Gestation Periods and Animal Scale USA Gestation Periods and Animal Scale The gestation period of humans is 266 days, 8 days short of nine months. Many such biological characteristics have an explanation in terms evolutionary survival value. Even some seemingly cultural characteristics of human society have such a biological explanation. For example, in all known hunting-and-gathering societies it is the men who do the hunting and women the gathering. It was not until a few decades ago when in the U.S. people started doing marathon running that the explanation was discovered. Women marathon runners found they lost their periods and medical examination revealed that under the stress of distance running women stopped ovulating. In hunting-and-gathering societies the hunters cover about thirty miles a day, day after day. In a society in which the women participated in the hunting there would be few babies born and that society would quickly disappear. Thus the only hunting-and-gathering societies that survived would have the men doing the hunting and the women doing the gathering. It is therefore tempting to try to find a biological explanation for the nine-month gestation period of humans in terms of seasons. What time of the year would be the best time for babies to be born in order to maximize there chances of survival?

And what time of the year would be most conducive to human mating? In a temperate zone springtime mating would lead to midwinter births which surely would not be the optimal birth time. If springtime were the optimal time for births then a nine-month gestation period would imply wintertime mating, which is not the season that people associate with urges to merge. It would seem that a one-year gestation period would give the best fit between mating time and optimal birth time. But any appeal to seasonality for an explanation of the human gestation period is fruitless because humans did not evolve in a temperate zone. There might have been some dry-wet seasonality in the savannahs of Africa but it is uncertain. And the gestation periods of chimpanzees (237 days), gorilla (257 days) and orangutan (260 days) indicate that the approximate nine-month gestation period predates the emergence of human beings as a species. The gestation periods of other animal reveals that the length of the gestation period is largely a matter of the animal specie's size. Asian elephants have a gestation period of 645 days and African elephants 640 days.

Dogs and other canines have a gestation period of about 60, which is also the period for cats. Even within the species of apes and monkeys gestation period seem to be a matter of size. For Rhesus monkeys it is 164 days and baboons 187 days. For small animals such as rabbits the period is about 33 days and for mice about 20 days. So it takes a longer time for a big animal such an elephant to grow a baby than for a smaller animal such as a mouse. The baby of the bigger animal is of course bigger but there are the bigger resources of the big animal to promote that growth so it is not obvious that bigger animals would have longer gestation periods. But, deespite the bigger resources, it does take a longer time. It seems to be a matter of scale. If all of the dimensions of an animal are doubled the double-scaled animal would have eight times the volume and hence eight times the weight of the smaller scaled animal. But the cross section area of the umbilical cord through which all of the nutrients for growing the baby would have to pass is only four times as large.

So, all other things being equal, it would take twice as long for the nutrients for the eight-times larger baby to pass through the four-times greater capacity umbilical cord. The blood pressure in the scaled up animal could be twice as great but the length of the umbilical cord would be twice as long giving twice the resistance to the flow of the nutrients. Thus the gestation period should be proportional to the scale of the animal. The volume and hence weight of an animal is proportional to the cube of the scale so scale is proportional to the cube root of the weight of the animal. This would apply to animal of different sizes but the same general shape. According to the above analysis if one plots the logarithm of gestation period versus the logarithm of the weight of the females there should be a linear relationship with a slope equal to 1/3. The analysis needs to be modified to allow for the fact that smaller animals find it so easy to grow offspring that they grow them in litters rather than one at a time. Also one needs to know how the ratio of the weight of the offspring in proportion to that of the mother varies with animal size.

For humans the weight of the baby is about 5 percent of the weight of the mother and for elephants it is about 4 percent. For cats and dogs the litter weight is a higher proportion of the mother's weight. Thus the slope of the statisitical relation between the logarithm of the gestation period and the logarithm of weight would be less than 1/3. The data for a number of animal species are given in the table below. In tabulating the data if a source gave a range of values for a datum the midpoint of the range is used. The female body weight that would be relevant would be body weight without fat. There are structural differences between bipeds and quadrapeds so it is appropriate to carry out the analysis separately for the two types of animals. First the primates are considered. Gestation Periods and Female Weights for Some Primates This data gives the follow scatter diagram. Regression analysis gives the best fitting line for the statistical relationship as log(Gest) = 2.075 + 0.189(log(Wt) with a coefficient of determination (R2) equal to 0.9. The results are promising.

