Elephants are often presented as two types: African and Asian. While this was the accepted scientific standard for many years, research has revealed a more complex picture. The scientific community now recognizes more than two distinct species, an update with implications for how these populations are studied and protected.
African Elephants: Diversity on a Continent
The ‘African elephant’ grouping has been divided into two species based on genetic analyses showing significant divergence. The two species are the African savanna elephant (Loxodonta africana) and the African forest elephant (Loxodonta cyclotis). This reflects a long history of separate evolution.
The African savanna elephant is the largest land animal and inhabits the grasslands of sub-Saharan Africa. Their tusks are large and curve outwards. These elephants live in social groups led by a matriarch, and their diet consists mainly of grasses and other savanna vegetation.
In contrast, the African forest elephant is smaller and lives in the dense tropical forests of Central and West Africa. Their tusks are straighter and point downwards, an adaptation for moving through thick undergrowth. Forest elephants have a diet with a higher proportion of fruit and tend to form smaller family groups than savanna elephants.
The Asian Elephant: A Single Species with Variations
The Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) is the only elephant species in Asia. It is smaller than its African relatives and is distributed across various habitats, including forests and grasslands in South and Southeast Asia.
The diet of Asian elephants is varied, consisting of grasses, bark, roots, and fruit. They live in matriarchal family groups similar to African elephants. While there is only one species of Asian elephant, several subspecies are recognized based on geographic location.
Recognized subspecies include:
- The Indian elephant
- The Sumatran elephant, which is at high risk due to habitat loss
- The Sri Lankan elephant, the largest subspecies with the darkest skin
- The Bornean elephant
Key Differences: Telling African and Asian Elephants Apart
The most noticeable difference is ear size; African elephants have very large ears shaped somewhat like the African continent, which help to cool their bodies. Asian elephants have smaller, more rounded ears. This difference in ear size relates to their respective environments and the need for heat regulation.
The shape of the head and back also provides clear indicators. African elephants have a single-domed head, while Asian elephants possess a distinctive twin-domed head. An African elephant’s back has a noticeable dip or concave shape, whereas an Asian elephant’s back is convex or arched.
Other distinctions include the presence of tusks and the tip of the trunk. In African elephants, both males and females typically grow tusks, though they are smaller in females. For Asian elephants, large tusks are usually only found in males. Additionally, the trunk of an African elephant ends in two prehensile “fingers” for grasping, while the Asian elephant’s trunk has only one.
Conservation Status and Why Elephants Matter
The conservation status of elephants is a concern. The African savanna elephant is listed as endangered, and the African forest elephant is considered critically endangered by the IUCN Red List. Asian elephants are also classified as endangered, with their populations having decreased by more than half over the last century.
The primary threats to all elephant species are poaching for ivory and habitat loss due to human activities. Human-elephant conflict also poses a threat as human populations expand into areas inhabited by elephants. These factors have led to a steady decline in elephant numbers across both continents.
Elephants perform important functions in their ecosystems. They are known as “keystone species” because of their impact on the environment. By creating clearings in forests, digging for water during droughts, and dispersing seeds over large distances, they help maintain the health and biodiversity of their habitats. The preservation of these animals is connected to the stability of the ecosystems they inhabit.