What an onerous responsibility to entrust to a faithful elephant - that of retrieving the dead body of its compatriot... A sad tale of two elephants.

Did this poor elephant die at the hands of poachers or did it drown in a monsoon flood, while trying to cross the river?

One tried to pull from within the river but was unable, so a large tusker was called in to nudge the dead elephant's body into the water and then the second elephant was able to drag the dead body through the water. In the process, the tugging elephant nearly goes under-water, with its mahouts barely managing to stay on board as they nearly get dragged underwater!

The majestic elephants are the largest mammal on land yet they are peaceful and gentle creatures. There are two types of elephant species, Asian (Indian Elephants) and African. Asian Elephants are easily distinguishable from the African tuskers by their smaller size and ears, more rounded back and fourth toenail on each of their hind feet. They have thick, dry skin with a small amount of stiff hair, and are grey to brown in colour. The current worldwide population of Asian elephants is estimated at between 41,410 and 52,345 individuals. Listed as an endangered species, its the only remaining species of the genus Elephas mainly distributed in Southeast Asia from India in the west to Borneo in the east.

Generally Elephants have poor eyesight, but they possess a very good sense of hearing and smell. The lifespan of Elephants is awesome, having bigger brains and an amazing memory. They rarely live on isolation but mostly stay together. So when one animal detects danger, the whole herd is alerted. The major regions where elephants are found in India include the forests of Karnataka, Tamilnadu, Kerala, Uttara Pradesh, Orissa, and Assam. It is estimated that there are over 28,000 Indian Elephants in India, including zoos and animal parks. The Indian Elephant is found across India in protected forests and in Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Myanmar. Famous Indian Elephant reserves in India includes Periyar Widlife Sanctuary, Bandipur and Nagarhole National Parks.

Source: Wikipedia

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