African Elephant
African elephants are the elephants of the genus Loxodonta (Greek for 'oblique-sided tooth'), consisting of two extant species: the African bush elephant and the smaller African forest elephant. Loxodonta is one of the two existing genera in the family Elephantidae. Although it is commonly believed that the genus was named by Georges Cuvier in 1825, Cuvier spelled it "Loxodonte". An anonymous author romanized the spelling to "Loxodonta", and the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature (ICZN) recognizes this as the proper authority.
Fossil members of Loxodonta have only been found in Africa, where they developed in the middle Pliocene.
Read more about African Elephant: Description, Distribution and Habitat, Classification, Behavior, Conservation
Famous quotes containing the words african and/or elephant:
“... the Black woman in America can justly be described as a slave of a slave.”
—Frances Beale, African American feminist and civil rights activist. The Black Woman, ch. 14 (1970)
“So slowly the hot elephant hearts
grow full of desire,
and the great beasts mate in secret at last,
hiding their fire.”
—D.H. (David Herbert)