(E.B.W.) Critter Corner: Sept. 23/2020

Wednesday, September 23, 2020

Sept. 23/2020

Feature:

National Elephant Appreciation Day 2020: Facts To Know About These Animals

"...National Elephant Appreciation Day... is observed every Sept. 22 to highlight the importance of conservation of the animals & create awareness about the various threats they face such as poaching.

Here are some facts about elephants to know them better:

1. The African elephant is the largest land mammal on Earth.

2. African elephant ears are the shape of Africa. It's one of the ways you can tell them apart from the Asian elephant.

3. In the Asian species, only the male grows tusks. But in the African, both male & female elephants grow tusks.

4. Both species live in herds, which are led primarily by a matriarch & consist of sisters, daughters, & their young ones.

5. Elephants have 6 sets of cheek teeth (molars & premolars) in their lifetime.

6. Elephants can swim & use their trunks as a snorkel while crossing rivers.

7. Wild elephants can live for up to 60-70 years & males only reach their full size at 35-40 years.

8. Elephants have around 150,000 muscle units in their trunk.

9. Elephant calves can stand within 20 minutes of being born & are able to walk within one hour.

10. 'Elephants never forget' – their temporal lobe (the area of the brain associated with memory) is larger & denser than that of people, due to which they have good memory."