Elephant Myths: Facts or Fables?

We all have heard several myths about these big beasts...but have you ever considered if they were actually true or not...well, let's find out, shall we?

1. Elephants love peanuts:
Am going to take you back to your cartoon watching days...do you recall when you saw an elephant being fed peanuts in Donald Duck? Well, that elephant may have liked eating them but the real ones sure don't... In fact, peanuts are too small to sustain such a big animal.So this myth is debunked!

                                              2. Elephants never forget:
Indeed they don't! Elephants can recall their migratory patterns and the domesticated ones have been known to remember their trainers after years of absence!


3. Elephants are afraid of mice:
Now this again takes us back to those cartoons... These animals are giant-like, why would a tiny animal scare it really?

4. Elephants grieve for their dead:
This i must say is surprising, but yes, they have been known to bury their dead brothers and actually grieve. In fact, there are reported cases of elephants burying humans too. Now isn't that something?

5. Elephants sleep standing up:
Their feet have soft tissues that act as 'cushion pads' which help them uphold their weight, and yes, even when they sleep!


6. Elephants can't jump:
As sure as rain, these animals, even if they wished to, cannot jump!

7. Elephants walk silently:
Yes, despite their heavy bodies, elephants actually walk on their toes and so don't make any noise! They have been compared to ballerina dancers...they are that agile!


8. Elephants are too heavy to swim:
So not true! The best elephant past time is to swim and well, they are good at it too! They use their trunk as a snorkel to breath!

9. Elephants are lumbering creatures:
You know that saying, 'looks can be deceiving'...well, that relates very well to an elephant. Yes, they are known to tear apart trees with their trunks. However, with the same trunk...they can lift up a straw or even an egg and may i add, delicately! :)

10. Elephants can recognise themselves in the mirror:
Yes indeed! These together with orangutans, gorillas and dolphins!

These myths however don't beat the forklore stories told in some of our African tribes...i have read a few of them and well, i'll leave it to you to do a little more reading on that. :)