African Forest Elephant (Forestelephant) (Round Tube Elephant)

Loxodonta cyclotis

 The forest elephant (Loxodonta cyclotis), sometimes also an African forest elephant, is a species from the genus of the African elephant (Loxodonta). The range includes the tropical rainforests of the central and western parts of Africa. It is the smaller of the two representatives of the elephant family on the continent. Outwardly, it is largely similar to its larger relative, the African elephant, but has some deviations in detail. These include the more rounded ears, the clearly straight tusks and the less dented back. In terms of behavior, both types agree in many areas. The animals live in social groups consisting of closely related cows and their offspring. The bulls, on the other hand, act as loners. In contrast to the African elephant, the herd groups are smaller and less stable. Forest clearings, which form important social contact points for different groups of forest elephants, are of great importance. The diet is largely based on soft plant foods. A large part of the daily workload is spent looking for food. Reproduction takes place all year round, but has a climax in the dry seasons. The offspring usually consists of a calf that is suckled for up to five years.

The forest elephant was first described scientifically in 1900. In the second half of the 20th century, the representative elephant was considered a subspecies of the African elephant. Only different anatomical and molecular genetic studies in the transition to the 21st century led to a discussion of the independent species character of the forest elephant. The problem here is a more or less wide corridor along the northern limit of distribution, in which hybridization with the African elephant occurs. At the beginning of the 20th century, another small elephant form from central Africa was described and referred to as the "dwarf elephant". Various studies also show that the "dwarf elephant" is identical to the forest elephant. The stocks have dwindled due to poaching and the destruction of the rainforests; international commercial trade in animals is prohibited by the agreements in the Washington Convention on the Protection of Species.

The forest elephant is smaller than the African elephant (Loxodonta africana). The shoulder height of males varies from 214 to 290 cm (average 244 cm), in females it is between 176 and 234 cm (average 198 cm). Studies on animals in the Dzanga sanctuary in the Central African Republic showed a maximum height of 280 cm. In contrast, animals from the Loango National Park in Gabon were significantly smaller with a maximum of 216 cm. The weight is hardly known, but it may vary between 2 and 4 tons. Other authors give an average of around 1.7 t. 

Outwardly, the forest elephant resembles its larger African relative, but it is more compact and its back line is straight and not so clearly indented. The ears are mostly rounder and smaller than the African elephant, but the shape is individually different. The lower edges of the ears can reach below the chin line. The skin color generally appears gray; as a result of mud baths, however, it often tends to be yellowish to reddish brown. The body hair is sparse, with the exception of newborns with thicker black fur. In some females, a slight beard grows on the chin. The tail length differs in individual individuals. The tail can only take up about half the height of the back or touch the ground with the tip. It is wrapped in a thick skin and ends in an asymmetrical, broad point, which in turn is covered by a tassel made of 2 to 20 cm long hair. As with all elephants, the hands and feet are each five-pointed. In contrast to the African elephant, there are five nail-like structures on the front foot and four on the rear foot.

Source: Wikipedia (Germany)

The distribution of the forest elephant is little studied. It is generally found in Central Africa and inhabits the Congo Basin from Equatorial Guinea and Gabon in the west via the Republic of Congo, southern Cameroon and the Central African Republic to the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The species is also present in West Africa. The borders here and in the north of Central Africa are unknown, as there is a more or less wide intermingling corridor with the African elephant and the two elephant representatives partially hybridize there. The habitat consists mainly of intact and dense tropical rainforests, but the forest elephant also partially inhabits the transition zones to the savannah areas. Due to the destruction of the rainforests, the distribution area is largely split up. In western Africa the occurrence of the species is limited to about three dozen isolated forest fragments averaging 800 km² in size. As a rule, the animals use undisturbed forests and avoid areas with intense human activity. Various agricultural areas such as plantations are also rarely visited. Little information is available about the population density; as a rule, it is determined by counting dung heaps, subordinated also by counting individuals in areas of the area or by the sounds of the animals. For Gabon the total population is possibly around 25,000 individuals, for the Democratic Republic of the Congo at least 20,000, and for Equatorial Guinea estimates are around 1,300 animals. During a 20-year study in the approximately 6,800 km² Dzanga reserve, more than 3100 animals were observed with a stable annual number of 1660 to 1860 individuals. In the Loango National Park in Gabon, the population density is around 2.57 animals per square kilometer. [4] In contrast, two forest fragments in Ghana housed around 0.04 and 0.64 individuals per square kilometer. In general, several stocks in western Africa are considered to be difficult to survive due to their small size and the unequal gender and age distribution.

