsp;kg (11&nbsp;lb), elephant brains are larger than those of any land animal, and although the largest [[whale]]s have body masses twentyfold those of a typical elephant, whale brains are barely twice the mass of an elephant's. A wide variety of behaviours, including those associated with [[grief]], making music, [[art]], altruism, allomothering, play, use of tools,<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/animals/features/302feature1.shtml | title = Not so Dumbo: Elephant Intelligence | last=Braden | first = Claire | accessdate = 2007-05-27}} </ref> [[compassion]] and [[self-awareness]] <ref>{{cite web | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/6100430.stm | title = Elephants' jumbo mirror ability | accessdate = 2007-08-10}} </ref> evidence a highly intelligent species on par with [[cetaceans]]<ref name = "fusukt"/> and [[primate]]s<ref name = "hfezyk"/>. The largest areas in elephant brain are those responsible for hearing, smell and movement coordination, and a large portion of the brain has to do with trunk management and sensitivity. <!-- Can someone make this following sentence understandable, please? Is the lobe greater in SIZE or greater in COMPLEXITY? Increased out of any comparative proportion, the [[temporal lobe]], responsible for processing of audio information, hearing and language, is relatively far greater than that of dolphins (which use elaborate echolocation) and humans (who use language and symbols). --> ===Senses=== Elephants have well innervated trunks, and an exceptional sense of hearing and smell. The hearing receptors reside not only in ears, but also in trunks that are sensitive to vibrations, and most significantly feet, which have special receptors for low frequency sound and are exceptionally well innervated. It is believed that sound communication between elephants on large distances, through the ground, is important in their social lives, and elephants are observed listening by putting trunks on the ground and carefully moving their very sensitive feet. ===Social behaviour=== [[Image:Elephant-tracks.jpg|thumb|right|top|Elephant footprints (tire tracks for scale)]]Elephants live in a structured social order. The social lives of male and female elephants are very different. The females spend their entire lives in tightly knit family groups made up of mothers, daughters, sisters, and aunts. These groups are led by the eldest female, or [[matriarch]]. Adult males, on the other hand, live mostly solitary lives. The social circle of the female elephant does not end with the small family unit. In addition to encountering the local males that live on the fringes of one or more groups, the female's life also involves interaction with other families, clans, and subpopulations. Most immediate family groups range from five to fifteen adults, as well as a number of immature males and females. When a group gets too big, a few of the elder daughters will break off and form their own small group. They remain very aware of which local herds are relatives and which are not. The life of the adult male is very different. As he gets older, he begins to spend more time at the edge of the herd, gradually going off on his own for hours or days at a time. Eventually, days become weeks, and somewhere around the age of fourteen, the mature male, or bull, sets out from his natal group for good. While males do live primarily solitary lives, they will occasionally form loose associations with other males. These groups are called bachelor herds. The males spend much more time than the females fighting for dominance with each other. Only the most dominant males will be permitted to breed with cycling females. The less dominant ones must wait their turn. It is usually the older bulls, forty to fifty years old, that do most of the breeding. The dominance battles between males can look very fierce, but typically they inflict very little injury. Most of the bouts are in the form of aggressive displays and bluffs. Ordinarily, the smaller, younger, and less confident animal will back off before any real damage can be done. However, during the breeding season, the battles can get extremely aggressive, and the occasional elephant is injured. During this season, known as [[musth]], a bull will fight with almost any other male it encounters, and it will spend most of its time hovering around the female herds, trying to find a receptive mate. '''Rogue elephant''' is a term for a lone, violently aggressive wild elephant, separated from the rest of the herd. It is a [[calque]] of the [[Sinhalese language|Sinhala]] term ''hora aliya''. Its introduction to [[English