Elephant Age in Human Years Calculator

Elephants are large mammals of the family Elephantidae within the order of the proboscidea (Proboscidea). Traditionally, two species are recognized, the African elephant (Loxodonta africana) and the Asian elephant (Elephas maximus). DNA studies have determined that African elephants are made up of two distinct species, the African bush elephant (Loxodonta africana) and the forest elephant (Loxodonta cyclotis), respectively.

Elephants are distributed in Africa south of the Sahara and in southern and southeastern Asia. They are the only living species of the proboscidea, extinct include the mammoths and mastodons. Elephants are the largest living land animals. The male African elephants can reach a height of 4 m and a mass of 7000 kg. These animals have several distinguishing features such as a trunk which is used for many purposes, most notably for grasping objects. Their incisors grow into tusks and serve as tools for moving objects, digging, and as a weapon during combat. The elephant's large ear flaps are used to control the temperature of the body. African elephants have larger ears and a hollow back, while Asian elephants have smaller ears and a convex or straight back.

Poachers shoot the elephants for the ivory of their tusks. Ivory trade is one of the major threats to wild elephant populations. Because of their unmistakable appearance and intelligent behavior, elephants play a role in art, religion, mythology and popular culture.

Elephants belong to the family Elephantidae and the order Proboscidea. Their closest relatives are the extant manatees and the hyrax with which they form the clade Paenungulata within the super order Afrotheria. Elephants and manatees are further classified in the clade Tethytheria. Traditionally, two elephant species are recognized: the African elephant (Loxodonta africana) from sub-Saharan Africa and the Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) From South and Southeast Asia. African elephants have larger ears, a rounded back, more wrinkled skin, and two finger-like tips on the tip of their trunks. The Asian elephant has smaller ears, a convex back, smoother skin and one finger-like end on the tip of the trunk. The rounded ridges on the molars are narrower in the Asian elephants, while those of the African elephant are more diamond-shaped. In addition, the Asian elephant has humps on its head and a number of depigmentation spots.

There is doubt about the relationship of the extinct Mammuthus on the one hand and Loxodonta or Elephas on the other. Some DNA studies suggest that Mammuthus is more closely related to Loxodonta, others indicate a closer relationship to Elephas. Morphology supports the hypothesis that Mammuthus and Elephas form sister taxa, while comparisons of the proteins albumin and collagen show that all three genera are equally related to each other. Some scientists believe that acloned mammoth embryo could develop in the womb of an Asian elephant.

More than 161 extinct species and three major adaptive radiations have been identified in the order Proboscidea. The first proboscis, the African Eritherium and Phosphatherium from the Late Paleocene and Early Eocene, ushered in the first adaptive radiation. In the Eocene, Numidotherium, Moeritherium and Barytherium occurred in Africa. These animals were relatively small and semi-aquatic. Later genera such as Phiomia and Palaeomastodon arose, the latter probably inhabited forests and lower-density forests. The diversity of Proboscidea declined during the Oligocene. A notable species from this era was Horn of Africa Eritreum melakeghebrekristosi, which may have been an ancestor of many later species. The second diversification took place during the early Miocene with the appearance of the Deinotheriidae and the mastodon. The former was related to Barytherium and lived in Africa and Eurasia, while the latter may have descended from Eritreum and spread to North America.

The second adaptive radiation was represented by the appearance of the Gomphotheriidae in the Miocene, which may have evolved from Eritreum and originated in Africa, after which they spread to every continent except Australia and Antarctica. Members of this group were Gomphotherium and Platybelodon. The third adaptive radiation started in the late Miocene and gave rise to the Elephantidae, which descended from the Gomphotheriidae and slowly replaced them. The African Primelephas gomphotheroides gave rise to the Loxodonta, Mammuthus andelephas. Loxodonta branched off first, on the boundary of the Miocene - Pliocene transition, while Mammuthus and Elephas split off later during the Early Pliocene. Loxodonta remained in Africa, while Mammuthus and Elephas spread to Eurasia and and Mammuthus reached North America. At the same time, the Stegodontidae, another group of proboscidea descended from the Gomphotheriidae, proliferated, moving through Asia, including the Indian subcontinent, China, Southeast Asia, and Japan. Mammutidae continued to evolve into new species, such as the American mastodon.

Elephants are among the most intelligent animals. Many of the typical elephant behavior patterns indicate high intelligence: grief, learning, caring for another's young, facial expressions, art, play, humor, altruism, tool use, compassion, self-awareness, memory, and possibly language.

It is sometimes said that someone has an elephant memory, and rightly so, because an elephant's memory is excellent. In English they say: an elephant never forgets.

The skin of an elephant is generally very rough, about an inch thick on the back and parts of the head. The elephant is therefore also called pachyderm. The skin around the mouth, anus and the inside of the ears is noticeably thinner. Elephants typically have gray skin, but African elephants appear brown or reddish after wallowing in colored mud. Asian elephants have a number of depigmentation spots, especially on the forehead and ears and the surrounding areas. Calves have brownish or reddish hair, especially on the head and back. As elephants age, their hair gets darker and thinner, but the hair on the tail end, chin, genitals, and areas around the eyes and ear openings remains thicker.

Elephants usually have 26 teeth: the incisors, which are known as the tusks, 12 premolars, and 12 molars. Unlike most mammals that start with baby teeth and then replace them with a single fixed set of adult teeth, elephants are polyphyodont animals that have a cycle of tooth rotation throughout their lives. The new molars arise in the lamina dentalis. They grow at the back and move one place until they are the front, after which they fall out to make way for a new tooth. This happens about six times in an elephant's life. The first set of teeth is changed at two to three years of age, the second set at four to six years of age, the third set at 9 to 15 years of age, the fourth set at 18 to 28 years of age, the fifth at approximately 40 years of age, and choosing the sixth and final set is for the rest of life.

If your Elephant was a human, how old would he/she be? Ever wonder how old your Elephant is in human years? Use above tool to calculate your Elephant's "human" age. We have created an easy-to-understand chart that shows Elephant age by converting it to a human age.