# Animals capable of killing elephants **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 26, 2004, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-capable-of-killing-elephants/266207 "2004-09-26T22:40:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2004, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-capable-of-killing-elephants/266207/21 "2004-09-27T01:05:22Z")
> [@W. Fikere Tomba](#): > > Not an animal. [Tuberculosis](http://www.upali.ch/herpes_en.html) > [@](#): > > What is TB? - TB, or tuberculosis, is a disease caused by bacteria called Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The bacteria can attack any part of your body, but they usually attack the lungs > [@](#): > > Bacterium -a simple single-celled microorganism. Bacteria are classified by their shape (e.g., rod, spirochete), staining properties (Gram positive or Gram negative) and habitat (aerobic, anaerobic). ---
**Author:** ![Xema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9de053/32.png) [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2004, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-capable-of-killing-elephants/266207/22 "2004-09-27T01:05:40Z")
> [@gytalf2000](#): > > Is there any animal capable of killing/seriously injuring a full-grown elephant? As the whimsical responses suggest, it might be best to confine this to actual cases of elephants being killed. It has already been noted that humans were capable of this well before they had guns. In _Man-Eaters of Kumaon_, Jim Corbett relates a case in which two tigers killed an indian elephant. He makes it clear that this was most unusual. ---
**Author:** ![violacrane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/c57346/32.png) [@violacrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/violacrane)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2004, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-capable-of-killing-elephants/266207/23 "2004-09-27T01:09:37Z")
Another elephant? ---
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2004, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-capable-of-killing-elephants/266207/24 "2004-09-27T01:14:27Z")
> [@t-keela](#): > > šŸ˜ƒ a snake with ears? ears that bigā€¦damn what a snake itā€™d have to be. Kinda like that freak in the movie anaconda. Speaking of whichā€¦whatā€™s the biggest anaconda and could it choke an elephant to death? Not an anaconda but the reticulated python of southeast Asia is on record as being the longest at 10 meters (32 ft 9.5 in) for a specimen shot in Celebes, Indonesia, in 1912. > **[Home](https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/)** > > The Guinness World Records official site with ultimate record-breaking facts & achievements. Do you want to set a world record? Are you Officially Amazing? ---
**Author:** ![W.Fikere\_Tomba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f9ae1b/32.png) [@W.Fikere\_Tomba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/W.Fikere_Tomba)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2004, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-capable-of-killing-elephants/266207/25 "2004-09-27T01:18:07Z")
> [@astro](#): > > [Tuberculosis](http://www.upali.ch/herpes_en.html) [The Five Kingdoms](http://curie.uncg.edu/~esmith/kingdom.html) ---
**Author:** ![alterego](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/6bbea6/32.png) [@alterego](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alterego)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2004, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-capable-of-killing-elephants/266207/26 "2004-09-27T01:20:26Z")
What about a pissed off and determined woodpecker? ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2004, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-capable-of-killing-elephants/266207/27 "2004-09-27T01:37:25Z")
In _Ice Age_ the whole pack of saber-tooth tigers was afraid to take on the mammoth. I rest my case. šŸ˜› ---
**Author:** ![stockton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5a626/32.png) [@stockton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stockton)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2004, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-capable-of-killing-elephants/266207/28 "2004-09-27T02:22:39Z")
I once killed an elephant in my pajamasā€¦ ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2004, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-capable-of-killing-elephants/266207/29 "2004-09-27T02:25:24Z")
Ok, Iā€™ll bite. What was it doing in your pajamas? ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2004, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-capable-of-killing-elephants/266207/30 "2004-09-27T02:35:50Z")
Probably a number of parasitic insects could kill an Elephant, under the right circumstances. And there are [Elephants who regularly swim between ocean islands](http://www.far-away.net/andamans.htm) (islands that arenā€™t very far apart, mind you), so itā€™s at least _theoretically_ possible for them to be attacked by large marine predators capable of killing them. (Even if itā€™s not very freakinā€™ likely.) Say, do human ancestor and ā€œcousinā€ hominids speciesā€™ count as ā€œanimalsā€? Some of those guys would probably have been able to kill an Elephant. (Some of them probably did, too.) And of courseā€¦there are many Dinosaurs that could probably kill an Elephant with relative ease. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2004, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-capable-of-killing-elephants/266207/31 "2004-09-27T03:21:44Z")
Maybe a scorpion? Or even a mosquito - do elephants get malaria? ---
**Author:** ![t-keela](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a3d4f5/32.png) [@t-keela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/t-keela)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2004, 5:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-capable-of-killing-elephants/266207/32 "2004-09-27T05:31:10Z")
> [@stockton](#): > > I once killed an elephant in my pajamasā€¦ 1st because I donā€™t knowā€¦are you male or female. If youā€™re a guy Iā€™d say yeah right. You wish you had a trunk down thereā€¦me too for that matter. A prehensile penis, thatā€™d be real handy. :eek: If you are female, Iā€™d say lucky girl. You beat it to death I guess. šŸ˜‰ After thinking about it for a second I realize you must be female 'cause I donā€™t know any guys that actually wear PJā€™s. We get for gifts from our moms and grandmaā€™s. But we donā€™t ever wear them. Iā€™ve got a pair that are so old theyā€™ve got feet them. heh-heh-hehā€¦ šŸ˜ƒ ---