language|English]] has been attributed by the [[Oxford English Dictionary]] to Sir [[James Emerson Tennent]], but this usage may have been pre-dated by [[William Sirr]]. ===Self-awareness=== [[Mirror test|Mirror self recognition]] is a test of self awareness and cognition used in animal studies. A mirror was provided and visible marks were made on the elephant. The elephants investigated these marks, that were visible only via the mirror. The tests also included non-visible marks to rule out the possibility of their using other senses to detect these marks. This shows that elephants recognize the fact that the image in the mirror is their own self and such abilities are considered the basis for empathy, altruism and higher social interactions. This ability had earlier only been demonstrated in [[humans]], [[apes]] and [[dolphin]]s.<ref>Joshua M. Plotnik, Frans B. M. de Waal, and Diana Reiss (2006) Self-recognition in an Asian elephant. [[Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences]] 103(45):17053–17057 10.1073/pnas.0608062103 [http://www.pnas.org/cgi/content/abstract/0608062103v1 abstract]</ref>[[Image:Curious elephant, Zim.jpg|thumb|A young elephant in [[Zimbabwe]].]] ===Homosexuality=== African as well as Asiatic males will engage in same-sex bonding and mounting. Such encounters are often associated with affectionate interactions, such as kissing, trunk intertwining, and placing trunks in each other's mouths. The encounters are analogous to heterosexual bouts, one male often extending his trunk along the other's back and pushing forward with his tusks to signify his intention to mount. Unlike heterosexual relations, which are always of a fleeting nature, those between males result in a "companionship", consisting of an older individual and one or two younger, attendant males. Same-sex relations are common and frequent in both sexes, with Asiatic elephants in captivity devoting roughly 45% of sexual encounters to same-sex activity.<ref>Bruce Bagemihl, Biological Exuberance: Animal Homosexuality and Natural Diversity, St. Martin's Press, 1999; pp.427-430</ref> ===Communication=== Elephants communicate over long distances by producing and receiving low-frequency sound (infrasound), a sub-sonic rumbling, which can travel through the ground farther than sound travels through the air. This can be felt by the sensitive skin of an elephant's feet and trunk, which pick up the resonant vibrations much as the flat skin on the head of a drum. To listen attentively, every member of the herd will lift one foreleg from the ground, and face the source of the sound, or often lay its trunk on the ground. The lifting presumably increases the ground contact and sensitivity of the remaining legs. This ability is thought also to aid their navigation by use of external sources of infrasound. Discovery of this new aspect of elephant social communication and perception came with breakthroughs in audio technology, which can pick up frequencies outside the range of the human ear. Pioneering research in elephant infrasound communication was done by [[Katy Payne]], of the Elephant Listening Project,<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.birds.cornell.edu/brp/elephant/ | title = Elephant Listening Project | accessdate = 2007-06-16}}</ref> and is detailed in her book ''Silent Thunder''. Though this research is still in its infancy, it is helping to solve many mysteries, such as how elephants can find distant potential mates, and how social groups are able to coordinate their movements over extensive range. ===Painting=== Some elephants in Thailand have been trained to paint self portraits.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/edinburgh_and_east/5203120.stm Elephant 'self-portrait' on show]</ref><ref>[http://youtube.com/watch?v=_LHoyB81LnE Video of an elephant painting an elephant]</ref><ref>[http://www.necn.com/Boston/Arts-Entertainment/Elephant-sensation-takes-over-YouTube/1207604841.html] Animal experts discuss elephant painting</ref> Videos of elephants painting self-portraits have circulated the internet leaving many to wonder if they had been part of a hoax. The myth-busting website [http://www.de-fact-o.com/fact_read.php?id=117 De-Fact-o.com] has dedicated an article to validating the authenticity of the videos.