Elephant Tusk Facts

The tusks are a remarkable feature of the elephants. Tusk is the two big long teeth on an elephants face. They are longer in size and about one third of the tusk is hidden inside the elephants skull. Both male and female have the tusks, the longest tusk ever recorded was 138 inches long and it weighed 314 pounds which made it the heaviest tusk of the elephant. Tusks differ in shape, size and length thus researchers can use them to identify the individual. These bulky mammals use their bulky teeth (tusks) for their defense and feeding. Elephants tusks are mostly dangerous for them because it is their tusk which led to their senseless slaughter by hunters. Tusk is expensive and when Asian Elephants became endangered their hunt was strongly condemned and the trade of tusks was declared illegal.

Elephant Teeth Facts

Unlike other mammals elephants do not have set of baby teeth which are replaced by adult teeth later on. Elephants have total twelve teeth, six upper and six lower. The teeth of an Asiatic elephant are bigger than African elephant teeth. At first the teeth of an elephant are covered with an enamel cap which is removed gradually when these teeth grow larger in size. When elephants teeth are worn they just fall out and are replaced by new one. Single teeth can be replaced six times during the life period of an elephant. Every time when the replacement of teeth takes place naturally, the teeth that replaces is always bigger in size and stronger than the previous one. After the six time replacement elephant eventually dies when teeth are replaced no more.