Elephants are the largest land-dwelling animals. Mature elephants can be up to 6 – 7 m long and 3.5 – 4 m tall at the shoulder. They can weigh up to seven tons. Females are smaller than males (2.6 m, 3 tons). The largest elephant ever recorded was shot in Angola in 1956. It was a male and weighed about 12 tons, with a shoulder height of 4.2 m. The body of this animal is now mounted in the National Museum of Natural History in Washington D.C., USA.
Because the testes are internal, distinguishing a male elephant from a female in the wild can be challenging. However, if you view the head from the side, the female’s profile is angular while in the male it is rounded. The part of the body directly under the tail, in the male, is convex; while, in the female, is concave.
Males are heavier and taller, reaching up to 4m, and can weigh up to 6 tons while females reach about 2.6m and weigh approximately 3 tons. Males have larger tusks compared to the females who have small tusks, or no tusks at all.
Phone: +27 (0)44 532 7732
WhatsApp: +27 (0)60 413 8310
info@knysnaelephantpark.co.za