Facts
Kingdom Animalia
Phylum Chordata
Class Mammalia
Order Proboscidea
Family Elephantidae
Genus Elephas
Size Males: 5.4 tonnes
Females: 2.7 tonnes
Head-body length: 5.5 - 6.4 m
Shoulder height: 2.5 - 3 m
Classified as Endangered (EN - A1cd) on the IUCN Red List 2002 , and listed on Appendix I of CITES .
Asian elephants are smaller than their African savannah relatives (Loxodonta africana) and have many other physical features that distinguish them. The ears are smaller and the back is more rounded so that the crown of the head is the highest point of the body . One of the characteristic features of an elephant are the modified incisor teeth which are known as tusks, however, only some male Asian elephants have tusks, whilst females (cows) have 'tushes' instead, that are seldom visible . Elephants support their stocky body on stout, pillar-like legs, and the nose and upper lip are joined and elongated into a trunk . The trunk provides a wide variety of functions from feeding, vocalisation, bathing and fighting; those of the Asian elephant have only a single finger-like process on the base, whilst the African elephant has two . The thick, wrinkly skin covering the body is a greyish-brown colour and very dry .
Range
This species once roamed through much of the Asian Continent south of the Himalayas, extending into China and south to the islands of Sumatra and Borneo . Three subspecies are currently recognised; in Sri Lanka (Elephas maximus maximus), Sumatra (E. m. sumatranus) and on the mainland of Asia (E. m. indicus) . Some scientists also place the Bornean elephant as a separate subspecies (E. m. borneensis)
Habitat
Asian elephants inhabit scrub forest, preferring areas that combine grass with low woody plants and trees .
Biology
Elephants are highly intelligent and long-lived animals; Asian elephants may live as long as 70 years . They are extremely sociable and occur in groups of related females, led by the oldest female known as the 'matriarch'. Groups of Asian elephants average 6 - 7 individuals, and will occasionally join with other groups to form herds; although these are more transient than those of African savanna elephants . Males leave their natal group when then reach sexual maturity at around 6 to 7 years of age, after which time they are predominantly solitary . When males reach 20 years old they start coming into 'musth', an extreme state of arousal when levels of testosterone in the blood may increase 20 times. This state lasts about 3 weeks and during this time the individual will become aggressive and wander widely in search of females . Musth may cause males to fight for access to females and also increases their attractiveness to females. Cows only reach sexual maturity at 10 years of age (6), and the interval between births may be as long as 4 years owing to the long gestation time and infant dependency. The single calf may suckle from other females in the group as well as their own mother.
Elephants use their dextrous trunk to pluck at grasses and pass them into their mouths; the average daily intake of food is 150 kg of vegetation a day. Grasses make up the mainstay of the Asian elephant's diet but scrub and bark are also eaten, and calves may eat their mothers dung to obtain nutrients. Where elephants occur near plantations they will readily feed on banana or rice crops. Asian elephants have had a close relationship with man over the centuries; they are still used to clear timber particularly in some of the more inaccessible forests of the continent, and play an important role in the religious and cultural history of the region.
2007-03-09 22:52:01
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answer #1
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answered by BARROWMAN 6
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The Asian or Asiatic Elephant (Elephas maximus), sometimes known by the name of its nominate subspecies (the Indian Elephant), is one of the three living species of elephant, and the only living species of the genus Elephas. The species is found primarily in large parts of India, Sri Lanka, Indochina peninsula and parts of Indonesia
2007-03-09 22:51:47
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answer #2
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answered by Leah 4
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The Asian or Asiatic Elephant (Elephas maximus), each so often frequently happening via the call of its nominate subspecies (the Indian Elephant), is between the three residing species of elephant, and the only residing species of the genus Elephas. The species is discovered particularly in super areas of India, Sri Lanka, Indochina peninsula and areas of Indonesia. that's smaller than its African kinfolk, and the simplest thank you to tell apart the two is the smaller ears of the Asian Elephant. The Asian Elephant has a tendency to enhance to around 2 to 4 meters (7–12 toes) in top and 3,000–5,000 kilograms (6,500–11,000 pounds) in weight. The Asian Elephant has different transformations from its African kinfolk, which contain a extra arched lower back than the African, one semi-prehensile "finger" on the top of its trunk as antagonistic to 2, 4 nails on each and each hind foot as a replace of three, and 19 pairs of ribs as a replace of 21. additionally, in contrast to lady African elephants, the feminine Asian Elephant usually lacks tusks. Asian elephants with tusks are often slightly seen and are referred to as "tushes", that are viewed while the girls open their mouths. The brow has 2 hemispherical bulges in contrast to the flat front of the African. some adult males could additionally lack tusks and that they are termed as makhnas. The inhabitants in Sri Lanka has a miles better sort of makhnas. This animal is critically domesticated, and has been used in forestry in South and Southeast Asia for hundreds of years and likewise for use in ceremonial applications. historic sources element out they have been each so often used for the period of the harvest season particularly for milling. Wild elephants charm to vacationer money to the climate the place they could maximum with out issues be viewed, yet harm vegetation and could enter villages to raid gardens.
2016-12-18 19:18:01
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answer #3
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answered by keinonen 4
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I don't know but i know wot a gluteus maximus is..
2007-03-09 22:49:03
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answer #4
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answered by Anonymous
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