Asian elephants have a large and diverse family line. A person would first think that the elephant would be closely related to the rhino or hippo. They are all large and gray. But it is hard to believe that the closest related animals to the elephant are the Hyrax and the Manatee! The Hyrax weighs between 4-11 pounds, the manatee weighs between 330-600 pounds, but the average Asian elephant weighs between 6,000-10,000 pounds. These three animals are the most closely related to one another than any other living animal. The elephant, hyrax and manatee all share a common ancestor millions of years ago. Some of the ancestors stayed on land allowing them to become in size. These are todays elephants.