Elephants live long. Or as much as you are lucky. The long life of the largest mammals living on Earth sometimes depends on many small factors: weather conditions, the abundance of food, the safety of the herd and the wisdom of the elephant who controls this herd.
Paradoxically, the elephant's life, like its duration, is very similar to that of a human. Under favorable conditions, surrounded by a large, loving, caring family, under the guidance of the oldest grandmother, the life of elephants proceeds relatively calmly and for a long time - up to 60-70 years.
Elephants are herd animals. Born after 20-22 months in the mother's womb, the 120-kilogram baby elephant very quickly gets back on its feet, but, of course, it is completely unable to take care of itself. Until the baby grows up and properly learns how to use his most formidable weapon - the trunk - he is a tempting prey for predators: lions, tigers and jaguars. And the elephants are also very curious, they love to be mischievous and run away, carried away by their games.
If in your home you want to harmonize the space, divert negative energy, or hope for the birth of a child, put the figurine of an elephant with a baby elephant on the window with its trunk to the stars.
In the heat, they can chase other animals and get lost or hide in a swamp, or, being capricious, do not want to leave the water, and there may be poisonous snakes. Keeping track of a baby, especially if it is not one baby, but several, is beyond the power of one elephant, but here “aunts” come to the rescue - already grown up elephants, who can be both relatives and just neighbors. They look after the elephants, drive them out of the water, clean them of silt. How many "aunts" do adult giants owe their lives? To many. And they remember them all, because elephants have a wonderful memory. Especially for good, like all thinking beings.
Giants of Kindness
Elephants are very loyal and emotional animals. They know how to laugh! And cry. To be sad when they say goodbye to their fellows.
Grown up, independent elephants, even those who have left the herd, will always help the younger ones, lend their trunk to help. And when the time comes, they will bury the elephant that goes to die. Elephants never leave their dead brothers uncovered: they cover them with earth and cover them with branches. By the way, the funeral rite, if necessary, they produce not only for the brothers. If, because of self-defense, they kill an enemy, for example, a lion attacking a baby elephant, they will bury the lion as well.
So how long do elephants live?
In general, the lifespan of an elephant depends on the integrity of its teeth.
During their life, these giants change six sets of four molars. The last time the teeth change is about forty years old and then gradually begin to deteriorate. By the age of seventy, it becomes difficult for an elephant to chew food, and therefore most elephants die most often from hunger. But it's free. In captivity, with proper care, elephants sometimes live longer. There is a known case when an elephant lived to be 83 years old. This long-liver was named Lin Wang, he lived in Taiwan and was a veteran of the Sino-Japanese War of 1937-1945, and died in 2003.
Thais claim that their elephant, Somrak, is much older and still alive. Trainer Somrak is sure that his ward is about 115 years old.
So, if the baby elephant does not die in childhood, if during his life he can survive two or three prolonged droughts, if every day he can get about six hundred kilograms of different greens and about a hundred liters of water for food, if he is not killed by poachers - tusk hunters - then the elephant can live a long and very happy life.
