Elephant of savanna of Africa
See also: Elephant (homonymy)
The elephant of savanna of Africa or Loxodonta africana is a mammal of the family of the Éléphantidé S. It acts of the largest terrestrial animal of the world, which measures on average 4 meters with the shoulder and weighs 7,7 tons roughly. This species meets in meadow, marsh, and edge of river, the the Sahara until in South Africa.
Two species instead of one
Different the elephant S African was regarded a long time as representatives of Sous-espèce S of the taxon Loxodonta africana . Recent genetic studies made it possible to show that the two principal African subspecies Loxodonta africana africana and Loxodonta africana cyclotis were in fact two species distinct: in Africa, it is thus advisable to distinguish from now on the elephant from savanna Loxodonta africana and the elephant of the forests Loxodonta cyclotis .
Main features
The elephant of savanna of Africa has ears longer and larger than those of his/her cousin of Asia. It also presents a more important intermediate size and a concave back. The males and the females have external defenses, and are usually less hairy than their Asian cousins.
Threatened species
The African elephant is regarded as a species threatened of disappearance. For some, the protection measures are useless, because the population is stable. For others, the elephants are locally superabundant, but their general population decreases in an alarming way, since in 1979 one estimated it at 1,3 million. The Poaching related to the trade of the Ivory and the loss of the habitat are the main causes of its decline.
Breeding in zoological garden
As elephants of savanna of Africa mainly are not domesticated, this n´est not easy to make l´élevage in entourrement artificial. However in some zoos as the Zoological garden of Berlin-Friedrichsfelde one has succeeds well there.
Anecdote
Several Naturaliste S was killed by wounded African elephants: Frank Linsly James (1851-1890), Johan August Wahlberg (1810-1856) and the prince Eugenio Ruspoli (1866-1893).
See too
References
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