Quest Picks: Talking Elephants at the Oakland Zoo
Can elephants feel seismic waves?
Scientists have known for years that elephants can communicate. By using low frequency vocals, called rumbles, elephants can ‘talk’ with eachother, sometimes communicating from very long distances.
But the new question being asked by some scientists is: can elephants feel those rumbles in the earth?
Biologist Dr. Caitlin O’Connell-Rodwell from the Oakland Zoo wants to find out. After studying elephant activity in Africa, she noticed that elephants would raise and lower their feet when interacting with one another. She realized that these elephants were using seismic waves felt through their feet to send messages.
O’Connell-Rodwell and her team have been creating mini-earthquakes for an elephant (named Donna) at the Oakland Zoo to monitor her responses to different seismic activities.
Check out this National Geographic video about the study on YouTube:
