Elephants　大象

See this monster of the forest uprooting trees,as a test of its strength before entering on a fight with one of its companions,which is often a bitter struggle for supremacy.There are two species of Elephants,the Indian and African;the ears of the latter are much larger than the Indian,covering the whole shoulder,and descending on the legs.Elephants live in herds,and each herd has a leader—generally the largest and most powerful animal—who exercises much control over the herd,directing its movements,and giving the signal in the case of danger.The trunk of the Elephant is of great service to it,and is a wonderful combination of muscle;Curier,the famous Naturalist,stating that there is not far short of 40,000 muscles,having distinct action,and so giving it an acute sense of touch and smell—so much so,that it can pick up a pin,or pluck the smallest leaf.The Elephant is generally about ten feet high,and sometimes reaches to twelve feet,and lives to the age of seventy or eighty years.

瞧，这头森林巨兽正在拼命地将一棵棵树连根拔起！它这是为了争夺霸权，在与对手恶战前测试一下自己的实力。大象分为两种：印度大象和非洲大象。非洲大象的耳朵比印度大象大得多，把整个肩膀都遮住了，一直垂到腿上。大象是群居动物，每一群都有一个头象，一般都是最大最壮的那个。头象统治着整个象群，指导大象的行动，危险来临时发出信号。象鼻肌肉发达，对大象至关重要。著名的博物学家库利耶说，象鼻上的肌肉不少于四万块，每块肌肉都有其独特的作用，所以，象鼻的触觉和嗅觉特别灵敏，连地上的一根大头针它也能捡起来，摘树上最小的树叶也不在话下。大象一般十英尺高（约三米），有时候能长到十二英尺（约三米六）高，能活到七八十岁。