'Move away' and 'stop that!' Wild elephants use a rich gestural repertoire intentionally to 'mean business'
A new study published in 'Animal Cognition' reveals that wild African savanna elephants use intentional, goal-directed gestures to communicate with one another. Researchers observed that elephants adapt their signals based on whether the recipient is paying attention, suggesting high levels of social intelligence.
Why it matters
This research provides new insights into animal cognition and the evolution of complex communication systems in highly social species.
edited by Gaby Clark , reviewed by Robert Egan
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Add to Preferred Sources Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain Wild African savanna elephants use a wide range of gestures when competing with other elephants, according to research from an international group of scientists, including researchers from the University of Portsmouth, University of Vienna and University of St Andrews.
The study, published in Animal Cognition , is the first systematic investigation of intentional gestural communication in wild African savanna elephants. Researchers observed elephants in competitive contexts in Addo Elephant National Park and Marakele National Park in South Africa, carrying out more than 90 hours of observation and recording around 840 individual instances of gestures.
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