Did You Know? - Surprising Facts About Elepants
~ Elephants eat 300 - 600 lb (130 - 270 kg) of food per day - 60% of that food leaves the elephant's body undigested.~ Elephants drink about 30 gal. (115 L) of water per day.
~ Elephants produce 220 lb (100 kg) of dung & urinate about 15 gal. (60 L) everyday.
~ The largest elephant ever recorded weighed 26,400 lb (12,000 kg).
~ A charging elephant can run up to 25 mph (40 kph).
~ Elephants can live as long as 70 years.
~ Elephants are carried in their mother's.womb for 20 - 22 months - the longest gestation period of any land animal.
~ A newborn calf is about 3 feet tall (270 cm) and weighs approximately 175 - 250 lb (80 - 115 kg).
~ New-born elephants may consume over 2.5 gal. (10 L) of milk a day.
~ An elephant doesn't drink with its trunk, but instead fills the trunk with water and then uses it as a hose to pour the water into its mouth.
~ Elephants are excellent swimmers - they often cross waterways by walking on the bottom and using their trunks as a snorkel.