What is the Size of an Elephant’s Heart?

Known as a large mammal that is categorized under the Elephantidae family, an elephant is considered as the biggest land animal living today. Some species of the animal were extinct but there are few species that are still present like the African bush, the African forest and the Asian elephant. The gestation period of this animal is 22 months. To know more about this species, it is important to start with its anatomy. Below is a quick look at the size of the heart of an elephant.

Anatomy of an Elephant

What is the size of an elephant’s heart? According to zoologists, the average size of the heart of this animal is 28 kilograms. The circulatory system of this species is different because the animal’s ventricles are not connected with the apex. Additionally, the mammal has two venae cavae. Moreover, muscle cells or elastic fibers support the arteries. The walls that support the veins of this animal are thicker when compared to other mammals. Another interesting fact about an elephant’s heart is that it only beats 28 times in a minute.

Additional Information and Other Important Details About Elephants

Based on studies done by scientists, elephants evolved approximately 60 million years ago. When it comes to the social life of this mammal, we can see that the female and male elephants have varying life styles. Female elephants live with their family groups, which are led by the matriarch or the eldest female. On the other hand, male elephants mostly those who are adult have solitary lives. Battles among male elephants can appear to be fierce, but the battles leave few injuries to both mammals. In most instances, the younger elephant backs off before real damages happen.

To communicate with other elephants, the animals create different sounds. These mammals can communicate with the elephants in distant places by making loud and low-frequency sounds. To respond to the sounds made by a particular mammal, the leader of the herd lifts a foreleg to inform the other animals in the group.

About the diet of the mammals, the animals spend 16 hours in a day to gather plant food. The diet of the mammals are made up of bamboo, grasses, leaves, roots, barks and twigs. Studies show that adult elephants have the ability to consume 140 kilograms to 279 kilograms in a single day. Only 40 per cent of the foods that they have eaten are digested. The remaining 60 per cent stays in their body undigested.