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The African Elephant
The African Elephant is the largest of the three species of elephant. It lives in various habitats from hot deserts to high rainforests in Africa.
This species of elephant can be easily recognized by the shape of its ears which are shaped like Africa itself and bigger than the Asian elephant’s ears. This big creature can be from 4-5 m long with a tail of 1-1.5 m and weigh from 4-7 tonnes. It is a social creature and lives in herds. The leader of the herd is usually the oldest female. She is called the matriarch and all the females and babies follow her. A young male will stay with them until he is about 15 years old, then he will go off to find a female for a companion. If a female is in gestation, it will usually last 22 months and the calf will weigh up to a heavy 120kg. This species can usually live up to be as old as 70 years! This elephant species is endangered because of habitat loss, predators, such as the lion, hunting them and hunting by man for their tusks for ivory such as piano keys.
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