Elephant Legs Are Much Bendier Than Shakespeare Thought

Friday, August 22, 2008 - 08:21 in Biology & Nature

Through out history everyone though that elephants walk on inflexible column like legs. But when John Hutchinson from the Royal Veterinary College saw champion Thai racing elephants hurtling along at almost 7 m/s, he knew something else must be going on. Filming captive Asian elephants in UK zoos, and comparing his results with Delf Schwerda's data on African elephants, Hutchinson has found that elephant legs are very springy and almost as flexible as trotting horses' legs.

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