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“They demonstrate, what we consider, the finest human traits!”

From being intelligent to being family-oriented; from having great memories to being capable of feeling deep emotions; from being empathetic to being self-aware; from expressing intense grief to great joy! Can you guess which animal we are talking about? Yes, you guessed it right! The world’s largest land mammal, the elephant!

As we celebrate World Elephant Day every year on August 12^th, it is a perfect time to remind ourselves of how magnificent this animal is, and how they are threatened due to illegal poaching and human-elephant conflict.

Did you know that elephant trunk is perhaps the most sensitive organ found in any mammal? Yes, they cannot just store up to 8 liters of water in it, but also pick up a tiny peanut, shell it, blow the shell out and eat it! Incredible, right?

Let’s learn more about the mighty yet endangered elephants, as we celebrate World Elephant Day, in this latest edition of Wisdom Nuggets!

Did you know an elephant’s temporal lobe (area of brain associated with memory) is denser and larger than that of a human! Hence, it is said that elephants have a remarkable memory. Click here to read most fascinating facts about Asian Elephants.

On this World Elephant Day, let’s get inspired & take this opportunity to educate ourselves about these magnificent mammals and share the knowledge with others.

Get creative and link the environmental education with your favorite subject in the curriculum!

Language–Read the story “An Elephant Tale” here. Discuss in your classroom how our consumption patterns have impacted the elephants. Draft a circular for your school display board appealing everyone in the school to take steps to conserve the ecologically important species ‘the elephants’.

2. Social Studies- Human-wildlife conflict is very much evident in and around elephant corridors. READ this story to learn about Wildlife Corridors. On the map of India, plot all the elephant corridors in the country. Also, list down the cause and impact of this conflict.

3. Math- Asian elephant numbers have dropped by at least 50% over the last three generations, and they’re still in decline today. With only 40,000-50,000 left in the wild, the species is classified as endangered. Read more about it here. Plot a graph showing the decline in elephant population (Y-Axis) since the beginning of 20thcentury (time on X-Axis).

4. Science- Like humans, elephants have also undergone millions of years of evolution to reach to the status of largest land animal. Find out about the evolution of tuskers and prepare a chart for your classroom illustrating the evolution of elephants.

Believe it or not but around 90% of the African elephants have been wiped out in the past century; largely due to the illegal ivory trade! Not just African elephants, but Asian elephants are also under threat of habitat loss, leaving behind only around 45,000 of them in the wild as of 2018.

WWF is constantly working to protect and manage the elephant habitats and create safe “Wildlife corridors” for them to migrate safely.

This World Elephant Day, show your support and sign this petition to put a stop on elephant ivory trade. Let’s get together and create healthy habitat for elephants and eliminate the ivory trade and human-elephant conflict.