Here’s what to look for when identifying elephants

Here’s what to look for when identifying elephants.

Ears Matter


Photographer Courtesy of ElephantVoices

Elephant ears can come in all shapes and sizes.



Ears may be pointed, round, or bulging, and the lower lobes may curl in or out. Some are completely smooth at the edge. Others may be marked with a notch or tear, like those of Selengei, the large adult female elephant on the right, who is named after Poole and Granli’s daughter. (Selengei is a Maasai word meaning a young girl of marriageable age; it is also the name of a river near Amboseli, where Poole and Granli had worked.)

Some ears have serrated, ragged edges, such as those on the adult female seen in the photo at left. Notches, tears, and even holes distinguish elephant ears too. Selengei has a flap-cut visible in her left ear and ear lobes that curl outward, while the lobes of the female with serrated ears curve inward.