Elephants are among the few wild animals s to build strong social al connections s of companionship, friendship and family. They are able to recognize not only their own mothers, calves(幼崽), brothers and sisters but also their grandmothers, aunts, cousins and nieces. They know elephants they've interacted within the past, and have been observed to build particular friendships with unrelated elephants.
These features partly result from the way that elephants live. "Herds" are very small units a group of three or four closely related female elephants plus their calves, who live and travel together for all their lives. Sometimes, though, these herds join up with other herds, living, feeding playing and travelling together. These groups almost always go back into their basic family units in the end, but if they come across each other again they will express recognition and love.
Like all mammals(哺乳动物), elephant communicate a great deal through body language. Love is often expressed by crossing or "hugging" their long noses, usually between close relatives and friends who have travelled in the same herd for a long time. And much physical communication takes place with the ends of elephants' noses—they use these to comfort and reassure each other, to greet friends, and to recognize the efforts of a hard-working mother or the birth of new calves.
When a member of the herd is close to death, the whole herd will stop moving and stay resting in one small area for a time. Once the elderly or sick elephant passes away, they will stay on for a few more days—gathering around the dead body, and seeming to make aloud high sad sound for their companion that has passed away、
