What Do Elephants Eat

By: Want To Know It

Elephants are mammals that eat 140-270kg (300-600lb) of food each day. But what do elephants eat? This post will answer that question and also tell you some interesting facts about elephants.

What Do Elephants Eat?

Elephants are herbivores- which means that they don’t eat other animals. Grasses make up half of their total food intake. The other half includes leaves, twigs, bamboo, bark, roots, fruit, seeds and flowers. Elephants only digest about 40% of the food they eat as they have poor digestive systems. This means they have to eat lots of food to make sure they get all the nutrients they need.

Interesting Facts About Elephants

• Female elephants are pregnant for about 22 months.
• Elephants are the largest living land animals.
• No animals prey on healthy adult elephants. Lions sometimes prey on baby or sick elephants.
• Like humans, who are left or right handed, elephants are left or right ‘tusked’.
• Elephants are good swimmers but they cannot jump.
• Elephants can run as fast as 40km/h (25mph).
• Elephants have the largest brains of any land animals.
• Elephants are in danger of extinction due to hunting and loss of habitat.

Related Topics:

What Do Coyotes Eat

What Do Goats Eat

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