The African Forest Elephant: A Fascinating and Majestic Creature
Source - canva
African Forest elephants are one of the two living African elephant species. Its natural habitat is humid forests in West Africa and the Congo Basin.
Source - canva
Reaching a shoulder height of 2.4 m (7 ft 10 in), it is the smallest of the three living elephant species.
Source - canva
The tusks of both sexes are straight and point downward, erupting when the animal is 1–3 years old.
Source - canva
It usually lives in family groups that have a maximum of 20 individuals.
Source - canva
It is significant to the Guinean Forests of West Africa and the Congolese rainforests to maintain their composition and structure.
Source - canva
The species was first scientifically described in 1900. It is estimated that by 2013, less than 30,000 individuals remained, due to a sharp decline in population caused by overhunting during the 20th century.
Source - canva
Habitat loss, fragmentation, and poaching threaten it. The conservation status of populations varies across countries.
Source - canva
The IUCN Red List lists the species as Critically Endangered since 2021.
Source - canva
Long considered a subspecies of the African elephant, the African forest elephant shares many traits with the African bush elephant.
Source - canva
After wallowing, the African forest elephant's grey skin looks yellow to reddish.