Bonding-Ceremony

An exuberant display of behavior involving a constellation of vocal, chemical, tactile and visual communication that may occur, for example, during a greeting, birth, mating, kidnapping, rescue, arrival of a musth male, a coalition, or when a group of elephants have successfully routed an adversary. The term Bonding-Ceremony is a general term that includes more specific behavioral constellations such as Coalition, End-Zone-Dance, High-Fiving, Female-Chorus, Greeting-Ceremony, Mating Pandemonium. The behaviors appear to function to reinforce bonds and pull family and bond group members together for collective action.

References: Douglas-Hamilton 1972: ch 6; Moss 1981, 1988; Poole1987b; Poole et al. 1988; Poole 1996: 93; Poole 1998a; Poole 1999b, 2000a; Payne 2003; Poole & Granli 2003; Poole & Granli 2011; Poole 2011. (Full reference list)

This behavioral constellation includes the following behaviors: Back-Toward, Defecating, Ear-Folding, Ear-Lifting, Ear-Spreading, Head-Raising, Open-Mouth, Open-Mouth-to-Open-Mouth, Pirouette, Rapid-Ear-Flapping, Reach-Touch, Rumble-Roar-Rumble, Snort, Social-Trumpet, Tail-Raising, Temporin, Trunk-to-Mouth, Trunk-Twining, Tusk-Clank, Urinating and occurs in the following context(s): Affiliative, Birth, Coalition Building, Courtship