Moon’s mass swayed

with the rhythm of the mahout’s musical,

lilting Thai and elusive bird’s

chorusing. Mid-trek, a banana treat, and as the snuffling trunk

nosed for more sweets my giggles of awe

were echoed by secretive monkeys

hoot-whooping hill-tribe gossip.

Rebecca and

“Moon”, Thailand

Riddle’s Elephant and Wildlife Sanctuary ~ International School for Elephant Management,

Arkansas

Rebecca

ELEPHANTS = KEYSTONE Species

KEYSTONE

GRASSES TREES SHRUBS SEED DISTRIBUTION TERRAIN = SUSTAIN AND CHANGE

Food chain dynamics Carnivores Grazers Water ways Pathways Access for small creatures

Moeritherium

Moeritherium = 36 million years ago. True scientific starting point

for the living Elephant species of today.

Mammoth

MAMMOTH Asian Elephant Relative Pleistocene period = became extinct 10,000 years ago.

MASTADON MAMMOTH

MOERITHERIUM

Cousin ~ West Indian Manatee

Cousin ~ Dugong

Cousin ~ Rock Hyrax

ASIAN AFRICAN

ASIAN AFRICAN

Female

Female

Male

SKIN • Pachyderm =

“thick skinned” • 1.5 inches thick • VERY sensitive • No fat layer • Few sweat

glands • Wrinkles =

cooling system

• Dung heats seed • Seed case ferments • Case splits open • Seed sprouts

NEW LIFE

DIGITIGRADE = walks on toes

Elephants CAN’T RUN or JUMP. MUST always have 1 foot on the ground.

ELEPHANT EAR

• Signal flags • Fly chasers • Radiator -

for 100 gallons of blood.

Elephant trunk is the

center of their

universe = 60,000

MUSCLES!

Muscles are in several layers vertically and horizontally.

Indian

African

Elephants use these

to help them find their way.

Human brain

Pilot Whale brain

Elephant brain

Eye sockets

Where the trunk

attaches

Elephants . . .

Independent lizard-like eye movement

LIZARD

LONG eyelashes keep eyes dirt free.

Upper chewing side – Asian Elephant’s MOLAR.

The rest buried in jaw.

LOVE to swim!

TRUNK is their snorkel.

Loxodonta africana

• COMMON NAME: African elephant, savannah elephant • KINGDOM: Animalia • PHYLUM: Chordata (a vertebrate) • CLASS: Mammalia • ORDER: Proboscidea (has a proboscis

and incisors enlarged to become tusks) • FAMILY: Elephantidae • GENUS SPECIES: Loxodonta

(slanting tooth) africana (from Africa)

•AFRICAN elephants found SOUTH of Sahara Desert.

•African forest elephants inhabit dense rain forests of west/central Africa.

SAHARA

DESERT

AFRICAN Elephant (Loxodonta africana)

• Africa = south of Sahara desert. • Much larger ears than Asian. • Ears rounded/shaped like continent of Africa. • Have smooth forehead. • 2 "fingers" at end of trunk. • Skin more deeply wrinkled than Asian's skin. • Both males and females have large tusks. • 550,000 wild elephants left in Africa. • Threatened species.

AFRICAN Elephants = developed long before Asian Elephants.

African Elephants exhibit a more “primitive” behavior (more difficult to “manage” them.)

Largest African Elephant ever recorded = bull weighed 24,000 lb, shoulder height of 13.0 ft.

Tail holding is a natural occurrence.

AWESOME African Elephant!

DANGER!

Note trunk curled inward, ears flared out

……TIME TO GET AWAY!

Loxodonta cyclotis

The CONGO ~ Range of the Forest Elephant

Elephas maximus Elephant - - Largest

ASIAN ELEPHANT

RANGE

ASIAN Elephant = Southeastern Asia

• Relationship with man = several thousand years. • Asian elephants = smaller ears than African. • 2 "domes" on top of head. • Has humped back = African elephant caved in back. • Skin pinkish discoloration = a depigmentation found only in the Asian elephant. • 1 "finger" at the end of trunk. • Males = have large tusks. • Females = no tusks or small ones = "tushes". • 35,000 wild Asian elephants left in Asia. • Considered an endangered species.

ASIAN Elephant

SONOGRAM of a BABY ELEPHANT Baby is on the left.

On right - see baby shape, and the little trunk.

BABY BATIR 1st BIRTHDAY

• AFRICAN FEMALE. • Born January 21, 2002. • Birth weight = 225 pounds. • 3 feet tall at shoulder. • Perfect baby birth size.

Appreciate difference

in sizes! Goad

• Aṅkuśa (Sanskrit) or Goad = tool employed in the handling and training of elephants.

• Consists of a hook (usually bronze or steel) which is attached to a two- or three-foot handle.

• Hook can be inserted into elephant's sensitive skin - slightly to cause pain - to induce the elephant to behave in a certain manner.

More “modern” goads. A talented and caring Elephant Mahout (keeper) does NOT purposely hurt the Elephant. A talented mahout could “lead” an Elephant with a tree branch.

ELEPHANT COMMANDS ALLRIGHT Release. BACK UP Move backwards. COME HERE Move left TOWARD handler. COME IN LINE Stop side by side. EASY Slow down; reassurance. FOOT Pick up foot. GET OVER Move right AWAY. HEAD DOWN Lower head. HEAD UP Pick head up.

LIE DOWN Lay on side. LIFT Pick foot or head up higher. MOVE UP Move forward. PUT THEM OUT Spread out ears. STEADY Hold still. STRETCH Lay on stomach. TAIL UP Hold tail of Elephant in front. TRUNK Lift UP trunk.

Commands are typically universal as elephants are sold – traded

around the world.

http://elephantsanctuary.org

Greenbrier, Arkansas

MARY

Baby

TARRA

TARRA ~ ASIAN

ELEPHANT

TARRA

today

“Trunk” paintings by TARRA

Tarra

and friends.

Photos from Rebecca’s camera

have a BLUE border.

Other photos or images have a BLACK border and were pulled from the web.

THANK YOU for your interest in

ELEPHANTS!

Rebecca Sterley