The slope of the line is significantly below the 1/3 value suggested by the analysis but that could be accounted for by the variation in baby weight as a ratio to mother's weight with size. The data for a number of quadrapeds are shown below. These are the cases in which the values are readily available in an encyclopedia. Gestation Periods and Female Weights for Some Quadrapeds Regression analysis gives the best fitting line for the statistical relationship as log(Gest) = 1.527 + 0.333(log(Wt) with a coefficient of determination (R2) equal to 0.81. The value of 0.333 is sheer coincidence. The data is too uncertain and spotty to say that this confirms the analysis precisely. However the fact that the coefficient is less than 1.0 and in the neighborhood of 1/3 does indicate that the analysis is sound and that the pursuit of more and better data would be worthwhile. The conclusion is that the nine-month gestation period for humans is merely a matter of human size and not the result of some evolutionary optimization. It is all in the umbilical cord.

Babies are like blossoms on the stem of the umbilical cord. And just as there is The force that through drives the flower (Dylan Thomas) there is the force that builds the baby and it is subject to limitations of size and scale of the umbilical cord. Top 10 Facts of the World’s Largest Land Animal [20 pics] «TwistedSifter Photograph by Nick Brandt 1. Did you know there are only three species of elephant living today? They are: the African bush elephant, the African forest elephant and the Asian elephant (also known as the Indian elephant). All other species are extinct. Photograph by Nick Brandt 2. Elephants are the world’s largest land animals now living. The largest elephant ever recorded was shot in Angola in 1956. This male weighed about 24,000 lb (11,000 kg), with a shoulder height of 3.96 meters (13.0 ft), a metre (yard) taller than the average male African elephant. Photograph by Beverly Joubert 3. The elephant’s gestation period is 22 months, the longest of any land animal.

At birth it is common for an elephant calf to weigh 120 kilograms (260 lb). They typically live for 50 to 70 years, but the oldest recorded elephant lived for 82 years. Healthy adult elephants have no natural predators, although lions may take calves or weak individuals. Photograph by paddyboy 4. With a mass just over 5 kg (11 lb), elephant brains are larger than those of any other land animal. A wide variety of behaviours associated with intelligence have been attributed to elephants, including those associated with grief, making music, art, altruism, play, use of tools, compassion and self-awareness. Photograph by Eduard 5. Elephants live in a structured social order. The social lives of male and female elephants are very different. The females spend their entire lives in tightly knit family groups made up of mothers, daughters, sisters, and aunts. These groups are led by the eldest female, or matriarch. Adult males, on the other hand, live mostly solitary lives. Photograph by Nick Brandt 6. The tusks of an elephant are its second upper incisors.

Tusks grow continuously; an adult male’s tusks grow about 18 cm (7 in) a year. Tusks are used to dig for water, salt, and roots; to debark trees to eat the bark; to dig into baobab trees to get at the pulp inside; and to move trees and branches when clearing a path. In addition, they are used for marking trees to establish territory, and occasionally as weapons. Photograph by Nick Brandt 7. The proboscis, or trunk, is a fusion of the nose and upper lip, elongated and specialized to become the elephant’s most important and versatile appendage. African elephants are equipped with two fingerlike projections at the tip of their trunk, while Asians have only one. The elephant’s trunk is sensitive enough to pick up a single blade of grass, yet strong enough to rip the branches off a tree. The trunk is also used for drinking. Elephants suck water up into the trunk—up to 14 liters (15 quarts) at a time—and then blow it into their mouths. Elephants also suck up water to spray on their bodies during bathing.

On top of this watery coating, the animals will then spray dirt and mud, which dries and acts as a protective sunscreen. When swimming, the trunk makes an excellent snorkel. Photograph by Sandy Powers 8. Elephants swim well, but cannot trot, jump, or gallop. They do have two gaits: a walk and a faster gait that is similar to running. Photograph by Aaron Logan 9. African elephants, are currently found in 37 countries in Africa. They are distinguished from Asian elephants in several ways, the most noticeable being their much larger ears. Also, the African elephant is typically larger than the Asian elephant and has a concave back. In Asian elephants, only males have tusks, but both males and females of African elephants have tusks and are usually less hairy than their Asian cousins. Photograph by William Albert Allard 10. Elephants are herbivores and spend up to 16 hours a day eating plants. Their diets are highly variable, both seasonally and across habitats and regions. Elephants are primarily browsers, feeding on the leaves, bark, and fruits of trees and shrubs, but they may also eat considerable grasses and herb.

