Description
Book Synopsis Elephants are a keystone species and have been a part of the magic of the thickly forested land of South Africa for millennia. This book focuses on the history and work of Knysna Elephant Park, a leading South African elephant research facility that has been home to more than 40 elephants in 25 years. Unfortunately, all the mystique of the Knysna elephant has been reduced to a single elephant left alive.
Exploring a wide range of topics, this book covers the impact of elephants'' interactions with tourists, how they recover from trauma and even their relevance in human healthcare. Renowned elephant researchers explain the majesty of the elephant brain, which has the largest temporal lobe devoted to communication, language, spatial memory and cognition. To this effect, the book emphasizes the threat of poaching to these gentle giants, which has almost forced them to extinction. Perhaps if humans pay attention to how elephants symbolize our relationship with nature, we ca
Table of Contents
- Acknowledgments
- Preface
- Part
- 1. South Africa's Garden Route
- 2. Loxodonta Africana
- 3. Knysna Elephant Park (KEP) Is Founded
- 4. The Health and Physiology of Elephants
- 5. The Behavior and Psychology of Elephants
- Part
- 6. Sally: The Matriarch
- 7. Nandi: Mother of Thandi
- 8. Thandi: The Diva with the Perfect Ears
- 9. Thato: All Kinds of Adorable
- 10. Keisha: Nearly Everyone's Favorite
- 11. Mashudu: The Handsome One
- 12. Shungu : Poor Boy… Or Is He?
- 13. Madiwa: The Cheeky One
- 14. Amari: The Observant One
- 15. Shanti: The Cautious One
- Part Three
- 16. AERU into the Future
- 17. The Future of Elephants in Africa
- 18. The Poaching Crisis
- Glossary
- Elephant Resources and Non-Government Organizations (NGOs)
- What Can You Do to Help?
- Chapter Notes
- Bibliography
- Index
