A recent study revealed that elephants communicate using individual names they create for each other.
Researchers noted that while dolphins and parrots address each other by mimicking sounds, elephants uniquely use non-imitative names.
An international team employed artificial intelligence to study calls from two wild herds of African savannah elephants in Kenya.
“The research demonstrates that elephants use specific vocalizations for each individual and respond to calls meant for them, ignoring others,” lead author Michael Pardo stated, as reported by AFP.
Pardo, a behavioural ecologist at Colorado State University, explained that elephants could recognize whether a call is directed at them by the sound alone, even outside its usual context.
Data from 1986 to 2022 at Kenya’s Samburu National Reserve and Amboseli National Park was analyzed, focusing on an elephant “rumbles.”
Using machine learning, researchers identified 469 unique calls involving 101 calling and 117 receiving elephants.
Elephants produce various sounds, from loud trumpeting to low rumbles inaudible to humans.
Interestingly, the use of names in elephant calls was sporadic, occurring often over long distances and when adults communicated with young.
