Elephant Wrinkles Reveal Insights into Trunk Functionality and Preference

New research uncovers how elephant trunk wrinkles develop and indicate 'trunkedness,' or side preference, in these complex animals.

Elephant trunks, with about 46,000 muscles, are highly specialized and flexible, aiding in complex tasks like peeling bananas and picking up delicate objects.
Wrinkles on elephant trunks start forming in the womb and continue to develop throughout an elephant's life, serving functional purposes such as aiding in flexibility and object manipulation.
Asian elephants have more trunk wrinkles than African elephants, which may contribute to their ability to wrap their trunks around objects more flexibly due to fewer finger-like structures on their trunk tips.
The study found that elephants exhibit 'trunkedness,' a preference for curling their trunks to one side, which is reflected in the wrinkle patterns and whisker lengths on their trunks.
Researchers used zoo animals, museum specimens, and photographs to analyze the development and function of trunk wrinkles, revealing significant differences in wrinkle patterns between individual elephants.