Asian elephant

Elephas maximus

Asian elephants live in South and Southeast Asia in a wide range of habitats; from thick jungle to grassy plains, from sea level up to 10,000 feet. They are herbivores.

Asian elephant behavior and facts

• Asian elephants eat bamboo, fruit, leaves, shoots and grasses.
• They are shorter and heavier than African elephants. Asian elephants have rounded backs, small ears and relatively smooth skin while African elephants have dipped backs, large ears (shaped like the African continent) and very wrinkly skin.
• Elephants use their trunks to communicate, touch, eat, drink and smell. Hundreds of muscles make the trunk strong, flexible and deft, it can lift heavy logs or pluck a single leaf from a tree. Elephants can even use their trunks like snorkels to breathe underwater.
• Some males have tusks, long incisor teeth that grow up to 5 feet long. Most females and many males have tushes, much smaller teeth that lack a central nerve (unlike tusks).
• Asian elephants are highly social and form strong bonds with other herd members. Females and calves live in multigenerational, matriarchal herds, while adult males spend time away from herds and in "bachelor" herds.
• Their range varies, but is generally very large: from 11 to 133 square miles for elephants in Sri Lanka, to more than 231 square miles for elephants in south India.

From birth to death

• Gestation: 20 to 22 months
• A single calf is born
• At birth the mother is attended by other adult females ("aunties").
• Sexual maturity: Females 6 to 10 years old; males 8 to 12 years old
• Lifespan: 60 to 70 years

Vital statistics

• Weight: 6,000 to 13,000 pounds
• Height: 7 to 10 feet at the shoulder

Status

Endangered under the U.S. Endangered Species Act, CITES Appendix I and the IUCN Red List. The Association of Zoos and Aquariums coordinates an Asian elephant Species Survival Plan, of which the Oregon Zoo is a participant.

Asian elephants, the Oregon Zoo and you

The zoo's elephants live in the Asian Elephants exhibit. They eat fresh produce, hay, oats and enrichment treats like seasonal vegetables and plant clippings. The oldest elephant at the zoo, Packy, is large for an Asian elephant. He weighs 12,500 pounds and stands 10 feet, 6 inches at the shoulder.

As the world's population continues to expand, the biggest threats to Asian elephants are habitat loss or degradation, and fragmentation of the wide ranges the elephants require. Poaching and conflicts with humans are other threats.

Asian elephants at the Oregon Zoo

• Packy – male
  Born on April 14, 1962 at the Oregon Zoo
  Height: 10' 4" at shoulders
  Weight: 12,650 lbs.
  Parents: Thonglaw & Belle
  First elephant born in the Western Hemisphere in 44 years
  Sired 7 calves, including Sung-Surin
  Distinguishing characteristics:
  Extremely large
  Kink in his tail like his mom, Belle
  Has tushes
• Rama – male
  Born on April 1, 1983 at the Oregon Zoo
  Weight: 8,425 lbs.
  Parents: Packy and Rosy
  Distinguishing characteristics:
  Smaller of males
  Has tushes
  Kink in his tail
• Tusko – male
  Wild-caught
  Estimated birth: 1971
  Weight: 13,300 lbs.
  Arrived at the Oregon Zoo on June 19, 2005
  At Oregon Zoo on a long term breeding loan
  Has four offspring
  Distinguishing characteristics:
  Tusko has a very large head & big 'bulbs' on his forehead
  He is blind in his right eye, making it appear blue
  No visible tusks
• Samudra "Sam" - male
  Born on Aug. 23, 2008 at the Oregon Zoo
  Weight: 3,400 lbs
  Parents: Tusko and Rose-Tu
• Sung-Surin "Shine" - female
  Born on Dec. 26, 1982 at the Oregon Zoo
  Weight: 7,900 lbs.
  Parents: Packy and Pet
  Name is Thai for "sunshine"
  Distinguishing characteristics:
  Slit in lower margin of the right ear
• Rose-tu – female
  Born on Aug. 31, 1994 at the Oregon Zoo
  Weight: 7,215 lbs.
  Parents: Hugo and Me-Tu
  Distinguishing characteristics:
  Second smallest of the cows
• Chendra – female
  Wild-born in Sabah Malaysia in 1993
  Acquired by the Oregon Zoo on Nov. 20, 1999
  Weight: 4,545 lbs.
  Distinguishing characteristics:
  Smallest cow in group
  Long tail