Due to the fact
that elephants are such amazingly large animals, they require a great deal of
food to sustain themselves. Elephants can typically eat 330-375 pounds of
vegetation a day. When you think about this in comparison to the amount of food
humans typically eat a day (around 4.5-5 pounds), it’s absolutely
mind-boggling! It comes as no surprise that elephant must spend the greater
portion of their day (around 80%, or 16-18 hours) feeding themselves.
Elephants
are herbivores, meaning that they only eat plant life. They eat everything from
leaves, grasses, fruits, small bushes, and many other types of foliage. One of
their favorite things to eat is bark, because it is a good source or calcium
and aids their bodies in digestion. In addition to the immense amount of food
that elephants consume daily, they also need to drink anywhere from 18-26
gallons of water daily. Male elephants have the capacity to drink 55 gallons of
water in less than 5 minutes! Again, comparing this amount to how much water
humans should drink daily (less than a gallon) definitely puts this amount in
perspective. Interestingly, elephants have also been known to tear up soil with
their tusks, which they then place in their mouth. This is to obtain minerals
and salts that they aren’t obtaining from their herbivore lifestyle.
As
previously discussed in this blog, elephants use their trunks for a wide array
of purposes. Feeding is one of the trunks most important functions. The
elephant can slough bark of trees using its’ tusk, and then use its trunk to
pick the bark or other foliage up and place it in its mouth. Furthermore,
elephants use their trunks to suck up water, which they then spray in their
mouths. This is part of the reason that elephants have such a great capacity
for drinking immense amounts of water so quickly.
http://www.seaworld.org/animal-info/info-books/elephants/diet.htm
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_many_pounds_of_food_does_the_average_person_eat_each_day
http://www.tenan.vuurwerk.nl/reports/eversdal/grade6.htm
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