- Posted on 02 Apr 2013 9:34 am
Elephants without a shred of doubt are intelligent creatures on earth, having lured thousand of folks for ages. Although from the size it appears treacherous, they are always pleasant with the people. There would be very few people in the world that haven’t come within reach of the big and endearing elephants. They are generally allied with astuteness. Those who have been appreciating their talent and wisdom must have seen them in assorted characters, be it elephant fair of Jaipur where this mammoth creature participate in the parade, taking part in beauty contests and some fortunate ones get to play Holi with elephants while riding. Further, Elephant safari, one of the highly loved safaris, is relished by each traveler on wildlife trip.
Elephant – the word has Greek and Latin origination, where in the former it is symbolized as “ivory” while in the latter it is typified as “arch” as well as “huge”. Their structure might be huge, but these creatures are cute and do not have rivals.
There are some extraordinary facts about elephants that you might not know:
1.Sorts of elephants
Only two types of elephant species African Savanna Elephant (Laxodonta Africana) and Asian elephant (Elephus Maximus) were known till 2010. But the DNA testing has disclosed that they are three different species and that is African forest elephant (Laxodonta Cyclotis).
Four types of African elephant
– The Indian Elephant(Elephas Maximus Indicus)
– Sri lankan Elephant(Elephas Maximus Maximus)
– Sumatran Elephant (Elephas Maximus Sumatrensis)
– Borbeo Pygmy Elephant(Elephas Maimus Borneenis)
2. African Elephants are the largest organisms on earth, with a shoulder height between 2.5 m to 4 m. The trunk, which is generally assumed as a nose, is actually extended upper lip and the nose. Whilst Asian Elephants varies from 2 m to 3 m height at shoulder and have been found active during crack of dawn and twilight.
3. A female elephant gets pregnant for around 22 months, which is considered as the longest pregnancy compared to any other creature. When an infant elephant is born, carries a weight of nearly 91 kilograms and a height 1 m.
4. An elephant can sniff water 5 km away, and use trunk as a tube to breathe undersea.
5. Elephants have weak eyesight and thus can’t see the far off things at a range of 30 ft. Their small eyes, arrangement of the neck and head could be the reason of having poor vision.
6. As elephants grow old, some of their body parts start to look pink, mostly at trunk area.
7. The most unique feature of elephant is its trunk, which holds about 100,000 diverse muscles, which are 8 ft long. The trunk acts as a sensory appendage, helpful in breathing, drinking, smelling, trumpeting and communicating with the others.
8. The skin of the elephant is deeply ridged and sensitive in regardless of being named pachyderms. It is vulnerable to pain from insect bites and bugs residing within its skin. To avoid any irritation, elephant normally makes use of its trunk to wash the body.
9. One must have heard numerous stories of diverse elephant species, but might not know about Jumbo, a largest mammal on earth. Hailed by the name of Jumbo means ”huge”. The name is believed to be inspired from Swahili word. Had been taken to a French zoo in 1861 and soon after transmitted to a British zoo, Jumbo’s porter would let him drink intermittently a liter of whisky which he deemed was excellent for his strength. After hitting by a train his health started getting worse and within weeks he died.
Some other amazing facts about elephants
– An elephant can eat up to 16 hours a day
– The only creature that can’t jump
– Poops a lot, almost 80 pounds in a day
– Have the capacity to drink 60-70 gallons of water
– Carry on for almost 70 years
– Tusk and tail of elephant is used as a bludgeon
Elephants are the most admired creatures in the world and have always won the reverence and fondness in the eyes of thousands of folks. But not to ignore the fact that the population of elephants has been going down for hundred years. Hence, it is required by people to come forward and raise their voice against the poaching. Because killing the gifted animal is not the right way out.
