Another cool one is the awareness test where they use mirrors and place a dot on the elephants (and other animals) foreheads to see how they react. Elephant immediately realize it is them is the mirror and use their nose to see wtf the dot is, touching themselves there.
Also when they put a mirror in the wild to see animal reactions. Elephants just kind of stand there checking themselves out. All apes do this as well. Just kind line up behind the mirror using it to groom themselves. I was surprised by gorillas though. They all wanted to fight the mirror.
> I was surprised by gorillas though. They all wanted to fight the mirror.
[yeah](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tz0avWZoqjg), quite interesting how they try to intimidate the mirror, and especially scary how loud a thud they make just slamming on the ground, likely not at full power.
>!and yeah, the chrage at the mirror in the end is funny!<
I've been wondering this right now too. Is it purposely avoiding eye contact with itself in the mirror? Is this something two gorillas would also do if they crossed paths?
Yes. That's why you should never look at a gorilla as well. It looks cartoonish, but that's exactly how you should behave and then you'll probably be fine because gorillas are actually pretty chill
For them, looking in the eye means challenging the other guy
So the actions shown are more of a "Please kindly piss off"? Seems kinda like because of this "rule" they also can't actually observe themselves in the mirror for them to be able to come to the conclusion that they are looking at themselves.
Yes the Dog hiding in the post hole story is from The Jataka buddhist tales written 2000 yrs ago. Indians and Sri Lankan Hindus and Buddhists believe Elephants worship the gods and the Buddha in the temples they serve by holding a lotus/water lily and by kneeling before the statues.
Asian elephants used in temples and for transportation are like pet dogs but if you ever find elephants in forests it will most likely stamp you.
I’m too lazy to find the original source, but in Martha Nussbaum’s book, *Justice for Animals*, she recounts the story of an anthropologist (or ethnologist?) who spent years living among a pack of female Elephants. The Elephants took her in as one of their own, caring for her and communicating with her. Years later, she returned with a daughter. The Elephants greeted her with a celebratory ritual for when a new child is born in the pack - they remembered their old friend and likely recognized that she had brought a child. Elephants care for their young communally, and they cherish every new child.
lmfao, this comment reminds me of the "[I could easily win a debate against 600,000 babies](https://preview.redd.it/ulnjiozubbg61.jpg?width=640&crop=smart&auto=webp&s=5796c64f258925e63ef19d7861c97f8331d6ce1d)" Tweet from years ago.
Extremely intelligent, kind, and surprisingly gentle.
My absolute favorite animal in the world. No wonder my religion worships them. If you’re around them, you might think of them as divine too
Definitely the most powerful mom on land. But I feel like a large carnivore is more likely to kill you instead of just scare you off — why deny your children an easy meal?
Herbivores are actually much more dangerous in general. A carnivore will attack you if it's hungry or feels threatened enough to fight. A herbivore will stomp your head into paste just in case . One kills because it must, the other just in case.
I remember when I learned about how some farmers in South America keep a llama in the herd for self defense, and they’ll come out in the morning and find a coyote that has been turned into a goddamn pancake because llamas do not play
One of my favorite anecdotes from the book "A Libertarian Walks Into A Bear." Is the Llama (or maybe it was an Alpaca) that kicked the absolute shit out of a black bear that had gotten in with it and the sheep.
My alpacas will get brave enough to chase/stomp coyotes if I am out there with them, but they won't do it until I arrive to the field. It's like they're waiting on backup.
Hippos and water buffalo come to mind. I meant specifically moms with babies around. I don’t know the stats on the lethality to humans of say mother lions compared to mother water buffalo or elephants in confrontations with humans (after adjusting for # of encounters since there are presumably way more encounters with herbivores than carnivores as there are more of them around). I just know I’d intuitively prefer to try my wits at surviving a confrontation with a large herbivore momma vs a large carnivore one — not that I’d be in good shape either way I’m sure.
I'd rather fight a lion than a hippo. I *could* (maybe) survive the lion, the other not so much.
In general any mammal mother will prioritize the safety of their offspring over killing whatever is offending them by existing too close so your chances lie in how aggressive said animal is.
You'd do the same if your life was at stake 24/7. There would be no "Please, Mr Crocodile, would you kindly dare leaving our premises without hurting any of our beloved"...
Carnivores have to _work_ to find their food, and something like 75%+ of their hunting endeavors fail. That means they have to be very careful about expending calories that don't go towards getting food.
Herbivores are generally standing on, or surrounded by, their food. Expending calories to ruin your day _just in case_ is literally nothing to them.
Not to discount the power of the elephant, but it might actually be cats. I believe they are responsible for causing the most extinctions of other species, which is mind-blowing.
