Many people do no know what to say when confronted with the question: How long do elephants live? An average elephant lives for 65 years. These animals have a very high mortality rates at 30%. There are many factors that contribute to this high mortality rates, among them disease, culling and poaching and predators.

Many carnivores, including lions, crocodiles and hyenas usually prey on young, injured or orphaned elephants, thereby contributing to high mortality rates. Human beings pose the greatest risk to elephants all over the world. The dangers posed to these animals by man are very real, considering that in recent times, man has been encroaching into elephants’ habitats, thereby triggering human-animal conflicts.

In order to answer the question of how long do elephants live, one should understand the various factors that cause the highest number of deaths among members of these species. Disease is definitely one of these factors. Anthrax is one of these diseases.

The threat of Anthrax

Anthrax is a very fat disease that affects lifespan of elephants. Anthrax is caused by a bacterium that is also responsible for high fever, ulcers, shivering and swellings among elephants. This disease is normally spread through soil and water that is contaminated. This disease also affects many other herbivores, including domestic ones such as cattle and sheep.

Elephant-specific diseases

Some diseases are very specific to elephants. They include elephant paralysis and elephant pox. Elephants are also always susceptible to diseases that are transferred through mosquitoes. Deaths among this species can also occur as a result of inflictions, most of which are also known to affect human beings. Such inflictions include constipation, common cold intestinal colic, pneumonia and nettle rash.

Tuberculosis

This disease is brought about by a bacterium that negatively affects the normal functioning of the animal’s lungs. This bacterium causes very tiny droplets that find their way into the elephant’s respiratory system.

Human impact

Human impact is another factor that influences the answer you give to the question: How long do elephants live? Elephants are losing their habitat to human beings. More and more people are poaching these animals. More and more tropical forests where elephants live are being cleared for cultivation and settlement. Elephants require a very large home range. This range may run into thousands of square kilometers. With the growing human populations, this range can no longer be guaranteed. This is why the life expectancy of elephants is expected to go down in the years to come.