African Elephants (Loxodonta africana and L. cyclotis) Fact Sheet: Diet & Feeding

Vegetarian herbivores

• Diverse diet
• May feed on more than 80 different plant specie
• Composition varies with season and plant availability
• Diet high in cellulose
• Specialized digestive system helps digest foods which are difficult to break down
• Colon and an expanded caecum contain protozoans and bacteria that produce cellulase to digest by fermentation
• Horses and rhinos have similar structures
• Small intestine long
• May measure 35 m (115 ft)
• Increases area for nutrient absorption
• Digestion slow
• May take c. 12 hours
• Most (66%) food passes undigested and is eliminated in feces
• Savannah/bush elephants
• Primarily eat grasses, including sedges
• Also consume forbs and woody vegetation (leaves, shrubs, trees)
• Forest elephants
• Leaves, fruits, seeds, branches, and bark

Daily Food Intake

• Consume 4%-6% of body weight daily
• Require 75-150 kg (165-330 lbs) of food each day

Drinking

• Drink 20-50 gallons of water per day
  • Usually drink once / day when water is available
  • May go for several days without drinking in arid areas

Image credit: © San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. All rights reserved.

African elephants eating.

Image credit: © San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. All rights reserved.

Shoshani (1992)
Estes (1991)
Eltringham (1982)