<ref>http://www.de-fact-o.com/fact_read.php?id=117 Elephant Painting De-Fact-o.com article</ref> ==Reproduction, calves, and calf rearing== ===Elephant calves=== Elephant social life revolves around breeding and raising of the calves. A female will usually be ready to breed around the age of thirteen, at which time she will seek out the most ''attractive'' male to mate with. Females are generally attracted to bigger, stronger, and, most importantly, older males. Such a reproductive strategy tends to increase their offspring's chances of survival. After a twenty-two-month pregnancy, the mother will give birth to a calf that will weigh about 113&nbsp;kg (250&nbsp;lb) and stand over 76&nbsp;cm (2.5&nbsp;ft) tall. Elephants have a very long childhood. They are born with fewer survival instincts than many other animals. Instead, they must rely on their elders to teach them the things they need to know. Today, however, the pressures humans have put on the wild elephant populations, from poaching to habitat destruction, mean that the elderly often die at a younger age, leaving fewer teachers for the young. All members of the tightly knit female group participate in the care and protection of the young. Since everyone in the herd is related, there is never a shortage of baby-sitters. In fact, a new calf is usually the centre of attention for all herd members. All the adults and most of the other young will gather around the newborn, touching and caressing it with their trunks. The baby is born nearly blind and at first relies, almost completely, on its trunk to discover the world around it. ===Allomothers=== After the initial excitement, the mother will usually select several full-time baby-sitters, or "allomothers", from her group. According to Cynthia Moss, a well known researcher, these allomothers will help in all aspects of raising the calf.{{Fact|date=February 2007}} They walk with the young as the herd travels, helping the calves along if they fall or get stuck in the mud. The more allomothers a baby has, the more free time its mother has to feed herself. Providing a calf with nutritious milk means the mother has to eat more nutritious food herself. So, the more allomothers, the better the calf's chances of survival. An elephant is considered an allomother when she is not able to have her own baby. A benefit of being an allomother is that she can gain experience or receive assistance when caring for her own calf. ==Effect on the environment== Elephants' foraging activities affect the areas in which they live: *By pulling down trees to eat leaves, breaking branches, and pulling out roots they create clearings in which new young trees and other vegetation grow to provide future nutrition for elephants and other organisms. *Elephants make pathways through the environment that are used by other animals to access areas normally out of reach. The pathways have been used by several generations of elephants, and today people are converting many of them to paved roads. *During the dry season elephants use their tusks to dig into [[dry river beds]] to reach underground sources of water. These newly dug water holes may become the only source of [[water]] in the area. *Elephants are a species which many other organisms depend on. For example, [[termites]] eat elephant feces and often begin building termite mounds under piles of elephant feces. ==Threat of extinction== ===Hunting=== [[Image:Ivory trade.jpg|thumb|upright|Men with [[African Elephant]] tusks, [[Dar es Salaam]], c.&nbsp;1900]] The threat to the African elephant presented by the ivory trade is unique to the species. Larger, long-lived, slow-breeding animals, like the elephant, are more susceptible to overhunting than other animals. They cannot hide, and it takes many years for an elephant to grow and reproduce. An elephant needs an average of 140&nbsp;kg (300&nbsp;lb) of vegetation a day to survive. As large predators are hunted, the local small grazer populations (the elephant's food competitors) find themselves on the rise. The increased number of herbivores ravage the local trees, shrubs, and grasses. Elephants themselves have few natural predators besides man and, occasionally, lions. ===Dehabitation=== Another threat to elephant's survival in general is the ongoing cultivation of their habitats with increasing risk of conflicts of interest with human cohabitants. These conflicts kill 150 elephants and up to 100 people per year in Sri Lanka.