CENOZOIC ERA 



207 



Asiatic 



African 



FIG. 10.8. Comparison of the heads of Asiatic and African elephants. (From Guyer, 

 Animal Biology, Harper & Brothers, 1948, p. 91.) 



ture, the most obvious difference to a casual observer being in the size of 

 the ears (Fig. 10.8). The great palm-leaf-like ears of African elephants 

 stand in marked contrast to the ears of Asiatic elephants. Asiatic elephants 

 have long been domesticated and used as work animals; they are the 

 species commonly seen in circuses. 



Elephantine Adaptations 



Huge bulk is always brought to mind by mention of elephants, and 

 indeed many of the bodily adaptations of elephants are connected with 

 their large size. To support the weight of the body the limbs have a 

 strong, pillarlike construction. The feet have retained the full complement 

 of five toes, but much of the weight is supported, not by the toes, but by a 

 pad of elastic tissue which forms both the sole of the short, broad foot and 

 a sort of functional "rubber heel." 



Since the body is supported high above the ground on long legs, the ele- 

 phant, like the horse, is faced with the problem of reaching the ground 

 for feeding. We have seen how the problem was solved in the horse (p. 

 198). In the elephant the solution was entirely different. Here the head is 

 so heavy that any lengthening of the neck would be a great mechanical 

 disadvantage. Accordingly, elephants are characterized by short necks. 

 Nor is the preorbital portion of the skull lengthened, as it is in the horse. 

 Instead we find the development of the organ which gives the order its 

 name: the proboscis or trunk. This versatile organ consists of the nose 

 and upper lip greatly elongated. As everyone who has fed peanuts to 

 elephants knows, the two nostril openings are at the tip of the trunk, along 

 with a fingerlike projection (African elephants have two of them) by 

 means of which small objects may be picked up. 



