This enormous pachyderme is the largest African mammal. Elephants need a lot of water to drink, wash and bathe. They are better swimmers than hippos. Males, which can measure over 3m high, weigh up to 6 tons and an adult female 4 tons. Whereas males are quite solitary, females live in perfectly organised herds. A single elephant calf is born after a gestation period of 23 months.

Diet: as a herbivore, they mainly eat branches, leaves and bark.

Hunted for their ivory for a long time, elephant populations have reduced dramatically. Now the problem lies in sharing land with farmers.