The elephant is the largest land animal on Earth. The size of the giant is amazing. Animals weigh differently, depending on the species. Concerning physical strength, here too no one can surpass them. Following the elephant, the places of the strongest animals are occupied by: rhinoceros, hippopotamus, buffalo and, of course, the lion. These will be the five strongest animals on the planet. What is the approximate weight of an elephant?
Varieties of elephants
Giants are distinguished by their habitat. One species is native to Africa, the second exists in India.
On African continent Savannah and forest elephants live here. The first is the largest animal on the planet, the forest one is less powerful. Males are much larger than females. The size of the savanna species reaches 7.5 meters in males. Their height at the highest point of the body is 2.5-3.5 meters.
Indian elephants are also divided into species and subspecies. The smallest of them lives on the island of Kalimantan. On average, the body size of an Indian male reaches 6.5-7 meters. Females are significantly smaller.
How much does the largest elephant in the world weigh?
All types of giants similar to each other. The savanna representative is distinguished by the most powerful structure. It is characterized by:
Average weight individuals of this species in males – 7 tons, in females – 5 tons. Maximum record in the weight category was recorded in the Guinness Book back in 1974. When weighed, the animal shot then showed a result of just over 12 tons. For comparison, Indian elephants weigh much less: males weigh up to 5 tons, females weigh up to 2.7 tons.
How much does a newborn baby elephant weigh?
Elephant cubs are very vulnerable immediately after birth and often become prey for lions. The giant does not always manage to recapture its offspring from predators. Newborn baby elephant weight ranges from 80 to 140 kilograms. He has been under the care of his vigilant mother for a long time.
Only by the age of ten years of its life does an elephant calf gain the mass and size that make it invulnerable to predators. Final formation in these animals occurs at 20 years of age.
Lifestyle of giants
Because giants eat branches, leaves and bark of trees, then there must be vegetation in the accessibility zone. Animals also cannot go far from water. But since the herd needs new food sources as old ones are depleted, it has to constantly migrate. Animals walk 12 kilometers a day, and in a year they can cover a distance of 500 km.
Matriarchy reigns in the herd. The reins of government, as a rule, are taken over by the old elephant. In addition to her, the group includes her offspring with their cubs. In total, such a family contains 9-12 individuals. The main female decides everything: where and how much to feed, when and where to go new way. Her power in the herd lasts up to 60 years, after which it goes to eldest daughter and so on.
Males are expelled from the herd after growing up. Sometimes they roam alone, and sometimes they gather in groups. Only when one of the females is ready to mate does rapprochement and contact with one of the males occur. Overgrown groups separate over time, small ones, on the contrary, can unite.
Communication within the group occurs through touch and sounds. Elephants also accept certain poses to express your mood or needs. If family members had to be separated, they greet each other very vigorously when they meet, rejoicing at each other. Fights are rare and are limited to poking and clenching tusks. More often, males make do with threatening gestures and flapping their ears.
The largest living land mammals are elephants. It is not surprising that many people wonder: how many kilograms does an elephant weigh?
Unfortunately, it is quite difficult to give an exact answer to such a vague question: each individual elephant, like any other animal, has individual physical parameters, the weight of an adult elephant is very different from the weight of a baby elephant, female elephants are much smaller and lighter than males, and there are also elephants different breeds.
However, below we will try to give the most comprehensive answer to this interest Ask.
How much does an adult elephant weigh?
The weight of an adult elephant can reach more than twelve tons. However, such record holders are extremely rare. On average, the weight of an adult elephant ranges from 2.5-7 tons, with females weighing almost half as much as males.
It is interesting that with such an impressive weight, elephants are very graceful animals; the plasticity of their movements is truly impressive. 
The expression “clumsy as an elephant” has nothing to do with reality; moreover, in many Eastern cultures, the elephant is a symbol of grace and grace.
The Russian public is accustomed to seeing elephants mainly in cages in zoos, where they are cramped and uncomfortable, apparently this is where the erroneous judgment came from. Elephant behavior in wildlife is a truly breathtaking sight; once you get acquainted with an elephant in its natural habitat, you will never again call this animal a clumsy lump.
What is the mass of a newborn baby elephant?
A newborn elephant calf can weigh from 80 to 140 kg. If an adult elephant does not have in nature natural enemies, then young elephant calves are more vulnerable and can be hunted large predators– and lions, so cubs for a long time are under the careful supervision of the mother elephant.
The growth rate and life expectancy of elephants are comparable to those of humans; elephant calves reach adult size by about 20 years. 
However, even a ten-year-old elephant calf can safely walk alone without fear of attack by a predator - its size at this age is already impressive enough to evoke respectful respect among representatives of the animal world.
How much does an African elephant weigh?
Genus African elephants on this moment represented by two certain types: savannah elephant and forest elephant. These species do not have many differences; until recently they were considered two subspecies of the same species. At the same time, African forest elephants are significantly smaller in size than their counterparts living in the savannah.
The average weight of the African savanna elephant is approximately 7 tons for males and 2.8 tons for females. The body length of males of this species is from 6 to 7.5 meters, highest point their bodies (shoulders) rise above the ground by 2.4-3.5 meters.
The African savannah elephant became the weight record holder among elephants: a male shot in 1974 in Angola weighed 12.24 tons. This giant was included in the Guinness Book of Records, although posthumously. Unfortunately, the number of African elephants in Lately is steadily declining, for several reasons: hunting for ivory, displacement from familiar places habitat, deterioration environment.
How much does an Indian elephant weigh?
Indian, or Asian elephant– second largest land mammal after the savannah elephant. The genus of Indian elephants is represented by three species, which in turn are divided into subspecies.
