desert elephant

[ dez-ert el-uh-fuhnt ]

noun

1. an African bush elephant that inhabits the Namib and Sahara deserts, formerly classified as a subspecies but now identified fully with the Loxodonta africana species: the principal difference between desert elephants and other African bush elephants is habitat.

Word History and Origins

Origin of desert elephant¹

First recorded in 1850–55

Example Sentences

And when we did see the elephants in the Namibian episode in the desert elephant episode in particular, there was such a sense of celebration that we had.

From Salon

No one had seen a desert elephant in the park in years.

From New York Times

In an effort to save one of Africa's last desert elephant herds, Mali has employed Mitch, Bobby and Amy - Dutch spaniels with a nose for sniffing out illegal ivory.

From Reuters

Finding that the usual water source in Damaraland, Namibia, was dry this young male desert elephant attempted to enter a house to look for water.

From BBC