Which Animal Has the Longest Gestation Period and How Long Is the Gestation Period of an Elephant? @ Super Beefy | Filed Under: Animals Leave a Comment An elephant’s gestation period is a whopping 22 months, the longest of any land animal. Imagine the cost in pickles and ice cream. Elephants, like most intelligent species, are born with fewer survival instincts than many other animals, and they rely on their elders to teach them what they need to know. An African elephant weighs between 150 and 250 pounds at birth; an Indian elephant, a little less. Read More Also, any literature on baseball written in the 1800's does not credit Abner Doubleday with the invention either. But if my... 2016-12-28T23:28:08+00:00 I'm not saying that whoever wrote this did not research this at all but I am saying this explanation of the origins of baseball...

2016-12-28T23:19:30+00:00 IT TOOK ME OVER WINTER BREAK 12 DAYS 3 HOURS 5 MINUTES AND 36 SECONDS. 2016-12-28T02:49:36+00:00 The math here is false. The fundation of how this was worked out is how long it takes to count to 100 in seconds; which is fine... 2016-11-08T22:41:08+00:00 I've always wanted to know where that word got its etymology from and what the word truly meant. My parents and grandparents... 2016-10-27T04:26:31+00:00 Asian elephant | Smithsonian's National Zoo Meet the Animals Physical Description Asian elephant skin is gray in color. Some parts of their skin sometimes lack color, especially on and around the ears, forehead and trunk. This de-pigmentation is believed to be controlled by genetics, nutrition and habitat, and generally develops as the elephant ages.

Brownish to reddish hair covers the bodies of young elephants. The amount of hair reduces with age, and the color darkens. Elephant skin varies from paper thin in some places, such as on the inside of the ears, to as thick as 1 inch (2.54 centimeters) in other places, such as around the back. Despite its thickness, the skin is sensitive, having a rich nerve supply. Elephants protect their skin from the sun and bugs by regularly covering themselves with dirt, sand and mud. Elephants have large ears that function as cooling devices. There are many blood vessels on the inside. As elephants flap their ears on hot days, the blood in these veins cools, which then cools their brain and travels back through the body, reducing body temperature by several degrees. Unlike other mammals, where the legs are in an angular position, the elephant's legs are stacked in an almost vertical position under the body. This positioning, along with the detailed anatomy of their long bones, provides a strong support for the animal's great weight. The vertical position of the limbs allows the elephant to remain standing for long periods without expending much energy. It also allows elephants to sleep while standing as well as while lying down.

In most mammals, the bones contain a narrow cavity. In elephants, this cavity is lacking. Instead, network of dense perforated bone occupies the space, which makes the bones stronger and able to withstand more pressure. The elephant's skeleton is designed for mobility as well as strength. An elephant must have physical structures and coordinated muscular and neurological systems to accomplish survival skills like standing on their rear legs and climbing up and down steep slopes. Elephants actually walk on their toes and have a thick fibrous pad on the bottom of each foot that acts as a shock absorber, protecting their leg and toe bones from jarring under their great weight and cushioning each step. The trunk is a fusion of the nose and upper lip. It contains no bones, but is composed of muscles, blood and lymph vessels, nerves, little fat, connective tissues, skin, hair and bristles. Cartilage is found only at the base of the trunk, dividing the nostrils. The trunk has about 150,000 muscle units and tendons that provide the elephant precision as well as strength of movement. The great dexterity of the trunk, which can perform movements of delicate precision, is due to thousands of often-tiny muscle units.

These tend to be arranged either radially or longitudinally and by acting against one another, allow the trunk to be moved in any direction. Although so delicate in its movements, the trunk is also a very powerful organ that can lift heavy objects with ease. Asian elephants have one small projection at the end of their trunk called a "finger," which aids with precision. Elephants use their trunks to take up water and squirt it into their mouths. The trunk is capable of performing many other functions as well, including: feeding, snorkeling, dusting, smelling, sifting, sorting, touching, sound production/communication, lifting, pushing, defense and offense. It can hold about 2 gallons (7.57 liters) of water. With their trunks, elephants "know" their world: their senses of smell and touch being very important. All six sets of teeth are present in the skull at birth. They are, however, very small. Each successive set of teeth is larger, more complex, and lasts longer than the previous set. As a result, an elephant's skull grows throughout its lifetime to accommodate the new and ever-larger teeth. An elephant's age can be estimated by examining molar sequence and wear.

