General

Dumonceaux, G. (2005). Elephant behaviour. Small Animal and Exotics, Proceedings of the North American Veterinary Conference, Orlando, Florida, USA, Gainesville, USA: Eastern States Veterinary Association, p. 1413.
Online: http://www.navc.org
Descriptors: behavior, training, zoo elephants, Elephas maximus, Loxodonta africana, Asian elephants, African elephants, handling.

Eggert, L.S., J.A. Eggert, and D.S. Woodruff (2003). Estimating population sizes for elusive animals: the forest elephants of Kakum National Park, Ghana. Molecular Ecology 12(6): 1389-402.
NAL Call Number: QH540.M64
Abstract: African forest elephants are difficult to observe in the dense vegetation, and previous studies have relied upon indirect methods to estimate population sizes. Using multilocus genotyping of noninvasively collected samples, we performed a genetic survey of the forest elephant population at Kakum National Park, Ghana. We estimated population size, sex ratio and genetic variability from our data, then combined this information with field observations to divide the population into age groups. Our population size estimate was very close to that obtained using dung counts, the most commonly used indirect method of estimating the population sizes of forest elephant populations. As their habitat is fragmented by expanding human populations, management will be increasingly important to the persistence of forest elephant populations. The data that can be obtained from noninvasively collected samples will help managers plan for the conservation of this keystone species.
Descriptors: genetics, physiology, trees, variation genetics, DNA primers, feces chemistry, gene frequency, Ghana, microsatellite repeats, population density, sex ratio, specimen handling.

Endres, J., A. Haufellner, B. Haufellner, J. Schilfarth and M. Schilfarth (2003). Elephants in Zoos and Safari Parks: Comprehensive Data on Elephant Husbandry With an Analysis of the Oxford Study. Documentation 2002., European Elephant Group: Gruenwald, 211 p.
Descriptors: Asian elephant, Elephas maximus, African elephant, Loxodonta africana, captive stock lists, care in captivity, husbandry, reproduction, breeding, Europe.

Garai, M. (2005). Large herbivores: the elephant. In: J.d.P. Bothma and N. van Rooyen (Editors), Intensive Wildlife Production in Southern Africa, Van Schaik, Pretoria, p. 2-24. ISBN: 0627025498.
Descriptors: African elephant, Loxodonta africana, care in captivity, reproductive techniques, parasites, diseases and disorders, Africa, biological characteristics.

Garstang, M. (2005). Long-distance, low-frequency elephant communication (vol 190, pg 791, 2004). Journal of Comparative Physiology A Neuroethology Sensory Neural and Behavioral Physiology 191(3): 299. ISSN: 0340-7594.
NAL Call Number: QP33.68
Descriptors: long distance communication, low frequency communication.

