Elephant Talk: The Surprising Science of Elephant Communication

Elephant Talk: The Surprising Science of Elephant Communication — page 7
ELEPHANT TALK A FOREST ELEPHANT In the Central African Republic in a remote forest near the border with Cameroon a small dark brown elephant with pink tusks is moving through the trees This is a forest elephant a member of a shy and still mysterious species She pauses at the edge of a clearing her adult eldest daughter and three calves of different ages gathered behind her One hundred elephants have gathered in this swampy place to drink and dig up the nutrient rich mud salts They have been dyed different pastel colors by the various muds they've wallowed in Using her sense of smell and perhaps recognizing the sounds of elephants she knows this elephant mother decides it's all right this is a family reunion As she leads her offspring into the clearing they are greeted by their relatives Sisters and aunts and cousins welcome the newcomers with noisy calls The calls are picked up by special recording equipment hidden high in the trees around the edges of the A group of African forest elephants digs up minerals from the mud in this forest clearing in the Central African Republic Their tusks are tinged pink from the minerals