Tusks are modified upper incisors that grow throughout an individual's life at the rate of 2 to 3 inches (5.1 to 7.6 centimeters) a year. They are composed of ivory. Ivory is similar to bone, being made up mostly of calcium and phosphate. The tusk contains a pulp cavity, containing nerve tissues. In an adult animal, about two thirds of the tusk is visible while the remaining one third is embedded in the socket, or sulcus, in the cranium. Newly developing tusks have a conical cap of smooth enamel that wears off. Not all elephants develop visible tusks; in the Asian species, only some males have large, prominent tusks. Most female and some male Asian elephants have small tusks, called tushes, which seldom protrude more than an inch or two from the lip line. Tushes are a slightly different composition than tusks. They are small and brittle, causing them to break easily. A significant number of adult Asian males are tuskless. The percentage of males with tusks varies by region; less than 10 percent in Sri Lanka to approximately 90 percent in India.

This disparity may be a reflection of the intensity of past ivory hunting. In the African species, generally, but not always, both the males and females have tusks. Tusks are extremely useful, multipurpose instruments. Elephants use them to: dig for water, salt, minerals and roots; to debark trees; as levers to manipulate objects in their environment; for rescuing calves; for threat displays; as weapons for defense and offense; as trunk rests; and as protection for the trunk. Size Slightly smaller than their African cousins, adult Asian elephants weigh on average between 6,000 and 12,000 pounds (2,750 and 5,420 kilograms). They typically stand 6 to 12 feet (1.8 to 3.8 meters) at the shoulder. Males are usually larger than females. Native Habitat Asian elephants are found in isolated pockets of India and Southeast Asia, including Sumatra and Borneo. Asian elephants were formerly widely distributed south of the Himalayas, throughout Southeast Asia and in China as far north as the Yangtze River.

Asian elephants considered forest animals; however, they have been observed to prefer zones that include intermittent open grassy glades. These zones contain transition areas with a great variety of species of plants between grass and forest, not available in dense woodlands. These zones also provide quick escape from the sun. Elephants are adaptable and can live in a variety of environments. Elephants migrate as necessary to find habitat that contains sufficient vegetation and water to meet their enormous daily requirements. Although they are not territorial, they do move about within home ranges. The amount of movement within these ranges appears to be variable from region to region. Data gathered by Smithsonian's National Zoo scientists from radio-collared wild elephants in Myanmar show that elephants typically walk less than one to four miles (1.6 to 6.4 kilometers) per day. The home range usually constitutes a loop or a circuit. Home ranges vary in size from six to 20 square miles (15 to 50 square km) to 190 to 580 square miles (500 to 800 square km). The differences depend on quantity and quality of the food and whether or not the area is occupied by bulls or by cows and their offspring.

Home ranges of one family, clan or herd may overlap with another. Human activities such as agriculture have made seasonal migration difficult, creating much conflict between wild elephants and people. Communication Elephants communicate over long distances using low-pitched sounds that are barely audible to humans. These powerful infrasonic rumbles contain specific messages that can be heard and understood by other elephants more than two miles away. Scientists believe that an elephant's ability to converse over long distances is essential for its survival. Females in estrus make very low, long calls that bulls hone in on. Breeding herds also use low-frequency vocalizations to warn of predators. Adult bulls and cows have no enemies, except for humans, but young elephants are susceptible to attacks by tigers in the areas where their ranges overlap. When a predator appears, older members of the herd emit intense warning calls that prompt the rest of the herd to clump together for protection and then flee the scene. Elephants possess a highly developed olfactory system. Scent is a valuable mode of communication because it can be long lasting and function over both short and long distances. Wind-born scents provide elephants with clues to the presence of other elephants or potential dangers.

Using their trunk to smell another elephant's mouth, temporal gland, genitals, or urine/feces, the identity, sex and reproductive status of that elephant can be determined. Elephants of all ages and both sexes touch one another frequently, often to communicate a greeting, excitement, competition, dominance, discipline, reassurance, play and reproductive status. The trunk is an especially important means of tactile communication Food/Eating Habits Asian elephants are herbivores. An elephant spends about three-quarters of each day eating or moving toward a food or water source. Feeding is not continuous, with three principal feeding bouts in the early morning, afternoon and night. Elephants tend to rest and nap during the hottest hours of the day. They feed primarily on grasses, but also consume large amounts of browse: leaves, roots, vines, twigs, shoots and bark as well as fruit. Cultivated crops such as bananas and sugar cane are also a favored food. Foraging herds can be very destructive to cropland or forest because they are capable of pushing down large trees in order to gather their foliage and bark. Unlike ruminants, elephants only assimilate about 44 percent of what they eat.

