Hatrack River Forum: Elephants May Pay Homage to Dead Relatives

This is topic Elephants May Pay Homage to Dead Relatives in forum Books, Films, Food and Culture at Hatrack River Forum.

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Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :

Read all about it.

This isn't terribly surprising; elephants have been seen taking a great interest in elephant skulls and tusks in the wild many times. It is nice that they've done a bit of experimentation with it. Interesting that they pay more attention to tusks than to skulls.

I wonder whether all three types of elephants do this? I know I've read of African elephants doing this, but I haven't heard of examples of the other two types doing so.

Interesting about the liquid dripping from their temples. I wasn't aware that they did that, except in musth. I wonder if the excertions just happen when they're really worked up, or what?

Posted by KarlEd (Member # 571) on :

I heard about this on NPR yesterday evening. Fascinating.

Posted by Scott R (Member # 567) on :

3 elephant types? Asian, African, and ???

Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :

Elephants do "cry". They don't cry from the same gland as we do, but it does seem to be a physiological-emotional response.

Posted by KarlEd (Member # 571) on :

In fact, that phenomenon was going to be featured in a Prince song, but "elephants" didn't fit the meter. [Big Grin]

Posted by Jim-Me (Member # 6426) on :

of course, african elephants are non-migratory...

Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :

Scott, historically it has been thought that there were only two types, the Indian and the African elephant, but recently it's been determined that forest elephants are genetically distinct enough from their savanna cousins to be considered a seperate species, rather than just a subspecies.

So, you've got:
Indian elephant (Elephas maximus)
African savanna elephant (Loxodonta africana)
African forest elephant (Loxodonta cyclotis, formerly Loxodonta africana cyclotis)

I'm a bit surprised to discover that Indian and African elephants aren't of the same genus. I hadn't realized that until I went looking for a site that listed the scientific name for the newly recognized species.

Here is a brief article on the forest elephant, if anyone's interested.

Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :

Fascinating.

Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :

Isn't it? I suspect that elephants are quite a bit brighter than we've given them credit for, and I suspect that they're a species that has the potential to evolve to be become even more intelligent. The fine degree of motor control that they are capable with with their trunks is key, I think, espeically when coupled with their relatively large brain to bodymass ratio; there is the potential there for pretty sophisticated tool use, a little way down potential evolutionary roads.