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The behaviour illustrated in this photograph is Rest-Head: An elephant resting his or her head on another. Rest-Head often occurs during play when one elephant rests his or her head on the back or flank of another. It is also often observed in a resting group when one elephant rests his or her head on a nearby elephant. In Courtship a male may Rest-Head on an estrous female as a prelude to Mounting. On rarer occasions a female may Rest-Head on another female in a display of dominance. On several occasions we have observed this behavior in the presence of a newborn infant, sometimes during an attempted kidnapping, when a dominant female places her head on the back of a younger mother. If you want to learn more about elephant behaviour visit The Elephant Ethogram via the link in our bio. #theelephantethogram #elephantvoices #elephants #animalbehaviour #wildlife #stopthetrade #conservationresearch #wildlifephotography #wildlifeconservation #elephantcommunication #elephantbehaviour #ethology #elephantresearch #animalbehavior #conservationscience #conservationbiology #animalemotions #ethogram #conservationphotography #elephant

The behaviour illustrated in this photograph is Forward-Trunk-Swing: A swinging or tossing of the trunk in the direction of an adversary typically while simultaneously blowing forcefully out through the trunk. Elephants may swing their trunks at other elephants or at smaller animals (e.g. egrets; ground-hornbills; warthogs, people) as a threat, to chase them away, or in play. Forward-Trunk-Swing may be employed by all age sex groups. If you want to learn more about elephant behaviour visit The Elephant Ethogram via the link in our bio. #theelephantethogram #elephantvoices #elephants #animalbehaviour #wildlife #stopthetrade #conservationresearch #wildlifephotography #wildlifeconservation #elephantcommunication #elephantbehaviour #ethology #elephantresearch #animalbehavior #conservationscience #conservationbiology #animalemotions #ethogram #conservationphotography #elephant

The behaviour illustrated in this photograph is Nasal-Trumpet: A nasal sounding trumpet of less than a second in duration that is noisier and significantly lower in frequency than all other trumpets. Nasal-Trumpets are most often associated with very exuberant play and sound like a large man blowing his nose. They may also be given by highly aroused individuals during social bonding events, such as Greetings. It seems that Nasal-Trumpeting participants may force air more slowly through the upper part of the nasal passages causing it to reverberate down the length of the trunk at a lower frequency. Calves, juveniles, adolescents and adults are all capable of producing these trumpets. If you want to learn more about elephant behaviour visit The Elephant Ethogram via the link in our bio. #theelephantethogram #elephantvoices #elephants #animalbehaviour #wildlife #stopthetrade #conservationresearch #wildlifephotography #wildlifeconservation #elephantcommunication #elephantbehaviour #ethology #elephantresearch #animalbehavior #conservationscience #conservationbiology #animalemotions #ethogram #conservationphotography #elephant

It has just rained and a family of elephants must descend a muddy riverbank of black cotton soil to reach the Sand River. Ten elephants slide down the bank using a variety of techniques. The behaviour illustrated in this video is Slide: An individual getting down a muddy bank while maintaining continuous contact with its slippery surface. Many different techniques may be employed such as Sitting, Kneeling-Down, Lying-Down, or Standing and using the trunk to balance. If you want to learn more about elephant behaviour visit The Elephant Ethogram: https://www.elephantvoices.org/elephant-ethogram/ #theelephantethogram #elephantvoices #elephants #animalbehaviour #wildlife #stopthetrade #conservationresearch #wildlifephotography #wildlifeconservation #elephantcommunication #elephantbehaviour #ethology #elephantresearch #animalbehavior #conservationscience #conservationbiology #animalemotions #ethogram #conservationphotography #elephant

The documentary series ’Secret of the Elephants’ premiers today on @natgeo and will be available to stream from tomorrow on @disneyplus. In this four-part documentary series, executive produced by @jamescameronofficial and narrated by @natalieportman, you will meet @elephantvoices Dr. Joyce Poole, @wildlifedirect Dr. Paula Kahumbu and others, including a lot of elephants! Both Paula and Joyce are @natgeo and Joyce’s brother, @bobpoolefilms, was a director of photography for the series. We really hope you enjoy it! #SecretsOfTheElephants

Thank you @insidenatgeo for sharing one of our videos from The Elephant Ethogram. This is an example of Periscope-Trunk in the context of social play. Click the link in our bio to learn more about African elephant behaviour. Repost @insidenatgeo • Can you understand what these elephants are communicating? This video is a part of the @ElephantVoices Elephant Ethogram, a detailed catalogue of the behavior and communication of African savanna elephants—based on decades of behavioral studies, photographs, and audio and video recordings. In 2002, #NatGeoExplorer Joyce Poole and Petter Granli founded ElephantVoices, dedicating their lives to elephant conservation and the study of their behavior and communication. Link in bio to learn more about elephants and what they might be saying. #SaveTheElephantsDay

This behavior occurred over perhaps 10 minutes or so. We have shortened the clips. Matriarch Holly has been Body-Axis-Pointing and Waiting for quite a while. As this clip begins she gives a short Lets-Go-Rumble and continues to Body-Axis-Point and Wait. Then as her family comes closer she Looks-Back. The camera pans out and we see her apparently Foot-Swinging although this may be Displacement-Dusting. As they come with her she begins to Walk only to stop and Wait again again when the other female stops to Suckle a calf. They begin to approach her again and she walks on leading her family. The behaviour illustrated in this video is Body-Axis-Pointing: Using the axis of the body to point in the direction an elephant wishes to travel. To be considered Body-Axis-Pointing this posture must be associated with other behaviors such as Intention-Movements (e.g. Foot-Swinging, Foot-Lifting, Waiting, Walk-Wait, Ear-Flap-Slide) or Let’s-Go-Rumbling. Body-Axis-Pointing is most often observed among adult and adolescent females. While males also engage in Body-Axis-Pointing it is less demonstrative than among females. If you want to learn more about elephant behaviour visit The Elephant Ethogram via the link in our bio. #theelephantethogram #elephantvoices #elephants #animalbehaviour #wildlife #stopthetrade #conservationresearch #wildlifephotography #wildlifeconservation #elephantcommunication #elephantbehaviour #ethology #elephantresearch #animalbehavior #conservationscience #conservationbiology #animalemotions #ethogram #conservationphotography #elephant

Thank you @insidenatgeo for this cute and educational post about our research on elephant communication. Repost @insidenatgeo • For almost 50 years, #NatGeoExplorer Joyce Poole has been carefully watching the elephants of Kenya Amboseli National Park. Over that time she’s gotten to know them by name and has started decoding their sounds, smells, and body language to figure out just what the world’s largest land animal is talking about. 🎧🐘 Get to know the sounds of elephants—and what they’re saying as explained by Poole on the latest episode of “Overheard @NatGeo.”

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