Elephants are the largest land animals still in existence today. They can grow to be 18 to 24 feet long and weigh anywhere from 4-8 tons!

Elephants are mammals. This means that they are warm-blooded and have a backbone! It also means that when a mother elephant has a baby, her body produces milk for her young. Baby elephants can drink up to 3 gallons of milk a day!

Because elephants are so big, they spend 80% of their day eating! Elephants eat all kinds of things! Some of their favorite foods are plants, fruits, bushes, branches, tree bark and roots.

Yum!

One very unique feature elephants have is their trunks! Elephants use their trunks to breathe, smell, pick objects up, hold other elephants trunks, and suck up water to squirt in their mouth. They also use it as a snorkel when they swim!

There are two different species of elephants; African elephants and Asian elephants. They are similar in many ways. But, they also have many differences.

Asian Elephants live in Southeast Asia and India. They will be found in tropical forests and grasslands. Asian Elephants are the smaller of the two species.

Some other characteristics that make Asian Elephants different is that their ears are smaller and rounder. Also, there is a split in the top of their heads making it look like two domes! In addition to that, female Asian Elephants do not have tusks, only males grow them!

African Elephants live in Africa, mainly in the South. This is because the Sahara desert is in the North which the elephants could not survive in.The habitats African Elephants live in are much warmer and drier than Asian Elephants. African Elephants roam from the desert like area to mountain ranges.

African Elephants are the largest species of elephant. They also have bigger ears that some people think are shaped like the continent of Africa! African elephant's heads are much rounder than Asian elephants. Another difference is that both male and female African elephants can grow tusks.