What Are Ivory Elephant Tusks?

The tusks of an elephant are teeth that are made from a substance called ivory. Ivory is a similar substance to bone, but it is more dense, because it does not have a supply of blood. Elephant ivory is made up of minerals and collagen. It does not have a layer of enamel like human teeth, but it has a layer of protection called cementum.

  1. Features

    • Cementum is a substance similar to bone that is made up of connective tissue. Ivory dealers call this substance bark.

    Function

    • Elephant tusks are used for digging, fighting and for tearing bark away from a tree. They are also used for foraging through brush to find edible vegetation.

    Identification

    • The tusks are not the elephant's canine teeth. They are actually the only incisors that an elephant has.

    Significance

    • In African elephants, both the male and the female have protruding ivory tusks. With Asian elephants, the male has protruding tusks, while the female has short tusks that don't extend past the lips.

    Considerations

    • Ivory elephant tusks have been prized for their beauty for centuries, leading to a dramatic reduction in elephant populations. A ban on the sale of ivory was instituted in a 1989 international treaty.