Therefore, they must consume great amounts of food, about 165 to 330 pounds (74 to 150 kilograms) per day and about 50 gallons (189 liters) of water per day in the wild. A very large male might eat twice that. The elephants at the Zoo are fed throughout the day to simulate their natural feeding pattern. Their diets are individually tailored to each animal's needs, taking into account health, age, activity level and metabolism. A typical diet for an adult female elephant could total about 135 pounds, consisting of about two and a half bales of hay (each bale weighs about 45 pounds or 20 kilograms), eight pounds of elephant chow, (an alfalfa based pellet that is nutrient dense, providing protein, vitamins and minerals), two pounds each of bran and oats, and ten pounds of fruits and vegetables, including sweet potatoes, carrots, and apples. Apple fiber pellets are fed as training reinforcement and browse is fed as available. Social Structure Their burrow systems range from simple to complex and they usually have several burrow systems, which they occupy in rotation for several months at a time.

They spread out to forage independently, but maintain visual and vocal contact. Reproduction and Development Wild males and females reach sexual maturity between eight and 13 years of age. Females usually have their first birth in their mid-teens. Behavioral studies tell us that males are unlikely to father a calf until they are in their thirties, when they are best able to compete with older, larger males. However, more recent DNA testing of African elephants suggests that young bulls may father calves more frequently than previously thought. By about the age of 30 most healthy males begin to experience a regular period of heightened sexual and aggressive activity called musth. Musth is a massive rush of testosterone that makes the males aggressive and competitive. It also makes them especially attractive to females in estrus. During musth, a green fluid drips from the penis and is secreted from the elephant's temple. In human care both male and female elephants mature earlier than in the wild. The onset of musth in zoo elephants has come as early as eight years. This phenomenon is thought to be due to consistent quality nutrition and environmental conditions and lack of suppression or competition by older animals. Females come into estrus about every 115 days.

Gestation is between 20.5 and 22 months, the longest gestation period for any animal. Usually one calf, occasionally two, is born and weighs between 150 and 350 pounds (68 to 158 kilograms). There is an average birth interval of three to eight years, depending on environmental conditions. Calves stand and nurse soon after birth. By 6 months, calves begin feeding on vegetation. They also eat their mother's dung for several years, which contains nutrients as well as the symbiotic bacteria that aid in the digestion of cellulose. Weaning is a gradual process that may continue until the mother delivers another calf. Males leave their natal herd at sexual maturity, but females remain within the family unit throughout their lives. Lifespan Longevity of elephants is not well understood. Most of the information available comes from African elephants. Recent data from scientists studying wild African elephants suggests that they rarely live to 50 years old, with most living to their mid- to late 40s. The longevity record for an Asian elephant in captivity is 86 years.

There is not enough consistent data available on wild Asian elephants to accurately estimate their life span; however, it is thought that Asian elephants typically live into their mid- to late 50s. Asian elephants are endangered. At one time Asian elephants ranged from Syria and Iraq east across Asia south of the Himalayas to Indochina and the Malay Peninsula, north into China, and in Sri Lanka, Sumatra, Borneo and possibly Java. The Western Forest Complex in Thailand is the largest remaining area of protected forest in Southeast Asia and home to more than a third of Thailand's wild elephants. India by far has the largest population of elephants for a single country with almost half of the total population of Asian elephants in the world living within its borders. Because elephants require much larger areas of natural range than many other terrestrial mammals, they are often the first species to suffer the consequences of habitat fragmentation and destruction. Elephants are also considered a pest and a danger in areas of agriculture, especially populations surrounded by cultivated land. Crop raiding is frequent and can create situations that can lead to elephant deaths as well as human deaths. Palm oil plantations, primarily in Malaysia and Indonesia are rapidly causing deforestation.

The use of slash and burn clearing and industrial planting techniques is not uncommon. This is greatly decreasing the land available for elephant habitats in these regions. Elephant poaching for ivory does not threaten the Asian elephant to as great an extent as it does the African elephant because many male Asian elephants are tuskless. However, poaching of tuskers in southern India for both ivory and meat is still a serious problem and has had a radical effect on breeding patterns. For example, in the Periyar Tiger Reserve in south India, poaching has left one adult male elephant for every 100 females. The result is that very few cows mate with bulls. Fewer than 33 percent of adult females in the reserve have calves less than five years old. In contrast, in the Rajaji National Park the sex ratio is one male for every two females. Ninety percent of females are accompanied by a calf. In some countries, the government provides compensation for crop damage or deaths caused by elephants, but there is still often strong political pressure on wildlife authorities to eliminate elephants near populated regions. Increasingly there is pressure on palm oil plantations and other practices such as forestry to become certified.