Glickman, S.E., R.V. Short, and M.B. Renfree (2005). Sexual differentiation in three unconventional mammals: spotted hyenas, elephants and tammar wallabies. Hormones and Behavior 48(4): 403-17.
NAL Call Number: QP801.H7H64
Abstract: The present review explores sexual differentiation in three non-conventional species: the spotted hyena, the elephant and the tammar wallaby, selected because of the natural challenges they present for contemporary understanding of sexual differentiation. According to the prevailing view of mammalian sexual differentiation, originally proposed by Alfred Jost, secretion of androgen and anti-Mullerian hormone (AMH) by the fetal testes during critical stages of development accounts for the full range of sexually dimorphic urogenital traits observed at birth. Jost's concept was subsequently expanded to encompass sexual differentiation of the brain and behavior. Although the central focus of this review involves urogenital development, we assume that the novel mechanisms described in this article have potentially significant implications for sexual differentiation of brain and behavior, a transposition with precedent in the history of this field. Contrary to the "specific" requirements of Jost's formulation, female spotted hyenas and elephants initially develop male-type external genitalia prior to gonadal differentiation. In addition, the administration of anti-androgens to pregnant female spotted hyenas does not prevent the formation of a scrotum, pseudoscrotum, penis or penile clitoris in the offspring of treated females, although it is not yet clear whether the creation of masculine genitalia involves other steroids or whether there is a genetic mechanism bypassing a hormonal mediator. Wallabies, where sexual differentiation occurs in the pouch after birth, provide the most conclusive evidence for direct genetic control of sexual dimorphism, with the scrotum developing only in males and the pouch and mammary glands only in females, before differentiation of the gonads. The development of the pouch and mammary gland in females and the scrotum in males is controlled by genes on the X chromosome. In keeping with the "expanded" version of Jost's formulation, secretion of androgens by the fetal testes provides the best current account of a broad array of sex differences in reproductive morphology and endocrinology of the spotted hyena, and androgens are essential for development of the prostate and penis of the wallaby. But the essential circulating androgen in the male wallaby is 5alpha androstanediol, locally converted in target tissues to DHT, while in the pregnant female hyena, androstenedione, secreted by the maternal ovary, is converted by the placenta to testosterone (and estradiol) and transferred to the developing fetus. Testicular testosterone certainly seems to be responsible for the behavioral phenomenon of musth in male elephants. Both spotted hyenas and elephants display matrilineal social organization, and, in both species, female genital morphology requires feminine cooperation for successful copulation. We conclude that not all aspects of sexual differentiation have been delegated to testicular hormones in these mammals. In addition, we suggest that research on urogenital development in these non-traditional species directs attention to processes that may well be operating during the sexual differentiation of morphology and behavior in more common laboratory mammals, albeit in less dramatic fashion.
Descriptors: androgens physiology, elephant physiology, hyaenidae physiology, macropodidae physiology, sex differentiation physiology, urogenital system physiology, elephant anatomy and histology, elephant embryology, gene expression regulation, developmental physiology, genomic imprinting physiology, hyaenidae anatomy and histology, hyaenidae embryology, macropodidae anatomy and histology, macropodidae embryology, neurosecretory systems physiology, organogenesis physiology, sex characteristics, urogenital system anatomy and histology, urogenital system embryology, urogenital system growth and development.

Greenwood, A.D., C.C. Englbrecht, and R.D. MacPhee (2004). Characterization of an endogenous retrovirus class in elephants and their relatives. BMC Evolutionary Biology 4(1): 38.
NAL Call Number: QH359.B63
Abstract: BACKGROUND: Endogenous retrovirus-like elements (ERV-Ls, primed with tRNA leucine) are a diverse group of reiterated sequences related to foamy viruses and widely distributed among mammals. As shown in previous investigations, in many primates and rodents this class of elements has remained transpositionally active, as reflected by increased copy number and high sequence diversity within and among taxa. RESULTS: Here we examine whether proviral-like sequences may be suitable molecular probes for investigating the phylogeny of groups known to have high element diversity. As a test we characterized ERV-Ls occurring in a sample of extant members of superorder Uranotheria (Asian and African elephants, manatees, and hyraxes). The ERV-L complement in this group is even more diverse than previously suspected, and there is sequence evidence for active expansion, particularly in elephantids. Many of the elements characterized have protein coding potential suggestive of activity. CONCLUSIONS: In general, the evidence supports the hypothesis that the complement had a single origin within basal Uranotheria.
Descriptors: genetics, virology, endogenous retroviruses classification, endogenous retroviruses genetics, Africa, Asia, molecular cloning methods, viral DNA genetics, hyraxes genetics, hyraxes virology, mice, molecular sequence data, phylogeny, proteins genetics, retroelements genetics, Trichechus genetics, Trichechus virology.

Hambler, C., P.A. Henderson, and M.R. Speight (2005). Elephants, ecology, and nonequilibrium? Science 307(5710): 673-4; Author Reply 673-4.
NAL Call Number: 470 SCI2
Descriptors: conservation of natural resources, ecosystem, Africa, Australia, ecology, environment, insects, population density.