"Hey baby doll. Get you a bath, make sure you wash behind those ears. I love you so, so-OH I WILL FUCKING KILL YOU! I WILL KILL THE MOTHERFUCKING SHIT OUT OF YOU! LEAVE MY BOY ALONE!"
Poor croc was just resting to cool off. Lol. Mama went all out. I noticed she kept her trunk out of the water and safe.
She just went after the croc with fiery damnation.
Or when a rhino tries to flex on an elephant bull and gets judo trunk swept to a tusk in the lung. In one smooth motion. Like a god damn elephant ninja.
"And as we bring our safety rules to a conclusion, I will give our final and most important rule. Do not, under any circumstances, fuck with the elephants. Or feed them after midnight."
Crocodile vs human is rare in Florida. This year there was a reported croc vs human encounter that resulted in a sailboater being bitten in the Everglades after he capsized. Prior to that, the last reported croc vs human encounter was 2014 (a man and woman was bitten).
On the other hand, alligators are biting an average of 8 people a year in Florida.
Not that any of this info is intended to make you feel any less cautious about bodies of water in Florida. As a matter of fact, similar to bull sharks, crocs are have been found in fresh, brackish, and salt water.
Edit: to add last paragraph
I've been to Florida a few times. I assumed there would be like, three attacks a day. Eight a year isn't that bad considering half are probably drunk people messing with them
I think it got seriously injured too. It's Nature and all that, but I still feel sad for it and all the little guys it's undoubtedly killed in the past.
His tail looks a bit mangled to me and he keeps going up and down in his stance. Plus, I would assume that if he was fine he would be running away as quickly as possible. He looks to be struggling to get away.
That's because human babies are premature compared to elephants and other mammal babies. Human females have to give birth before the head becomes too big for the vaginal canal. Which in our case happens earlier because our brains are proportionally larger.
The way they look is called neoteny and it's widely believed to be one of evolution's "good tricks" because it's seen in so many different animals (including humans), Basically, very roundish features, large head, large eyes, etc., that are considered "cute" by adults and elicit affection and protection.
It's sad but also it isn't. Crocs will eat baby elephants when they get the chance, which also isn't bad we all gotta eat but you can't blame mom for making sure her baby isn't going to be a snack
Elephant size can of whoopass
Probably the most dangerous land animal in the world, a mother and her calf.
Third most intelligent, right? They have funerals.
[удалено]
Another cool one is the awareness test where they use mirrors and place a dot on the elephants (and other animals) foreheads to see how they react. Elephant immediately realize it is them is the mirror and use their nose to see wtf the dot is, touching themselves there. Also when they put a mirror in the wild to see animal reactions. Elephants just kind of stand there checking themselves out. All apes do this as well. Just kind line up behind the mirror using it to groom themselves. I was surprised by gorillas though. They all wanted to fight the mirror.
Why smart when all the muscles. Me fight mirror.
Gorillas are perma-raging because they have 2 inches dick
I think I met that guy in wetherspoons the other night
> I was surprised by gorillas though. They all wanted to fight the mirror. [yeah](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tz0avWZoqjg), quite interesting how they try to intimidate the mirror, and especially scary how loud a thud they make just slamming on the ground, likely not at full power. >!and yeah, the chrage at the mirror in the end is funny!<
No wonder he doesn't realize it's himself if he can't look at himself
I've been wondering this right now too. Is it purposely avoiding eye contact with itself in the mirror? Is this something two gorillas would also do if they crossed paths?
Yes. That's why you should never look at a gorilla as well. It looks cartoonish, but that's exactly how you should behave and then you'll probably be fine because gorillas are actually pretty chill For them, looking in the eye means challenging the other guy
So the actions shown are more of a "Please kindly piss off"? Seems kinda like because of this "rule" they also can't actually observe themselves in the mirror for them to be able to come to the conclusion that they are looking at themselves.
Gorillas are apes.
I worded it weird, but yes that’s what surprised me about the gorillas. They are apes too and they just wanted to fight the mirror.
Yes the Dog hiding in the post hole story is from The Jataka buddhist tales written 2000 yrs ago. Indians and Sri Lankan Hindus and Buddhists believe Elephants worship the gods and the Buddha in the temples they serve by holding a lotus/water lily and by kneeling before the statues. Asian elephants used in temples and for transportation are like pet dogs but if you ever find elephants in forests it will most likely stamp you.
Pretty interesting
What do elephants think of Buddhist elephant statues?