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://nationalzoo.si.edu/ConservationAndScience/ConservationGIS/projects/asian_elephants/conflict.cfm | title = Conservation GIS Projects | publisher = Smithsonian National Zoological Park | accessdate = 2007-06-16}}</ref> Lacking the massive tusks of its African cousins, the Asian elephant's demise can be attributed mostly to loss of its habitat. As larger patches of forest disappear, the ecosystem is affected in profound ways. The trees are responsible for anchoring soil and absorbing water runoff. Floods and massive erosion are common results of deforestation. Elephants need massive tracts of land because, much like the slash-and-burn farmers, they are used to crashing through the forest, tearing down trees and shrubs for food and then cycling back later on, when the area has regrown. As forests are reduced to small pockets, elephants become part of the problem, quickly destroying all the vegetation in an area, eliminating all their resources. ===National parks=== [[Image:Samburu Elephant 2007.jpg|thumb|top|An Elephant resting his head on a tree trunk, [[Samburu National Reserve]], [[Kenya]].]] [[Image:Tanzanian Elephant.jpg|thumb|right|An elephant in the [[Ngorongoro|Ngorongoro crater]], [[Tanzania]].]] Africa's first official reserve, [[Kruger National Park]], eventually became one of the world's most famous and successful national parks{{Fact|date=July 2008}}. There are, however, many problems associated with the establishment of these reserves. For example, elephants range through a wide tract of land with little regard for national borders. Once a reserve is established and fence erected, many animals find themselves cut off from their winter feeding grounds or spring breeding areas. Some animals may die as a result, while others, like the elephants, may just trample over the fences, wrecking havoc in nearby fields. When confined to small territories, elephants can inflict an enormous amount of damage to the local landscapes{{Fact|date=July 2008}}. Additionally, some reserves, such as Kruger National Park has suffered from elephant overcrowding, at the expense of other species of wildlife within the reserve. On 25 February 2008, the South Africa announced that they would reintroduce culling for the first time since 1994 to control elephant numbers.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/africa/article3431369.ece | title=Animal rights outrage over plan to cull South Africa's elephants | date=2008-02-26 | work=Times Online | accessdate=2008-03-22}}</ref> Nevertheless, as scientists learn more about nature and the environment, it becomes very clear that these parks may be the elephant's last hope against the rapidly changing world around them. ==Humanity and elephants== ===Harvest from the wild=== The harvest of elephants, both legal and illegal, has had some unexpected consequences on elephant anatomy as well. African ivory hunters, by killing only tusked elephants, have given a much larger chance of mating to elephants with small tusks or no tusks at all. The propagation of the absent-tusk gene has resulted in the birth of large numbers of tuskless elephants, now approaching 30% in some populations (compare with a rate of about 1% in 1930). Tusklessness, once a very rare genetic abnormality, has become a widespread hereditary trait. It is possible, if unlikely, that continued selection pressure could bring about a complete absence of tusks in African elephants, a development normally requiring thousands of years of evolution. The effect of tuskless elephants on the environment, and on the elephants themselves, could be dramatic. Elephants use their tusks to root around in the ground for necessary minerals, tear apart vegetation, and spar with one another for mating rights. Without tusks, elephant behaviour could change dramatically.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.mail-archive.com/fact@tlk-lists.com/msg00030.html | title = The Learning Kingdom | date = [[1999-03-30]]}}</ref> ===Domestication and use=== [[Image:Elephant.pair.750pix.jpg|thumb|left|[[African]] Savanna Elephant ''Loxodonta africana'', born 1969 (left), and [[Asia]]n Elephant ''Elephas maximus'', born 1970 (right), at an [[England|English]] [[zoo]].]] Elephants have been [[working animals]] used in various capacities by humans. Seals found in the Indus Valley suggest that the elephant was first domesticated in ancient India. However, elephants have never been truly domesticated: the male elephant in his periodic condition of ''[[musth]]'' is dangerous and difficult to control. Therefore elephants used by humans have typically been female, war elephants being an exception, however: as female elephants in battle will run from a male, only males could be used in war. It is generally more economical to capture wild young elephants and tame them than breeding them in captivity (see also [[Elephant "Crushing"|elephant "crushing"]]). ====War Elephants==== {{main|War elephant}} [[War elephant]]s were used by armies in the [[India]]n sub-continent, the [[Warring States Period|Warring States]] of [[China]], and later by the [[Persian Empire]]. This use was adopted by [[Hellenistic]] armies after [[Alexander the Great]] experienced their worth against king [[Porus]], notably in the [[Ptolemaic dynasty|Ptolemaic]] and [[Seleucid]] diadoch empires. The [[Carthage|Carthaginian]] general [[Hannibal Barca|Hannibal]] took elephants across the [[Alps]] when he was fighting the [[Roman Republic|Romans]], but brought too few elephants to be of much military use, although his horse cavalry was quite successful; he probably used a now-extinct third African (sub)species, the North African (Forest) elephant, smaller than its two southern cousins, and presumably easier to domesticate. A large elephant in full charge could cause tremendous damage to infantry, and cavalry horses would be afraid of them (see [[Battle of Hydaspes]]). ====Industrial Elephants==== Throughout [[Myanmar]] (Burma), [[Thailand|Siam]], [[India]], and most of South Asia elephants were used in the military for heavy labour, especially for uprooting trees and moving logs, and were also commonly used as executioners to [[crushing by elephant|crush the condemned underfoot]]. [[Image:Elephantcamp.jpg|thumb|Elephant work camp in Thailand. Elephants are used for heavy forest work and in circus presentations]] [[Image:IRHT 126277-p.jpg|thumb|right|The [[Judea]]n rebel [[Eleazar Maccabeus]] kills a [[Seleucid]] war elephant and is crushed under it (Miniature from a manuscript ''[[Speculum Humanae Salvationis]]). ]] Elephants have also been used as mounts for safari-type [[hunting]], especially Indian ''shikar'' (mainly on tigers), and as ceremonial mounts for royal and religious occasions, whilst Asian elephants have been used for [[transport]] and [[entertainment]], and are common to [[Circus (performing art)|circuses]] around the world. ====Zoos==== [[Image:Devi AsianElephant SanDiegoZoo 20071230 RockingBehaviour.gif|framed|right|Devi (''little princess''), a 30-year-old Asian Elephant raised in captivity at the San Diego Zoo exhibiting "rocking behavior", a rhythmic and repetitive swaying which is unreported in free ranging wild elephants. Thought to be symptomatic of stress disorders, rocking behavior may be a precursor to aggressive behavior in captive elephants.<ref>http://www.helpelephantsinzoos.com/topeka_zoo.html</ref><ref>http://72.14.253.104/search?q=cache:zy-rTMG8dRgJ:www.elephantvoices.org/tools/documents/Poole_bullhooks_boston_jan2007.pdf+elephant+rocking+behavior&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=2&gl=us&client=firefox-a</ref><ref>http://72.14.253.104/search?q=cache:kdYDBPzWaXwJ:www.elephantvoices.org/tools/documents/Statement_regarding_Arna_March_2002.pdf+elephant+rocking+behavior&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=1&gl=us&client=firefox-a</ref><ref>http://www.elephants.com/media/yahoo_11_18_05.htm</ref>]] Elephants are also commonly exhibited in [[zoos]] and [[wild animal parks]]. ====Criticism==== There is growing resistance<ref>{{cite web | url = http://elephanttrust.org/search/node/elephants+capture+training | title = Resistance against capture and training of wild elephants | publisher = [http://elephanttrust.org/ Amboseli Trust for Elephants] | accessdate = 2007-12-01}}</ref> against the capture, confinement, and use of wild elephants. Animal rights advocates allege that elephants in zoos "suffer a life of chronic physical ailments, social deprivation, emotional starvation, and premature death".<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.savewildelephants.com/ | title = SaveWildElephants.com | publisher = [[People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals|PETA]] | accessdate = 2007-06-16}}</ref> However, zoos argue that standards for treatment of elephants are extremely high and that minimum requirements for such things as minimum space requirements, enclosure design, nutrition, reproduction, enrichment and veterinary care are set to ensure the wellbeing of elephants in captivity. ===Elephants in culture=== For more details on this topic, see [[Cultural depictions of elephants]]. The elephant has been an icon for humanity for thousands of years, appearing in cultures across Europe, Asia, Africa and the Americas. There are references of elephant throughout popular culture, religion, philosophy, politics and secular symbolism. Popular culture * For example, the expression [[white elephant]] refers to an expensive burden, particularly to a situation in which much has been invested with false expectations. The phrase 'white elephant sale' was sometimes used in Australia as a synonym for [[jumble sale]]. [[Jumbo]], a [[Circus (performing art)|circus]] elephant, has entered the English language as a synonym for "large". Religion