The Average Size Of The African Elephant Is Larger Than Those Of Ceylon,
Although I Have Occasionally Shot Monster Rogues In The Latter Country,
Equal To Anything That I Have Seen In Africa.
The average height of
female elephants in Ceylon is about 7 ft.
10 in. at the shoulder, and
that of the males is about 9 ft.; but the usual height of the African
variety I have found, by actual measurement, of females to be 9 ft.,
while that of the bills is 10 ft. 6 in. Thus the females of the African
are equal to the males of Ceylon.
They also differ materially in their habits. In Ceylon, the elephant
seeks the shade of thick forests at the rising of the sun, in which he
rests until about 5 P.M., when he wanders forth upon the plains. In
Africa, the country being generally more open, the elephant remains
throughout the day either beneath a solitary tree, or exposed to the sun
in the vast prairies, where the thick grass attains a height of from
nine to twelve feet. The general food of the African elephant consists
of the foliage of trees, especially of mimosas. In Ceylon, although
there are many trees that serve as food, the elephant nevertheless is an
extensive grass-feeder. The African variety, being almost exclusively a
tree-feeder, requires his tusks to assist him in procuring food. Many of
the mimosas are flat-headed, about thirty feet high, and the richer
portion of the foliage confined to the crown; thus the elephant, not
being able to reach to so great a height, must overturn the tree to
procure the coveted food.
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