The Oldest Elephant Alive In Kruger National Park?

Meet “Madala“ the old warrior. Probably the oldest African Elephant Alive in Kruger National Park. Although elephants can live up to 70 years, there are other factors to be considered. African elephants have a median of 56 years in the wild. Potentially one of the largest living animals on earth, the elephant can live for 65 years or more. The limiting factor for its life expectation is the condition of its teeth. Once its final set of molars has been warn down, the elephant loses the ability to grind and adequately digest the large quantities of coarse vegetation that make up the bulk of his diet. It eventually succumbs to the effects of malnutrition and dies. It is possible to make a rough estimate of an elephant’s age from its physical size but this varies between individuals. The most reliable way to age an elephant is by looking at its teeth. An elephant’s molars, necessary for grinding up plant material, are replaced six times during its lifetime. These molars form at the back of the jaw, and move