Why does an elephant need a trunk? Detailed answer

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Why does an elephant need a trunk? Detailed answer

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Why does an elephant need a trunk?

Thousands and thousands of years ago, giants called mammoths inhabited the Earth. Since they could not endure the hardships and hardships they were subjected to, they gradually perished one by one. But two descendants remained from them - these are the African and Asian elephants.

Elephants are the largest land animals. Despite their enormity, they are meek and very intelligent, with a gentle and patient nature. Of all animals, they are the easiest to train, with the possible exception of the domestic dog.

The elephant has an unusually heavy body, it can weigh 5 tons. It is in order to hold such a weight that the legs of elephants are short and columnar, which gives them the necessary power.

The two tusks that protrude from the upper jaw of an elephant are actually overgrown teeth of all conceivable sizes. Animals use their tusks to uproot roots when looking for food, and also as a means of defense.

In Indian elephants, tusks belong only to males.

An elephant's trunk is an amazing organ, without which an animal simply cannot exist. This is the most remarkable part of the elephant's body, which performs almost the same functions as the human hands. The trunk is a continuation of the nose and upper lip. He serves the elephant with both his hand, and his nose, and his lip!

The trunk has many muscles - about 40. Therefore, this organ is very strong and flexible. So an elephant can use its trunk as a very effective weapon. The tip of the trunk, like the fingers, is so sensitive that it can feel a barely perceptible touch.

The trunk can be used as a hand to put food in the mouth. The elephant drinks by drawing water through the tubes in its trunk, then bends it and releases the water into the throat. He can also refresh himself by showering from his trunk by spewing water onto his back. Elephants are very fond of water and take a bath whenever they can. Despite their weight, they are excellent swimmers. The female often puts her baby elephant on her back while bathing.

There is an assumption that elephants live for hundreds of years, but in captivity they rarely live to be 90.

Author: Likum A.

Random interesting fact from the Great Encyclopedia:

What happens when you feel dizzy?

Every creature living on earth must have a sense of balance. Since everything is attracted to the ground by gravity, everyone must navigate in space in order to move normally.

The human organs responsible for the sense of balance are called the semicircular canals. These are three tubes located in the ear, stretched in the form of a semicircle.

Why are there three? Because space has three dimensions. Here are three channels and are located in these three directions.

The tubes contain liquid, at one end they have a spherical extension, which is called an ampoule. In these ampoules, stiff hairs grow from sensitive cells associated with nerve fibers.

When the fluid in the channels moves, it causes the hairs to bend, after which signals are sent to the brain and muscles. Because the tubes are in three different positions, moving in either direction will cause the hairs to respond to it. For example, when driving a car, the hairs in two channels are inactive, but in the one responsible for moving forward or backward, the hairs are bent. The reason for this is the liquid.

Now let's say we're spinning fast. The fluid in the horizontal semicircular canal will bend the sensitive hairs back. When we stop, the lymph by inertia will continue to move in a circle. This will cause the hairs to bend in the opposite direction. And at that moment we will feel that we are moving in a circle, although we are standing still or that the whole world is spinning around us. In other words, we feel dizzy.

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