and philosophy * The scattered skulls of prehistoric pygmy elephants on [[Crete]], featuring a single large [[nasal cavity]] at the front, may have formed the basis of belief in existence of [[cyclops]], the one-eyed [[giant (mythology)|giants]] featured in [[Homer]]'s [[Odyssey]]. * A [[White elephant (pachyderm)|white elephant]] is considered holy in [[Thailand]]. * [[Ganesh]], the [[Hindu]] god of wisdom, has an elephant's head. * Elephants are used in festivals in [[Sri Lanka]], such as the [[Esala Perahera]]. Politics and secular symbolism *After Alexander's victory over the Indian king [[Porus]], the captured [[war elephants]] became a symbol of imperial power, used as an emblem of the [[Seleucid]] [[diadoch]] empire, e.g. on coins. *The elephant, and the [[white elephant]] (also a religious symbol of [[Gautama Buddha|Buddha]]) in particular, has often been used as a symbol of royal power and prestige in Asia; occurring on the flag of the kingdom Laos (three visible, supporting an umbrella, another symbol of royal power) till it became a republic in 1975, and other Indochinese and Thai realms had also displayed one or more white elephants. [[Image:Thrippunithura-Elephant-end-of-pooram-2 crop.jpg|thumb|left|Caparisoned elephants during ''[[Sree Poornathrayesa temple]]'' festival [[Thrippunithura]] in [[Kerala]], [[south India]].]] ===Elephant rage===<!--This section is linked to from [[Elephant rage]]--> Despite its popularity in zoos, and cuddly portrayal as gentle giants in fiction, Elephants are among the world's most potentially dangerous animals. They are capable of crushing and killing any other land animal, even the [[rhinoceros]]. They can experience unexpected bouts of rage, and can be vindictive.<ref name="huggler">{{cite web | url = http://www.truthout.org/cgi-bin/artman/exec/view.cgi/65/23108 | title = Animal Behaviour: Rogue Elephants | last = Huggler | first = Justin | publisher = The Independent | date = [[2006-10-12]] | accessdate = 2007-06-16}}</ref> In Africa, groups of young teenage elephants attack human villages in what is thought to be revenge for the destruction of their society by massive cullings done in the 1970s and 80s.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2006/02/16/1140064206413.html | title = Elephant rage: they never forgive, either | first = Roger | last = Highfield | publisher = [[Sydney Morning Herald]]| date = 2006-02-17 | accessdate = 2007-06-16}}</ref> In India, male elephants attack villages at night, destroying homes and killing people on a regular basis. In the Indian state of Jharkhand, 300 people were killed by elephants between 2000 and 2004, and in Assam, 239 people have been killed by elephants since 2001.<ref name="huggler"/> In [[India]] alone there are up to 200 elephant-caused human deaths every year, and in Sri Lanka around 50 per year. ====Musth==== {{main|Musth}} Adult male elephants naturally enter the periodic state called ''[[musth]]'' (Hindi for madness), sometimes spelt "must" in English. It is characterised by very excited and/or aggressive behavior and a thick, tar-like liquid secretion that discharges through the temporal ducts from the [[temporal bone|temporal]] glands on the sides of the head. Musth is linked to sexual arousal or establishing dominance, but this relationship is far from clear. Numerous cases of elephant goring and killing of rhinoceroses in national parks in Africa have been documented and attributed to musth in young male elephants, especially those growing in the absence of older males. Studies show that reintroducing older males into the population seem to have the effect of preventing younger males from entering musth, and therefore, stopping their aggressive behavior.<ref> [http://www.iucn.org/themes/ssc/sgs/afesg/pachy/pdfs/pachy31.pdf#page=17 "Killing of black and white rhinoceroses by African elephants in Hluhluwe-Umfolozi Park, South Africa"] by Rob Slotow, Dave Balfour, and Owen Howison. ''Pachyderm'' 31 (July-December, 2001):14-20. Accessed [[2007-09-14]].