When scientists announced this summer that elephants had been recorded deliberately gesturing to humans for food, some people reacted with wonder, others with surprise. For anyone who has spent time thinking seriously about elephants—or any other animal—the finding is both fascinating and devastating. Fascinating, because it confirms yet again that elephants communicate with extraordinary nuance. Devastating, because elephants should not need to ask us for anything. They should not have to beg the very species responsible for so much of their suffering and loss.
Elephants Are Speaking. Will We Finally Listen?
