African Elephants Facts in Uganda

African elephants are the largest land animals on Earth. They are categorized into two; the African bush elephants ( Loxodonta Africana ) and African forest elephants ( Loxodonta cyclotis ). They are both social herbivores with grey skin, but they differ in size and colour according to the tusks and shape of their ears and skulls.

At the moment, the largest populations of African Elephants in Uganda are found in Queen Elizabeth National Park, other Protected Areas with African elephants are Murchison Falls National Park, Kidepo Valley National Park, and Kibale Forest National Park, and a few in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park, Rwenzori Mountains National Park, Toro Semliki Wildlife Reserve, Katonga Wildlife Reserve, Budongo Forest Reserve to mention but a few.

They play a critical/big role in their ecosystem. Most importantly they always shape their habitat in several ways. During the dry season, they dig up dry riverbeds and create watering. Their dung is full of seeds, helping plants spread across the environment and also making good habitat for dung beetles too!

Both male and female African Elephants have tusks, which are continuously growing teeth. They use these tusks to dig for food, and water and strip bark from trees. Males, whose tusks tend to be larger than females, also use their tusks to battle one another.