Foot-Lifting

Raising and holding a foreleg off the ground. Raising and holding a hind-foot may also be observed although this is less common than a forefoot. Individuals in all age sex groups may Foot-Lift in Submissive, Ambivalent and Conflict & Confrontation contexts when unsure of what action to take, as in Displacement-Behavior. Likewise, all age sex groups may Foot-Lift In Attentive and Vigilance contexts as seen during Freezing behavior, when elephants may be feeling for or picking up seismic vibrations.

In a Movement Space and Leadership context Foot-Lifting is observed among adult females as a signal of intention - i.e. an Intention-Movement - for example, as a component of the Let’s-Go-Stance.

References: Douglas-Hamilton 1972: ch 6; Moss 1988; Poole 1999a; O’Connell-Rodwell et al 2006. (Full reference list)

This behavior occurs in the following context(s): Ambivalent, Attentive, Movement, Space & Leadership, Submissive, Vigilance

Foot-Lifting

Context: Ambivalent (1)

A young male (center right) is minding his own business at a water-hole. An adult female approaches and stands next to him (center left); he Orient-Away slightly. She comes over and stand near to him waiting, and exhibiting Foot-Lifting. As he Orient-Toward her a little she turns on him, Ramming, Pushing him with her Trunk and Tusking him with an audible sound and then reaching her trunk out at him as he Retreat-From and Look-Back. She Ear-Folds and Ear-Slaps loudly - dust flying and departs. (Maasai Mara, Kenya)

Foot-Lifting

Context: Ambivalent (2)

A female Turns-Toward and Tusks another female who Runs-Away and then Looks-Back. She stands some distance away Foot-Lifting and appears to try to remove a thorn from her foot (perhaps). She continues to Foot-Lift and then Head-Shakes. (Maasai Mara, Kenya)

Foot-Lifting

Context: Ambivalent (2)

Fayza of the FD family has a newborn male calf. She and her family approach our vehicle as they go to water. The infant is alarmed by our presence - perhaps one of the first vehicles he has seen and engages in Ear-Spreading and Foot-Lifting. The Foot-Lifting is repeated in a rather dramatic way many times with both front and hind feet and sometimes with two feet at a time. (Amboseli, Kenya)

Foot-Lifting

Context: Vigilance (1)

Tuskless female, Valda, stands Head-Swinging and Foot-Lifting. Then she begins a Perpendicular-Walk, which appears to be a signal for one-tusked Vigilante to Charge. (Gorongosa, Mozambique)

Foot-Lifting

Context: Vigilance (2)

Adult female gf0070 starts to walk toward us but then sees us and stops and starts first Foot-Swinging and then Foot-Lifting. The calves stand waiting. (Gorongosa, Mozambique)

Foot-Lifting

Context: Vigilance (3)

A young male crosses the road and shows signs of apprehension and vigilance - Tail-Raising and then pausing on the other side of the track to lift a hind foot - Foot-Lifting. (Gorongosa, Mozambique)

Foot-Lifting

Context: Conflict & Confrontation (1)

Provocadora, gf0012 starts to walk and then pauses with Periscope-Trunk and Rumbles. She starts Foot-Lifting - again undecided - considering what to do. She gives an Ear-Flap-Slide and walks a few more steps and rumbles again. She pauses and Foot-Lifts once more and then around behind a bush as she Periscope-Trunk x 3 with a sweeping motion - like a Trunk-Sweep and we say she may come again “take another angle”. On the third Trunk-Sweep she also Foot-Lifts.

It is like a tactic - the behind a bush or the Perpendicular-Walk (“feint-left” - purposeful misleading maneuver). She is walking Perpendicular to us - in other words not toward or away but to the side - as if she is leaving, but NOT! Then going behind the bush or trees is an added deceptive tactic. The Trunk-Sweep motion, though, is kind of a give away. As she charges she runs through a bush - Bush-Bashing making noise and then as she gets closer to us she is Kicking-Dust as she charges - adding to the visual impact. (Gorongosa, Mozambique)

Foot-Lifting

Context: Conflict & Confrontation (2)

Musth male, Rui, stands Listening and then Advances-Toward us while Ear-Spreading. He walks to a termite mound to Attain-Higher-Ground and Stands-Tall. Notice how he does a Head-Dip-Touch-Ground before going up the mound. On the mound he stands Foot-Lifting before he does another Head-Dip-Touch-Ground and goes back off the mound. (Gorongosa, Mozambique)

Foot-Lifting

Context: Conflict & Confrontation (3)

gm0015 approaches gm0016. We don't see any particular signal, but then gm0016 Foot-Lifts his back left leg and then turn and Charges us. They both exhibit Ear-Spreading. gm0015 Stands-Tall behind him, Foot-Swinging. (Gorongosa, Mozambique)

Foot-Lifting

Context: Submissive (1)

Emo in musth (on the left) and Teejay not in musth (right) Advance-Toward one another. When they are about 25 meters apart Teejay stops Heah-High but with a slight Chin-Out posture. Teejay one more step toward Emo and stops again, Foot-Lifting as Emo closes the gap to about 10 meters. Then Teejay turns and Runs-Away and Emo Runs-After him. As they begin to run we see clouds of dust rising from their backs. We hear the sound of them running and their ears flapping and we can hear Teejay give a V8-Rumble. On the spectrogram we find a big increase in sound between 4 and 20 Hz. Elephants at some distance away would be able to pick up this acoustic signal between 8-20 Hz as well as its matching seismic signal. (Amboseli, Kenya)