What is Thailand's national animal?
Elephants in Thailand
Thai elephant
The elephant has been a contributor to Thai society and its icon for many centuries.[1] The elephant has had a considerable impact on Thai culture.[2] The Thai elephant (Thai: ช้างไทย, chang Thai) is the official national animal of Thailand. The elephant found in Thailand is the Indian elephant (Elephas maximus indicus), a subspecies of the Asian elephant. In the early-1900s there were an estimated 100,000 domesticated or captive elephants in Thailand.[3] In mid-2007 there were an estimated 3,456 domesticated elephants left in Thailand and roughly a thousand wild elephants.[4][5] It became an endangered species in 1986.[6]