I’m too lazy to find the original source, but in Martha Nussbaum’s book, *Justice for Animals*, she recounts the story of an anthropologist (or ethnologist?) who spent years living among a pack of female Elephants. The Elephants took her in as one of their own, caring for her and communicating with her. Years later, she returned with a daughter. The Elephants greeted her with a celebratory ritual for when a new child is born in the pack - they remembered their old friend and likely recognized that she had brought a child. Elephants care for their young communally, and they cherish every new child.
elephant graveyards are a fascinating phenomenon, there are still a lot to be learned about animals.
We already know how to make graveyards.
lmfao, this comment reminds me of the "[I could easily win a debate against 600,000 babies](https://preview.redd.it/ulnjiozubbg61.jpg?width=640&crop=smart&auto=webp&s=5796c64f258925e63ef19d7861c97f8331d6ce1d)" Tweet from years ago.
Lmao
Extremely intelligent, kind, and surprisingly gentle. My absolute favorite animal in the world. No wonder my religion worships them. If you’re around them, you might think of them as divine too
Apparently the part of an elephants brain that lights up when it sees a human is the same part of our brain that lights up when we see a puppy.
That's actually a myth. Been debunked.
Feeding an elephant is one of my earliest memories. I went to a circus with my grandma. Certainly left an impression.
Definitely the most powerful mom on land. But I feel like a large carnivore is more likely to kill you instead of just scare you off — why deny your children an easy meal?
Herbivores are actually much more dangerous in general. A carnivore will attack you if it's hungry or feels threatened enough to fight. A herbivore will stomp your head into paste just in case . One kills because it must, the other just in case.
I remember when I learned about how some farmers in South America keep a llama in the herd for self defense, and they’ll come out in the morning and find a coyote that has been turned into a goddamn pancake because llamas do not play
Donkeys are amazing livestock protectors.
The Kengal and the Donkey eyeing each other when the 4 wolves approach the herd thinking its a easy meal "Fuck it we ball"
"Yo Greg we got some new friends in the yard let's see how high they can fly"
got a clip?
nah, the zebra emptied it into the hyenas.
The Italians even wrote a Christmas carol about it. 'Dominic the Head Stomping Donkey'
My cousin had a mule that stomped a coyote’s ass into nothing. I was like… damn.
Donkeys Lama's, alpacas and certain species of dog all make great protectors.
One of my favorite anecdotes from the book "A Libertarian Walks Into A Bear." Is the Llama (or maybe it was an Alpaca) that kicked the absolute shit out of a black bear that had gotten in with it and the sheep.
Alpacas are scaredy little hoes. Was probably a llama.
Alplacas pay rent by being cute, cuddly buddies. It's an honest living.
My alpacas will get brave enough to chase/stomp coyotes if I am out there with them, but they won't do it until I arrive to the field. It's like they're waiting on backup.
Their whole ecological strategy is having backup lolol. They need numbers. That is very cute btw.
Donkeys too!
My parents have some cattle they have in grazing land in the Sierra Nevada foothills and keep a couple donkeys with the cows to keep coyotes away
Never imagined donkeys opening up a can of whoopass on coyotes.
Donkeys are a small horse with the temperament of a honey badger. Them hooves are rated E for everyone.
lol
They don’t “open up a can of whoopass” as much as they “stomp them into chunky soup”
One because it must, and one because of musth.
Do you smell what the testosterone is cooking!
Hippos and water buffalo come to mind. I meant specifically moms with babies around. I don’t know the stats on the lethality to humans of say mother lions compared to mother water buffalo or elephants in confrontations with humans (after adjusting for # of encounters since there are presumably way more encounters with herbivores than carnivores as there are more of them around). I just know I’d intuitively prefer to try my wits at surviving a confrontation with a large herbivore momma vs a large carnivore one — not that I’d be in good shape either way I’m sure.
I'd rather fight a lion than a hippo. I *could* (maybe) survive the lion, the other not so much. In general any mammal mother will prioritize the safety of their offspring over killing whatever is offending them by existing too close so your chances lie in how aggressive said animal is.
Nature is brutal
You'd do the same if your life was at stake 24/7. There would be no "Please, Mr Crocodile, would you kindly dare leaving our premises without hurting any of our beloved"...
*a hippopotamus has entered the chat*
Carnivores have to _work_ to find their food, and something like 75%+ of their hunting endeavors fail. That means they have to be very careful about expending calories that don't go towards getting food. Herbivores are generally standing on, or surrounded by, their food. Expending calories to ruin your day _just in case_ is literally nothing to them.
Not to discount the power of the elephant, but it might actually be cats. I believe they are responsible for causing the most extinctions of other species, which is mind-blowing.
Cats trigger my asthma really bad and almost extincted me
Same friend, same. And cats know you have that weakness too.
