John Crossingham & Bobbie KalmanCrabtree Publishing Company

www.crabtreebooks.com

The Science of Living Things SeriesA Bobbie Kalman Book

Editor-in-ChiefBobbie Kalman

Writing teamJohn CrossinghamBobbie Kalman

EditorNiki WalkerAmanda BishopKathryn Smithyman

Cover DesignKymberley McKee Murphy

Computer designMargaret Amy Salter

Production coordinatorHeather Fitzpatrick

Photo researcherHeather Fitzpatrick

ConsultantPatricia Loesche, Ph.D., Animal Behavior Program,Department of Psychology, University of Washington

IllustrationsBarbara Bedell: pages 7 (bottom), 10Bonno Rouse: page 6, 7 (right, left, and center), 11, 20, 21, 25, 28

PhotographsFrank S. Balthis: pages 10, 21, 23 (bottom), 30Wolfgang Kaehler: pages 14, 15 (bottom), 19 (top), 25, 28,29 (bottom)

Robert McCaw: page 19 (bottom)Tom Stack & Associates: Barbara Gerlach: page 24 (top);Thomas Kitchin: pages 29 (top)Spencer Swagner: page 20

Michael P. Turco: page 23 (top)Other images by Adobe Image Library, Digital Stock,and Digital Vision

(Dedicated by John Crossingham)For Candis Steenbergen,

the strongest, toughest, rarest, most noble animal I know

Crabtree Publishing Companywww.crabtreebooks.com 1-800-387-7650Copyright © 2012 CRABTREE PUBLISHING COMPANY.All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced,stored in a retrieval system or be transmitted in any form or by anymeans, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise,without the prior written permission of Crabtree Publishing Company.In Canada: We acknowledge the financial support of the Governmentof Canada through the Canada Book Fund for our publishing activities.Due to rights restrictions and copyright protection, contents in thisebook may vary from the published original.

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The Library of Congress has cataloged the printed edition as follows:Crossingham, JohnWhat is an elephantp. cm. -- (The science of living things)Includes index.

Describes the physical char acterisics, behavior, life cycle, and looks at thedangers facing elephants today.ISBN 0-86505-989-6 (RLB) -- ISBN 0-86505-966-7(pbk.)

EISBN 0-77878-995-01. Elephants--Juvenile literature. [1.Elephants.] I. Kalman, Bobbie.II.

Title. III. Series. QL737.P98 C76 2002599.67—dc21

2001047103

ContentsElephants 4

Elephant family tree 6

An elephant’s body 8

Tusks and teeth 10

The trunk 12

Food and water 14

Communication 16

Social life 18

On the road 20

Mating 22

Baby elephants 24

African elephants 26

Asian elephants 28

In danger 30

Glossary & Index 32

4

Elephants are the largest and heaviest land animals on Earth. They are mammals. Like othermammals, they are warm-blooded,which means that their bodytemperature stays the same in hot orcold surroundings. Male elephantsare called bulls, and females arecalled cows. Cows give birth to livebabies called calves. Their bodiesmake milk for the calves to drink.

Gentle giantsElephants are among the strongestanimals on the planet. Despite their size and strength, they aregentle, intelligent, and affectionate.They rarely fight, even when they are defending themselves againstenemies. Instead, elephants charge at their attackers and often turn away at the last moment. Elephantslive and travel in large family groups called herds. They formstrong bonds with the members oftheir group. Female elephants staywith the same group until they die.

Elephants

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Long lifeElephants are well protected by their largesize and by the members of their herd. Most elephants have a life span of 60 years,but some live more than 70 years. They livealmost as long as humans do!

There are two species, or types, ofelephants living today—the Africanelephant and the Asian elephant.Each species is named after the continent on which it lives. Elephants are sometimes calledpachyderms, which comesfrom a Greek word meaning“tough skin.” Elephants belong to the order Proboscidea and the family Elephantidae.

Ancient relativesMillions of years ago, Earth was full of animals similar to elephants. The first ancestors, or earlyrelatives, of elephants were smaller and had different tusks.Platybelodon, above,had flat tusks that grewout of its bottom lip.

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Platybelodon, an early cousin, livedabout 25 million years ago.

Woolly mammoths are themost recent elephantancestors to becomeextinct, or to die off.They disappeared about10 000 years ago.

Elephant family tree