African Elephant

The African elephant is the largest living land mammal.  Males can weigh up to six tons and are about nine feet, 10 inches tall at the shoulders.  Elephants grow slowly and can live up to 70 years of age.  

Female elephants live in herds.  Elephant society is based on age.  There is a matriarch and then the rest of the herd is ranked by age.  Males live with their natal herd until puberty, then they are on their own or in bachelor herds.  

An elephant’s trunk is a modified nose and upper lip.  It can pick up the tiniest twig and can push over a mature tree.  It can detect smells up to several kilometers away.  The trunk can hold up to 12 liters or 2.6 gallons of water.  The huge ears help the elephant regulate its body temperature.  Hot blood is cooled as the ears are flapped.  

These elephants are gathering at the watering hole in front of my hotel.  Channel 1 is a camera that is focused on the watering hole.