for questions about claims based on elephants. Elephants have historically been poached for their tusks and are the largest extant land animals.
Questions tagged [elephants]
6 questions
17
votes
1 answer
Do elephants see humans the same way humans see puppies?
This tweet and others like it have been making the rounds lately:
Julia @JuliaHass
I just learned that elephants think humans are cute the way humans think puppies are cute (the same part of the brain lights up when they see us) so pack it in,…
fluffy
- 381
- 1
- 2
- 9
16
votes
2 answers
Can an elephant be trained to be lightly leashed?
Is been claimed that the way you keep an elephant leashed is with a chain pegged to the ground which they can easily break, just since they have learned when they where younger they could not escape and they continue to believe so.
For example,…
Napoleonothecake
- 1,077
- 1
- 10
- 18
16
votes
1 answer
Do elephants "trunk" themselves (masturbate)?
A few sources report that elephants use their trunks to masturbate. This practice, if it exists, is apparently called trunking,
Per todayilearned.co.uk,
This may not be the most useful piece of knowledge, but if you ever get to see an elephant…
Evan Carroll
- 28,401
- 42
- 129
- 239
15
votes
1 answer
Do elephants like to get drunk?
While answering the question about elephants and mice, I was reminded of a clip I saw on The Big Bang Theory.
The common lore is that they eat the fermenting fruit of the Marula Tree. But that makes me wonder:
Is there enough alcohol to affect an…
Larian LeQuella
- 44,977
- 18
- 187
- 208
11
votes
1 answer
Do elephants rarely get cancer?
According to Hope fights childhood cancer:
Elephants have 40 cancer fighting proteins in their DNA which means they rarely get cancer
This immediately made me think of the false claims that sharks don't get cancer.
Is it true that elephants rarely…
Rob Watts
- 5,661
- 3
- 26
- 37
9
votes
0 answers
Is it bad for an elephant’s back to carry a human?
Lots of sites warn you not to ride elephants as they are often treated poorly and don't have freedom (1,2).
But these sites also mention that it’s bad for the back of an elephant.
With some elephants weighing 4,000kg (3), it’s hard to believe that…
SirDuckduck
- 333
- 1
- 6