**Author:** ![Martin\_Hyde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/47e85d/32.png) [@Martin\_Hyde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martin_Hyde)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2004, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-capable-of-killing-elephants/266207/33 "2004-09-27T05:59:42Z")
This brings up another question. Would a King Cobra even mess with an elephant? Iā€™m no herpetologist, in fact my experience with reptiles is highly limited and I know nothin gabout them. But Iā€™ve always just assumed/thought I heard that snakes only kill things that they think they can digest, I find it highly doubtful any snake in the world could swallow a full grown bull elephant. As for hippos IIRC hippos cause a huge number of deaths because they accidentally knock over canoes and other small boats. Once the boat is tipped over the thrashing people upset the hippo who can become threatened very easily and it will in turn either start thrashing, or attacking, or anything really. Just about any rapid movement from those monsters can cause people to drown. ---
**Author:** ![Sleel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/73ab20/32.png) [@Sleel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sleel)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2004, 7:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-capable-of-killing-elephants/266207/34 "2004-09-27T07:53:03Z")
There are no known natural predators of elephants other than man. They are much more likely to die of a heart attack or a parasite than they are to die by extra-species violence. An anaconda or python will only attack what it can swallow. I doubt it could swallow more than one of an elephantā€™s legs. Even the truly monstrous specimens (longest documented is about 8.5m) could probably not deal with more than a large pig or a small cow. ---
**Author:** ![t-keela](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a3d4f5/32.png) [@t-keela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/t-keela)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2004, 9:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-capable-of-killing-elephants/266207/35 "2004-09-27T09:08:19Z")
Like I said, there are no predators that hunt elephants except man. Since elephants arenā€™t carnivores and a snake could never swallow an elephant they arenā€™t naturally in competeition with each other. The OP merely asked, **"Is there any animal capable of killing/seriously injuring a full-grown elephant?"** In response Iā€™d say YESā€¦capable however unlikely it may be, the ability is there. **Seriously injuring** definitely! I recall reading somewhere about a bison or a buffalo killing an elephant. Does that sound familiar to anyone? ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2004, 10:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-capable-of-killing-elephants/266207/36 "2004-09-27T10:47:29Z")
> [@alterego](#): > > What about a pissed off and determined woodpecker? Iā€™m guessing no. Because elephants arenā€™t made out of wood. > [@Martin Hyde](#): > > This brings up another question. Would a King Cobra even mess with an elephant? Not in the sense of deliberately taking one on, no. But in my experience, snakes will strike defensively if they are accidentally cornered and get scared. I suppose that could theoretically happen through an accident of terrain or something. > [@chorpler](#): > > I mean, first off, surely there are other venemous snakes, at the very least, that could kill an elephant. The King Cobra doesnā€™t even make the [top ten.](http://www.reptile-gardens.com/reptile/topten.html) Five of the top ten could be found in the bushland around where I grew up. A father of a friend of mine was amongst the first to identify No. 1 on the list. I can recall at least two occasions when we found specimens of No. 2 on the list in our backyard and I still remember being hurriedly rushed indoors (along with the rest of the class) when one was seen in the playground of my kindergarten. Which is no doubt why we never saw any elephants in the bushland where I grew up. ---
**Author:** ![MrFantsyPants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ba0ec/32.png) [@MrFantsyPants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrFantsyPants)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2004, 12:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-capable-of-killing-elephants/266207/37 "2004-09-27T12:13:26Z")
We were on a safari in Kenya a couple of years ago. We drove past an elephant skull and some bones. Our guide (a local Maasai warrior) claimed that the elephant was brought down by lions a couple of years before. Of course, I would imagine that lying to tourists is like a national past time for some of these folks, but there you have it. ---
**Author:** ![BMalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e274bd/32.png) [@BMalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMalion)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2004, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-capable-of-killing-elephants/266207/38 "2004-09-27T16:20:02Z")
A Ninja. ---
**Author:** ![MMI](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/53a042/32.png) [@MMI](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MMI)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2004, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-capable-of-killing-elephants/266207/39 "2004-09-27T16:35:07Z")
Non- extinct animals only? Dang. Certainly a pod of orcas takes on targets larger than elephants, but it is probably hard to arrange a fair steel-cage match between them. Salt water crocodiles get pretty freaking big (6 m or more, 1000kg). While certainly much smaller than the elephant I can see one (desparately hungry) ambushing an elephant crossing water a little too deep and doing some serious damage. [http://www.angelfire.com/mo2/animals1/crocodile/asc.html](http://www.angelfire.com/mo2/animals1/crocodile/asc.html) Trick is even if there were an animal or animals capable of the job (pride of lions or whatnot) it would be pretty dang hard to persuade them to attack - the payoff is too small compared to the risks. ---
**Author:** ![Bytegeist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9dc877/32.png) [@Bytegeist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bytegeist)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2004, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-capable-of-killing-elephants/266207/40 "2004-09-27T18:08:14Z")
> [@Princhester](#): > > ā€¦ elephants arenā€™t made out of wood. And incidentally, therefore, are not witches. You can still build a bridge out of them though. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-capable-of-killing-elephants/266207.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-capable-of-killing-elephants/266207.md?page=3)