Elephants are the largest terrestrial animal and this statement might make us think that elephants eat a ton of food.Elephants are known to be among the smartest, most emotional mammals on the earth. Elephants are herbivore animals, meaning that an elephant feeds on plants and shrubs.Let us now discuss the description of different types of food that account for an elephant’s diet. You’ll be surprised to know how much food elephants eat in a day! Here’s an interesting fact for you: elephants are known to eat for more than 16 hours a day to form the basis of their massive size that can protect them from predators. Can you imagine how much food elephants must be eating?After reading all about an elephant’s food habits, also check out our articles about frog food and gecko food.List Of Foods That Elephants EatAs we know, elephants are herbivore animals. Elephants can grow up to 17000 lb (7711 kg) in weight.Elephants do not eat meat, as they are not carnivorous animals. An elephant consumes things like leaves, stems, bark, the roots of a tree, and flowers. Elephants can eat almost anything green in their sight, even a tree or cactus. Elephants tend to drink a ton of water, from any nearby river or a pond. This allows elephants to stay hydrated throughout the day. Different regions offer different sorts of food, but all elephants from different regions eat strictly herbivorous diets. Usually, an elephant eats mainly leaves and grass.Grass or leaves hanging from a tree can easily catch the eye of an elephant and the elephant will eat it. Elephants eat fruits like mango, figs or wild fruits. Elephants also eat the bark of the tree, which is known to be calcium and nutrient-dense. Elephants love bamboo too. Elephants are known to both browse and graze their food, and vegetable eating is also an option for an elephant’s diet. An elephant can also eat any green plant, flower, succulent stem of cactus available in the region they belong to.Let us read what an African elephant and an Asian elephant eats in their diet during summer when the heat is at its peak, and during winter when the temperature dips considerably. African elephants can be seen in the summer grasslands of sub-Saharan Africa and the forests of west Africa and central Africa. An elephant can eat more than 250 lb (113.3 kg) of food in one day. As for Asian elephants, these elephants stay in woodlands. Any kind of grass that is in their reach, these elephants can eat.How much food do elephants consume in a day?Elephant food intake can go up to 260 lb (117.9 kg) per day. That’s a lot of food!Elephants love eating tree bark. Elephants tend to use their tusks to help carve the trees and feed on them. This bark contains incredibly high calcium and nutrient levels. As we know that elephants can eat for up to 16 hours on average a day, an elephant can consume lots of water in a day too. Water helps them to stay hydrated.Why do elephants eat this much?Elephants are huge animals. Due to their huge build, elephants need to consume a lot of food to keep going and stay healthy or else they cannot survive.For the following reasons, elephants need to consume an average of 250 lb (113.3 kg) of food and an average of 11 gal (50 l) of water every day. Firstly, elephants require a lot of energy to stay healthy. An elephant usually has to travel great distances in a single day. To move more than 12.5 mi (20 km) with a huge body, lots of food is required to sustain them.Natural water is scarce in dry areas. Elephants who live in these areas consume a lot of water to stay hydrated and save enough water for the dry spell. Elephants also eat this much because most of the food an elephant eats is undigested. If elephants do not eat enough food, they will not be able to move their heavy bodies to browse and graze for food. This is why an elephant needs to eat throughout the week.What do elephants eat in the zoo?In zoos, elephants are often fed a set meal each day. Elephants are fed in accordance with their BMI and biological needs.Zookeepers keep a close eye on their actions in order to calculate the ideal amount of food. Elephants in zoos typically consume a menu including a variety of shrubs, fruits, hay, pellets, and vegetables. Elephants can also sometimes browse and graze the trees and shrubs of the zoo. The commonly named elephant bush is also called Portulacaria afra. Potrulacaria afra is a succulent shrub with tiny leaves, it is green in color, from South Africa, and is a popular succulent garden plant worldwide.As this plant prefers dry areas with sun, it is known to grow in various parts of South Africa. It is also known as elephant food, elephant plant, tiny jade, miniature jade, and small leaf jade (although it is not related to the jade plant). This elephant food plant is popular as a bonsai specimen and a hardy xeriscaping plant. The leaves of these plants are edible and are sometimes used in salads and soups in South Africa. The plant has the capacity to remain succulent through periods of extreme heat and drought. Elephants devour the plant, leaving the lower spreading branches and many broken twigs behind as they pull the leaves from the branches.Elephants eat Portulacaria afra as a food source. But it is not the same as a jade plant, which is toxic. Portulacaria afra is a plant that is non-toxic to both humans and animals. An interesting fact is that tortoises feed on Portulacaria afra very often too. The plant may not be the primary source of food for elephants, but it is healthy and makes up a huge portion of elephant meals. In a natural environment, this drought-resistant succulent plant can grow to more than 5-9 ft (1.5-2.7 m) in height. This succulent tree has stems with a shade of red color, and the tiny leaves are green in color.These plants are easy to care for and make attractive house plants. This succulent works well in areas with full sun, bright light, and the cuttings may be used outdoors as an attractive landscape. In various parts of the US, Portulacaria afra is commonly used as a landscape plant. The cuttings of this Portulacaria afra are easily potted. The plant can resist drought, endure bright sun, and can grow relatively easily.These succulent blooms with a star-shaped flower are a pink shade color in late winter and early spring, but they do not bloom in the southwest desert. Birds and insects use these star-shaped flowers for nectar as this drought-resistant plant thrives in direct, bright sun. It may work well if watered in summers occasionally, especially during the hot summer months. Bonsai can be made from both jade and Portulacaria afra, but the latter is considerably easier to bend and train.Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for elephant food then why not take a look at what is a group of elephants called, or the difference between octopus and squid.
Elephants are the largest terrestrial animal and this statement might make us think that elephants eat a ton of food.
