How Elephants Say They Like Them Apples

Researchers found that the animals are capable of using trunks to express their wants

- VERONIQUE GREENWOOD

IF YOU GIVE an elephant an apple, she's going to want some more. But how can she get through to the nearby humans who are keeping those luscious treats away from her? After working with elephants in Zimbabwe, researchers reported that the animals are capable of making very deliberate gestures to communicate that desire for more. Their study was published Wednesday in the journal Royal Society Open Science.

In the study of the evolution of language and other forms of communication, researchers have long been interested in whether nonhuman animals use gestures. That's because gestures can reveal to what extent individuals are aware of the attention and inner state of others. Many studies about gestures focus on primates. But elephants are another natural subject for this research because they live in groups and have elaborate social lives. Perhaps they, too, use movement to communicate.