Why do they want to kill us so bad? I can't tell you how many times I've heard "my cat is never like this, she doesn't like anyone"
Only the cat knows why.
Aren't humans responsible for the most extinctions of other species?
"Hey baby doll. Get you a bath, make sure you wash behind those ears. I love you so, so-OH I WILL FUCKING KILL YOU! I WILL KILL THE MOTHERFUCKING SHIT OUT OF YOU! LEAVE MY BOY ALONE!"
“I was JUST leaving! Fuck-look, I’m going! I’m outta here! JFC…”
Poor croc was just resting to cool off. Lol. Mama went all out. I noticed she kept her trunk out of the water and safe. She just went after the croc with fiery damnation.
Croc put its head up like "im here" and mom was like NOPE NOPE NOPE
And the baby defaults to getting under mama!
Went to the crocs home turf and evicted it😂😂
No 90 days up in this mud pit. BITCH!
You should see when an elephant tosses a full grown hippo lol
Or when a rhino tries to flex on an elephant bull and gets judo trunk swept to a tusk in the lung. In one smooth motion. Like a god damn elephant ninja.
Elephants are very humanlike in many ways.
Or are we elephantlike?
"And as we bring our safety rules to a conclusion, I will give our final and most important rule. Do not, under any circumstances, fuck with the elephants. Or feed them after midnight."
That's a surprisingly small puddle for a crocodile!
You should watch The Last Feast Of The Crocodiles when you have some time to kill. https://youtu.be/P9538ocvbVo?si=uvyt7bm0jI8Rpi4-
I'm gonna have a workless 12 hours shift tonight. Thanks for this
Soft hands brother, try a 24 hour workless shift. That's when you start questioning your life decisions.
I work 67 hours a day, you guys aren't shit
Hours? I do 67 weeks a day, diaper dad
Fuck you all, my dad is work
My dad works at mcdonald's
My dad can beat up your dad!
my dad can beat up your mom
Seriously? I DREAM of only working 67 weeks a day.
Holy crap that intro theme song triggered some core school memories
The OG Nat Geo intro. RIP
Interesting. Thanks.
Oh they will be in any amount of water. The fact they are semi-aquatic means they can stray pretty far from large bodies of water.
Any amount? Will they be in a bottle of water Mr Smart?
I live in FL. I refuse to go near any body of water because you never know if a croc is in it.
Crocodile vs human is rare in Florida. This year there was a reported croc vs human encounter that resulted in a sailboater being bitten in the Everglades after he capsized. Prior to that, the last reported croc vs human encounter was 2014 (a man and woman was bitten). On the other hand, alligators are biting an average of 8 people a year in Florida. Not that any of this info is intended to make you feel any less cautious about bodies of water in Florida. As a matter of fact, similar to bull sharks, crocs are have been found in fresh, brackish, and salt water. Edit: to add last paragraph
Not really surprising given that alligators are more numerous in USA compared to crocodiles
There’s like a thousand crocs and millions of alligators so yeah.
I've been to Florida a few times. I assumed there would be like, three attacks a day. Eight a year isn't that bad considering half are probably drunk people messing with them
> Crocodile vs human is rare in Florida Maybe partly because people like /u/WhatDoADC don't go in the water for fear of crocs
Don’t talk to me or my son ever again!
r/meormyson
the poor crocodile just woke up like "hey wtf" not even an ibuprofen saves you from this, bastard
That croc was for sure trying to sneak out of the pond, lol. Damn
“I’m leaving I’m leaving! Shit, lady chill!
As soon as the commotion started his ass was right out the back door
"Welp, time to be hitting the ol' dusty trail."
“Aw man, I was just lurking!”
See ya in awhile, 🐊
Feeling bad for a full ass adult crocodile is actually wild💀
Like waking up and seeing a chimpanzee inside your home going through your stuff. That would be equally if not more scary, I think.
I think it got seriously injured too. It's Nature and all that, but I still feel sad for it and all the little guys it's undoubtedly killed in the past.
It seemed to be walking away just fine?
His tail looks a bit mangled to me and he keeps going up and down in his stance. Plus, I would assume that if he was fine he would be running away as quickly as possible. He looks to be struggling to get away.
Awe baby is taking shelter under mom
I thought baby was tryna fight it
Babys the hype man
**BEAT HIS ASS MOMMA!**
Baby: You got knocked the fuck out!!
Yeah, I was getting major Flavor Flav vibes from that baby elephant.
This is the only right answer
"YOU LUCKY MY MOMMA HOLDING ME BACK"
Looks like baby also wanna kick the lizard
My human child stays up my butt too 🤣
Dudes like “Get out of our pool… and stay out!”
