Researchers Discover the Social World of Male Elephants
Male elephants leave their family's herds during adolescence, and experts assumed they lived lonely, solitary lives, but new research shows the opposite.
Hiya!
As the only humans left, we commonly assume we’re also the only so-called intelligent species on the planet. However, this assumption is changing as animal sciences advance and identify species with remarkable intelligence, like elephants. Not only are elephants supremely smart, but they’re also highly empathic with complex relationships and communities that mirror our own in many ways. Some experts even suggest elephants should have personhood.
Aside from their intelligence, elephants' social behaviors are especially interesting. One reason is that they form matriarchies, where elder females lead their female relatives. Meanwhile, the males leave their herd during adolescence, after which it was assumed that they live lonely, solitary lives. However, recent research spanning two decades has discovered that this assumption about male elephants is wrong.
African Elephants
Weighing an average of 6 tons and standing 11 feet (3.3 meters) at the shoulder, African elephants hold the title of being the largest land animal currently walking on Earth.
There are two subspecies of African elephants: forest and savanna (or bush) elephants. The former prefers hanging out in forested areas, is darker in color, and has long, straight tusks that point downward. Meanwhile, the latter prefers the open savanna, is the larger of the two, and has tusks that curve outward.
Besides their massive size, remarkable intelligence, empathetic tendencies, and impressive communication capabilities, their social behavior astounds researchers.
We have a lot in common with elephants — they have and use names, grieve and mourn their dead, have unique personalities, and complex societies — but while we humans mostly live in patriarchies, where men hold a disproportionate amount of power, elephant societies tend to be matriarchal, where the females lead and hold most of the power.
Most of what scientists know about African elephants is gleaned from studying these matriarchal groups, led by the elder females who guide their female relatives to food, water, and safety.
Meanwhile, far less attention has been dedicated to studying male elephants since they leave their families during adolescence, at around 12 to 13 years old.
Researchers have assumed that male elephants are largely “solitary nomads” who trade in the herd life to live as bachelors. As such, it was similarly thought that their social lives were solitary and simple, without complex rules.
However, research over the last couple of decades challenges such speculations. It turns out that male elephants aren’t necessarily solitary, and their social lives are far more intricate than we gave them credit for.
New Research
Caitlin O’Connell, a behavioral ecologist at Stanford University’s Center for Conservation Biology and Harvard University’s Center for the Environment, and author of eight books, has spent the last two decades studying and documenting the social behaviors of male elephant societies with other scientists.
O’Connell recently penned a feature article for Scientific American about her experiences and research while studying male African elephants in Namibia’s Etosha National Park.
She shares far more than I can include here, so I encourage you to read it in full if you want to know more. However, she makes several fascinating observations that I want to share with you.
Basically, O’Connell and other scientists found that male African elephants aren’t lonely, wandering bachelors destined for solitary lives. Instead, they find each other after leaving their matriarchal herds to form their own societies.
While smaller than the matriarchical herds they come from — forming groups of only around three to five males compared to the dozens of females — these male groups contain intricate rules, hierarchies, and rituals that differ from those of the female herds. O’Connell writes:
Male elephants, we are learning, are sensitive social animals that crave companionship and need emotional support. Their experiences of growing up parallel those of human males, who undergo similar social changes and pressures as they enter the adult world — from backslapping in the bar, to defending another’s honor by taking on a bully, to being best friends forever. Having a social network of other trusted males may be important for navigating the transition to adulthood.
The researchers identified multiple examples of the male elephants engaging in social behaviors that are far more complex than expected. These discoveries shift our understanding of these highly intelligent animals and provide more information about how we can protect them in captivity and the wild.