What is the average weight of an elephant

The average weight of an elephant depends on its species. We know that the African elephant is the largest and that the males tend to be bigger than the females. The Asian elephant is slightly smaller than the African elephant. Their gestation period is almost two full years 22 months. The mother is responsible for teaching the calves what the appropriate behavior, as well as survival skills, is. Researchers say that the bond between a mother and a calf is exceptionally deep.

Moreover, they are also seen as an extension of their social habits — to nurture and to take pleasure in bonding. In fact, baby elephants enjoy holding the tails of their mothers. That said, weaning takes place in a very subtle sense at the end of the first year. Then some solid foods and vegetation will get introduced to their diet. This varies — some wean fully by three years while others wean even earlier when a new sibling arrives. How many tons is an elephant at birth?

A baby elephant weighs an enormous kg 0. They will consume roughly Much like humans, elephants are born with an under-developed brain. The underdeveloped brain of the newborn elephant makes it dependent on its mother, again, much like humans. The trunk is probably the most distinguishing feature of an elephant; it can hold up to 12 liters of water at one time.

The elephant uses its trunk for smelling , drinking water , breathing underwater , and picking or foraging for food. They also use their trunks as a hand — gripping and holding items with them. An elephant trunk is not complete at birth. Elephants are born with short trunks in proportion to the rest of the body which gradually extend. This dexterity is thanks to over 40 elephant trunk muscles that make the trunk fully functional.

Considering the human body only contains a total of muscles, this is seriously impressive! Elephant tusks are usually very heavy. Just how heavy is an elephant tusk?

So heavy that you will struggle to even lift them off the ground. Male adult African elephant tusks typically weigh between 50 and 79 kg. The heaviest tusk ever weighed was Tusks usually first emerge when an elephant is around two years old. They actually start as large incisor teeth which curve upwards and continue to grow. They serve a number of important functions for elephants: they can assert their dominance, lift and move heavy items like bushes and small trees, and even comfort their young ones.

Cellulose is the compound that makes up the cell walls in the plants that elephants eat. One of their favorite foods, perhaps considered a delicacy by elephants, is a thorn bush called an acacia tree.

It has small green leaves, beautiful flowers and a yellowish trunk, yet its sizeable thorns are the most distinguishing characteristic. African elephants are able to consume an entire acacia tree — everything — from the delicate leaves to the trunk, the thorns, and even the roots.

Tusks are used as a tool for digging, gathering food, and defending themselves. Elephant tusks are highly prized in the ivory trade, resulting in illegal elephant poaching. IFAW is working in Asia and Africa to reduce market supply and consumer demand for elephant ivory, where the demand is highest. Learn how you can help protect elephants. While elephants may be startled by mice or other rodents, elephants are no more afraid of mice than other animals that might quickly scurry by.

IFAW works tirelessly to help all types of animals, including elephants. Team Lioness is transforming what it means to be a woman ranger protecting African elephants and other wildlife from poachers at the border of Tanzania and Kenya.

Read about their innovative work to save these animals. The problems we face are urgent, complicated, and resistant to change. Real solutions demand creativity, hard work, and involvement from people like you. Unfortunately, the browser you use is outdated and does not allow you to display the site correctly.

Please install any of the modern browsers, for example:. Skip to main content. Where do elephants come from? How much does an elephant weigh? Are elephants really the largest living land animal? What is the smallest species of elephant? Females' tusks weigh approximately 40 pounds each. African elephants are famous for their very large ears. Considered to be shaped much like the continent of Africa itself, the large surface area of their ears helps to keep them cool in the blazing hot African sun.

Indian Elephant Facts Whilst we love and support our elephants here on the African continent, their brothers and sister in Asia also deserve our recognition. Asian or Indian elephants look different to our African species, but effectively are still the same gentle giants loved the world over. Indian elephants tend to be smaller in stature than African elephants and have adapted to live in the lush, wet and humid conditions of tropical Asia.

The shape of their heads and the size of their ears also makes Asian elephants easy to identify. African elephants have fuller, more rounded heads. The top of the head is a single dome, whereas Asian elephants have a twin-domed head with an indent in the middle. The lower lips of the two species also differ, being long and tapered in Asian elephants and short and round in African elephants. All African elephants have tusks, whereas only some male Asian elephants have tusks, with females not having them at all.

It is said that African elephants have ears shaped like a map of Africa, whilst Asian elephants have smaller ears shaped like a map of India. Whilst this may or may not be exactly the case, Asian elephants do have smaller ears as they do not rely on bigger ears to shade them from the hot African sun.

Asian Elephants Under Threat Whilst our African elephants are most at risk from poaches and the Ivory trade in general, the greatest threat to Asian elephants is the potential loss of habitat as forests are cleared to make way for dams, tea and coffee plantations, roads, and railway lines.

Frequently asked questions Where do elephants come from? There are three species of elephants in the world, and where each one can be found depends on the species. In Africa, there are two species of elephant. The loxodonta africana African elephant lives in the African Savannah and in the Sahel desert in Mali.

This is the biggest species of elephant in the world. The slightly smaller loxodonta cyclotis African elephant lives in the rainforests of Central and West Africa. The elephas maixmus species of elephant Asian elephant can be found in Nepal, India and Southeast Asia in scrub forests and rain forests. How many elephants are there in Africa and why are African elephants endangered? There are now only an estimated , African elephants left in the wild. Less than a third of that number are now left.

African Forest Elephants living in the forests of the Basin are at the greatest risk from the threat of poachers than any other species and their numbers continue to steadily decline. Moreover, humans are responsible for huge habit loss of African elephants. As the human population in Africa increases, more and more land is converted to agriculture. A smaller habit has meant that elephants and humans are coming into contact with one another more than they did historically, and this is causing conflict.

This can lead to both humans and elephants being killed in the conflict. How much does the average elephant weigh? African elephants are the largest land animals in the world today. The average African elephant will weigh between 5, to 14, lbs. However, the largest African elephant ever recorded was found in Angola, rocking in at a massive 24, lb 11, kg. Asian elephants tend to be a smaller than their African counterparts, weighing between 4, to 11, Ibs 2, to 5, kg. How tall is an elephant?

Asian elephants are smaller and tend to reach a shoulder height of between 6. What do African elephants eat? How much does an elephant eat a day? Elephants are gigantic animals and this means that they need to find an eat an awful lot of food. African elephants can eat as much as Ibs kg of food a day. What is elephant dung and how much does elephant poop weigh? In fact, because of this, some animals like monkeys and dung beetles actually eat elephant dung! Our elephant friends can deposit upwards of kg of dung daily!

How do elephants have sex? Female elephants are generally ready to become a mum at around years old. A male can tell when a female is ready to mate from the chemical signs she leaves in her urine and faeces. Rumour has it that elephants mate for life. How do elephants give birth? Like other mammals, female elephants give birth to fairly developed babies via her birth canal. An elephant pregnancy lasts around 22 months, meaning that new born baby elephants are not small!

A baby elephant is called a calf and can weigh between and lbs and stand about 3 feet 1 m tall. How many babies do elephants have? Typically, elephants only give birth to one calf at a time, although twins do sometimes occur. In her lifetime elephants can live for up to 70 years in the wild! Not as many as babies you might think?

How many teeth do elephants have? Elephants usually have 26 teeth at any one time.