Which parent hasn’t obsessed about their newborn’s breathing? Most of them, if not all, have spent a lot of time watching their baby’s breathing like a hawk. This was especially true for first-time parents.
Same goes with this heartwarming footage of an elephant displaying human-like traits while making sure her sleeping baby is still alive and well which emerged online.
Elephants are known to be social and intelligent animals with a deep connection to their family members. In fact, they are said to value their families more than most animals and have been seen living in herds together for decades.
From the moment a calf elephant is born, the mother is right by its side, guiding it through the important lessons in life and giving all of herself to help it thrive.
So when this mother elephant noticed her calf awfully still for a while during his nap, she went to check up on him.
The mom first extended her trunk tenderly over her son’s chest before moving to check and see if he was breathing through its trunk.
This delicate moment between mother and son was filmed in Thailand by Leslie A. Temanson, a former programme director at Volunteer in Thailand with Friends for Asia.
He said, “Moms are moms, no matter the species.”
“This mother elephant showed me as she tenderly checked her sleeping calf, much as a human mom might do to her napping baby.”
Scientists understand that elephants have a total of 300 billion neurons which is as many as a human brain and suggests ‘convergent evolution.’
They can exhibit behavior such as grief, mimicry, play, altruism, use of tools, compassion, cooperation, self-awareness, memory, and a range of communication.
In this video, these gentle giants show us once more why Aristotle considered them as ‘the animal that surpasses others in wit and mind.’
