By Elyse Trevers

We often attribute certain characteristics to animals. In part, influenced by media representations, wolves are bad, lions are brave and according to Lauri Halderman, senior vice president for exhibition, “elephants are the good guys.”

They range from Dumbo to Horton to Jumbo to the symbol of the Republican party. Elephants have worked their way into our lexicon with “the white elephant sale” and “the elephant in the room.”  In the Museum of Natural History’s new “The Secret World of Elephants” exhibit, visitors can learn much about elephants that they never knew.

Elephants with tusks once lived almost everywhere, on islands and on every continent. Sadly numerous species of elephants have dramatically declined. Due to human interference, climate changes and evolution, there are now only three species of elephants remaining: African savanna elephants, African forest elephants and Asian elephants. 

Over time elephants have adapted to cope with climate and environment changes, and ivory poachers. For example, the size of their ears is an adaptation. The African elephant has the biggest ears of any living animal to enable it to cool itself.

We are fascinated by elephants and don’t realize how special they are. They communicate with one another through vibrations and have strong emotions, reacting to death and friendship. They are vital to their ecosystems and extend the plant ranges by carrying undigested seeds in their poop. They travel through the dense rainforests and clear the land, enabling sun to reach the forest floor and creating pathways for other animals to travel.  

Adults will be fascinated by the the family tree of the elephant and learning that its closest living relatives are the aquatic sea cow and the furry rabbit-sized hyraxes, 

Visitors will stand in awe of the immense representation of the wooly mammoth in the process of shedding its winter coat. The mammoth has become familiar to us through the Ice Age movie franchise. Even more interesting might be the life-size model of the adult and calf pair of dwarf elephants.

Children will giggle at the representation and size of elephant piles of poop. Each opens to reveal what the elephant would have eaten. Also remarkable is the huge mound of grassy substance, illustrating the 300-500 pounds of food an elephant needs to eat each day. They spend up to 18 hours a day eating.

Also fascinating is the life-size representation of the African elephant with a video projection showing the skeleton and how it processes its food. There are hands-on exhibits and videos in the exhibition as well. 

According to Ross MacPhee, curator of the exhibit, “If we don’t act quickly, elephants could be gone before we ever truly get to know them.”

The exhibit opens to the public on November 13 and tickets will be available for timed visits. Visit the Museum’s website at amnh.org.