Now elephants are protected by special laws. African elephants can be identified by the larger ears. The African elephant grows up to 10 feet tall and weighs as much as 12,000 pounds. The Indian elephant grows up to 9 feet tall, and weighs up to 8000 pounds. It's easier to identify because of its smaller ears.
Most circus elephants are Indian elephants.
Another name for the Indian elephant is the Asian elephant. Unfortunately, there is a growing conflict between elephants and humans as more of the elephant's habitat is developed. Elephants can destroy the crops of an entire village in a single night, and this also causes conflict. At the moment, there are about 600,000 elephants remaining in Africa. The greatest threat to elephants is the ivory trade.