Certification qualifications have specific requirements to reduce deforestation, emissions and wildlife conflicts. However, as human populations increase, elephant-human conflicts are likely to rise. Experts already consider such confrontations to be the leading cause of elephant deaths in Asia. In India about 300 people and 200 elephants per year die through poaching, crop protection incidents or automobile related accidents. Because of these threats, Asian elephant numbers are estimated to be between 30,000 and 50,000 animals. This estimate has such a wide range due to the extreme difficulty involved in trying to survey a population that is difficult to find and continuously changes. The low range is the definite and the upper range is the possible number, with the actual count being somewhere in the middle. It is thought that as many as one third of the total population of Asian elephants are held in captivity throughout Southeast Asia, most as work animals. The British used captive animals to open the forests to logging in colonial times. The decline of the logging industry has led to many out-of-work elephants and mahouts.

The future of elephants largely depends on the continuation of the ivory ban, habitat preservation, devising ways for people and elephants to co-exist together and successful zoo breeding programs around the world. Often one of the most successful methods of conserving a species is to view it as a sustainable resource. While it is certainly not feasible to use elephants for their ivory, they can be seen as a resource in ecotourism as well as in logging operations that have historically had very little negative impact on their forest environment. Due to its need for large areas of suitable habitat, the Asian elephant is considered a flagship' or umbrella species, whose survival would help maintain biological diversity and ecological integrity over extensive areas. Asian elephants have great religious significance throughout their range, which has contributed significantly to their conservation. Conservation Projects Elephant | Species | WWF Elephant Adopt an Elephanth Overview Once common throughout Africa and Asia, elephant numbers were severely depleted during the 20th century, largely due to the massive ivory trade. While some populations are now stable and growing, poaching, conflict and habitat destruction continue to threaten the species. d Weight C Length 18-24 ft. The largest land mammal on earth, the African elephant weighs up to eight tons.

The elephant is distinguished by its massive body, large ears and a long trunk, which has many uses ranging from using it as a hand to pick up objects, as a horn to trumpet warnings, an arm raised in greeting to a hose for drinking water or bathing. Asian elephants differ in several ways from their African relatives. They are much smaller in size and their ears are straight at the bottom, unlike the large fan-shape ears of the African species. Only some Asian male elephants have tusks. All African elephants, including females, have tusks. Elephants are either left or right-tusked and the one they use more is usually smaller because of wear and tear. The Asian elephant has four toes on the hind foot and five on the forefoot, while the African elephant has three on the hind foot and five on the forefoot. Led by a matriarch, elephants are organized into complex social structures of females and calves, while male elephants tend to live in isolation. A single calf is born to a female once every 4-5 years and after a gestation period of 22 months—the longest of any mammal. These calves stay with their mothers for years and are also cared for by other females in the group.

The two species of elephants—African and Asian—need extensive land to survive. Roaming in herds and consuming hundreds of pounds of plant matter in a single day, both species of elephant require extensive amounts of food, water and space. As a result, these large mammals place great demands on the environment and often come into conflict with people in competition for resources. Why They Matter Elephants help maintain forest and savanna ecosystems for other species, and are integrally tied to rich biodiversity. Elephants directly influence forest composition and density, and can alter the broader landscape. In tropical forests, elephants create clearings and gaps in the canopy that encourage tree regeneration. In the savannas, they reduce bush cover to create an environment favorable to a mix of browsing and grazing animals. The seeds of many plant species are dependent on passing through an elephant's digestive tract before they can germinate. It is calculated that at least a third of tree species in central African forests rely on elephants in this way for distribution of seeds. Threats Today, the most urgent threat to elephants is large-scale poaching to supply the illegal ivory trade. Other threats facing elephants in Africa and Asia include conflict with humans and habitat loss and degradation.

