Why does an elephant have a long trunk and such huge ears? Wildlife: why does an elephant need a trunk? What does an elephant's trunk consist of?

	District scientific-practical conference preschoolers and junior schoolchildren “Research activities and experimentation.”
Full title of the work topic	“Why does an elephant need a trunk?”
Nomination	Research work
	Valiulina Ksenia
Age	Class, 7 years old
Educational institution	Municipal Budget Educational Institution Abanskaya basic secondary school No. 1
Supervisor	Moskova Zhanna Anatolevna
The role of the leader	Support, work registration
Parent(s)
Role of the parent(s)	Data search, help in memorizing text

Introduction:

I saw R. Kipling's fairy tale about a curious Elephant's Child and how he got a trunk.

I wondered why an elephant would need such a thing long trunk? This is how the topic of my work was determined.

Main content:

Purpose of the work: Find out why an elephant needs such a long trunk.

Tasks:

study the literature, the opinions of scientists on this topic
find out what a trunk is
find out what an elephant can do with its trunk

Object of study: elephant

Subject of study: elephant trunk

Hypothesis - I assume that the elephant needs a long trunk so that he can reach with itobjects that are far from it.

Methods: Literature analysis

A long time ago, mammoths lived on Earth. The conditions of their existence were very difficult and gradually, one after another, the mammoths died, unable to withstand the difficulties. Their descendants

became Asian and African elephants. They are the largest animals that live on earth.

The structure of the elephant's body includes an amazing organ - the trunk.

In general, what is a trunk? Nose, lip, hand? And why does he need “all this”?

The trunk is the nose, because with the help of the trunk the elephant can smell. Turning

The trunk in one direction or another, and having widened (the nostrils) the ends of the trunk, he will immediately feel

the presence of a person, an animal or the smoke of a fire.

The trunk is a lip because with the trunk it grabs food and sends it to the mouth.

The trunk is a hand, because with the trunk the elephant plucks leaves and branches from trees and draws water,

and then pour it into your mouth. With its trunk, an elephant can hit an opponent so hard that it knocks him down,

Or maybe even kill him completely.

There are several reasons why an elephant needs a trunk.

No, an elephant does not need a trunk to blow its nose deliciously, ward off midges, or scratch

Backrest or pick up money from the ground without bending over. The reasons for the presence of a trunk lie in

another plane...

Evil English people, forced elephants to work. They also used them as draft

strength, and like a loader, since it didn’t cost an elephant anything to lift a log with its trunk,

move it to the required distance and place it where instructed. After all, elephants are beautiful

are being trained.

With their trunks, elephants shake trees and uproot them, as well as remove other

Obstacles preventing them from passing.

An elephant can use its trunk to hug a friend, caress her, or hold onto her tail like a hand

mother while still in her infancy. And with the help of its trunk, an elephant can

pick up small objects from the ground, including money. Because at the very tip

The trunk has such developed muscles that they perform the function of fingers. In general, an elephant without

trunk, as if without arms...

With the help of its trunk, the elephant escapes the heat by collecting water and watering itself as if from a hose.

The elephant trumpets through its trunk, that is, it communicates with its own kind, and the sound that this organ makes is

Can be heard several kilometers away.

In short, the trunk is a nose, a lip, a hand, a sound instrument, and a shower device.

In general, the trunk organ is universal, extremely important and completely unique.

What do scientists say?

Scientists say that the trunk is the upper lip, fused with the nose and representing a tube

From muscles. This organ in an elephant is extremely strong and flexible. And the elephant itself, scientists insist,

- the largest of land animals. And very smart. And also patient and wise.

Inside, scientists say, the trunk is divided into two channels, and at the very tip it has a very

Developed muscles (fingers). Scientists also claim that elephants are descendants of mammoths,

which also had trunks and tusks. By the way, the tusks protruding from the upper jaw

elephant, nothing more than greatly “grown” teeth. Also “grown up”, like the nose and upper

lip.

Concluding the answer to the question “Why does an elephant need a trunk,” I would like to say the following: without a trunk, an elephant

It’s absolutely impossible, it’s a nose, a lip, a hand, and a sound instrument.

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Slide captions:

Topic: “Why does an elephant need such a long trunk?” The work was completed by 1st grade student Valiulina Ksenia

Purpose of the work: Find out why an elephant needs such a long trunk. Tasks: 1. What is a trunk 2. What does an elephant do with a trunk Hypothesis: I assume that the elephant needs a long trunk so that it can reach objects that are far from it.

One day my daughter and I were walking around the zoo. When we approached the enclosure, my daughter asked me a question that at first glance seemed simple: “Mom, why does an elephant need a trunk?” I hastened to explain to her that these were his “hands”. My daughter was quite satisfied with my explanation, but I myself was not. I wondered what the full functionality of this simple organ, which belongs to the largest land animal in the world, is; simply put, why does an elephant need a trunk? Let's figure this out together!

Why does an elephant need a trunk?

