Raising Elephants
In Namibia, Africa, a teenage male elephant leaves the safety of his family on the way to a local water hole. Far ahead of the herd, he is at risk of being attacked by lions. But he is becoming independent and curious. The sooner he arrives at the water hole, the more time he’ll have with adult male elephants, called bulls. Soon, bulls will play an important role in this young elephant’s life.
“Young males have to enter the adult male world and they look for an entry into this world,” says Dr. Caitlin O’Connell-Rodwell, a scientist who studies African elephants in Etosha National Park. “This is where it’s really fascinating. Good mentors enjoy engaging with these youngsters, and others push them away or have no interest in them.”
Family Life
This young male has lived in a herd of female elephants, called a matriarchal pack, all his life. Young elephants are cared for by their mothers, aunts, grandmothers, siblings, and cousins. The pack has kept him safe, and he has formed bonds with his family members as unique as our own, says Dr. O’Connell-Rodwell.
Alone at the water hole, the young male elephant seems to enjoy chasing away a giraffe. He is becoming more confident and aggressive. In recent months, he has also become more aggressive with members of his herd. Young males spar with one another as a form of play fighting.
In the teen years, their bodies produce natural chemicals called hormones, which can cause them to behave aggressively. Then they begin to spar to compete for dominance in their social group and for the attention of females.
“This aggression is the beginning of a young elephant growing into a breeding male, who will find his place in a hierarchy of other male elephants,” says Dr. O’Connell-Rodwell. Establishing dominance is important. It maintains respect among males, which creates tolerance and strengthens their bonds.
Ready for a Change
An aggressive teen male can be a danger to younger elephants. In the matriarchal pack, sooner or later, the females act to protect the calves. “At some point in the separation, the females get frustrated with him and actively push him out,” Dr. O’Connell-Rodwell says.
By then, he is ready to leave. Around the age of 12 to 15, a young bull begins to distance himself from his family. At this stage, he needs to be around older, more dominant bulls. Otherwise, he can enter a state of heightened aggression called musth (pronounced “must”). In musth, a male can become destructive and dangerous.
Dr. O’Connell-Rodwell and her team study the dung of elephants to determine the levels of hormones. When young males are in the presence of bulls, the hormones that trigger musth are suppressed. This calms the teenagers’ behavior. “Older males serve as mentors and mediators for younger ones,” she says. “They enforce a strict social hierarchy and keep underlings in line when hormones rage and rowdiness may erupt.”
Bulls live in small groups, where older bulls protect younger ones, and they develop close bonds with one another. These relationships will help determine the young male’s success and survival. Older bulls will teach him how to get along with other elephants. He will learn to keep his place in society and build friendships with the other males. As an adult, he will depend on those lasting bonds to keep him safe and provide him with the rich social environment elephants need to thrive.
This young male has a life of unknowns ahead of him. He’ll face the dangers of competing for mates and protecting against lion attacks. And one day, he, too, may teach young bulls how to behave in elephant society.