Hoffmann, J.N., A.G. Montag, and N.J. Dominy (2004). Meissner corpuscles and somatosensory acuity: the prehensile appendages of primates and elephants. Anatomical Record. Part A, Discoveries in Molecular, Cellular, and Evolutionary Biology 281(1): 1138-47.
NAL Call Number: QL801.A53
Descriptors: adaptation, physiological physiology, elephant anatomy and histology, mechanoreceptors physiology, primate anatomy and histology, skin innervation, touch physiology, elephant physiology, evolution, feeding behavior physiology, hand innervation, hand physiology, hand strength physiology, motor skills physiology, phylogeny, primate physiology, sensory thresholds physiology, species specificity.

Hutchinson, J.R., D. Famini, R. Lair, and R. Kram (2003). Biomechanics: Are fast-moving elephants really running? Nature 422(6931): 493-4.
NAL Call Number: 472 N21
Descriptors: elephant physiology, gait physiology, running physiology, walking physiology, biomechanics, kinetics, Thailand, time factors, video recording.

Jackson, W.A. (2003). Elephants' milk. Pharmaceutical Historian 33(4): 64-5.
Descriptors: milk history, therapeutics history, Great Britain, history, 19th century.

Maslow, J.N., S.K. Mikota, M. Zhu, H. Riddle, and C.A. Peloquin (2005). Pharmacokinetics of ethambutol (EMB) in elephants. Journal of Veterinary Pharmacology and Therapeutics 28(3): 321-3.
NAL Call Number: SF915.J63
Descriptors: antitubercular agents pharmacokinetics, metabolism, ethambutol pharmacokinetics, oral administration, rectal administration, antitubercular agents administration and dosage, antitubercular agents in blood, area under curve, ethambutol administration and dosage, ethambutol in blood.

Meyer, J.M., S.L. Walker, E.W. Freeman, B.G. Steinetz, and J.L. Brown (2004). Species and fetal gender effects on the endocrinology of pregnancy in elephants. General and Comparative Endocrinology 138(3): 263-70.
NAL Call Number: 444.8 G28
Abstract: Quantitative and temporal progestin profiles vary during gestation in the elephant, sometimes making it difficult to determine if a pregnancy is progressing normally. The aim of the present study was to determine if circulating progestin variability was related to species or fetal gender effects. A similar comparison also was conducted for secretory profiles of prolactin, relaxin, and cortisol. Overall mean progestin concentrations during gestation in Asian (n = 19) and African (n = 8) elephants were similar; however, the temporal profiles differed (P < 0.001). Concentrations were higher in African elephants during the first half of pregnancy, but then declined to levels below those observed in Asian elephants (P < 0.05). There also was a fetal gender effect in Asian, but not African elephants. Progestin concentrations were higher in Asian cows carrying male calves (n = 9) as compared to those carrying females (n = 10) (P < 0.001). Overall prolactin concentrations were higher in Asian than in African elephants between 8 and 15 months of gestation (P< 0.001). There were no species differences in the secretory patterns of relaxin. Cortisol was relatively stable until the end of gestation when significant surges were observed, mainly between 8 and 11 days before parturition, and again on the day of birth. In sum, a comparison of progestin patterns between Asian and African elephants identified notable differences related to species and fetal gender. A role for cortisol in the initiation of parturition also was inferred from these data. From a practical standpoint, understanding the factors affecting gestational hormone characteristics and recognizing what the species differences are will help ensure that data used in diagnosing and monitoring elephant pregnancies are properly interpreted.
Descriptors: blood, embryology, hydrocortisone in blood, maternal fetal exchange physiology, pregnancy, progestins in blood, analysis of variance, fetus, prolactin in blood, relaxin in blood, sex factors, species specificity.

Nissani, M. (2004). Theory of mind and insight in chimpanzees, elephants and other animals? In: L.J. Rogers and G. Kaplan (Editors), Comparative Vertebrate Cognition: Are Primates Superior to Non-Primates? Developments in Primatology: Progress and Prospects, Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers: New York, Boston, p. 227-261. ISBN: 0306477270.
NAL Call Number: QL785.C537 2004
Descriptors: Pan troglodytes, chimpanzees, Elephas maximus, Aisan elephant, intelligence, cognition, overview and insight ability.

