Asian elephants intentionally burying the bodies of their calves has been documented in the first scientific report of such behavior in this species.

Five calves were found buried in a drainage ditch on a tea plantation in the northern state of Bengal, India, with their feet and legs sticking out of the ground.

Footprints and scat of various sizes indicate that members of the herd of all ages contributed to each burial. A night watchman at the complex reported hearing loud elephant cries, sometimes lasting 30 to 40 minutes, before the herd left the area.

Akashdeep Roy Researchers at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research in Pune and Parveen Kaswan from the Indian Forest Service suggest that the sound of these bugles may represent mourning, and that during burials the herds are “helping and caring”. It suggests that the person exhibited a certain behavior.

“The burial of a calf is an extremely rare event in nature,” says Roy.

They were surprised to find the calf buried foot-deep, but if the herd had buried each calf together, this would be the most accessible position to place the carcass in the drain. , says Roy. For elephants, who are social animals, burying their calves' heads may be the most important thing they do, he says.

The calf's body was later exhumed and examined. Their ages ranged from three months to one year old, and many were malnourished and suffering from infections. Bruises along each calf's back suggest that they were dragged or carried long distances to the burial site.

African bush elephant (african loxodonta) have been observed covering carcasses with plants and returning to the location later. However, the Asian elephant (maximum elephas) In this study, we typically avoided returning to the burial site and used an alternative route instead.

“These observations provide impressive evidence of the social complexity of elephants,” he says. Chase LaDue At the Oklahoma City Zoo and Botanical Garden. “Some people have suggested that elephants seem to behave in a unique way towards their deceased relatives. [but] This paper is the first to describe what appears to be a methodical and planned burial of an elephant calf after it was taken to a burial site. ”

Still, Professor Radu said: “We must be careful how we interpret these results, especially since the mental and emotional lives of elephants remain largely a mystery to us.” There is.

He is not convinced that the position of the calf was intentional. “I could imagine an elephant pushing a dead calf into a narrow ditch, and given its awkward shape and weight distribution, the calf would land on its back with its legs in the air,” he says. “And because the depth of the trench is shallow, the feet are not buried, but this is not due to intentional burying of the head, but due to the unique topography of the burial site.”

The land where elephants once roamed freely is shrinking as humans expand, especially in India, the world's most populous country. Only about 22 percent of the land used by elephants is within protected areas.

“Understanding how elephants behave and respond to rapid changes in human-dominated landscapes may help develop conservation strategies that promote human-elephant coexistence.” Mr. Radu says.