The male Indian elephant weighs on average about 5 tons, the female - about 2.7 tons. As can be seen from these data, the difference in the weight of Indian and African elephants is much less than the difference in the weight of their males, the same applies to the size of these animals . 
The body length of a male Indian elephant is 5.5-6.4 meters. The smallest subspecies of Indian elephants lives on the island of Kalimantan, also called Borneo. The average weight of these elephants does not exceed 2 tons.
Elephants are the brightest representatives large mammals that live on land. Their predecessors were mammoths, Meriteria, mastodons and other extinct individuals that had tusks and a trunk. These animals belong to the elephant family, which is divided into three species: Indian, savannah and forest. The body weight of one adult male is approximately equal to the total weight of 100 adults. Therefore, you can easily calculate how much an elephant weighs - about 7 tons.
You can find out how much an African elephant weighs by referring to scientific research. These animals live in hot countries tropical climate, therefore most of them are found in Africa and southern countries Asia. In African countries you can find 2 types of these animals:
- Savannah. The weight of a male reaches 7 tons, and females - about 5 tons. The cubs weigh about 100 kilograms. These elephants live in open landscapes. In the deserts of Namibia there is a small population of savannah elephants, for which the animals are often called desert dwellers. The coat of representatives of this species is kept to a minimum. Elephants have gray color, massive tusks and big ears triangular shape. The mass of a large elephant exceeds 7 tons.
- Forest. Settles in deep jungles. Individuals are covered with brown fur, have round ears and slightly curved tusks, which are much thinner than those of savannah elephants. The weight of forest males is about 3 tons.
African representatives have become famous throughout the world for their tough character. They were involved in incidents in which more than 500 people died. These animals are practically impossible to train, so they do not perform in circus arenas. African elephants are used as a means of transportation for tourists and safari enthusiasts, and they are also objects of sport hunting.
However, the first circus elephant was the Savannah representative - Jumbo, who was the favorite of Queen Victoria herself. At the age of 10, the world-famous animal weighed about 6 tons, and its height exceeded 3 meters.
Indian or Asian
This species has a significant difference from other representatives of the proboscis order - relatively small ears with folded top part and an elongated tip. The tusks of Asian animals are much shorter than those of African elephants. Upper incisors weigh less than 25 kilograms. In India you can find males who do not have tusks at all. Such elephants are called makhna.
Today there are 4 subspecies of Indian individuals, which differ in size, habitat and external features buildings.
These include:
- Ceylonese. These elephants have a characteristic large spot light color on the forehead, their head is larger than that of all other Asian individuals. 95% of males of the Ceylon subspecies lack tusks.
- Indian. These are typical representatives of the species. Range: Thailand, China, Cambodia, the Malay Peninsula and the entire territory of India.
- Dwarf. A representative of the species from the island of Borneo is the smallest elephant. Its height is only a few meters, and its weight is no more than 3 tons. Dwarf individuals have very a long tail, which drags along the ground, and big ears.
- Sumatran. These are representatives of the proboscis order, which are distinguished by their small size. The average weight of an elephant is 2-3 tons, and a newborn elephant calf is about 50 kilograms. The maximum weight of an adult male does not exceed 4 tons.
The male, who lived in Angola in 1974, was recorded as the world's largest representative of the proboscis order. The mass of the elephant exceeded 12 tons! Interesting Facts about these mammals:
- The female carries her cub for about 2 years (22 months), so the baby is born with an impressive weight.
- The elephant spends most of the day searching for food and absorbing it. He can eat up to 400 kilograms of plant-based food and drink up to 300 liters of water per day!
- The oldest representative of the proboscis order was recorded in China. Lin Wang lived to be 86 years old.
- Asian male Kaushik can repeat five after a person simple words. According to observers, the animal does not simply imitate human speech, but understands the meaning of these commands and encouraging words.
Elephants are the heaviest land mammals. The African male has the most impressive dimensions - 4 meters tall and weighs up to 7.5 tons. It’s not hard to guess what the body weight of a newborn elephant calf is if you know that females carry their offspring for 22 months.
Many people today are interested in knowing how much an elephant can weigh.
By weight, elephants are the heaviest land animals. There are two main types of elephants: the African (Savannah) elephant and the Asian (Indian) elephant.
How much does an African elephant weigh?
Of these, the heaviest by weight is the African elephant; an adult male can reach a weight of up to 7,500 kg (seven and a half tons). The height of the African elephant ranges from three to four meters at the withers, sometimes even higher. There is no land animal that can weigh even half the mass of an African elephant. Female African elephants are smaller, although they are sometimes difficult to distinguish from males. The sizes of females on average are 5.4 to 6.9 m in length, and up to 3 meters in height. The average weight of a female is 2.8 tons.
Pictured is an African elephant
How much does an Indian elephant weigh?
The size of the Indian elephant is much smaller than the African elephant, but it is also impressive - adult males can weigh up to 5.4 tons with a height of 2.5-3.5 meters. Female Indian elephants are smaller than males, weighing on average 2.7 tons. The smallest is the subspecies from Kalimantan, whose weight reaches up to 2 tons.
Pictured is an Asian elephant
We now see that the savannah elephant weighs on average 4 - 7 tons. His little brother from Asia weighs on average 5.4 tons, which is almost 2 tons less than the largest African elephant.
Given their weight, elephants are able to run quickly and make sharp maneuvers. Their structure is unique for their weight, allowing them to travel long distances while conserving energy. You can get to know the elephant and its abilities more on our website. Read the articles using the links below.
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