Asian elephant Zoologists place the elephant in the Order Proboscidea, the natural group of animals with a proboscis or trunk as their distinct physical feature. Delving back into Earth’s history, scientists have identified 352 members of this order, which now survives in two genera, each represented by a single species: the African elephant (Loxodonta africana) and the Asian or Indian elephant (Elephas maximus). While the African elephant has at least one recognised sub-species, there is no unanimity among specialists on the question of sub-species of Asian elephants. Apart from India, wild elephants are found in Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Burma, China, Indonesia, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam.       Distribution of elephants in Asian Pacific Region   The elephant is a slow-growing species. The gestation period is between 19 to 21 months. Given the best living conditions, it has been estimated that the interval between two calvings is about four years. On the other hand, it is a long-living animal. The first calf is generally born to a female elephant around the age of 14 or 15 years. Instances of much younger elephants calving are not unknown. And they can go on calving until the age of 60 or more. The longevity of the elephant in the wild is largely a matter of conjecture. The average life expectancy of a healthy animal is assumed to be around 70 to 80 years.       The Asian elephant     Sub-adult male animals, once they attain adulthood, are expelled from the group. The average height of an Asian male elephant is around 3.2 metres, and the average height of the adult Asian female elephant is, on average, between 2.4 and 2.6 metres.       Last update: 16 April 2013 Kameng-Sonitpur Elephant Reserve  •  Introduction (http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Eduspace_Global_EN/SEM3DS0SAKF_0.html)  •  Elephant Reserve (http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Eduspace_Global_EN/SEMHNS0SAKF_0.html)  •  Man vs elephant (http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Eduspace_Global_EN/SEMXSS0SAKF_0.html) Exercises  •  Worksheet introduction (http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Eduspace_Global_EN/SEM29T0SAKF_0_ov.html)  •  Paper map creation and study of Kameng-Sonitpur Elephant Reserve (http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Eduspace_Global_EN/SEMUAT0SAKF_0.html)  •  Analysis of satellite images (http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Eduspace_Global_EN/SEM0GT0SAKF_0.html) Eduspace - Software  •  LEOWorks 3 (http://esamultimedia.esa.int/multimedia/LEOWorks3.exe)  •  ArcExplorer (http://esamultimedia.esa.int/multimedia/eduspace/ae2setup.zip) Eduspace - Download  •  ks_papermap.zip (http://esamultimedia.esa.int/docs/eduspace/ks_papermap.zip)  •  ks_satelliteimg.zip (http://esamultimedia.esa.int/docs/eduspace/ks_satelliteimg.zip) Resources  •  Useful links (http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Eduspace_Global_EN/SEMRHV0SAKF_0.html)