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MY TOP 10 1.)pallpion 2.)penguin 3.)spider monkey 4.)shrimp 5.)kodo 6.)marlyn 7.)cap baffalo 8.) farot 9.)striped bass 10.)stergon

http://nationalzoo.si.edu/Animals/AsianElephants/elephantkids.cfm http://www.indianchild.com/elephants1.htm http://elephant.elehost.com/index.html http://nationalzoo.si.edu/Animals/AsianElephants/elephantfacts.cfm

Body Functions The tusks are actually upper incisors, not canines. They are the only incisors the elephant has Tusks are used for digging, ripping of bark, foraging, resting a heavy trunk, and as weapons In human terms the trunk represents the nose and upper lip with the two nostrils running through its full length Elephants use their trunks to rub an itchy eye or scratch its ear. Trunks are also used to threaten, and to throw objects An elephant drinks by filling its trunk with water and then pouring the water into its mouth Elephants can use their trunks as a snorkel when swimming in water The trunk is an exploratory organ in which much of what the elephant experiences comes from the trunk They poop 80 pounds in one day The African elephant has ears that average at least three time the size of the Asian elephant Ears are used as signaling organs in the African elephant Ears are used to regulate body temperature Ears are used as a protective feature in the African elephant to ward off potential threats Each elephant's ear is unique and is used as a a type of fingerprint for identification The skin of the elephant is not very thick, except around the back and sides The skin is marked with ridged creases resembling warty outgrowths, which is abundant on the trunk and forehead There seems to be an absence of sweat glands in the elephant The natural skin colour is greyish black, but the apparent colour is determined by the soil of the land (this is caused by the elephant throwing mud over its back Elephants are considered to be hairless The fetus is covered with lanugo (a felt of long downy hair) but most of it is shed before birth The hair on the tail may reach a length of up to 100 cm The elephant has small sensory hairs on its trunk The elephant´s foot is formed in such a way that it is essentially walking on tiptoe, with a tough and fatty part of connective tissue for the sole This spongy "shock absorber" helps an elephant to move silently The sole of the foot is ridged and pitted; this contributes to the sure- footedness of the elephant for a large variety of terrain An elephants five toes are buried inside the flesh of the foot Not all toes have toenails The circumference of the forefoot is approximately equal to half the the shoulder height the elephant brain is smaller than the human brain The brain of the elephant is larger than any other land mammal and it is located in the back of the skull well away from the forehead Elephants are born with 35% of the mass of the adult brain The elephant is among the more intelligent animals The brain weight of the bull African elephant is 4.2-5.4 kg The brain weight of the cow African elephant is 3.6-4.3 kgThe brain weight of the cow African elephant is 3.6-4.3 kg Brain development in elephants is similar to that of humans The Asian and African elephants show a great variation between their skull structures skull between sexes in the African elephant Being the largest land animal, the elephants skeleton must support a tremendous amount of weight The neck of the African elephant is almost horizontal whereas in the Asian elephant, it is held at approximately 45o. Elephants normally have 20 ribs forming an enormous barrel-shaped cage Both sexes have tusks, and they are also larger in size as compared to male and female Asian elephants The largest African elephant recorded weighed over nine tons and stood more than twelve feet high at the shoulder. As in Asian elephants, the female African elephant is generally half the size of a fully grown male Life Cycle The BABY life-cycle describes the physical appearance of the new-born calf and its dependency on others in the herd for survival After being in the mother's womb for about 22 months (the longest gestation period in mammals), the calves have a great deal to learn The earliest calves are born about two months before the rains appear with fresh growth Interestingly, the interval between births is between two and a half to four years which gives time for the current new-born to learn the ropes of being an elephant; this includes figuring out how to use their trunks to eat, drink and wash as well as many more tasks to become somewhat self sufficient
 * 1) There is a great difference in the shape of the

The life-cycles of an elephant can give key insights into their physical and intellectual processes.

The life-cycles of the elephant have been arbitrarily broken up into three main divisions. These divisions are based on the multitude of experiences and changes that occur in the different phases of development in the life of an elephant. The ADULT life-cycle briefly describes the great similarities between the adult elephant and the adult human, such as age-related illnesses A Baby!The BABY life-cycle describes the physical appearance of the new-born calf and its dependency on others in the herd for survival. After being in the mother's womb for about 22 months (the longest gestation period in mammals), the calves have a great deal to learn. The earliest calves are born about two months before the rains appear with fresh growth. Interestingly, the interval between births is between two and a half to four years which gives time for the current new-born to learn the ropes of being an elephant; this includes figuring out how to use their trunks to eat, drink and wash as well as many more tasks to become somewhat self sufficient.

