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I have been an elephant fan all my life. They are incredible creatures. This story exemplifies their intelligence and passion for life. Thanks for posting it. I must get the book!
As I grow older and pay more attention, I wonder more and more why we think we are in any way superior to the other sentient inhabitants of this planet.
For 12 hours, two herds of wild South African elephants slowly made their way through the Zululand bush until they reached the house of late author Lawrence Anthony, the conservationist who had saved their lives.
The formerly violent, rogue elephants, destined to be shot a few years ago as pests, had been rescued and rehabilitated by Anthony, who had grown up in the bush and was known as the “Elephant Whisperer.”
For two days the herds loitered at Anthony’s rural compound on the vast Thula Thula game reserve – to say good-bye to the man they loved. But how did they know he had died March 7?
Such fascinating and amazing creatures.
I have been an elephant fan all my life. They are incredible creatures. This story exemplifies their intelligence and passion for life. Thanks for posting it. I must get the book!
I heard about that on NPR. Apparently the matriarch of the herd had been visiting (raiding) villages, and was destined to be shot. The guy went out there, and quite literally talked with the Boss Momma elephant, telling her if they didn't stay away, they would be shot. After that, the herd stayed away.
But yeah, the whole story is incredible. Makes us humans seem a lot less like the pinnacle of evolution we like to think we are.
I don't understand how anyone could think that animals like this aren't sentient.
For 12 hours, two herds of wild South African elephants slowly made their way through the Zululand bush until they reached the house of late author Lawrence Anthony, the conservationist who had saved their lives.
The formerly violent, rogue elephants, destined to be shot a few years ago as pests, had been rescued and rehabilitated by Anthony, who had grown up in the bush and was known as the “Elephant Whisperer.”
For two days the herds loitered at Anthony’s rural compound on the vast Thula Thula game reserve – to say good-bye to the man they loved. But how did they know he had died March 7?
Such fascinating and amazing creatures.
I heard about that on NPR. Apparently the matriarch of the herd had been visiting (raiding) villages, and was destined to be shot. The guy went out there, and quite literally talked with the Boss Momma elephant, telling her if they didn't stay away, they would be shot. After that, the herd stayed away.
But yeah, the whole story is incredible. Makes us humans seem a lot less like the pinnacle of evolution we like to think we are.
For 12 hours, two herds of wild South African elephants slowly made their way through the Zululand bush until they reached the house of late author Lawrence Anthony, the conservationist who had saved their lives.
The formerly violent, rogue elephants, destined to be shot a few years ago as pests, had been rescued and rehabilitated by Anthony, who had grown up in the bush and was known as the “Elephant Whisperer.”
For two days the herds loitered at Anthony’s rural compound on the vast Thula Thula game reserve – to say good-bye to the man they loved. But how did they know he had died March 7?
Tardigrades have been known to withstand the following extremes while in this state:
Temperature – tardigrades can survive being heated for a few minutes to 151 °C (424 K),<citation needed> or being chilled for days at -200 °C (73 K),<citation needed>or for a few minutes at -272 °C (~1 degree above absolute zero).<9>
Pressure – they can withstand the extremely low pressure of a vacuum and also very high pressures, more than 1,200 times atmospheric pressure. Tardigrades can survive the vacuum of open space and solar radiation combined for at least 10 days.<9> They can also withstand pressure of 6,000 atmospheres, which is nearly six times the pressure of water in the deepest ocean trench, Mariana trench.<13>
Dehydration – tardigrades have been shown to survive nearly 10 years in a dry state.<20> When encountered by extremely low temperatures, their body composition goes from 85% water to only 3%. As water expands upon freezing, dehydration ensures the tardigrades do not get ripped apart by the freezing ice (as waterless tissues cannot freeze).<21>
Radiation – tardigrades can withstand median lethal doses of 5,000 Gy (of gamma-rays) and 6,200 Gy (of heavy ions) in hydrated animals (5 to 10 Gy could be fatal to a human).<22> The only explanation thus far for this ability is that their lowered water state provides fewer reactants for the ionizing radiation.<citation needed> In September 2007, a space launch (Foton-M3) showed that tardigrades can survive the extreme environment of outer space for 10 days. After being rehydrated back on Earth, over 68% of the subjects protected from high-energy UV radiation survived and many of these produced viable embryos, and a handful had survived full exposure to solar radiation.<9>
Environmental toxins – tardigrades can undergo chemobiosis—a cryptobiotic response to high levels of environmental toxins. However, these laboratory results have yet to be verified.<23><24
I don't understand how anyone could think that animals like this aren't sentient.
