It is generally known
that elephants live in -large- groups, and even that these groups are leaded by
a female. But how are they formed? How is the decision made? What are the duties
of a leader in the group? There have been several studies on this interesting
topic; a very relevant one is known to be the longest continuous elephant research project ever developed, was conducted at Amboseli National Park in Kenya.
Elephants live in a
fission-fusion society, accumulating social and ecological knowledge over
decades, and with mother-offspring bond units to clans. These groups gather
approximately 8-12 individuals (in the case of African Forest Elephants the
groups might be smaller), are formed by related females and leaded by the
matriarch, who is typically the eldest and largest female. All members feed,
rest, move and interact in a coordinated way and have very close ties.
Family groups are
active, as they constantly build up and break down, and therefore it´s usually
difficult to distinguish a completely formed group, but generally speaking, four
different kinds of units can be distinguished among elephant fission-fusion social
structures:
Mother-calf units: both in Asian and African elephant
societies, calves lie at the core of the elephant family with the matriarch
serving as the head.
Family: within the family group, young females (nulliparous) are engaged as the so-called allomothers.
original video: ACP0002hmo
Bond groups: herds can split in related groups, that might at
some point gather in closely related families, also called kin groups. Bond
group ties are weaker than family ties, but still bond group members assist
and defend one another.
Clans, or assemblages of bond groups. Clans are defined as those families and
bond groups that share the same dry season home range.
Mother-calf units and
families are stable groups, while bond groups and clans are known to be
seasonal.
As the eldest female of the group, a matriarchs is a `source of knowledge´ to the others, and in a
female-led society, the individual role is the result of age, size, kinship and
reproductive condition. The bonds to the matriarch are so strong, that the herd
would possibly break after a matriarch´s death.
The matriarch´s tasks
are:
· To lead the group; she will decide when
and where to wander, and as a result, what to feed on. She also knows where to
go to find the best water sources. However, suggestions are often made by any other
member of the group, typically by adults.
· Protection; she keeps the group away
from threats, like human settlements, etc. She will place herself in front of
the potential danger, so that she will be attacked first. She will then be
protected by the other females of the group, confirming their strong family
bonds.
· She controls the group, noticing where
other members are to gather them in case or danger.
· She educates the group: by teaching the
next matriarch.
The female in the
group who is a potential matriarch is hard to tell apart; some elephants are
natural born leaders, and they start to display their leading abilities at an
early age, but sometimes not. As a general rule, a female will succeed in her
attempts to be the matriarch if she is confident, well-connected and able to
command the respect of others. And all these qualities must be proven all over
the years, until the members of the herd are able to recognize her as their
leader. So the wise matriarch will be a combination of both natural leadership
qualities (“personality”) and long experience; thus, she needs to be
genetically and socially well connected to all the members of the group.
And what about the males? What is the male role in an elephant society? In former elephant posts we discussed about the different life stages of the elephants. When adolescence occurs (at the age of 6 – 15), males leave the matriarchal herd to join other males. Independent males are seen in small male groups, and will go from one family to the next during sexually active periods. The males can build strong bonds, but still not so strong like families.
Young males often
gather in unstable bachelor groups (all-male groups), sometimes associated with
an adult male. Solo males have already reached the adult age:
References:
Murray E. Fowler, Susan K. Mikota (2006): Biology, Medicine, and Surgery of Elephants
Elefanten in Zoo und Circus, European Elephant Group (EEG), Das Elefanten-Magazin, January 2015.
Elephant Voices: https://www.elephantvoices.org/
*answer here