I myself thought that it was like a hand, a nose and a lip at the same time. After reading all kinds of literature, I realized that I was close to the truth. Comrades, it turns out that an elephant’s trunk is quite multifunctional! You may not even know about some of its purposes!

Smell and lips

First of all, this is, of course, the sense of smell! The trunk is the elephant's nose. Turning it in different sides, the animal easily recognizes different odors, another animal, a person or danger. In addition to smell, the trunk is also used by the elephant as a lip. With its help, the animal can easily take out and put food into its mouth.

"Hands" and "breadwinner"

Perhaps the most important explanation for why an elephant needs a trunk is, of course, its second “hands”! Since this is such a “hand”, it allows the mammal to easily tear leaves or entire branches from the upper tiers of trees, as well as draw water from rivers and lakes. By the way, the latter is a rather interesting moment in the life of elephants. Many people are not so much interested in why an elephant needs a trunk, but why does it water itself from it? Friends, well, it’s simple - this is the most ordinary cooling shower, a necessary measure on rather hot days, and as you know, in the permanent habitats of elephants - India and Africa - summer continues all year round... But let's return to our “rams”. The trunk helps not only to pluck leaves, but also to drive away various insects that bite the ground giant. In addition, the elephant itches with the help of its trunk. By the way, all this explains why the elephant has a long trunk. Evolution never sleeps! A short proboscis would hardly cope with the above tasks.

Self-defense

One of important functions The trunk in the life activity of this animal is the ability to defend itself from enemies. A multifunctional organ is an enviable “weapon” against various enemies. I was interested to learn that a blow from an elephant's trunk is so powerful that it sometimes leads to the instant death of its offender! But in most cases, these are, of course, just injuries.

Means of communication

Elephants use their trunk to make sounds various sounds, helping these animals communicate with each other. In addition, no one passes without it. mating games. It is with this organ that the elephant wins the affection of the female...

My trunk is my enemy!

When a person realized how much functionality was hidden in a single elephant organ, then, without hesitation for a long time, he began to subjugate the animal to his will. For example, the English colonialists for a very long time used the elephant and its trunk as labor. There weren't enough blacks for them! The fact is that with the help of its trunk, the elephant easily swings trees, carries heavy objects (for example, logs), paving the way where there is complete impassability.

So we figured it out!

So, dear friends, the trunk is a universal and vital organ of any elephant - both Indian and African! Now that I have a complete information picture, I can easily answer my daughter’s question!

Elephants, like people, need to learn the world around us The five senses help – taste, smell, sight, touch and hearing. The most important thing for them is their sense of smell. Elephants smell with their trunks. The trunk not only picks up odors - it is very sensitive to touch. It has special hairs. With their help, animals touch (as if they feel) objects and find out whether they are cold or hot, smooth or rough. The rumbling sounds that elephants make when communicating with each other are usually of such low frequency that humans cannot hear them. When two elephants meet, each puts the tip of its trunk into the other's mouth - this means greeting.

At the slightest sign of danger, the elephant raises its sensitive trunk - in this way it determines what or who is approaching it. An elephant's sense of smell is so subtle that it can smell a person more than 1.5 km away.

Elephants have well-developed hearing. Their huge ears catch the “rumble” of other elephants about 8 km away. Trying to hear a distant noise or becoming interested in some sound, the elephant sticks its ears forward. And the male flaps his ears to spread a special smell, letting other elephants know that he is there. Adult ear African elephant can weigh as much as a person.

Elephants are able to hear very low sounds called infrasound. You and I cannot hear infrasound, although sometimes we feel it. Other animals, e.g. bats, are able to hear very high-pitched sounds called ultrasound.

Some working elephants are able to muffle the ringing of bells tied around their necks by covering their “tongue” with mud. This allows smart animals to slowly feast on young shoots in peasant fields.

Elephants' eyes are brown, with very long eyelashes. Elephants are color blind and have trouble seeing in bright, direct light. sunlight. Their vision is better adapted to the twilight of the forest.

The mother or other close relative touches the baby elephant every few seconds, reassuring it and letting it know that everything is okay. Elephants touch each other when they meet; They often rest with their backs, sides or heads touching.

Trunk

The trunk serves as the elephant's nose, lips and “hands” at the same time. The trunk helps elephants breathe and smell, fight, play, greet each other, make different sounds, feel and grasp various objects. Elephants also drink and eat through their trunk. At a watering hole, the elephant collects water with its trunk and then puts it into its mouth. Baby elephants drink with their mouths until they learn to use their trunks fully.

In the center of the trunk there are two holes - these are the nostrils through which the elephant breathes. Under the skin there are many muscles and tendons that make the trunk extremely flexible. The African elephant lifts both large branches and entire tree trunks with equal ease. Its powerful trunk contains more than one hundred thousand muscles, which allow the elephant to completely calmly carry large and heavy objects from place to place.

To stand in the shower, an elephant does not need a shower stall with all sorts of accessories. He always carries his shower with him - the elephant can at any moment douse himself with a stream of water, liquid mud or dust from his trunk. Such a shower cools and gets rid of annoying insects.