The ADOLESCENT life-cycle briefly describes the sexual maturity that is achieved, as well as the phenomenon of herds being broken up and formed

Body Functions The tusks are actually upper incisors, not canines. They are the only incisors the elephant has Tusks are used for digging, ripping of bark, foraging, resting a heavy trunk, and as weapons In human terms the trunk represents the nose and upper lip with the two nostrils running through its full length Elephants use their trunks to rub an itchy eye or scratch its ear. Trunks are also used to threaten, and to throw objects An elephant drinks by filling its trunk with water and then pouring the water into its mouth Elephants can use their trunks as a snorkel when swimming in water The trunk is an exploratory organ in which much of what the elephant experiences comes from the trunk They poop 80 pounds in one day The African elephant has ears that average at least three time the size of the Asian elephant Ears are used as signaling organs in the African elephant Ears are used to regulate body temperature Ears are used as a protective feature in the African elephant to ward off potential threats Each elephant's ear is unique and is used as a a type of fingerprint for identification The skin of the elephant is not very thick, except around the back and sides The skin is marked with ridged creases resembling warty outgrowths, which is abundant on the trunk and forehead There seems to be an absence of sweat glands in the elephant The natural skin colour is greyish black, but the apparent colour is determined by the soil of the land (this is caused by the elephant throwing mud over its back Elephants are considered to be hairless The fetus is covered with lanugo (a felt of long downy hair) but most of it is shed before birth The hair on the tail may reach a length of up to 100 cm The elephant has small sensory hairs on its trunk The elephant´s foot is formed in such a way that it is essentially walking on tiptoe, with a tough and fatty part of connective tissue for the sole This spongy "shock absorber" helps an elephant to move silently The sole of the foot is ridged and pitted; this contributes to the sure- footedness of the elephant for a large variety of terrain An elephants five toes are buried inside the flesh of the foot Not all toes have toenails The circumference of the forefoot is approximately equal to half the the shoulder height the elephant brain is smaller than the human brain The brain of the elephant is larger than any other land mammal and it is located in the back of the skull well away from the forehead Elephants are born with 35% of the mass of the adult brain The elephant is among the more intelligent animals The brain weight of the bull African elephant is 4.2-5.4 kg The brain weight of the cow African elephant is 3.6-4.3 kgThe brain weight of the cow African elephant is 3.6-4.3 kg Brain development in elephants is similar to that of humans The Asian and African elephants show a great variation between their skull structures skull between sexes in the African elephant Being the largest land animal, the elephants skeleton must support a tremendous amount of weight The neck of the African elephant is almost horizontal whereas in the Asian elephant, it is held at approximately 45o. Elephants normally have 20 ribs forming an enormous barrel-shaped cage Both sexes have tusks, and they are also larger in size as compared to male and female Asian elephants The largest African elephant recorded weighed over nine tons and stood more than twelve feet high at the shoulder. As in Asian elephants, the female African elephant is generally half the size of a fully grown male Habitat Asian elephants live in large blocks of forest near water sources and grasslands, habitat that has been greatly reduced in the last half century. They inhabit India, Sri Lanka, Myanmar (Burma), Indonesia, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos, Malaysia, Nepal, Bangladesh, and southern China The African elephant, Loxodonta Africana Problems Please don't ever buy Ivory. Save an elephant and make your money work for them not against them. If you travel to exotic places or even to a shopping mall near you, never buy anything that looks like ivory as it probably is. Make your voice count and say "NO" to ivory. Relationships An elephant family is ruled by a matriarch (older female), and generally consist of her female offspring and their young In Africa, a basic family unit consists of six to twelve animals, but families of twelve to twenty elephants are quite common An elephant family will split depending on the size of the family, the amount of available food, and how well they are getting along. When the matriarch dies, one of the oldest offspring takes her place Asian elephants grow up to 21 feet long, stand up to 10 feet tall, and weigh up to 11,000 pounds. Females reach around eight and a half feet tall and weigh less than males. Despite their size, elephants are able to walk silently Growth & Changes The world's largest living land mammals are best known for their huge size, unique body parts, social behavior, and longevity Two African elephant species are recognized: the larger and more widespread savanna elephant (L. africana), pictured here, and the forest elephant (L. cyclotis), which is smaller, has downward-pointed tusks, and smaller, rounder ears Some genetic evidence suggests there may be a third species, the west African elephant, intermediate to these two The animals' trunks, unique among living mammals, are versatile, enabling elephants to manipulate tiny objects or tear down huge tree limbs Wide, padded feet enable elephants to walk quietly Large, flappable ears help these huge animals to cool off, although elephants often must retreat to the shade or water during the hottest part of the day Male African elephants of the savanna species grow up to 25 feet long, stand up to 11 feet tall and weigh up to 14,000 pounds. Males are usually larger than females African elephants live in many parts of sub-Saharan Africa, although their range is now broken into patches Small numbers of forest elephants live in dense equatorial forests of Central Africa from Zaire west to Mauritania, while savanna elephants are far more widespread in drier woodlands and savannas Savanna elephants are now most common in Kenya, Tanzania, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, and South Africa. The suspected third species lives in both savanna and forest in west Africa African elephants are listed as endangered on the World Conservation Union's Red List of Threatened Animals African elephants live wherever they can find enough food and water with minimal disturbance from people Most of the continent's elephants live on savannas and in dry woodlands In some regions, they occur in desert areas; in others, they are found in mountains. In Congo and other equatorial countries, forest elephants live in dense tropical rainforest A dexterous trunk and large, rasping molars allow African elephants to gather and process a wide variety of vegetation During the rainy season, savanna elephants usually seek out grasses and herbs. During other times of year, they frequent forests, especially those by streams, where they also eat leaves, fruit, and bark from a variety of plants. Elephants supplement the sodium in their food by visiting mineral licks
 * 1) There is a great difference in the shape of the