Home > Animal Guides > Mammals > Asian Elephant
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Asian Elephant
Elephas maximus
| Also Known As: | Asiatic Elephant
Indian elephant |
Conservation Status: Endangered
Size: Males are larger than females; measurements from head to tail are between 7 and as long as 12 feet, weighing between 6 thousand and even as much as 11 000 pounds.
Range: S to SE Asia.
Habitat: Elephants live in forest areas, hills, mountain terrains, jungles, grassy areas.
Diet: Herbivorous; plants; grass, leaves and bark from trees. The elephant also drinks between 21 to 50 gallons of water in a single day.
Breeding: Year round; 1 calf born every 3 to 4 years. Calves gestate for 18 to 22 months and weigh between 200-220 pounds when born.
Warnings: Rogue elephants and females with young may charge or attack!
Description & Behavior
The Asian Elephant has a large, bulky body; color varies from light to dark grey to grayish brown with patches of black hairs and a tuft of black hair at the end of their slender tail. The Asian elephant has a sharp bone hump on the top of its back that also has long black hairs. The Asian elephant has small ears and one long powerful trunk that can be up to 5 feet long and have one finger like protrusion at its end. Tusks in the male only, though females might have stubs only seen when she opens her mouth. The Asian elephant has 4 toes on each foot.
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