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When it comes to the smartest species in the animal kingdom, elephants are definitely at the top of the list. How smart are elephants then? Well, for starters, they have bigger brains than any other land mammal! Elephants are capable of expressing a vast array of complex emotions, and they are known to even use instruments in surprisingly complex ways.
But such complex behavior and survival mechanisms are just the beginning of the elephant’s intelligence! Let’s take a closer look at how bright the elephants are. We take a look at how they display their intelligence both in the wild and in captivity.
How do we measure the intelligence of an elephant?
Animal intelligence is a fascinating but subtle topic. Historically, this has been quite difficult to measure. After all, we can’t just run IQ tests on animals or ask them to solve mathematical equations. Fortunately, scientists have developed a number of strategies when it comes to assessing and comparing the intelligence of certain animals. As you can imagine, all of them are mastered by elephants!
The main factors that researchers analyze when measuring an animal’s intelligence are self-awareness, emotional range, tool use, play behavior, short and long term memory, social structures, and social behavior, among many others.
Of course, the short answer to the question “Are elephants smart?” – a loud “yes!” However, definitively and accurately measuring the intelligence of an elephant is a little more difficult. Let’s take a look at some of the factors used to measure the intelligence of animals and how elephants are measured.
Elephants and the mirror test
Perhaps the best-known method for assessing animal intelligence is the “mirror test.” Basically, it is a measurement of the self-awareness of animals by determining whether they can recognize themselves in the mirror.
Most animal species are not self-conscious. When self-conscious species see themselves in the mirror like your cat or lizard, they perceive their reflection as another animal rather than their own image. They may try to fight their reflection, or show fear or confusion by looking in the mirror. But if the animal can show that it understands that its reflection is in fact a representation of itself, it “passes” the mirror test.
Even human children cannot take a mirror test until they reach the age of 1.5 to 2 years! Only a handful of species have shown success when tested; humans and great apes are the main species that constantly pass by.
However, other animals such as dolphins, crows – and yes, elephants – have shown promising results when tested with the mirror too! While we still need more detailed research on this topic, research has shown that Asian elephants are capable of recognizing themselves in the mirror.
Emotional intelligence and social structure of elephants
So what other methods do we use to determine the intelligence of elephants?
In addition to measuring self-awareness with the mirror test, scientists also closely observe the social behavior of elephants. They look at things like social structures and hierarchies in elephant groups to determine if animals are capable of complex emotions, communication, and cooperation with one another.
When it comes to social intelligence, elephants are incredibly complex too! They have been shown to deeply care for and protect each other in their family groups. They will even grieve when a close friend or family member dies. Their emotional range is impressive, and elephants usually work together to access and share resources such as food and water, or to protect each other from predators.
Moreover, elephants are expert communicators. They use all of their senses – hearing, sight, smell, taste, and touch – to interact and collaborate with one another.
Elephants have a wide range of signals, calls, gestures and calls that they use for such purposes as warning their herd about predators, resolving conflicts, attracting and grooming companions, and even just to talk to other members of the herd.
Another key way that ethologists or animal technicians measure the intelligence of elephants is by studying their use of tools. A wide variety of animals such as birds, mammals and even insects can use tools. However, only a few species use them regularly and consistently in surprisingly intricate and complex ways.
It turns out that elephants are great at using tools like rocks and tree branches for very complex purposes! Researchers have observed how elephants use twigs as back scratches, to hit flies, or even as weapons to hit people or other animals that get too close. They will also carry twigs around with them for a long time to use later.
It is noteworthy that the strong and flexible trunks of elephants huge help them when it comes to using the tool. They usually collect rocks and twigs from their trunks and use them to plug the water holes they dug earlier so that the water does not dry out. Alternatively, they will use their trunks to use large branches to knock fruits and leaves off trees for them and their herd to eat.
When it comes to elephants and tool use, the possibilities are endless! The use of tools (as in the examples mentioned above) is a key factor in determining the intelligence of animals as it takes a very intelligent animal to understand and remember how to use them.
Do elephants really “never forget”?
We have all at some point heard the saying “an elephant never forgets.” As it turns out, the old adage is based on much more truth than you might think! After all, an elephant’s brain weighs almost 5 kilograms and has three times as many neurons as a typical human brain.
Elephants are able to memorize places of food and water for surprisingly long periods of time! Herds in the wild often return to watering holes several weeks after they are discovered.
But they don’t just use their impressive memories to find resources. Elephants also remember friends and even en
em
ies for several years. They can remember the approximate location of up to 30 satellites at the same time and from time to time will look for them in order to catch up with them and communicate with them.
So, if anyone asks you how smart elephants are, you can confidently tell them that elephants really are, Indeed smart – not only in terms of basic knowledge, but also in terms of their memory and social / emotional intelligence!
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