Elephants

i just saw a most amazing thing on film concerning a herd of elephants in a zoo. (this was on the travel channel) a family went to the zoo and noticed an african elephant playing with a tire swing. she got her foot stuck in it and tried in vain to free herself before panic set in. she began to sound out in her panic and the herd responded to her cries for help. they discovered the problem and freed her from the tire! i'm telling you, i had tears in my eyes. and told my husband "see, see!!" it just further validates my belief in animal intelligence. and while we're here, i mentioned african elephants. the main difference between african elephants and asian elephants, besides their location, is the size of their ears. african elephants have larger ears (noticeably) than asian elephants. any wonder why that is? i don't have the answer, i'm asking!

Found an answer for you Wolfie.....More on Ears Elephants do not have sweat glands, but use their ears as a cooling system. They have very large veins in their ears that enlarge in warmer weather and constrict in cooler weather. When it is hot the elephants will flap their ears, sending the cool air over the enlarged veins. This cools the blood, that is then recycled back through the body, cooling the elephant. (Of course this is only one way that elephants keep cool.) Is there an advantage to having large or small ears? One theory on ear size is that the open African plains have a much warmer climate than the dense forests of Asia. Therefore the African elephant would need larger ears to help it disperse more heat. Another theory has to do with habitat. Asian elephants live in forested areas, and having large ears would be cumbersome. In other words, small ears are less likely to get caught up in the trees and other plants within the forest. http://natzoo.si.edu/zooview/exhibits/elehouse/elephant/afrvsasn.htm#Ears

Spanish Elephants are my specialty and they love mangoes, I understand...

never heard of spanish elephants (are you being silly?)

No, Wolfie, just reflective. Someone told me there was a resemblance to a Barcelona native and a pachyderm. I do not believe it for a second, and I have not heard of elephants in Spain since the last ice age, 10,000 years ago. Sorta like Hawaiian elephants. They might be self-perceived but not apparent to others. Poetic Spanish elephants are the best in the world but they resemble Pegasus more than pachyderm!

And I thought I gave a sensible answer to Wolfie's query!!!!!! *grin* I always used to be called a 'fairy elephant' can't think why????? dainty soul that I am....

no one has ever gave me such an endearing term of affection *grin*

Maybe I'm more like Dumbo?????? *grin* (At least tht keeps the ears theme going....)

Wonder how much an elephant's tongue weighs...

why?

took the word right out of my mouth Wolfie.....

KENYA RELOCATING 56 ELEPHANTS http://www.newsday.com/ap/international/ap898.htm Mzee is 42, headstrong and notorious for crashing through the electrified fence that surrounds a sprawling ranch in north central Kenya. On Thursday, the 4.2-ton bull elephant stumbled out of a truck, shook off his stupor and flapped his ears, ambling free in his new, fenceless home following the most intensive elephant relocation effort to date in eastern Africa.

check this out--prosthetics for elephants: http://www.foxnews.com/printer_friendly_story/0,3566,167267,00.html

I saw something on the news about how the elephant population is out of control. From near extinction to overpopulation.

the problem is that people are taking over elephant territory. i saw an article in national geographic with a picture of an elephant walking right through a hotel lobby to get to its favorite tree....fortunately, they still allow the poor thing to do that.