WWF advocates an end to commercial elephant ivory sales in the US and other major markets like China, Thailand and Hong Kong as the most effective and efficient solution to end this illegal ivory trade. Habitat Loss Elephants are also losing their habitats—and ancient migratory routes—due to expanding human settlements, plantation development and the construction of infrastructure such as roads, canals and pipelines. As a result, the level of human-elephant conflict rises as elephants are forced to try access resources. Illegal Wildlife Trade In 1989, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) banned the international trade in ivory. However, there are still some thriving but unregulated domestic ivory markets in a number of countries, which fuel an illegal international trade. Poaching to meet growing demand from affluent Asian countries is driving up the rate of poaching. In some countries, political unrest contributes to elephant poaching. What WWF Is Doing Research and Monitoring WWF establishes new protected areas within elephant ranges and improving management effectiveness within existing protected areas. We help to determine the population status of elephants in sites across Africa and Asia to make our conservation projects more effective.

The results of the MIKE (Monitoring the Illegal Killing of Elephants) surveys in Central Africa provided baseline data on key elephant populations like elephant hotspots and areas where poaching activities are taking place. We also radio collared pygmy elephants in Borneo and forest elephants in Cameroon, which provided important insights into their natural history. Such information makes it possible for WWF and partners to prioritize specific sites and issues for intervention. Reducing Conflict between People and Elephants WWF has trained elephants and local people to form a "flying squad" that drives wild elephants away from farms and back into the forests. To increase public support for elephant conservation by reducing conflict, WWF helps train wildlife managers and local communities to use modern methods and tools to mitigate human-elephant conflict. We mobilize communities to help protect their crops through elephant monitoring to provide early warning systems, erect fences where required, and educate communities to reduce conflict through behavior change. Our long-term goal is to put in place proper land use planning that gives elephants space for seasonal movements, combined with fences to protect crops and infrastructure.

On the outskirts of the Tesso Nilo forest, WWF has trained elephants and local people to form a "flying squad" that drives wild elephants away from farms and back into the forests. In Namibia and Kenya, we help people benefit from living alongside elephants and rhinos through wildlife tourism. Strengthening antipoaching initiatives Rangers and community-based operations are on the frontlines of the fight against wildlife crime and WWF helps train and equip them. In Mozambique, WWF helped the government establish Quirimbas National Park to conserve more than 2,300 square miles of miombo woodland and its resident elephants. WWF trained park guards in elephant monitoring and antipoaching techniques, and works with communities to mitigate conflict with elephants. At the borders of Lao PDR, Cambodia, and Vietnam, WWF trains, equips, and supports local staff to patrol protected areas and assess elephant distribution and numbers. In Lao PDR, WWF works to conserve the largest elephant populations in Indochina. In Vietnam, WWF worked with Fauna and Flora International to develop a national elephant action plan, which was adopted by the Vietnamese government in 1996.

Stopping illegal ivory trade WWF works with TRAFFIC, the international wildlife trade monitoring network, to reduce the major threat that illegal and illicit domestic ivory markets pose to wild elephants. TRAFFIC also manages a global record of ivory seizures, called ETIS (Elephant Trade Information System) that helps to identify routes and countries of particular importance in illegal trade. Protecting Elephant Habitat WWF works with elephant range state governments, local people and non-governmental partners to secure a future for this powerful symbol of nature by thinking beyond protected areas. We advocate for large conservation landscapes like KAZA, the largest transboundary conservation area in the world. Home to almost 250,000 elephants, we work to maintain this space to provide elephants freedom to roam. Pregnant for Years?! 20 Animals with Very Long Pregnancies | Babble Interest-Based Ads © Disney. All Rights Reserved. Content provided on this site is for entertainment or informational purposes only and should not be construed as medical or health, safety, legal or financial advice. Click here for additional information. Pregnant for Years?!

20 Animals with Very Long Pregnancies Serge Bielanko Image Source: Thinkstock Pregnancy is a special place that women go to, a land where most men (okay all men) are not allowed. Oh yeah, we can stand at the gates and peek inside, but that doesn’t really add up to much. Men are — for all intents and purposes — totally excluded from the trials and tribulations of pregnancy. We hardly get a taste of the magic, and likewise, we never feel sick, bloated, congested, achy, exhausted, or lightly homicidal because of the baby that will never ever grow down in our beer bellies. I mean: how the hell do they do it? How do females create and carry a tiny human inside of them until it ain’t really so tiny at all? It is one of the great mysteries of our world, this baby thing, and I will probably always admire every single woman who spends about nine months doing all of the hard work when it comes to making a kid. That said there are some other critters out there in the animal kingdom who take things up a notch when it comes to pregnancy.

