Interesting facts about elephants. How long does an elephant live in nature

The elephant is the largest land mammal. To date, there are three species of these animals: Indian elephant, African savannah and African forest. The maximum recorded weight of an elephant is 12 240 kg, while the average weight of these animals is about 5 tonnes. And what other interesting facts about elephants do you know? Do you want to know more about these animals? Then read on.

How long does the elephant live?

The life span of an elephant is influenced by the conditions of its habitation. In natural conditions, animals constantly face dangers, in particular with drought and poachers, killing elephants for valuable tusks. Up to 8-10 years, small elephants can not protect themselves and in the event of a mother's death they are killed by predators. How long does an elephant live in nature? On average , the life span of an elephant is 60 to 70 years.

At the same time among the animals that live in captivity, long-livers are known. The oldest elephant named Lin Wang lived 86 years (1917-2003). He participated in the Second Sino-Japanese War, then in the construction of monuments, performed in the circus, but spent most of his life at the Taipei Zoo in Taiwan. Lin Wang was listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as an elephant who lived the longest in captivity.

How long does the elephant's pregnancy last?

Interestingly, an elephant is capable of conceiving only a few days a year, despite the fact that mating between animals can occur year round. The surprising fact is also how long the elephant's pregnancy lasts. On this basis, large mammals are the record holders among all animals on earth. Pregnancy of the female lasts 22 months, that is almost 2 years.

At the end of this period, a baby elephant appears on the light, which can hardly be called small. The weight of the baby elephant is 120 kg. Births usually go without complications. Babies are born blind and often suck their trunk like a man is a thumb. But no matter how strong an elephant is born, it is a rather helpless animal that needs protection from predators. Only at the age of 15 the animal becomes an adult and can create its own family.

How much does an elephant eat?

In natural habitats, the elephant's diet includes leaves and grass containing a high percentage of moisture. Depending on the season of drought and rain, it can also feed on bark and fruits of various trees and shrubs. Given the size of the animal, it's not at all surprising how much the elephant eats. And on this he spends up to 16 hours. Every day the animal eats from 45 to 450 kg of plant foods, on average - about 300 kg.

So many elephants eat in natural conditions. In captivity, their diet includes hay (30 kg), carrots (10 kg) and bread (5-10 kg). They can also be given grain and various mineral-vitamin complexes that make up for the shortage of nutrients. Elephants drink about 100-300 liters per day. If the animal begins to drink more, as a rule, it indicates a disease. With tuberculosis, the elephant can drink up to 600 liters of water a day.

Trunk, tusks and ears

What is known about the elephant's trunk? Let's present some interesting facts about this body:

• The trunk is part of the nose of the elephant, but does not have a nasal bone;
• The long and flexible trunk consists of 150,000 different muscles that it controls;
• With the help of the trunk, the elephant can suck up to 8 liters of water in 1 time, then send it to the mouth;
• Elephant trunk animals are used only for water recruitment, but do not drink to them (if they tried to drink through it, it would cause the same cough reflex as in humans);
• With the help of a trunk an elephant can lift up to 350 tons of food;
• The length of the trunk is about 150 cm;
• Thanks to the elephant's trunk, deep rivers can easily swim - this organ serves as a built-in oxygen tube, the tip of which they hold over the water, while their body is completely submerged in the river.

For digging and lifting weights elephants use not only a trunk, but also tusks. The length of tusks in African elephants can reach 2.5 m, and weight - 100 kg. During sleep, the old elephant lays its tusks on branches of trees or shrubs, captures them in the apertures of the lattice or rest against the wall.

One ear of an elephant weighs 85 kg. This part of their body is an excellent thermoregulator. When the air temperature reaches 40 ° C and the animal is hot, he actively wag his ears, like propellers. In the rain and with a strong wind, the elephant, on the contrary, tightly presses the ears to the head.

Are elephants afraid of mice?

The assertion that elephants are afraid of mice, appeared in ancient times thanks to the Roman philosopher Pliny the Elder. In one of his works he wrote that elephants are more afraid of mice and rats than other animals.

Modern scientists completely refuted the discovery of their "colleague". Their research has proved that an elephant and a mouse could quite live next door, if not for one "but". The fact is that the elephant, like a slow animal, irritates any sharp movements in his direction. Even if you just run a dog or crawl quickly, it will make him worry. If an elephant shows a mouse sitting peacefully on his hand, he will not react to it, and if it crawls into the trunk, then the elephant will simply be shaken out by a sharp movement.

Thus, scientists have proved that the statement that elephants are afraid of mice is just a myth.

Smart animals

Elephants have self-consciousness and distinguish their reflection in the mirror, as well as dolphins and some kinds of monkeys. Animals are among the smartest on earth.

Interesting facts about elephants, confirming their high level of intelligence:

• Their brain weighs 5 kg, which is more than other animals.
• Elephants are able to express any emotions, including joy, grief, compassion. This animal can save a trapped dog even at the cost of its life.
• The elephant possesses unique abilities for learning, it repeats commands of people and reproduces them.
• For communication, elephants use 470 stable signals. With the help of ultrasound, they warn each other about the dangers.
• Elephants observe the burial rites. They kill a deceased member of the herd, falling asleep with stones, after which they sit for several days in a place expressing sorrow.

A few more interesting facts about elephants

This is not all the features of life of elephants, which you can surprise. Below we present some interesting facts about elephants:

• The elephant's sense of smell is 4 times stronger than that of the bloodhound, thanks to a million receptor cells located in the upper cavity of the animal's nose.
• But the sight of elephants is not so sharp. They can see the object only at a distance of 20-25 m. In ancient times hunters sat on the back of a tamed elephant and penetrated into the middle of the herd, looking for the victim.
• The heart of an elephant weighs 20 kg and beats at a speed of 30 beats per minute.
• Changing teeth for elephants occurs 6-7 times for life.
• Among the elephants are right-handed and left-handed. This is determined by the tusks, which the animal prefers to work with.
• Elephants sleep an average of 2-3 hours a day, and the main time is spent in search of food and eating it.