Elephants

Try to Smuggle an Illegal Elephant Tusk Out of Kenya, Pay a $230,000 Fine

For the first time, Kenya exercised its new, stricter punishments for wildlife trafficking crimes

War elephants depicted in the battle of Zama, 202 BC.

A Lesson from History: When Assembling an Army of War Elephants, Don’t Pick Inbred Ones

Even though African elephants usually trump Asian elephants for might and aggression, in 217 B.C. Ptolemy made the crucial mistake of choosing inbred ones

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Discussion

Discussion

At remote Abu Camp, visitors can hitch a ride into one of the great water holes of Africa.

The Joys and Dangers of Exploring Africa on the Back of an Elephant

Renowned travel writer Paul Theroux journeys through Botswana’s spectacular, wildlife-rich wetlands

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Contributors

In Namibia’s Etosha National Park, elephants in the Warrior family gather at the Mushara water hole.

The Meanest Girls at the Watering Hole

A scientist studying female elephants—usually portrayed as cooperative—makes a surprising observation about their behavior

Shanthi, 34, and Kandula, 8, in the Elephant Trails yard after the first phase of renovations were completed in 2010 at the Smithsonian National Zoo.

Found: A Time Capsule at the National Zoo

While renovating the Elephant House, construction workers discovered a mysterious box hidden in a wall

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Trunk Rock: Shanthi the Elephant Jams on the Harmonica

Listen to the latest stylings of Shanthi, the Dylan of elephants

Kandula, the zoo's resident genius, plays with enrichment items

Kandula Goes Where No Elephants Have Gone Before

The National Zoo's Kandula demonstrates the skill of insight, using innovative problem-solving techniques in figuring out how to reach suspended fruit

Using motion-activated camera-traps, Smithsonian WILD captured unsuspecting animals, such as this snow leopard in China, from all over the world.

The Secret Lives of Animals Caught on Camera

Photographs shot by camera traps set around the world are capturing wildlife behavior never before seen by humans

Shanthi, a 34-year-old female, checks out the Zoo's new digs for Asian elephants.

Trail Blazing

At Namibia's Etosha National Park, male elephants form long-term friendships.

How Male Elephants Bond

Bull elephants have a reputation as loners. But research shows that males are surprisingly sociable—until it's time to fight

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Ants Defend Trees from Elephants

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Elephant Trails: Phase I Opens Today at the National Zoo

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10 Things You Didn't Know About Asian Elephants

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Mirror Image

The first evidence that elephants can recognize themselves

Peter Beard at Hog Ranch in 2014 feeding giraffes

Beard's Eye View

When elephants began dying, Peter Beard suspected that poachers were not entirely to blame

Footprints and dung are often the only evidence of their route.

Saving Mali's Migratory Elephants

A new photo library of West Africa's desert elephants is helping researchers track the dwindling herd and protect their imperiled migration routes.

Big Trouble

After years of abuse and neglect, Thailand's elephants are approaching the point of no return

An Orphanage for Some Big Babies

Daphne Sheldrick has turned her Nairobi home into a nursery and rehabilitation center for infant elephants who have lost their families

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