Soltis believes fear, and other emotions, likely are conveyed in elephant rumbles.
Dominant females within the herd did not necessarily vocalize more than other elephants.
Ovulation cycles also were not a factor, but the closeness of relationships were. Elephant friends and members of families conversed more with each other, according to the study.
Jeff Kinzley, elephant manager at the Oakland Zoo, agrees with the findings.
"I've even noticed that elephants will have back and forth conversations for a long time before they all suddenly turn around and do something, like go to eat," Kinzley told Animal Planet News.
"They wind up walking in a certain order, so it is as though they were deciding who can eat after the matriarch."
Kinzley added that males converse with each other too, only not as much and usually more when they seem happy.
"Low and slow rumbles seem to indicate happiness," Kinzley said. "We sometimes hear this from both males and females when they appear glad to see us or when they are lounging at a comfortable spot with their trunks resting flat on the ground."
Name: African Elephant (
Loxodonta africana)
Primary Classification: Proboscidea (Elephants)
Location: Africa.
Habitat: Wide range, including desert, scrub, savanna and high rainforest.
Diet: Bark, fruit, grass and leaves.
Size: Up to 16 ft in length, 13 ft in height, and 11 tons in weight.
Description: Gray, sparsely haired skin; large ears, which aid in temperature regulation; long, forward-curving ivory tusks, used for fighting, digging and eating; long, muscular trunk with two finger-like projections at the tip.
Cool Facts: It is the largest land mammal on Earth. It takes care of weak and injured pack members and grieves over dead companions. It has a particular fascination with the tusks and bones of dead elephants.
Conservation Status: Endangered
Major Threat: Poaching
What Can I Do?: Visit
Save the Elephants, the
African Wildlife Foundation, and the
Living With Elephants Foundation for information on how you can help endangered elephants.
