The Asian Elephant
By: Mindy Molina, Jessica Van, Liz Serna, and
Kristin Ricks.
Common Name: Asian Elephant
Latin Name: Elephas maximus
Classification:
Kingdom= Animalia
Phylum= Chordate
Class= Mammalia
Order= Proboscidea
Family= Elephantidae
Genus= Elephas
Species= Elephas maximus
• The life cycle of the elephant is remarkably
similar to that of an average human being.
• Live to about 60 - 70 years
• Look after the orphaned baby if the mother
dies.
• Can bear young at age 16+.
• Are fully grown at 20 years old.
• Are in their working prime between 20-40.
• Begin to slow down at 40.
• Are on light duties only when they reach 50.
• Primary consumer (Herbivore)
• 2nd on Hierarchy level
3rd Trophic level
Asian Elephant/ 2nd Trophic level
Producer/1st Trophic level
• Asia, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka,
Indochina, and parts of Nepal and
Indonesia.
• Perferred Habitat?
- Forest areas
Interaction with other organisms
• Asian Elephants don't have a problem with interacting with
other organisms. They are usually in large herds, so they
never feel attacked.
Organims that depend on Asian Elephants for survival
• Adult Asian Elephants have no natural predeotors, but
young elephants may fall prey to tigers.
Organisms that Asian Elephants depend on for survival
• Asian Elephants are herbivores, so therefore, they depend
on grass, trees, leaves, shurbs. Their diet varies from acacia
trees to wild mangos. It will basically eat any type of fruit.
Tiger
Asian Elephants
Grass Trees
Shrubs
Monkeys
Leaves
Mangos
Past-Present
• This is the biggest threat to the continuing survival of the
Asian elephants.
• The main cause of the lost of the natural forest that elephants
require to survive is pressure from human population growth.
• The clearance of land has not only resulted in large net losses
of territory but also the fragmentation of habitat. This
fragmentation breaks up wild populations into herds and
groups that are often too small to be viable.
• The breaking up of elephant population also leads to
inbreeding and the loss of the necessary genetic diversity to
sustain population viability over the long term.
• Cultivation, irrigation canals, and dams have already blocked
many traditional migratory pathways fragmenting the once
wide-ranging elephant population into smaller and more
isolated groups.
Preservation
YouTube - The Asian Elephant - Human
Population