African Savanna Elephant

The African savanna elephant is the largest land animal alive, with bulls standing up to 13 feet at the shoulder. Herds are led by the oldest female, the matriarch, whose memory of distant water and old routes can decide whether a family survives a drought. As they feed, elephants push over trees, dig waterholes, and spread seeds, shaping the savanna for nearly every other species that lives there.

In 2021 the IUCN reassessed the species as Endangered. Poaching for ivory remains the central threat, alongside the steady conversion of rangeland to farmland and the conflict that follows when elephants and people compete for the same space. Populations are stable or growing in parts of southern Africa and falling sharply across parts of Central and West Africa.