Elephants

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The elephants (Elephantidae) are a family from the order of proboscis. The family constitutes the largest terrestrial animals currently living and also includes the only representatives of the order group still living today. Three recent species are distinguished: the African elephant, which inhabits the largely open landscapes of sub-Saharan Africa, the forest elephant, which is also native to Africa but is largely confined to tropical rainforests, and the Asian elephant, which is found in southern and southeastern Asia and uses a variety of landscape areas. All elephants are characterized by their trunk, a muscular organ that emerged from the adhesion of the nose to the upper lip, and by their tusks formed from the upper incisors. Further striking features can be found in the massive physique with columnar legs and the gray, little haired skin.

Elephants are social animals that live in family groups of female individuals and their offspring. They roam more or less large action spaces in search of food. The size of the action spaces and the extent of migratory movements depend on local conditions such as the landscape area used and the resulting food supply. Male animals, on the other hand, either live alone or form in bachelor groups. Communication between each other, both within and between the different family groups, takes place in several ways. These include odours conveyed via faeces, urine and glandular secretions, touch contacts with the prosthesis, various body gestures and a rich vocalization, in which variable rumbling sounds in the low frequency range are to be highlighted.

The elephants' diet is based on plants that are ingested with the proboscis. As a rule, the animals use both hard components such as grasses and softer ones such as leaves and twigs. The exact composition is determined by the seasonal availability of the individual plants. Adult male animals enter the musth once a year, a phase that lasts several months and is characterized by a massive increase in hormones. As a result, there is not only a constant secretion, but also an increased aggressiveness towards sexual partners. The mustth is part of the reproductive behavior. The sexual cycle of the female animals is extremely long and is also marked by striking hormone increases. After a gestation period of almost two years, usually a single young animal is born, which grows up in the family group. Young female animals remain here after sexual maturity, young male animals then leave.

The tribal history of elephants dates back to the end of the Miocene around 7 million years ago. It started in Africa and