Asian Elephant
Sofia Garcia
Professor John Buck
English 100
Asian Elephant
13 March 2013
Asian Elephant Asian elephants live in South and South East Asia in rainforest and woodland areas and migrate to avoid the monsoon season. Asian elephants are herbivores and can consume 330 pounds of food per day and drink up to 30 gallons of water. Asian elephants are social creatures and are born into female herds where the eldest female also known as the matriarch is the leader. Female elephants in the herd share the responsibility of raising the calves and are known to adopt orphan elephants if the mother dies. While female elephants stay with the herd from the time they are born until they die, the males leave when they reach adolescence at approximately age sixteen. The adolescent Asian elephants leave the herd to join male herds of the same age and only return to the female herd during mating season and at times during feeding. At the age of ten the female elephant is able to give birth to a single calf at a time and the gestation period is approximately twenty-two months. Asian elephants live up to seventy years, measure up to ten feet, and weigh up to five and a half tons. As the biggest mammals on land predatory animals minimally threaten the elephants, yet the Asian elephant is an endangered species. The World Wildlife Fund (WWF), a leading conservation organization estimates the Asian elephant population to be between “35,000 to 50,000” left in the wild. Asian Elephants are an endangered species because of poaching, habitat destruction, and elephant-human conflict.
One reason Asian elephants are an endangered species is because they are poached for the high black market value of their tusks. Asian male elephants tusks are considered of high quality and demand has driven the price of ivory up to $100.00 per pound making them a target for poachers. The ivory is known as white gold because it is more expensive than gold. An effect poaching has had on the Asian
Professor John Buck
English 100
Asian Elephant
13 March 2013
Asian Elephant Asian elephants live in South and South East Asia in rainforest and woodland areas and migrate to avoid the monsoon season. Asian elephants are herbivores and can consume 330 pounds of food per day and drink up to 30 gallons of water. Asian elephants are social creatures and are born into female herds where the eldest female also known as the matriarch is the leader. Female elephants in the herd share the responsibility of raising the calves and are known to adopt orphan elephants if the mother dies. While female elephants stay with the herd from the time they are born until they die, the males leave when they reach adolescence at approximately age sixteen. The adolescent Asian elephants leave the herd to join male herds of the same age and only return to the female herd during mating season and at times during feeding. At the age of ten the female elephant is able to give birth to a single calf at a time and the gestation period is approximately twenty-two months. Asian elephants live up to seventy years, measure up to ten feet, and weigh up to five and a half tons. As the biggest mammals on land predatory animals minimally threaten the elephants, yet the Asian elephant is an endangered species. The World Wildlife Fund (WWF), a leading conservation organization estimates the Asian elephant population to be between “35,000 to 50,000” left in the wild. Asian Elephants are an endangered species because of poaching, habitat destruction, and elephant-human conflict.
One reason Asian elephants are an endangered species is because they are poached for the high black market value of their tusks. Asian male elephants tusks are considered of high quality and demand has driven the price of ivory up to $100.00 per pound making them a target for poachers. The ivory is known as white gold because it is more expensive than gold. An effect poaching has had on the Asian
Cited: “Asian Elephant.” Wildlife Conservation Society. “N.p.” 2012. Web. 22 Feb. 2012. “Elephant Ivory Trade.” World Wildlife Fund. “N.p.” 2012. Web. 27 Feb. 2012.