What are the living habits of elephants? A comprehensive guide in one article

We all know that elephants have long trunks and sharp tusks, but aside from these, do you know their other characteristics and living habits? Below, the editor gives a detailed introduction.

1. Characteristics of elephants

Their main external features are a flexible and muscular long trunk, fan-like large ears and sharp tusks; the trunk has a coiling function and is a powerful tool for elephants' self-defense and feeding.

The Asian elephant has a shoulder height of 3.7 to 4.1 m. Its weight is 3 to 5 tons. The African elephant has a shoulder height of 4.3 to 4.5 m and a weight of 5.5 to 8 tons. The African forest elephant has an average shoulder height of no more than 2.7 m and a weight of 3.5 tons. Elephants have large heads, ears as big as fans, and thick limbs like pillars to support their huge bodies. Their knee joints cannot bend and stretch freely. The trunk is almost as long as the body, is cylindrical, and can extend and bend freely; the entire trunk is made up of muscle, with the nostril opening at the end, and finger-like protrusions at the tip of the trunk that can pick up objects. The trunk is extremely flexible and can pick up objects weighing up to 1 ton, and can also pick up food as small as a peanut.

2. Living habits of elephants

Elephants mainly inhabit tropical grassland and savanna regions. They are the largest living land-dwelling social mammals in the world, led by a female elephant. They feed on plants such as tender leaves, wild fruits, wild grasses, wild vegetables and tender bamboo, and their food intake is enormous, with a daily intake of more than 250 kg. Their lifespan is about 80 years.

Ivory has long been used as a precious carving material and is expensive, so elephants have been massively and indiscriminately hunted, and their numbers have dropped sharply. They have been listed as an endangered wild animal and plant species, so everyone should not kill elephants for profit.