There are two kinds of elephants, the Indian elephant and the African elephant. The Indian elephant is often called the Asian elephant. Compared to the African elephant, the Indian elephant has much smaller ears. Generally, both males and females have tusks; however, with the Indian elephants the tusks are so small that they are usually not visible externally. Do you know why an elephant has such huge tusks? no?! well read on to find out! the tusks are used for defense against enemies and for fighting amongst themselves. They are also often used to peel soft wood or break apart bark of trees. With the help of their trunks and tusks, elephants dig deep holes in the dry season in search of water. The baby elephants are 1 meter tall and weigh 100 KG after birth. The gestation period is 20 - 22 months, or almost 2 years. The baby is suckled by its mother. During the day it drinks about 10 liters of milk per day.