Zoo elephants huddle to protect calves during San Diego earthquake

April 15, 2025 5:41 PM

Zoo elephants huddle to protect calves during San Diego earthquake. Elephants at the San Diego Zoo were caught on video running over to protect their young by huddling together during a 5.2-magnitude earthquake. This "alert circle" is a natural response to perceived threats, with elephants having the ability to feel sounds through their feet, an expert says. The zoo confirmed the herd and crew are safe, and the elephants are back to their regular routine.
posted by chariot pulled by cassowaries (10 comments total)

Bit more context: The San Diego Zoo has two properties - the regular zoo closer to the city, and the Safari Park out in a rural area something like 30 miles to the northeast. Both properties have elephants, but this video comes from the Safari Park. Text in the article mentions a younger male elephant in the video that will eventually move to a bachelor herd, which would either be at the more urban zoo or he could possibly be sent to another zoo entirely to diversify the gene pool in captivity.
posted by LionIndex at 6:42 PM on April 15 [2 favorites]

Here's a link to a somewhat easier-to-see version from a local news source. It's really striking how the elephants spontaneously organize to deal with a possible threat. (The 'quake itself wasn't bad, but I found it quite startling.)
posted by SPrintF at 7:27 PM on April 15 [3 favorites]

Those young elephants look big enough to take care of themselves in Situation Earthquake. But if I was a 200kg youngster and the footing was deeply unstable, I'd want old Auntie Ndlula to keep her 3000kg bulk the hell away from me.
posted by BobTheScientist at 11:47 PM on April 15 [1 favorite]

I can’t stop watching this. Thank you
posted by toodleydoodley at 6:28 AM on April 16

I was about to make a post about Sweden live-streaming the annual moose migration, but I think they need to be paired with the elephants. These kinds of stories are such a balm. (Gift NYT link)
posted by zenzenobia at 7:01 AM on April 16 [2 favorites]

Adorable protective act of love? So they'd have us believe, but never forget, not for a moment, that elephants are one of the few species capable of launching a retaliatiory earthquake.

Have you ever seen an elephant drink a glass of water, Mandrake? No, vodka, that's what they drink.
posted by justsomebodythatyouusedtoknow at 8:47 AM on April 16 [2 favorites]

Wow. I had seen the headlines, but hadn't watched the video until now. Way cooler than I thought it would be. The way they kept scanning, looking around for any threat or possible danger - remarkable.
posted by davidmsc at 8:57 AM on April 16 [1 favorite]

What more common occurrence could give rise to similar sensations?

A wildebeest or buffalo stampede, perhaps? The elephants' responses might make more sense for those.
posted by jamjam at 9:36 AM on April 16 [3 favorites]

What more common occurrence could give rise to similar sensations?

Elephants use infrasound for communication. I would expect that any low-frequency sound or vibration gets their attention immediately. That would include movement from other large animals, as you mention, but also vehicles.
posted by tommasz at 9:50 AM on April 16 [4 favorites]

What more common occurrence could give rise to similar sensations?

Gunshots, perhaps.
posted by davidmsc at 10:56 AM on April 16