Asian elephant Chinese alias: India elephant
Appearance: Asian elephants are only one, also known as India, located in the South and Southeast, the nose has a finger like protrusions, the female elephant ivory has not even hung as there are no half of ivory or ivory is very small, small ears, round, 5 foot before the toe, foot after the 4 toe, a total of 19 pairs of ribs (of which there were 20 Sumatran subspecies, but less than an African elephant), there are two processes skull, back arched. Gentle temperament, relatively easy to tame. The past can be subdivided into 4 subspecies: India, Ceylon, Malaysia like like like and Sumatran elephants.
Malaysia has an Asian elephant subspecies, a Dwarf Elephant, a smaller one. Namibia is a subspecies of the African elephant - like the desert, foot pads become larger, more adapted to water life, are very aware of water conservation, but also in the desert in search of water.
The Asian elephant is Asian mammals of the huge monster, Asian elephant body dark gray or brown, the surface scattered hairs. Adult male Asian elephant shoulders about 2.4-3.1 meters high, weighing about 2.7-5 tons, the female elephant body is slightly smaller. Like large ears, abundant blood to heat, the tail is not long, with a brush tip. Compared to the African elephant, the Asian elephant is smaller and has smaller ears and a flat forehead.
Extraoral prominent teeth come slightly upward, the largest ivory for 1.5 - 1.8 meters. Only male Asian elephants have ivory. Long thick hair, nose and upper lip is synthesis of cylindrical proboscis, two maxillary incisors large and long, is the so-called "ivory", in general each side has three premolars and three molars, eating high fiber foods, leaves, grass, and teeth are not long, wear the molar existing after new molar before long, so if the last one (sixth) molar at about 60 years later after wear, old as may die of malnutrition, if you continue feeding ground food, it is likely to continue to live.
The Asian elephant trunk is nose extension, top has a finger like projections are very sensitive and smart. The elephant trunk using breathing, smell and drink (water into the mouth and hold articles articles).
Distribution: in spite of the wide distribution of Asian elephants in history, they are now living in South and Southeast Asia. Abroad in Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brunei, Kampuchea, India, Laos, Malaysia, Burma, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam in the forest and near the plains and shrubs. Domestic distribution is the edge of its distribution area, has been recorded in the southern Xishuangbanna, Yunnan (Mengla, Jinghong), Jiangcheng; Southwest Ximeng Yunnan (Yue Song), Cangyuan (South rolling river) and Western Yingjiang Yunnan (Na Bangba).
Living environment: habitat in South Asia tropical rain forest, monsoon forest and forest valleys, hillsides, savanna, forest and broad areas. Often wandering in an altitude of 1000 meters below the valley, river, forest, broadleaf forest in. HI group, the number of each group head, dozens of head, in the forest after the walk often form a clear image of the road.
Living habits: Hi social life, the number of heads or dozens of heads per group, from an adult male elephant as a group leader with activities, no fixed residence, a wide range of activities. The staple food bamboo shoots, leaves, wild banana and tigergrass etc.. Elephants have a self defense and retaliation against the destruction of their living environment, their own kind and their dignity.
In the morning and evening and night, Asian elephants will go out foraging, they mainly eat grass, leaves, buds and bark. They will rest in a hot day. If you can find, Asian elephants also eat crops such as bananas and sugar cane. Water is essential to life in Asia, and will travel long distances to find water.
The elephant group is led by "the female parent", including the female elephant and its sister and the minor male. Elephant populations generally consist of 20 to 30, but not more than 100.
As the gross and less prone to skin diseases, so often need to do a bath or mud bath, elephantiasis thick, wrinkled, some wrinkle lines up ten centimeters, skin pale gray, because sometimes looks like a mud bath washing mud red brown, brown eyes and long eyelashes, a rare albino elephant, elephant eyes is blue.
Like herbivorous animal, there must be 16 hours a day to collect food. Their digestive system efficiency is not high, only 40% of the food can be absorbed, one day an adult like to eat into the 30 to 60 kilograms of food, but the 60% is excreted out.
Elephants in the normal daily to walk 3 to 6 kilometers to feed, but quickly run up to reach 36 kilometers per hour speed.
Protection level: Asian elephants are listed as endangered species by the International Union for conservation of nature (IUCN) in 1997, and are listed in Appendix I by CITES. People's Republic of China's first national protected animal.
Human occupation of land causes the loss of the Asian elephant habitat to become the biggest threat to the survival of the Asian elephants. Farmers will think it is harmful to animals and the killing of Asian elephants. Poaching is also a threat to ivory, but it is not as serious as the Asian elephants are threatened by poaching, as Asian elephants have only a male. But as the technology innovation, the traditional to captive Asian elephants use such as deforestation and fewer captive Asian elephants also useless, many original elephant keepers to take the elephant begging in the street. And some Asian elephants died of accidents, injuries, or abuse, or were unable to get adequate care.
Asian elephants are tame and smaller, and are easily domesticated.