Indian Elephant also known as Elephas maximus indicus. According to wildlife (Protection) act, 1972, Schedule – I, Classified as Endangered (EN) by the IUCN.
Common Name – Indian elephant,
Local Name – Elephant / Hathi,
Zoological Name – Elephas maximus indicus,
Phylum – Chordata
Class – Mammalia
Order – Proboscidea
Family – Elephantidae
Genus – Elephas
About Indian Elephant
· On average, males are about 2.75 m (9.0 ft) tall while females are smaller at about 2.4 m (7.9 ft). Both males and females can live up to 60-70 year Male elephants are called bulls and females are called cows. A baby elephant is called a calf.
- Females become sexually mature when they are around 15 years of age. Gestation period 18 to 22 months. And the calf feeds on its mother for up to 3 years
· Males sexually mature between the ages of 9 and 13 years. When males reach 20 years old they start coming into ‘musth’, an extreme state of arousal when levels of testosterone in the blood may increase 20 times. This state lasts about three weeks and during this time the individual will become aggressive and wander widely in search of females.
- · Skin of elephant 2.5 cm thick. Elephant tusks are enlarged Incisor teeth made of ivory. In the African elephant, both the male and the female possess tusks, whereas in the Asian elephant it is mainly the male that has tusks. They have poor eyesight with a range of only 25 ft. An elephant’s tail can be as long as 1.3m use them as a fly swat against insects.
· Elephants defecate between 16 and 18 times a day and can produce up to 220 pounds of dung in a day Elephants defecate between 16 and 18 times a day and can produce up to 220 pounds of dung in a day.
HERD OR PARADE of elephants is led by a grand matriarch or the oldest and usually, the largest female in the herd, which can go from a group of eight to nearly a hundred relatives. Males lead separate lives, roaming with other males or living a solitary existence.
Distribution of the Indian Elephant
Indian elephant found throughout southeast Asia, including countries such as Bangladesh, Bhutan, Burma, Cambodia, China, Malaysia, Nepal, Pakistan, Thailand, and Vietnam.
In India, the species is now restricted to four general areas: northeastern India, central India, northwestern India, and southern India.
1. In northeastern India, the elephant range extends from the eastern border of Nepal in northern West Bengal through western Assam along the Himalaya foothills as far as the Mishmi Hills. From here it extends into eastern Arunachal Pradesh, the plains of upper Assam, and the foothills of Nagaland. Further west, it extends to the Garo Hills of Meghalaya through the Khasi Hills, to parts of the lower Brahmaputra plains and Karbi Plateau. Elsewhere in the south in Tripura, Mizoram, Manipur, and the Barak valley districts of Assam.
2. In central India, highly fragmented elephant populations are found in the States of Orissa, Jharkhand, and the southern part of West Bengal, with some animals wandering into Chattisgarh.
3. In north-western India, the species occurs in six fragmented populations at the foot of the Himalayas in Uttaranchal and Uttar Pradesh, ranging from Katerniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary in Bahraich Forest Division in the east, to the Yamuna River in the west.
4. In southern India, elephants occur in the hilly terrain of the Western Ghats and in parts of the Eastern Ghats in the states of Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and, relatively recently, Andhra Pradesh.
Habitat: Grassland, tropical evergreen forest, semi-evergreen forest, moist deciduous forest, dry deciduous forested and dry thorn forest, in addition to cultivated and secondary forests and scrublands and mountainous regions.
Diet: They are herbivorous they can consume up to 330 lb (150 kg) of plant material each day. They eat grass, bark, roots and leaves and also like crops such as banana. They also need to drink up to 160 liters of water every day, and their trunk can take in 5-10 liters in one suck
Importance in culture
Elephants are important in Indian mythology too. Lord Ganesha one of the most popular Indian deities and the Lord of Wisdom - bears an elephant head. The elephant head symbolizes great intellect and wisdom. The God of Gods Indra is believed to have a white elephant named Airavata as his vehicle.
Threat
Poaching is very serious threat. Elephants are poached for ivory, which is much in demand for artifacts, jewellery and ‘hankos’, which are personal seals used by the ‘privileged’ in Japan.
Elephant safari in India
Elephant safari in India where you can watch and take the ride of these magnificent animal
· Kanha National Park
· Bandipur National Park
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