African Elephant

African elephants also known as African bush elephants or African savanna elephants, are the largest living land mammal. African elephants have a large head, large ears, and a long muscular trunk. The two front incisors of African elephants grow into large tusks that curve forward. Tusks are present in both male and female African elephants. The African elephant's trunk has two fingerlike outgrowths, one at the top edge of the tip and another on the bottom edge. These outgrowths, also called proboscides, enable the elephant it to pick up small objects and strip leaves from trees.African elephants, like most elephants, require a great deal of food to support their large body size. They can eat up to 350 pounds of food each day and their foraging can drastically alter the landscape. The African elephant's predators include lions, hyenas, and humans.The basic social unit in African elephants is the maternal family unit. Sexually mature males also form groups while old bulls are somtimes solitary. Large heards can form, in which the various maternal and male groups mix.African elephants are classified as vulnerable by the IUCN. The main threats facing African elephants are hunting and habitat destruction. The species is targetted by poachers who hunt the elephants for their valuable ivory tusks.