Elephant Appreciation Day is observed every year on September 22. Unusual facts about the largest land mammals - in this photo gallery by TASS
Elephant appreciation day
Unusual facts about the largest land mammals - in this photo gallery by TASS
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Elephant Appreciation Day is observed every year on September 22. Photo: Elephant calves playing at an elephant orphanage in Pinnawala, Sri Lanka
© AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena Two species are traditionally recognised, the African and the Asian elephant, although some evidence suggests that African bush elephants and African forest elephants are separate species. Photo: Elephants in Africa Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania
© AP Photo/Ben Curtis Male African elephants are the largest extant terrestrial animals. Photo: Two-month-old orphaned baby elephant being given a dust-bath in the red earth in the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust Elephant Orphanage in Nairobi, Kenya
© AP Photo/Ben Curtis On average, an adult elephant weighs 3.5 tons and can reach a height of 3 m
© AP Photo/Lionel Cironneau Elephants сan be found in different habitats including savannahs, forests, deserts and marshes. But they prefer to stay near water. Photo: An elephant in the indoor pool at the Zoo in Leipzig, Germany
© AP Photo/Jens Meyer The number of Indian elephants is 41,4-52,3 thousand, the majority of them live in India
© AP Photo/Aijaz Rahi Mahouts performing rituals on elephants in Pinnawala, Sri Lanka
© AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena Elephants have the longest gestation period among land animals - 22 months
© AP Photo/Heri Juanda For elephants, the median life span is 40-60 years, but under favorable conditions, the animals can live longer
© AP Photo/Biswaranjan Rout Elephants' large ear flaps help to control their body temperature
© AP Photo/Aftab Alam Siddiqui Elephants have phenomenal hearing but they also can hear through their feet, as they are able to detect seismic vibrations
© AP Photo/Mike Stark Despite worldwide admiration for these magnificent mammals, elephants face serious threats, from poaching to habitat destruction
© AP Photo/ Eranga Jayawardena