Nyhus, P. and R. Tilson (2004). Agroforestry, elephants, and tigers: balancing conservation theory and practice in human-dominated landscapes of Southeast Asia. Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 104(1): 87-97. ISSN: 0167-8809.
NAL Call Number: S601.A34
Descriptors: agroforestry, Elephantidae, Panthera tigris, wildlife management, conservation buffers, human wildlife relations, land use, South East Asia, Indonesia.

Omondi, P., E. Bitok, and J. Kagiri (2004). Managing human-elephant conflicts: the Kenyan experience. Pachyderm 36: 80-86. ISSN: 1026-2881.
Descriptors: African elephants, Loxodonta africana, animals, man, conflicts with man, interactions, conservation measures, Kenya, strategies, management.
Language of Text: English, with English and French summaries.

Palombo, M., M. Mussi, P. Gioia, and G. Cavarretta (2005). Studying Proboscideans: knowledge, problems, and perspectives. Selected papers from "The World of Elephants" congress, Rome. Quaternary International 126-128: i-vi, 1-287. ISSN: 1040-6182.
Descriptors: Proboscidea, Italy, meeting papers, problems, knowledge, perspectives.

Payne, K. (2003). Sources of social complexity in the three elephant species. In: F.B.M. de Waal and P.L. Tyack (Editors), Animal Social Complexity: Intelligence, Culture, and Individualized Societies, Harvard University Press: Cambridge & London, p. 57-85. ISBN: 0674009290.
NAL Call Number: QL739.3.A56 2003
Descriptors: Elephas maximus, Loxodonta africana, Loxodonta cyclotis, literature review, social behavior, social complexity, review.

Rautian, G.S. and I.A. Dubrovo (2003). Data on DNA give evidence for parallel development in mammoths and elephants. Deinsea 9: 381-394. ISSN: 0923-9308.
Descriptors: Elephas maximus, Loxodonta africana, Mammuthus primigenius, Elephantidae, Mammut americanus, Mammutidae, nucleic acids, molecular genetics, DNA, parallel evolution, genetic data, phylogeny.

Roca, A.L. and S.J. O'Brien (2005). Genomic inferences from Afrotheria and the evolution of elephants. Current Opinion in Genetics and Development 15(6): 652-9.
NAL Call Number: QH426.C88
Abstract: Recent genetic studies have established that African forest and savanna elephants are distinct species with dissociated cytonuclear genomic patterns, and have identified Asian elephants from Borneo and Sumatra as conservation priorities. Representative of Afrotheria, a superordinal clade encompassing six eutherian orders, the African savanna elephant was among the first mammals chosen for whole-genome sequencing to provide a comparative understanding of the human genome. Elephants have large and complex brains and display advanced levels of social structure, communication, learning and intelligence. The elephant genome sequence might prove useful for comparative genomic studies of these advanced traits, which have appeared independently in only three mammalian orders: primates, cetaceans and proboscideans.
Descriptors: evolution, genetics, DNA, African elephants, Asian elephants, genomic patterns.

Sacks, O. (2003). Early work on elephant gait not to be forgotten. Nature 423(6937): 221.
NAL Call Number: 472 N21
Descriptors: physiology, gait physiology, photography history, biomechanics, 19th century history.

Sarma, K.K., M. Sarma, and D.K. Sarma (2004). Safety of repeated xylazine hydrochloride administrations in elephants. Indian Veterinary Journal 81(8): 886-889. ISSN: 0019-6479.
NAL Call Number: 41.8 IN2
Descriptors: anesthesia, xylazine hydrochloride, repeated administration, elephants, safety, veterinary care.

