Is an elephant a mammal?

The ancestors of elephants appeared on the earth tens of millions of years ago, and they were once one of the most dominant animal groups on earth, but there are fewer and fewer species of this group due to climate and man-made reasons. at present, there are only three kinds of elephants left on earth: Asian elephant, African prairie elephant and African forest elephant, and they are also under serious threat. let's take a look at whether elephants are mammals.

Is an elephant a mammal?

Elephants are mammals. The elephant is a gregarious mammal of the family Coleoptera. It is also the largest mammal on land. It usually moves in a family unit. Sometimes several elephants gather together to form hundreds of elephants. African elephants are led by females, and their daily activities, routes, foraging sites, and habitats are all under the command of females. Asian elephants, on the other hand, have adult males who bear the responsibility of protecting their families.

Where are elephants distributed?

There were 6 families of Coleoptera, of which 5 families were extinct, only 1 family, 2 genera and 3 species (Asian elephant genus and African elephant genus). The three species were Asian elephant, African elephant and African forest elephant respectively. Asian elephants were once widely distributed in the south of the Yangtze River and south-central Henan, South and Southeast Asia in China, but now they are mainly distributed in India, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam and other countries. There are also small wild populations in Xishuangbanna, Yunnan Province, China. African elephants are widely distributed in the whole African continent (except the Sahara Desert), and African forest elephants live in the forests of the central and western part of the continent.

What are the living habits of elephants?

1. Living in groups: elephants are gregarious animals, with the family as the unit, with the female as the leader. The time of daily activity, the route of action, the place of foraging, and the place of habitat are all under the command of the female elephant, while the adult male elephant is only responsible for protecting the safety of the family. Sometimes several elephant herds gather together and form hundreds of large groups.

2. Food: elephants are the largest mammals on land, feeding on young leaves, wild fruits, weeds, wild vegetables, tender bamboos and other plants. Although they are pure vegetarians, they are tall, veritable Hercules and giants in the land animal kingdom, and have long noses and tusks as weapons, so they do not have any natural enemies except humans in nature, and they cannot see things at night. So it's easy to be attacked by lions at night.

3. Reproduction: the African elephant, the largest living terrestrial mammal, is listed in the Convention on International Trade in Endangered species of Wild Fauna and Flora. The breeding period is not fixed. The gestation period is about 22 months. Each litter is sexually mature at the age of 13 to 14 years and has a lifespan of more than 60 years. The Asian elephant, a first-class protected animal in China, is listed in the Convention on International Trade in Endangered species of Wild Fauna and Flora. The breeding period is not fixed, with a gestation period of 20 to 22 months, with a sexual maturity of 9 to 12 years and a life span of 70 to 80 years.