Scientific Name: Loxodonta afrikana
Subspecies: Forest Elephant (Loxodonta a. cyklotis) Pygmy Elephant (Loxodonta a. pumilio)
Distribution: Total area of distribution for all three species: All of Africa south of the Sahara Desert. In West Africa, however, do the elephants only survive in small scattered populations, only from Cameroun and east-wards are the population evenly distributed.
Habitat: All types of terrain, from dense bush to semi-desert. Usually not far from water owint to the need to drink daily.
Description: The elephant is the largest living land mammal. It may weigh up to 6 tons and measure 4 meters over the shoulder. The skin is of a greyish brown hue, very thick and with many deep folds. The three different subspecies are verty different in size and appearance. Bush Elephant (L. a. africana): Is the largest, weighing up to 6 tons, measuring up to 4 meters over the shoulder. It has large broad ears with a sharply pointed lower lobe. The tusks are longer and are usually curved forwards. Forest Elephant (L. a. cyclotis): Is smaller, weighing up to 4 tons, measuring 3 meters over the shoulder. It has smaller rounded ears with less pronounced lappets, and straighter, thinner and shorter tusks, usually projecting downwards. Sometimes, however, the Forest Elephant's tusks are longer than those of the Bush Elephant. Pygmy Elephant (L. a. pumilio): Is the smallest of the three, weighing up to 2 tons, measuring 1,8 - 2 meters over the shoulder. It has also smaller, rounder ears. The tusks are thin, very straight and also very short. It is reputed to be the most aggressive of the three. Pygmy Elephant is only recognised as an individual subspecies by few zoologists. Most are of the opinion that it is an ecological subspecies rather than a different species, having adapted to an unfavourable habitat (confined to the swampy forest of Gabon and Congo), and being therefore of a much smaller size.
Hunting method: Tracking with trackers.
Hunting available in: South Africa, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia, Tanzania, Ethiopia and Cameroun.