Saseendran, P.C., S. Rajendran, R. Subramanian, M. Sasikumar, G. Vivek, and K.S. Anil (2004). Incidence of helminthic infection among annually dewormed captive elephants. Zoos' Print Journal 19(3): 1422.
Descriptors: captive elephants, helminthic infection, dewormed, incidence.

Sitati, N.W., M.J. Walpole, and N. Leader Williams (2005). Factors affecting susceptibility of farms to crop raiding by African elephants: using a predictive model to mitigate conflict. Journal of Applied Ecology 42(6): 1175-1182. ISSN: 0021-8901.
NAL Call Number: 410 J828
Descriptors: Loxodonta africana, crop damage, prediction, pest control, Kenya.

Skarpe, C., P.A. Aarrestad, H.P. Andreassen, S.S. Dhillion, T. Dimakatso, J.T. du Toit, Duncan, J. Halley, H. Hytteborn, S. Makhabu, M. Mari, W. Marokane, G. Masunga, M. Ditshoswane, S.R. Moe, R. Mojaphoko, D. Mosugelo, S. Motsumi, G. Neo Mahupeleng, M. Ramotadima, L. Rutina, L. Sechele, T.B. Sejoe, S. Stokke, J.E. Swenson, C. Taolo, M. Vandewalle, and P. Wegge (2004). The return of the giants: ecological effects of an increasing elephant population. Ambio 33(6): 276-82.
NAL Call Number: QH540.A52
Abstract: Northern Botswana and adjacent areas, have the world's largest population of African elephant (Loxodonta africana). However, a 100 years ago elephants were rare following excessive hunting. Simultaneously, ungulate populations were severely reduced by decease. The ecological effects of the reduction in large herbivores must have been substantial, but are little known. Today, however, ecosystem changes following the increase in elephant numbers cause considerable concern in Botswana. This was the background for the "BONIC" project, investigating the interactions between the increasing elephant population and other ecosystem components and processes. Results confirm that the ecosystem is changing following the increase in elephant and ungulate populations, and, presumably, developing towards a situation resembling that before the reduction of large herbivores. We see no ecological reasons to artificially change elephant numbers. There are, however, economic and social reasons to control elephants, and their range in northern Botswana may have to be artificially restricted.
Descriptors: conservation of natural resources, ecosystem, antelopes, Botswana, plants growth and development, population dynamics.

Stephenson, P.J. (2004). The future for elephants in Africa. In : N. Burgess, J. D'Amico Hales, E. Underwood, E. Dinerstein, D. Olson, I. Itoua, J. Schipper, T. Ricketts and K. Newman Terrestrial Ecoregions of Africa and Madagascar: a Conservation Assessment, Island Press: Washington, DC, Covelo & London, p. 133-136. ISBN: 1559633646.
NAL Call Number: QH77.A35T47 2004
Descriptors: African elephant, Loxodonta africana, conservation threats, past, present, future, conservation measures, review, Africa.

Sukumar, R. (2003). The Living Elephants: Evolutionary Ecology, Behavior, and Conservation., Oxford University Press: New York, 478 p. ISBN: 0195107780.
NAL Call Number: QL737.P98S956 2003
Descriptors: Asian elephant, African elephant, wildlife conservation.

Swain, D. (2004). Asian Elephants: Past, Present & Future., International Book Distributors: Dehra Dun, 226 p. ISBN: 8170893100.
Descriptors: Asian elephant, Elephas maximus, conflicts with man, domestication, conservation measures, food plants, behavior, ecology, Asia, distribution, biology, threats, relationships with man, comprehensive review.

Van Der Merwe, N.J. and F.J. Kruger (2003). Source location of African elephant ivory and rhinoceros horn by stable isotope ratio analysis. Forensic Science International 136(Suppl. 1): 383. ISSN: 0379-0738.
Descriptors: ivory, African elephant, rhinoceros horn, analysis, stable isotope ratio, source location, illegal trade.

