Scientists discover a mysterious frequency that elephants use to communicate but humans can't hear
Animals may not have the ability to speak or language to talk to each other, but they are known to communicate effectively and can even coordinate exceptionally well in some cases. Elephants are known for their intelligence, and now scientists have discovered that they have a unique method for loud and clear communication, which human beings are unable to hear.
These dense vibrations called infrasound can travel great distances and help elephants communicate and pass on messages to one another, as per IFL Science. As opposed to ultrasonic sounds that are too high pitched for human ears to detect, elephants make these infrasound which are too low pitched. Bats are one of the creatures that use ultrasonic sounds to navigate at night.
On the other hand, the infrasound made by the elephants can travel through long distances into the forest. The first time experts figured this out was back in 2012 when a study explored how elephants are capable of communicating with each other and how close it is to human speech. “These low-frequency sounds, termed 'infrasounds,' can travel several kilometers, and provide elephants with a 'private' communication channel that plays an important role in elephants' complex social life,” the authors told Science Daily. “Their frequencies are as low as the lowest notes of a pipe organ.”
Scientists were aware of the existence of these sounds, however, they had no idea how the elephants were capable of producing such low tones. In order to study this phenomenon further, the researchers experimented on an elephant who passed away due to natural causes. They extracted the elephant's larynx and directed a steady flow of simulated wind through it and made observations in laboratory settings. Through careful manipulation of the vocal folds, the researchers succeeded in generating similar low-frequency vibrations that were similar to the infrasound.
Scientists are still looking into different forms of communication between elephants and in a separate study published in Nature Ecology and Evolution, experts found that African elephants even have names for each other. It is considered a rare trait in the species since they are not capable of speech like human beings. "If you're looking after a large family, you've got to be able to say, 'Hey, Virginia, get over here!'" Duke University's ecologist Stuart Pimm, who was not involved in the study told NBC News. The elephants let out low rumbling sounds they can hear over vast distances. The scientists believe that the animals who live in groups and have complex social structures among them are more likely to use individual names so they can be reunited in case of separations in the savanna.
To study how the elephants can call each other by individual names, the biologists used machine learning techniques and recorded the calls of various elephants. Then they compared them with the elephant sounds preserved in the sound library of Kenya's Samburu National Reserve and Amboseli National Park. Researchers followed a herd of elephants closely to monitor their responses when the sounds were played to them. It was revealed that elephants showed distinct reactions when they heard certain sounds played near them. The experts also tried playing the rumbling sounds for individual elephants to see how they reacted. In response to those recorded sounds that had their names, some elephants flapped their ears and started lifting their trunks.