Pang Pha, an Asian elephant at the Berlin Zoo, has a unique way of eating bananas. As per the Insider, she uses her trunk to peel them open first instead of eating them whole. Footage of Pha shows her breaking the ripe banana in half with her trunk. and peeling each half, shaking it until the soft interior falls out. She picks up the fruit with her trunk and eats it, discarding the peel.
Researchers noted that this behavior had not been previously documented in elephants, and they believe it may have been learned or invented by Pha. The discovery could be another proof that these giant mammals are self-domesticated animals.
Elephant Learned to Peel Bananas; Scientists Argue They Might Be the Only Non-Primate Self-Domesticated Animals
Pha's Impressive Banana Peeling Skills
Researchers from the Humboldt University of Berlin have observed a unique behavior in Pang Pha, an Asian elephant residing at Berlin Zoo. As Science Times reported, the elephant was observed peeling ripe bananas with her trunk and discarding the peel rather than eating the fruit whole, which is typical.
In their study, titled "Elephant banana peeling," published in Current Biology, researchers reported that Pang Pha only peels yellow bananas with brown spots, while she eats fully yellow or green bananas whole and completely avoids brown bananas. The elephant appeared to have learned the behavior from her doting caretaker, who gave her peeled bananas.
Michael Brecht of the Humboldt University of Berlin said in a statement via Cell Press that what makes Pang Pha's behavior unique is a combination of factors, such as skillfulness, speed, individuality, and its putatively human origin.
Pang Pha is also shy about displaying her peeling, and when eating bananas in a group, she eats most of them whole and saves one to peel and eat on her own later. The researchers also noted that Pang Pha peels bananas faster than humans.
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Self-Domesticated Mammals
According to Popular Science, previous research has shown that some African elephants can understand human pointing gestures and differentiate between people from different ethnic groups. However, the researchers behind this study suggest that the ability to peel bananas is a unique behavior likely derived from human influence.
Brecht said that the elephants' behavior is shaped by their experiences, and they possess impressive trunk skills. The researchers are interested in whether this behavior is passed down within elephant families and are now exploring other complex trunk behaviors, such as tool use.
The discovery adds to the growing body of evidence suggesting that elephants have remarkable cognitive abilities. In a recent study, another group of researchers argued that elephants might be the only non-primate animal that exhibits self-domestication, characterized by reduced aggression and strong social bonds.
As per Gizmodo, some scientists argued that self-domestication in species other than humans could be possible. A study showed that African elephants have over 600 genes that rapidly evolved, with at least some of these genes linked to domestication.
Scientists argue that given elephants' lack of natural predators, they evolved into not picky eaters, which afforded them the time and resources to become more socially adept. Also, they may have in history that forced their ancestors to become dependent on each other to survive, and that characteristic was passed down to the next generation.
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