How long does an elephant live for?
Elephants in the wild generally live about 60 years if not killed by disease, predators or each other. Throughout their lives, their molar teeth are lost and replaced, each tooth moving forward in the jaw and dropping out as a new one erupts from the back. The supply of new teeth is not limitless, and by the time an elephant reaches about 60 it has no new teeth left to replace those that fall out. It is then unable to feed, and will starve to death. Elephants in captivity are capable of living longer, up to 70 or even 80 years, as they can be fed on soft foods that don’t require chewing after the loss of their teeth, and also have medical care and so on.
