Friday... full of good cheer
On the tusker trail
The biggest giveaway on the majestic African elephant from the genus Loxodonta is its fan-shaped ears, which closely resemble the continent of Africa. This was something the Masai warrior at the Keekorok Lodge at Masai Mara in Kenya told me. Those ears can help you differentiate an African elephant from its Asian counterpart, which have rounded ears.
- By Suchitra Bajpai Chaudhary, Senior Feature Writer
- Published: 23:37 January 8, 2009
- Image Credit: Venessa Williams
The biggest giveaway on the majestic African elephant from the genus Loxodonta is its fan-shaped ears, which closely resemble the continent of Africa. This was something the Masai warrior at the Keekorok Lodge at Masai Mara in Kenya told me. Those ears can help you differentiate an African elephant from its Asian counterpart, which have rounded ears.
Reams and reams of literature have been written
in Sanskrit on the graceful elephant walk. Despite its humungous frame, the elephant is known to have a very graceful walk as though it were swaying to some invisible natural rhythm.
If you've ever been to a game park in Africa and seen this creature walking around in herds, you would understand what an awe-inspiring sight it is. The earth's largest terrestrial mammals walk with a swagger, move around with their families and despite their huge bulk come across as the gentlest of creatures, quietly feeding on grass or leaves or bathing in tropical ponds.
It is their docile temperament that has made them an endangered species today. But the guides at Masai Mara told us about the sad plight of African elephants which are being hunted down and slaughtered for their beautiful ivory tusks.
The tusks are actually long incisors that weigh between 50-100 pounds, and are five to eight feet long and are highly valued items around the world for making jewellery etc.
Despite the official ban on ivory, it continues to be a prized product and the poor animal is often brutally killed for its tusks. Zoologists have warned that if the African elephant is not conserved, their population that is rapidly dwindling might disappear by 2020!
– Suchitra Bajpai Chaudhary, Senior Feature Writer, Friday
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