Few zoos in the world that contain elephants can boast that their huge pets have become parents. In captivity, elephants reproduce poorly - being alone deprives animals of the social skills necessary to establish normal relationships with the opposite sex, in addition, the climatic conditions of zoos, often not at all suitable for these heat-loving animals, affect the fertility of elephants. In the wild, elephants reproduce more intensively - in favorable conditions, an elephant can bear offspring every 3-4 years.
Instructions
Step 1
Female elephants reach sexual maturity by 10-12 years, in unfavorable conditions for life, sexual maturity occurs later - at 18-20 years. Females acquire the ability to fully bear offspring at the age of 15-16. Males become sexually mature at 10-15 years old, but competition with adult elephants rarely allows them to start breeding earlier than 25-30 years old - as a rule, stronger and more experienced males win in mating fights.
Step 2
From about 20 years of age, young elephants experience a condition known in India as "must" for several weeks and sometimes months every year. During this period, males show particular aggressiveness, become more excitable than usual. In the blood of the male during the must, the level of testosterone rises sharply, a special secret is secreted from the glands located between the ear and the eye. In females, must is rarely manifested, aggressiveness is less pronounced.
Step 3
During the musta period, elephants look for females ready to mate, approach herds, although the rest of the time they lead a solitary lifestyle or gather in small groups consisting only of young males. Elephants arrange mating fights, look after females. The formed pairs are separated from the herd for several days, after mating, the female elephant returns to the common herd, the male leaves for a group of young elephants or remains alone.
Step 4
The estrous cycle in elephants lasts about 4 months, while the female is ready for reproduction only during estrus - within two days. In a drought, the sexual activity of animals decreases - elephants do not ovulate, and males do not demonstrate mating behavior.
Step 5
Pregnancy in elephants lasts 22 months. Before giving birth, the female leaves the herd, but does not go far from it. When a baby is born, the woman in labor is not left alone - she is accompanied by one or several elephants to protect from predators, help the baby elephant to stand up, and sometimes even provide a kind of assistance during childbirth, carefully pulling the baby out with the trunk. As a rule, a female elephant gives birth to one cub, extremely rarely - two. The weight of a newborn is 60 to 115 kilograms in Indian elephants and 90 to 130 kilograms in African elephants.
Step 6
Despite their impressive size, elephants remain dependent on their mother for a very long time. For two years or more, the female feeds the cub with milk, although the elephant is able to eat solid food already 6 months after birth. In the herd, the babies are looked after by immature young elephants for several years - for them this is a kind of preparation for motherhood. "Nanny" return the cubs to the herd, if they happen to fight off the group, they protect them from predatory animals. In the future, such care not only increases the survival rate of young animals, but also ensures the care of future mothers about their own offspring.
