Elephant Scientific Name : Elephas maximus   Identification : Unmistakable. Largest of the mammals found in India. Long muscular, wrinkled trunk. Triangular ears, massive head, long pillar-like legs and long tail with bristles on the end. Elephants are grey in color but look black when wet and take the color of the soil after a dust bath. Males possess tusks, females lack any prominent tusks. Some of the males known as ‘Mukhnas’ are tusk less. Shoulder height is 250-320cm.   Habitat : Forest, Grassland and bamboo forest.   Diet : Grass, grassroots, tree bark, leaves, fruits, flowers and bamboo. Behavior : Nocturnal and diurnal. Elephants are generally shy animals but lone tuskers can sometimes be quite aggressive. They are highly social and live in herds controlled by a matriarch. The herds consist of females, young and infants. Males are expelled from the herds when they become sexually mature. This rules out any possibility of inbreeding. Sometimes males form small groups but these groups. Most of the males lead a solitary life. They attach themselves to the female herds in the breeding season. Elephants periodically come into the state of ‘Musth’. A secretion from a gland situated between the eye and the ear are the sign of this condition and it signifies that the elephant is ready to mate. An elephant feeds for 16 hours in a day. It can consume 600 to 700 lb. of green fodder a day.   Breeding : Breeding takes place in the hot months before the monsoons. Gestation period is 18-20 months. Always a single calf is given birth.   Life Span : Up to 70 years.   Status : Endangered. Hunted for the illegal ivory trade.