</ref> <ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/08/magazine/08elephant.html?pagewanted=1&ei=5070&en=ccc63627f454863c&ex=1167282000 | title = An Elephant Crackup? | last = Siebert | first = Charles | publisher = New York Times Magazine | date = [[2006-10-08]] | accessdate = 2007-06-16}}</ref> A musth elephant, wild or domesticated, is extremely dangerous to humans. Domesticated elephants in India are traditionally tied to a tree and denied food and water for several days, after which the musth passes. In [[zoos]], musth is often the cause of fatal accidents to elephant keepers. Zoos keeping adult male elephants need extremely secure enclosures, which greatly complicates the attempts to [[captive breeding|breed elephants]] in zoos. Musth is accompanied by a significant rise in [[reproductive hormone]]s. [[Testosterone]] levels in an elephant in musth can be as much as 60 times greater than in the same elephant at other times. However, whether this hormonal surge is the sole cause of musth, or merely a contributing factor is unknown: scientific investigation of musth is greatly hindered by the fact that even the most otherwise placid of elephants may actively try to kill any and all humans. Similarly, the tar-like secretion remains largely uncharacterised, due to the difficulties of collecting a sample for analysis. Although it has often been speculated that musth is linked to [[Rut (mammalian reproduction)|rut]], this is unlikely, because the female elephant's [[estrus]] cycle is not seasonally-linked. Furthermore, bulls in musth have often been known to attack female elephants, regardless of whether or not the females are in heat. The Hindi word "musth" is from the [[Urdu]] ''mast'', which in turn is from a [[Persian language|Persian]] root meaning "intoxicated". The [[Five (channel)|Channel 5]] [[United Kingdom|British]] [[television program]] "The Dark Side of Elephants" ([[March 20]] [[2006]]) stated that during musth: * The swelling of the temporal glands presses on the elephant's [[eye]]s and causes the elephant severe pain comparable to severe [[root abscess]] [[toothache]]. One elephant behaviour that tries to counteract this is digging the tusks into the ground. * The musth secretion, which naturally runs down into the elephant's mouth, is full of [[ketone]]s and [[aldehyde]]s and (to a human at least) tastes unbelievably foul. * As a result, musth behaviour is at least partly due to the elephant being driven mad by pain and distress. ====Other causes==== <!-- Commented out because image was deleted: [[Image:Steve Hirano.jpg|thumb|[[Steve Hirano]] tries to hold [[Tyke the elephant]] behind a gate during a rampage.]] --> At least a few elephants have been suspected to be drunk during their attacks. In December 1998, a herd of elephants overran a village in India. Although locals reported that nearby elephants had recently been observed drinking beer which rendered them "unpredictable", officials considered it the least likely explanation for the attack.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/241781.stm | title = India elephant rampage | publisher = [[BBC News]] | date = [[1998-12-24]] | accessdate = 2007-06-16}}</ref> An attack on another Indian village occurred in October 1999, and again locals believed the reason was drunkenness, but the theory was not widely accepted.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/482001.stm | title = Drunken elephants trample village | publisher = [[BBC News]] | date = [[1999-10-21]] | accessdate = 2007-06-16}}</ref> Purportedly drunk elephants raided yet another Indian village again on December 2002, killing six people, which led to killing of about 200 elephants by locals.<ref>{{ cite web | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/2583891.stm | title = Drunk elephants kill six people | publisher = [[BBC News]] | date = [[2002-12-17]] | accessdate = 2007-06-16}}</ref> Elephants have used their powers of deduction to "hijack" trucks carrying sugarcane.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/12/08/1070732147207.html | title = Elephants hijack sugarcane trucks | publisher = [[Sydney Morning Herald]] | date = [[2003-12-09]] | accessdate = 2007-06-16}}</ref> ==Predators, parasites and diseases== Other than [[human]]s, adult elephants have no predators. On one occasion during a drought, lions were videotaped successfully attacking a baby elephant and attempting to attack a full grown female elephant. Both attacks occurred at night.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.metacafe.com/watch/53090/elephant_vs_7_lions/?itemID=53090&referrerID= | title = Lions attack Elephant | publisher = National Geographic | accessdate = 2007-06-16 | format = Video}}</ref> Elephants have a variety of both ecto-parasites and endo-parasites, including the highly specialized flies of the genus ''[[Cobboldia]]''. ==Family classification== ''See [[Elephant classification]]'' == See also == {{portalpar|Mammals}} <div style="-moz-column-count:3; column-count:3"> * [[Crushing by elephant]] * [[Dwarf elephant]] * [[Ability to swim#Elephants|Elephant's ability to swim]] * [[Elephant's graveyard]] * [[Elephant in the room]] * [[Elephant sanctuary]] * [[Elephants in Kerala culture]] * [[Hammerskjoeld Simwinga]] -- environmentalist * [[History of elephants in Europe]] * [[Mûmak]] * [[Temple elephant]] * [[War elephant]] * [[White elephant]] * [[Year of the Elephant]] </div> ==References== <!