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| ANATOMICAL FEATURES OF ELEPHANTS Understanding the anatomy of an elephant is the sine qua non for successful post-mortem of the animal. The following notes are meant to provide the field veterinarians with a basic understanding of the special anatomical peculiarities of elephants. 1. Digestive system • The proboscis, though a respiratory organ, acts as a prehensile organ to grasp the food and conveys it to the mouth for mastication. • The lips are two musculo-membranous folds which surround the orifice of the mouth. The upper lip merges with the lower face of the proboscis. The lower lip is elongated with a pointed tip. • The upper jaw has two incisors or tusks, one in each premaxilla. The tusks of the male grow to an enormous size in the adult Asian elephants. They are relatively much smaller in the female. There are male elephants which do not have tusks and are called Makhnas. Both cows and Makhnas possess tushes instead of tusks. • The sub-lingual salivary gland and the sub-maxillary glands are present. The tonsils are absent. • The pharynx is a funnel shaped musculo- membranous sac common to both digestive and respiratory system. The soft palate divides the cavity into a dorsal large nasopharynx and a ventral small oesopharynx. The oesophagus communicates in front with the oral cavity and forms a deep diverticulum or receptacle (glosso-epiglottic space) behind the root of the tongue. • Oesophagus, a thick walled musculo-membranous tube, is compressed dorsoventrally. • The peritoneum, lining the abdominal cavity, is very thick and is reflected to cover the viscera. The greater omentum, which is one such reflection, is thin, lace like and devoid of fat. It is very extensive, attached to the greater curvature of the stomach and the origin of the duodenum. • Stomach is a simple elongated musculo- membranous sac placed vertically behind the left part of the diaphragm and the liver. NEXT |
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