Loxodonta africana) drink at a water hole at Mashatu Game Reserve in Botswana. By Christa Lesté-LasserreWhen the weather is warm, elephants can lose up to 10% of all the water in their bodies in a single day, according to a new study.
That’s the equivalent of nearly two bathtubs full, the highest volume of daily water loss ever recorded in a land animal.The findings won’t mean much for zoo elephants, which generally “live a pampered life,” says Baptiste Mulot, an elephant behavior researcher at ZooParc de Beauval, a French zoological park.
But Mulot, who was not involved with the work, has deep concerns about elephants in the wild, especially as the world warms.