Elephant Development

In the first month of an elephant's pregnancy the placenta will form, enabling the embryo to get nutrients it needs.
 (1-3 months)
By the third month the embryo measures approximately 18mm while in the fourth month the trunk starts to form. However the baby elephant is still less than 6cm long at this point.





Five months into the pregnancy and the foetus will have started to kick. It can move its legs in a slow running type motion with the head, which is 40% of the total body length, able to move from side to side and up and down.
(5 months)

It's at this point that the foetus drops out of reach of the probes so that the development cannot be easily monitored. However later on, as the foetus grows bigger, it can be picked up by ultrasound.
After one year of growing inside its mother the foetus weighs around 12kg and measures approximately 45cm long. By this time it can move its trunk, curling it up into its mouth or over its head.

(12- 14 months)

 

Fourteen months into the pregnancy the foetus can swallow liquid from the amniotic sac. It has eyelashes and tail hair with some hair around its mouth but other than that the skin is smooth and hairless.

(19 Months)

At nineteen months the baby elephant is fully developed and weighs about 65kg. Its skin is covered in bristly hair which will protect it from mosquito bites and sunburn once it is born.


Twenty two months after the time of conception the baby elephant is born. The birth can take as long as 7 hours with the baby weighing in at approximately 90-120kg and 1meter (3ft) tall.

                                                     (22 Months)
The elephant is almost blind and has little control of its trunk when it is born yet it is able to stand almost straight away. After 2-3 days the baby is strong enough to travel with the herd where he or she will stay for 4 years, growing and learning survival skills alongside its mother within the family group.

http://www.helium.com/items/1507615-elephant-pregnancy