By extending their long, elastic trunk, African elephants can reach the top branches of tall acacia trees to pluck the freshest and juiciest leaves. And if necessary, the flexible trunk will penetrate into a narrow crevice between the stones, where a puddle of rainwater has accumulated.

If desired, an elephant can “hang” its trunk, throwing it over its tusk. This is possible because the trunk has no bones, only muscles, making it very flexible. The African elephant's trunk has two appendages at the end, while the Indian elephant's trunk has only one. Peculiar fingers allow you to grab a very small object, for example, a coin or a piece of paper.

The elephant is one of the most large mammals animals living on land. Its weight can reach up to 5 tons, so it has short legs that serve as powerful support. Elephant tusks are actually just grown to enormous sizes. upper teeth, which play an important role in the life of the animal. But the most important organ of an elephant is its trunk. Some people think that the trunk serves only as a respiratory organ, but this is only one of its many functions.

What is a trunk?

The first thing a person notices when they see it, in addition to its size, is its trunk, which is an upper lip fused with the nose as a result of evolution. Thus, the elephants turned out to be quite flexible and long nose, consisting of 500 different muscles, and at the same time not having a single bone (except for the cartilage on the bridge of the nose).

The nostrils, like those of humans, are divided into two canals along their entire length. And at the tip of the trunk there are small but very strong muscles that serve the elephant as fingers. With their help, the elephant will be able to feel and pick up a small button or other small object.

First of all, the trunk serves as a nose, but with its help elephants breathe, smell, and can also:

drink;
get your own food;
communicate with relatives;
lift small objects;
bathe;
defend;
express emotions.

From all this it follows that the trunk is a useful and unique tool. IN everyday life an adult elephant cannot do without a trunk, just as a person cannot do without arms. Reference. The baby elephant is not trained to use its trunk correctly and constantly steps on it when walking. Therefore, before fully learning to control the trunk, the baby elephant simply uses it to hold on to its parent's tail while moving.

Food and drink

One of the most important functions of the trunk is considered to be the extraction of food and water. With the help of this organ, the animal searches for and obtains these vital products.

Food

The elephant differs from other mammals in that it eats food primarily with its nose, with which it obtains it. The diet of this animal depends on the type of elephant. Since the elephant is a mammal, it eats mainly plants, vegetables and fruits.

Protection from enemies

In conditions wildlife In addition to its tusks, the elephant also uses its trunk for protection. Thanks to the flexibility of the organ, the animal can repel blows from any direction, and the number of muscles in the trunk gives it enormous strength. The weight of the organ makes it an excellent weapon: in an adult it reaches 140 kg, and a blow of such force can repel the attack of a dangerous predator.

Communication

Despite the fact that scientists have proven the ability of elephants to communicate using infrasound, the trunk plays an important role in the communication of these animals. Most often, such communication is as follows:

greeting - elephants greet each other using their trunk;
help for offspring.

Elephants also use their trunks to communicate with their babies. Despite the fact that the little elephant calf still walks quite poorly, he still needs to move, and his mother helps him with this. Holding on with their trunks, the mother and calf move little by little, as a result of which the latter gradually learns to walk.

Adults can also use their trunk to punish offending offspring. In this case, of course, the elephants do not put all their strength into the blow, but lightly spank the children. As for communication between elephants, these animals love to touch each other with their trunks, stroke their “interlocutors” on the backs and show their attention in every possible way.

A week ago I was visiting a friend, and she had a little son. Of course, you can’t come to visit without a gift, but he can’t have sweets. I chose a toy - a baby elephant. And here the children's whys began. The most important question, of course, was about the elephant's trunk.

What do elephants look like and what do they eat?

I think many people have ever been to a zoo and seen a live elephant. The size of this animal is impressive. It is the elephant that is considered the largest representative terrestrial mammals. An adult elephant can reach four meters in height. And its body weight can range from 3 to 7 tons. For example, the weight of the most ordinary car is about 1.5 tons.

The skin probably also significantly affects its weight, since the thickness skin animal 2.5 cm. Probably the most important features characteristic of an elephant are its trunk and huge ears. It is the ears that save elephants from the heat. They skillfully fan their bodies with them and achieve a cooling effect. An elephant's trunk consists of upper lip and nose. This part of the body is assigned a lot of important functions.

An elephant spends most of its time eating food. Almost 16 hours a day he tirelessly eats various types of vegetation. An elephant's diet includes:

grass and roots;
tree leaves;
bananas;
apples.

IN natural conditions an elephant can easily eat 250–300 kg of vegetation. Elephants are also water drinkers; they can drink 100–300 liters per day.

Why does an elephant need a trunk?

The trunk is simply an irreplaceable part of the elephant's body. It can be up to 1.5 meters in length and weigh up to 150 kg. Just imagine, one elephant trunk weighs as much as two average people. In the past, the ancestors of elephants could not boast of such a large trunk; they had it in the form of a small appendage, but during the process of evolution, significant changes occurred in the structure.