Wasser, S.K., A.M. Shedlock, K. Comstock, E.A. Ostrander, B. Mutayoba, and M. Stephens (2004). Assigning African elephant DNA to geographic region of origin: applications to the ivory trade. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 101(41): 14847-52.
NAL Call Number: 500 N31P
Abstract: Resurgence of illicit trade in African elephant ivory is placing the elephant at renewed risk. Regulation of this trade could be vastly improved by the ability to verify the geographic origin of tusks. We address this need by developing a combined genetic and statistical method to determine the origin of poached ivory. Our statistical approach exploits a smoothing method to estimate geographic-specific allele frequencies over the entire African elephants' range for 16 microsatellite loci, using 315 tissue and 84 scat samples from forest (Loxodonta africana cyclotis) and savannah (Loxodonta africana africana) elephants at 28 locations. These geographic-specific allele frequency estimates are used to infer the geographic origin of DNA samples, such as could be obtained from tusks of unknown origin. We demonstrate that our method alleviates several problems associated with standard assignment methods in this context, and the absolute accuracy of our method is high. Continent-wide, 50% of samples were located within 500 km, and 80% within 932 km of their actual place of origin. Accuracy varied by region (median accuracies: West Africa, 135 km; Central Savannah, 286 km; Central Forest, 411 km; South, 535 km; and East, 697 km). In some cases, allele frequencies vary considerably over small geographic regions, making much finer discriminations possible and suggesting that resolution could be further improved by collection of samples from locations not represented in our study.
Descriptors: DNA genetics, dentin chemistry, Africa, geography, microsatellite repeats.

Wiese, R.J. and K. Willis (2004). Calculation of longevity and life expectancy in captive elephants. Zoo Biology 23(4): 365-373. ISSN: 0733-3188.
NAL Call Number: QL77.5.Z6
Descriptors: captive elephants, longevity, life expectancy, calculation.

Wittemyer, G., I. Douglas Hamilton, and W.M. Getz (2005). The socioecology of elephants: analysis of the processes creating multitiered social structures. Animal Behaviour 69: 1357-71.
NAL Call Number: Film S-1802
Descriptors: social structures, processes, sociobiology, multitiered.

Wood, J.D., C.E. O'Connell Rodwell, and S.L. Klemperer (2005). Using seismic sensors to detect elephants and other large mammals: a potential census technique. Journal of Applied Ecology 42: 587-94.
NAL Call Number: 410 J828
Descriptors: census technique, seismic sensors, detect, large mammals.

Xie, H.S. (2004). How to use acupuncture for elephants. Small animal and exotics. Book two: Pain management zoonosis. Proceedings of the North American Veterinary Conference, Orlando, Florida, USA, Eastern States Veterinary Association: Gainesville, USA, p. 1457-1458.
Descriptors: African elephants, acupuncture, veterinary conference, clinical aspects, lameness, pain, traditional treatment, Loxodonta africana.

Yokoyama, S., N. Takenaka, D. Agnew W, and J. Shoshani (2005). Elephants and human color-blind deuteranopes have identical sets of visual pigments. Genetics 170(1): 335-44.
NAL Call Number: QH431.A1G432
Abstract: Being the largest land mammals, elephants have very few natural enemies and are active during both day and night. Compared with those of diurnal and nocturnal animals, the eyes of elephants and other arrhythmic species, such as many ungulates and large carnivores, must function in both the bright light of day and dim light of night. Despite their fundamental importance, the roles of photosensitive molecules, visual pigments, in arrhythmic vision are not well understood. Here we report that elephants (Loxodonta africana and Elephas maximus) use RH1, SWS1, and LWS pigments, which are maximally sensitive to 496, 419, and 552 nm, respectively. These light sensitivities are virtually identical to those of certain "color-blind" people who lack MWS pigments, which are maximally sensitive to 530 nm. During the day, therefore, elephants seem to have the dichromatic color vision of deuteranopes. During the night, however, they are likely to use RH1 and SWS1 pigments and detect light at 420-490 nm.
Descriptors: visual pigments, color blind deuteranopes, human, dichromatic, day, night, pigments, photosensitive molecules.

Return to Top

Return to Contents