15 Interesting Facts About Elephants

 Here are 15 amazing facts about the world's largest land mammal.

1. 1: There are two types of elephants: African and Asian. You can tell them apart by their ears. African elephants' ears are shaped like the African continent, while Asian elephants' ears are shaped like the Indian subcontinent. There is also a difference in trunks: African elephants have two “fingers” at the end of the trunk, while Asian elephants have one.
2. 2: Males on average reach 3 m in height and weigh up to 6 tons. They reach their maximum size only at 35-40 years of age.
3. 3: There are about 150,000 muscles in an elephant's trunk. This is the most sensitive organ in elephants. With its help, they can pick up peanuts, peel them and eat the shelled nut. The trunk is also necessary for sucking up water. It is noteworthy that it can hold up to 8 liters of water. Elephants also use their trunks as snorkels when swimming.
4. 4: Elephant tusks are enlarged incisors. They first appear at the age of two and continue to grow throughout life. They are used for obtaining food - tearing bark from trees or digging up roots - or as protection during battle.
5. 5: Elephant skin is 2.5 cm thick in most places.
6. 6:The folds and wrinkles in elephant skin hold up to 10 times more water than smooth skin. This anatomical feature helps elephants cool down on hot days.
7. 7: To cleanse their skin and protect it from sunburn, elephants regularly take mud and dust baths.
8. 8: Elephants need up to 150 kg of food per day, although half of the food eaten may leave the body undigested. These huge mammals eat so much that they sometimes spend up to three-quarters of their day eating.
9. 9:Elephants communicate in many ways: sounds, body language, touch and smell. They can also communicate using seismic signals - sounds created by the vibration of the earth.
10. 10: The female carries the cub for an average of 21 months.
11. 11: Surprisingly, baby elephants stand on their feet 20 minutes after birth and begin to walk within an hour after birth. At birth, baby elephants weigh almost 120 kg!
12. 12: The elephant's temporal lobe (the area of ​​the brain associated with memory) is larger and denser than that of humans. Hence the saying “elephants never forget.”
13. 13: These are one of the most sociable animals in the world. They cannot live without communication with their relatives; loneliness for them is a slow death.
14. 14: Wild individuals can live up to 60-70 years, in favorable conditions - up to 80 years.
15. 15: About 90% of African elephants were exterminated in the last century due to the ivory trade. As a result, there are approximately 415,000 wild elephants left in Africa today. Asian elephants are also endangered, with their numbers declining by at least 50% over the past three generations. There are only about 45,000 left in the wild.