With reference to Indian elephants, consider the following statements:1. The leader of an elephant group is a female.2. The maximum gestation period can be 22 months.3. An elephant can normally go on calving till the age of 40 years only.4. Among the States in India, the highest elephant population is in Kerala.Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
✓ Correct answer: a) 1 and 2 only
ExplanationAsian Elephants come in three sub-species i.e. Indi- an, Sumatran, and Sri Lankan.The majority of the continent’s remaining elephants belong to the Indian subspecies, which has the largest range.Statement 1 is correct: The leader of a group is the oldest fe- male.She guides the herd in their search for food and water sources.These matriarchal units can occasionally divide into smaller, temporary groups.Statement 2 is correct: The gestation period lasts for 22 months, yielding a single baby.Statement 3 is incorrect: Although sexually mature in their ear- ly teens, elephants generally only start to mate at about 20 years and stop bearing calves at about50. Statement 4 is incorrect: Recent census showed Kerala as hav- ing 5,706 elephants, while Karnataka has 6049 elephants.208
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