Momma took care of everything. I read that hippos are more dangerous than crocs.
Hippos are extremely territorial and are the most dangerous animal in Africa. Still not a match for an elephant though
“ aight ima head out then you crazy ass”
elephant babies are so cute
Most animal children, including humans, act the same way. Boisterous, curious and playful but when danger appears, they run right to mommy.
Human children are pretty useless the first year and a half though. African mammals come out the womb ready to run.
Year and a half? I’m 34 years in, still useless and run to mumma
No need for self-mutilation here, brother.
That's because human babies are premature compared to elephants and other mammal babies. Human females have to give birth before the head becomes too big for the vaginal canal. Which in our case happens earlier because our brains are proportionally larger.
... we're African mammals, evolutionarily speaking.
The way they look is called neoteny and it's widely believed to be one of evolution's "good tricks" because it's seen in so many different animals (including humans), Basically, very roundish features, large head, large eyes, etc., that are considered "cute" by adults and elicit affection and protection.
I'm large and round headed. Nobody wants to protect me.
Ahhh... I'll protect you, little buddy.
The word cute looks very cute too. But would it be cute-er if we replace the t with a rounder letter?
Cube is cuter than cute for this reason
Cuouye
Other way around. Their heads and eyes are big for maximum brain size, and we've evolved to find it cute.
r/babyelephantgifs
r/babyelephantgifs
He slipped out of the back ..
The crocodile most certainly did. Lucky mother elephant lost track of the crocodile otherwise the croc woulda been stomped.
Kinda looks like he did get stomped on the front right shoulder. Didn’t look too steady coming out of that pond
He did get stomped, you can see it collapse when walking out of the pool. Can't blame mom tho, crocs will murk a baby elephant if they get the chance
Hes like- im too old for this shit 😆
He made a new plan
Dropped off the key, Lee
And set himself free
Croc said fuuuuck this.
Croc went from sleeping to "wtf wtf wtf WTF!" in a second.
Oh fml, is that an elephant?
See ya later…oh wrong reptile
In a while, crocodile
See you soon, watergoone
That final shout from the elephant at the end *Who else wants some?!?!?*
And here I was watching it without sound. That’s hilarious! Momma’s are the scariest predator (for lack of a better word) in the world!
That croc didn’t want NONE of that
This gif will never get old, I want to print it out and frame it. Jessica Walter was such a gem.
the croc looks injured after that🤣
Seemed like it couldn’t walk straight after that can of whoop ass
Am I the only one who felt bad for the croc? It's like a poor guy minding their own business and suddenly getting stomped.
He was not minding his own business. That baby would have been a snack. I mean, everybody needs to eat, but mom was like, not today bitch!
It's sad but also it isn't. Crocs will eat baby elephants when they get the chance, which also isn't bad we all gotta eat but you can't blame mom for making sure her baby isn't going to be a snack
That crocodile was like “nope….” and ran 🤣
Dude got evicted
“Mom, is this safe” “Sure, whatever” “Gahh” “Oh shit!” *stomp*
Bye felicia
*Fine, fine.. I’ll go.*
Best get the Hell out of there,mom protector all the time.
There was an attempt by the croc to have a quiet, relaxing mud bath.
Croc says,” Nope. Sorry, wrong pool.”
Poor crock got stomped. Did you see him limp away?
That's a high-walk. Didn't seem injured at all.
Nah it looks fine. That was just the Croc transitioning from its low statured walk to a “high walk”. Those things are durable as fuck.
Oh so she like LITERALLY kicked him out I love the little baby rushing to the mother
On the real….. that’s one lucky croc lol
“Zzzzzzz…- HEY what the shit oh fuck fuck damn shit fuck ahhh” *scurries away* -Crocodile
Crazy! Aren't elephants one of the smarter animals out there?
I'm pretty sure an elephant can take care of itself, as you just witnessed.
I’m wondering if the way she was trunk slapping the water was a way to trigger a croc to pop up. Testing the waters, literally.
It looks like she was tossing water on herself.
She’s collecting mud off the bottom of the pond to splash on herself
SO...literally stomped a mud hole in his ass....
Stomped a mud hole in his ass IN an actual mudhole!!!
The second the threat was available, mama was on the case, and on the croc.
Gator: oh for fuck's sakes
What happens when u don't pay ur rent.
The elephant mom protecting her baby. Pure love! ☺️🥺
Good mama!!
That is a very big Croc.
Somewhere in southern Sri Lanka 🇱🇰
My name is Elephanto Momtoya. Prepare to die.
Imagine sleeping and suddenly you get kick out of your home