African elephant

African elephants are large, social animals that belong to the genus Loxodonta. There are two living species: the African bush elephant (L. africana) and the smaller African forest elephant (L. cyclotis). Both species eat plants and have grey skin, but they look different in size and shape of their tusks, ears, and skulls.

Both species are in danger of disappearing. As of 2021, the bush elephant is considered endangered, and the forest elephant is considered critically endangered. They face threats from losing their homes and from being hurt for the illegal ivory trade in some countries.

The name Loxodonta comes from the special shape of their molar teeth. Scientists have found old bones and teeth of these elephants in Africa from around 7–6 million years ago, showing that they have lived there for a very long time.

Etymology

The name Loxodonta comes from Ancient Greek words. "Loxós" means "slanting" or "crosswise," and "odoús" means "tooth." This name refers to the special shape of the molars, or chewing teeth, of African elephants. Their molars have a diamond-like shape, which is different from the rounded shape found in Asian elephants.

Taxonomy and evolution

The African elephant was first described by scientists in 1797. Later, in 1825, another scientist suggested a new name for these elephants. In 1900, a different scientist described a special group of elephants from Cameroon, noting that their skulls looked different from other African elephants. Over time, these were recognized as a separate type called the forest elephant.

Scientists have also found fossils of extinct elephant types that lived long ago in places like Egypt, Algeria, Tanzania, Kenya, and South Africa. These ancient elephants are different from the ones alive today. Studies of DNA show that the African bush elephant and the African forest elephant began to separate from each other around 2.6 to 5.6 million years ago. Even though these two types sometimes mixed in the past, they mostly stayed separate.

Description

An African bush elephant skeleton

African elephants have thick, grey skin covered with short hair. Their large ears help cool their bodies by flapping in the air. They also have a special trunk made from their nose and upper lip, which they use for many things like smelling, touching, and drinking.

Both male and female African elephants have tusks that grow from their teeth. These tusks are used for digging for food, stripping bark from trees, and defending themselves. They can be very heavy and long, and keep growing throughout the elephant's life. African elephants also have strong molars that they replace several times during their lives. The African bush elephant is the largest land animal, much bigger than the smaller African forest elephant.

Distribution and habitat

African elephants live in Sub-Saharan Africa. They can be found in many different places, such as Sahelian scrubland, arid areas, tropical rainforests, and mopane and miombo woodlands. The smaller African forest elephants live only in Central and West Africa.

Behavior and ecology

Both African elephant species live in family units with several adult females, their daughters, and younger sons. Each family is led by an older female called the matriarch. Forest elephant groups are less tight-knit than bush elephant groups, likely because they have fewer natural threats.

When family units come together, they form larger groups. After males grow up, they often form close bonds with other males. Females are usually the most active members of elephant groups, but both males and females can recognize hundreds of different low-frequency calls to talk to and find each other.

Elephants can make sounds that humans cannot hear, using them to communicate over long distances. Their mating rituals include gently wrapping their trunks together.

Female bush elephants in Tanzania

Males were once thought to live alone after growing up. However, new research shows that they keep important knowledge for the herd, helping everyone find food and water. This also helps younger males. Males only join the herd to mate or socialize; they do not help raise the young, but they do act like fathers to younger males to show strength.

African elephants move around a lot but are not strictly staying in one place. Their home ranges can be from several hundred to several thousand square kilometers, depending on what they need and where they live. Herds follow paths that connect safe areas and other good places to live, which helps elephants travel between areas with food and water. Other things, like who is in charge and the weather, also affect where groups go.

African elephants eat many kinds of plants, and what they eat changes with the seasons and where they are. They like to eat leaves, grasses, bark, and fruits. In dry times, they eat more woody plants when grasses are scarce. In forests, they pick plants that give them the most energy and nutrients.

While eating, elephants use their trunks to grab leaves and their tusks to pull branches, which can damage trees. The food they eat is processed in a special part of their stomach, allowing them to digest even tough plant parts like stems, bark, and roots.

Scratching on a tree helps to remove layers of dead skin and parasites

Elephants help plants grow by spreading seeds. They eat fruits and the seeds pass through their system, coming out in their dung. This helps the seeds grow because the dung gives them nutrients. Elephants can spread seeds far and wide, helping many different plant species thrive.

African elephants shape the places where they live. By eating and moving through forests, they can change woodlands into grasslands, creating homes for other animals. They also spread seeds, especially in forests, by eating fruits and moving the seeds far away. In dry areas, they dig for water, making holes that other animals can use during dry times.

Elephants talk in many ways, using sounds, touching, and smells. One special way they talk is with low-frequency sounds that can travel far through the air and ground. They show care for each other, helping hurt members and staying close as a group.

African elephants are very smart. They have large brains, similar to human brains, and can do many complex things. They show feelings like grief, learn new things, copy others, and use tools. They work together, help each other, and remember a lot. These skills show that elephants are among the smartest animals in the world.

African elephants are most able to have babies between the ages of 25 and 45. After a pregnancy of 22 months, a calf is born. The mother and other young females in the group help care for the new baby. Females can start having babies around 10 to 12 years old.

After males grow up, they go through a stage called musth, which means they feel more aggressive and active. This helps show other males that they are strong. Females look for males in musth to mate with, and they call out to attract them from far away. Males compete to mate with females, and the females choose which males to allow close to them. Older, bigger males usually win these contests and have more babies. Most mating happens with males over 35 who are in musth. Studies show that age and musth are very important for males to have success in having babies.

Threats

African elephants face serious dangers from losing their homes and from people taking their tusks illegally. Both types of elephants—the larger bush elephant and the smaller forest elephant—are in danger because of these threats.

In the past, there were many more elephants in Africa, but their numbers have gone down a lot. This happened because their homes were destroyed and because people took their tusks for profit. Even today, elephants must deal with people building fences, roads, and farms that block their paths and make it hard for them to find food and space. Sometimes, elephants come close to farms and homes, which can cause problems for both people and elephants. Scientists are finding ways to help keep elephants safe, like using sounds to scare them away from farms.

Conservation

In 1986, the African Elephant Database was started to track the numbers of African elephants. It uses information from flying over areas, counting animal waste, talking to local people, and looking at data about hunting.

In 1989, a special agreement called CITES added African elephants to a list of protected animals. This stopped countries from trading elephant parts across borders. Some countries like the Central African Republic and Democratic Republic of Congo also stopped hunting elephants. After this rule began in 1990, the sale of ivory carvings dropped a lot in South Africa. Because of these efforts, elephant numbers went up in Southern African countries.

Efforts to help elephants also include working on problems between people and elephants. In 2005, 12 West African countries agreed to work together to protect elephants. Rules were made to stop sending wild elephants to zoos around the world, except in very special cases.

Conservation work for elephants now focuses on helping them move between different areas and making sure they have space to live. This includes planning better land use and working with local communities to support these efforts.

In culture

Many African cultures see elephants as symbols of strength and power. Elephants are admired for their size, long lives, stamina, smart minds, teamwork, and loyalty. In many places, elephants have special meaning in religion, often connected to family and ancestors. Some societies believed their leaders would come back as elephants. In Nigeria, leaders were buried with elephant tusks a long time ago.

South Africa shows elephant tusks on its coat of arms to stand for wisdom, strength, balance, and forever. In the past, the Kingdom of Dahomey, now Benin, linked elephants to their kings. The elephant stood for strength and remembering important leaders. Their flag even showed an elephant wearing a crown.