Elephants have six sets of molars in a lifetime. These massive chewing teeth are replaced from the back of the jaw, gradually moving forward as older teeth wear down.
This system is unusual among mammals. Instead of growing vertically beneath one another, an elephant’s molars emerge horizontally. The first chewing tooth is lost at about age 2–3, followed by replacements at roughly 4–6, 9–15, 18–28, and the early 40s.
The sixth set is normally the final one and must last for the rest of the elephant’s life. When it becomes too worn to grind food effectively, the elephant may struggle to eat, a condition that can contribute to natural death in old age.
A common mix-up is counting tusks or temporary teeth. Elephants usually have 26 teeth at once: two tusks, 12 deciduous premolars, and 12 molars. “Six sets” refers specifically to successive generations of chewing teeth, not six individual teeth.