Overview
In general, Asian elephants are smaller than African elephants and have the highest body point on the head. The back is convex or level. The ears are small with dorsal borders folded laterally. It has up to 20 pairs of ribs and 34 caudal vertebrae. The feet have more nail-like structures than those of African elephants—five on each forefoot, and four on each hind foot.
Taxonomy
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Mammal
- Family
- Elephantidae
- Genus
- Elephas
- Species
- Elephas maximus
Habitat
This elephant inhabits varied forests and grasslands across its traditional range, as well as certain mountainous areas. Distribution- India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Myanmar, Thailand, Malay Peninsular, Laos, China, Cambodia, and Vietnam.
Diet
Both grazes and browses, based on seasonal availability, consuming more browse and tree bark during the dry season.
Behavior
Much of this species' behavior is similar to the African counterpart, though the Asian species is considered to have slightly less structed social groups.
Hunting
Asian elephants are not currently hunted legally anywhere. Poaching for tusks is not as much of a threat to Asian Elephants, though they are still hunted for their meat, hides, and tusks. Also, many are removed from the wild for the purposes of domestication and tourism.
Conservation Status
Listed as Endangered by IUCN with an overall declining population. Listed as Cites Appendix 1.