Classroom visuals
Film info
Film summary
The lives of Asian and African elephants, from what they eat, to where they live, and what's threatening them.Key facts
- There are two main species of elephant - African and Asian.
- African elephants are Earth's largest land mammals.
- An elephant can eat 136 kilograms of food a day.
- An elephant's trunk is a complex tool used for breathing, smelling, communication and drinking.
Transcript
Elephants are one of the world's most iconic animals.
There are two main elephant species – African and Asian.
African Elephants
African elephants are Earth's largest land mammals, found across the African continent.
Asian Elephants
The Asian elephant is smaller than its African cousin, and can be found across Asia, from southern India to Borneo.
Behaviour
In the wild both species of elephant cover vast distances, foraging for food such as grass, roots and bark.
An elephant can eat 136kg of food a day
Female elephants, or cows, live in herds with their young, led by one matriarch – the oldest female of the group. But adult males, or bulls, roam alone.
Trunk
An elephant's trunk is a complex tool used for breathing, smelling, communication, drinking, and feeding.
An elephant's trunk has 100,000 muscles
Tusks
Tusks are used as a weapon against predators and in battle with other elephants.
Males use them to attract a mate.
And tusks are also useful for digging up food and stripping bark from trees.
Hearing
Elephants have large ears, but these are not only for hearing; they radiate heat to keep the elephant cool.
And amazingly, elephants also hear with their feet, by picking up vibrations made by other elephants through the ground.
Unfortunately, elephants are illegally hunted for their tusks, and particularly in Asia are suffering from habitat loss as more and more land is cleared for agriculture.
But huge conservation efforts are being made to protect these giants and ensure their survival.