-- Article is inconsistent with Elephans, Palaeoloxodon etc pages. See also Biol. Lett.2:451 doi:10.1098/rsbl.2006.0467 but see also BiolLett3:55,57,60. First and last papers have digital appendices. --> {{reflist|2}} {{refbegin}} *[[s:The Blindmen and the Elephant|Wikisource: "The Blindmen and the Elephant"]] by [[John Godfrey Saxe]] *{{MSW3 Shoshani|pages=90-91}} *[http://blogs.nationalgeographic.com/channel/blog/2005/05/elephant_rage.html External link to national geographics elephant rage episode of Explorer] *Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 26 (2003) 421–434 {{refend}} ==External links== {{wikiquote}} {{sisterlinks|Elephant}} {{Wikibookspar|Dichotomous Key|Proboscidea}} <!-- ==============================({{NoMoreLinks}})============================== --> <!-- DO NOT ADD MORE LINKS TO THIS ARTICLE. WIKIPEDIA IS NOT A COLLECTION OF LINKS --> <!-- If you think that your link might be useful, instead of placing it here, put --> <!-- it on this article's discussion page first. Links that have not been verified --> <!-- WILL BE DELETED --> <!-- ============================================================================= --> * C. Johnson, [http://www.abc.net.au/science/news/stories/s24742.htm "Elephant trunks were once snorkels"], ''News in Science'' 1999-05-11, *[http://www.awf.org/wildlives/71 Elephant: Wildlife summary from the African Wildlife Foundation] *[http://www.eleaid.com/ EleAid - Elephant facts, info and pictures from Asian elephant charity] *[http://www.elephant.se Elephant Encyclopedia] *[http://www.sanparks.org/parks/kruger/elephants/about/faq.php Sanparks - South African National Parks official website] *[http://www.elephantvoices.org How elephants communicate] *[http://www.elephant-news.com Elephant News - latest headlines about elephants] *[http://fsweb.berry.edu/academic/hass/jhickman/george.html Photo of Pinnewella Elephant Orphanage in Sri Lanka] *[http://seekmybowl.com/elephant.php Seek My Bowl on elephants as symbols] *[http://www.elephantreintroduction.org Elephant Reintroduction Foundation] *[http://elephanttrust.org/ Amboseli Trust for Elephants] - interactive web site *[http://www.seaworld.org/animal-info/animal-bytes/animalia/eumetazoa/coelomates/deuterostomes/chordata/craniata/mammalia/proboscidea/african-elephant.htm#ec Animal info] *[http://www.uen.org/utahlink/activities/view_activity.cgi?activity_id=3819 List of easy-to-read articles about elephants] *[http://www.atmajyoti.org/vi_temple_elephants_medium.asp Temple Elephants in India] – A short video in Quicktime format. *[http://iucn.org/afesg/aed/ African Elephant Database] – For current info on African elephant distribution and numbers. *[http://goplett.co.za/wiki/index.php/ Elephant Sanctuary Plettenberg Bay South Africa] *[http://www.elephants.com/ Elephant Sanctuary, Howenwald, Tenn.] *[http://www.elephantkingdom.com/ Elephant Nature Park, Northern Thailand] **[http://www.elephantvolunteer.org Park's Volunteer Site] *[http://www.upali.ch/musth_en.html A musth FAQ] *[http://www.ianandwendy.com/OtherTrips/BotswanaNamibia/Botswana/index.htm| Short Videos] {{Proboscidea}} [[Category:Elephants| ]] [[Category:Famous elephants]] [[Category:Fictional elephants]] [[Category:Tool-using species]] {{Link FA|kn}} {{Link FA|ml}} [[af:Olifant]] [[am:ዝሆን]] [[ang:Elpend]] [[ar:فيل]] [[ast:Elefante]] [[bn:হাতি]] [[zh-min-nan:Chhiūⁿ]] [[bs:Slon]] [[bg:Слонове]] [[ca:Elefant]] [[cs:Slon]] [[cy:Eliffant]] [[da:Elefant]] [[de:Elefanten]] [[el:Ελέφαντας]] [[es:Elephantidae]] [[eo:Elefanto]] [[fa:فیل]] [[fo:Fílur]] [[fr:Éléphant]] [[fy:Oaljefanten]] [[gd:Oilbheint]] [[gl:Elefante]] [[gan:象]] [[hak:Siong]] [[ko:코끼리]] [[hi:हाथी]] [[hr:Slonovi]] [[io:Elefanto]] [[id:Gajah]] [[ia:Elephante]] [[zu:Indlovu]] [[is:Fíll]] [[it:Elephantidae]] [[he:פיליים]] [[jv:Gajah]] [[kn:ಆನೆ]] [[ka:სპილოსებრნი]] [[sw:Ndovu]] [[ht:Elefan]] [[ku:Fîl]] [[la:Elephantidae]] [[lv:Ziloņu dzimta]] [[lb:Elefanten]] [[lt:Straubliniai]] [[li:Olifante]] [[ln:Nzɔku]] [[hu:Elefántfélék]] [[mk:Слон]] [[ml:ആന]] [[ms:Gajah]] [[nl:Olifanten]] [[ja:ゾウ]] [[no:Elefanter]] [[nrm:Êléphant]] [[oc:Elephantidae]] [[nds:Elefant]] [[pl:Słoniowate]] [[pt:Elefante]] [[ro:Elefant (animal)]] [[qu:Elephanti]] [[ru:Слоновые]] [[st:Tlou]] [[sq:Elefanti]] [[simple:Elephant]] [[sk:Slonovité]] [[sl:Sloni]] [[fi:Norsut]] [[sv:Elefanter]] [[tl:Elepante]] [[ta:யானை]] [[te:ఏనుగు]] [[th:ช้าง]] [[vi:Voi]] [[ve:Nḓou]] [[tr:Fil]] [[uk:Слонові]] [[ur:ہاتھی]] [[yi:העלפאנד]] [[zh:象]]