(Suncoast Primate Sanctuary, Lena Kauffman, Current Biology, Berlin Zoo)
Today’s video shows a Berlin Zoo elephant peeling bananas before eating them.
An Asian elephant named Pang Pha reacts to bananas at different levels of ripeness. When the banana is too ripe, Pang Pha tosses it out. When given an under-ripe banana she eats the banana whole, as normal elephants do. But when given a banana that Pang Pha views as just perfect, she peels it before eating it.
It is believed that she picked up this habit from her former caregiver who would take the time to peel her bananas before feeding them to Pang Pha.