The forest elephant feeds on a variety of different plant parts. This includes leaves, fruits and bark. Grasses, which mostly only occur in clearings in the forests, are occasionally also eaten by the animals, but they only make up a small proportion of the food. Studies in western Ghana show that the forest elephant feeds on almost 140 different plant species, of which lianas predominate. Fruits are also very common, including the sapote, linden, mulberry and arrowroot plants. There is, however, a regional difference between the dry and rainy seasons, as in Central Africa the proportion of fruits in the former is decreasing in favor of bark and leaves. In West Africa, on the other hand, fruits are more readily available during the dry season. Here the forest elephant moves to freshly harvested farmland in times of low fruit. The animals often eat larger fruits with a diameter of 5 to 18 cm, while smaller ones usually only ingest them as "bycatch" when eating leaves.

Trees, less often bushes, serve as food plants. Preferred feeding places are found in clearings and forest edges, which are mainly used when looking for leaves. It is possible that the forest elephant keeps the clearings open because of its regular return. In contrast, the animals consume fruit and bark more frequently in the forests. For the latter, they tend to seek primary forests due to the greater abundance of fruits. As a rule, they eat twig ends or strip off leaves. The breaking of branches or knocking over trees, as is common in the African elephant, has only rarely been observed in the forest elephant. Foraging for food is sometimes very selective, as bark, for example, is only eaten by a few trees.

In addition, mineral leaks and brine in forest clearings play an important role, and sometimes the forest elephant digs holes up to 4 m in diameter with its columnar legs in search of mineral-rich water. He may spend several hours a day absorbing these additional nutrients. Among other things, they help the animals to neutralize the sometimes toxic components contained in the plants.

The forest elephant is currently not listed as an independent species by the IUCN. It classifies the entire population of African elephants as "endangered" (vulnerable). The Washington Convention on Endangered Species (CITES) also lists it together with the African elephant in Appendix I, which prohibits international commercial trade in the animals. In general, the forest elephant is affected by the destruction of the tropical rainforests through clearing and road construction. Since the forest elephant avoids areas with strong human influence or activity, including traffic routes, this leads to the fragmentation of habitats and local populations. Another big influencing factor is poaching, mainly ivory hunting. Especially in the second half of the 20th century, both factors took a toll on the stock. Its decline was largely hidden by the dense forest. The listing of African elephants in CITES did not change this fundamentally, as local authorities are often ineffective in combating poaching and illegal logging. Between 2002 and 2011 alone, the population size in central Africa decreased by an estimated 62% and only reached 10% of the possible population size. At this point in time, the forest elephant only settled about a quarter of the potentially habitual landscape. In 2011 alone, the forest elephant lost 3% of its total population due to illegal hunting, according to further estimates, which corresponds to around 40,000 animals killed. [63] [64] According to a wild animal census by the WWF in Cameroon, the Republic of the Congo, the Central African Republic and Gabon, the population in individual protected areas in the region fell by 51 to 90% locally between 2005 and 2016. The same can be said for occurrence in Ivory Coast, where the species disappeared from 21 of 25 protected areas between 1991 and 2017. The largest remaining population with just under 190 animals is in the Taï National Park; it is estimated that between 5 and 16 individuals each live in the other protected areas. The most important national parks in Africa in which the forest elephant is present include the Dzanga Ndoki National Park in the more extensive Dzanga Conservation Area in the Central African Republic, the Loango National Park and the Lopé National Park in Gabon, the Odzala National Park in the Republic of the Congo and the okapi game reserve in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.