I guess I hadn’t really ever thought about it before, but there are quite a few animals whose gestation period goes longer, in a lot of cases MUCH LONGER, than a human’s does. I’ve compiled a bunch of them for you to check out. It’s pretty remarkable, actually. Unless you’re a pregnant giraffe. Then, it probably just sucks really, really bad. 1. Cow Cows aren’t typically pregnant for too much longer than a human, yet with calves usually born at 10 months, they still have us beat. 2. Horse Mares are typically pregnant for 11-12 months. Imagine carrying a baby horse around inside of you? It must feel like you housed an eighty-pound meatloaf. 3. Sea Lion Sea lions usually give birth to their pups after 11 or 12 months of pregnancy. And then they have the cutest baby on Earth. 4. Llama Llama mamas carry their young for 11-12 months. Compared to us humans, that’s an extra bunch of weeks for them to waddle around and stare at the sun and wish they were a darn chipmunk (31 day pregnancy) instead. 5.

Sperm Whale Female sperm whales carry their young for 14-16 months . Oh man, mom must feel like a small trout when that big baby finally pops out. 6. Black Rhino The irresistible baby Black Rhinoceros comes into this world after his mother has hauled him around in her belly for 15 -17 months . That’s like two entire pro baseball seasons and then some. But I guess rhinos don’t care about baseball, huh? 7. Java Rhino Okay, so I’m a real sucker for rhinos. Who isn’t? They are pure awesomeness and they remind me of dinosaurs. The very endangered Javan rhino stays pregnant even longer than their Black Rhino cousin. How does being knocked up for 16-19 months sound? Hey, good things take time to make. 8. Dolphin Dolphins give birth after being pregnant for 11-12 months . That’s not much compared to some animals, but it’s still quite a bit longer than us humans. 9. Tapir Pregnant tapir moms-to-be have to wait 13 months to meet their little tapirs.

Judging by how cute this guy is though, it almost seems worth the really long slog. 10. Walrus If you are a baby walrus waiting your turn to see the light of the world, you have to wait for 15 months before you can get born. Poor pregnant Mrs Walrus. She must feel like she swallowed a baby rhino. 11. Zebra It takes 12-13 months for a baby zebra to grow inside his or her mama before they are ready to be born. I’d say mom really earns her stripes (no pun intended!) with each pregnancy then, wouldn’t you? 12. Killer Whale Killer whales are pregnant with their babies for 17-18 months . That’s like a year and a half. My wife would eat me alive. Killer wife. 13. Camel Camels stay pregnant for 13-14 months . And then, finally, they get rid of the bump… but not the hump. 14. Manatee Manatees are such gentle, beautiful creatures. They even seem to live in slow motion. That might be because they are so tired from BEING PREGNANT FOR AN ENTIRE YEAR !!!

Yep, mama manatees keep their babies in their wombs for 12 months before they give birth to their not-so-little amazing creature. 15. Donkey Baby donkeys are born after their mother endures a 12-14 month pregnancy . I wonder if a donkey ever just up and forgot she was even pregnant since the whole process takes so long. 16. Giraffe The average giraffe pregnancy takes 15 months . Humans can get pregnant, have a baby, and then get pregnant again in that same amount of time. Whoa. 17. Alpaca It takes about 11-13 months for an alpaca baby to be all set to pop on out into this world. Useless Trivia: I like to think that every alpaca mom gives her sons the cool gangster name, Al Paca. 18. Harp Seal Harp seals have quite a rough life if you think about it. They live in some of the harshest climates on Earth and are constantly trying to avoid being killed by a variety of predators, one of which is human beings.

So, I suspect that mama harps really enjoy the 11-12 months they are pregnant with their babies, since it’s the one time they can feel like the kids are safe. 19. African Elephant If you are an African Elephant mama and you’re pregnant, you will be walking around with a ‘little elephant’ inside of you for 22 months . That’s almost two whole years! I know good things come to those who wait and all, but wow. 20. Sharks I love sharks and find them fascinating, so I was surprised to learn that many of them have very long pregnancies. In fact, 2 years is not at all uncommon in the shark kingdom. However, one shark in particular takes the award for the most insane pregnancy span in all the world. The Frilled Shark, once pregnant, will remain so for about 3-AND-A-HALF YEARS ! I am speechless. I am blown away. Thanks for joining me!

Question: What large animal has a gestation period of 22 months, the longest of any land animal?
Answer: Elephant