VIDEO
VIDEO
Village of Elephants
Village of Elephants
Elephants along the Sangha River spend time at the Dzanga Bai, or "village of elephants," a huge clearing in the rainforest. The elephants go there for a very specific reason—watch this video to learn what it is.
Grades
3 - 9
Subjects
Biology, Earth Science, Geography, Physical Geography
Groups of mysterious forest elephants (Loxodonta cyclotis) live along the Sangha River, part of Dzanga Ndoki National Park in the Central African Republic. These forest elephants spend time in a huge clearing called the Dzanga Bai, or “village of elephants.” Elephants visit Dzanga Bai for a specific reason. Watch this video, from the Nat Geo WILD program “Destination Wild,” to learn why and answer the short questions in the Questions tab. Then, read the Fast Facts tab to understand how forest elephants are distinct from bush elephants.
Fast Fact
There are three living species of elephants—the Asian elephant, the bush elephant, and the forest elephant. Both forest elephants and bush elephants live in sub-Saharan Africa.
Fast Fact
Forest elephants live in the humid rain forest. Bush elephants live in and around the grassy savanna.
Fast Fact
The tusks of forest elephants are usually straight, which keeps them from getting tangled in the dense underbrush of the rain forest. The tusks of bush elephants are slightly curved.
Fast Fact
Forest elephants are usually smaller than bush elephants. An adult male forest elephant rarely exceeds about 2.5 meters (8 feet) tall and weighs about 2.7 tons (5,950 pounds). An adult male bush elephant stands about 3 meters (10.8 feet) tall and weighs about 5.5 tons (12,130 pounds).
Fast Fact
Forest elephants usually have darker skin than bush elephants.
Fast Fact
The ears of a forest elephant are usually a little rounder than the ears of a bush elephant.
Fast Fact
The forest elephant has five toenails on its front feet and four toenails on its hind feet. The bush elephant has four on its front feet and three on its hind feet.
Credits
Media Credits
The audio, illustrations, photos, and videos are credited beneath the media asset, except for promotional images, which generally link to another page that contains the media credit. The Rights Holder for media is the person or group credited.
Writer
Editors
Producer
other
Last Updated
August 17, 2026
User Permissions
For information on user permissions, please read our Terms of Service. If you have questions about how to cite anything on our website in your project or classroom presentation, please contact your teacher. They will best know the preferred format. When you reach out to them, you will need the page title, URL, and the date you accessed the resource.
Media
If a media asset is downloadable, a download button appears in the corner of the media viewer. If no button appears, you cannot download or save the media.
Text
Text on this page is printable and can be used according to our Terms of Service.
Interactives
Any interactives on this page can only be played while you are visiting our website. You cannot download interactives.