Why do female elephants have a wider variety of calls than males?
The simple answer is because cows lead more complex social lives than their male counterparts. Female elephants live together in families interested in the survival of all their members and the upbringing of their young. Each female has a complex network of associates with whom she communicates about a range of survival, social and reproductive events. These associates include mother, grandmother, offspring, siblings, cousins, aunts, as well as bond group, clan and even non-clan members. Male lead rather more solitary lives associating in loosely banded bachelor groups, traveling on their own or in brief associations with female groups. A male’s primary interests lie in finding food, knowing the strengths of his rivals and locating fertile mates during musth and thus his need for communication is less.
