Animal Quick Facts
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Size
The African Savanna elephant is the largest living land-dwelling animal. Adults can range between 19 to 24 feet long, 8 to 11 feet tall and weigh 7000 to 12,000 pounds.
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Diet
Grasses, tree limbs, leaves, tubers, and fruit.
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Color
Gray.
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Lifespan
Up to 60 years.
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Range
African Savanna elephants can be found scattered across sub-Saharan Africa. They are found throughout central, eastern, and southern Africa. The African forest elephant is a separate species and can be found in the denser forests of the Congo basin and West Africa.
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Habitat
Forests, partial deserts, and grasslands.
Loxodonta africana
Location in the Zoo: African Savanna
Elephants also reside at the Zoo’s International Conservation Center
African elephants are herbivorous animals, meaning they eat shrubbery, vines, herbs, tree leaves and bark. Elephants live in matriarchal societies with their offspring. Male elephants, called bulls, leave the family herd as they mature and join bachelor groups. An elephant pregnancy lasts about 22 months and elephant babies, called calves, are born weighing 200 to 250 pounds. Elephants can communicate via infrasound, below the range of human hearing.