“Wild Elephants Use Intentional Gestures to Communicate, Study Finds” — what this page in the network covers. Wild African savanna elephants use a rich repertoire of gestures to communicate with each other, according to new research from an international team of scientists from the University of Portsmouth, University of Vienna, and University of St Andrews. The study, published in the journal Communications Biology, observed elephants in the wild using over 20 distinct gesture types, such as ear flapping, trunk swinging, and specific body postures, to convey messages during social interactions.
The researchers found that elephants use these gestures intentionally, adjusting their behavior based on the audience's attention and waiting for a response, which suggests a complex communication system akin to that of great apes. This discovery highlights the sophisticated social intelligence of elephants and underscores the importance of protecting these endangered animals and their habitats. For the complete material, the listing points back to the source inside the network.