SCIENCE LAB SCIENCE : CRITICAL ELEPHANT SENSOR [ 2 ]

After the scientists had gathered data about geometry, stiffness and porosity, elephant whiskers looked unlike any other animals.

GEOMETRICALLY, Dr. Schultz likened them to blades of grass. They are flat and have squarelike sides at the base. Stiffness tests showed that whiskers gradually transition from thick, stiff roots to soft tips. Internally, their porosity was characterized by a network of holes.

The tiny holes help the whiskers absorb impact, Dr. Schulz said, preventing damage across a lifetime of use.

These qualities allow each whisker to detect where along its length an object makes contact. Such sensitivity may give elephants an advantage.

Because the findings so surprised the scientists, they 3-D printed an enlarged replica of a whisker and tried to experience some of what an elephant perceives through its trunk hairs.

When closing their eyes and tapping the replica against objects, they found that each contact point felt different.

Going from a stiff base to a soft tip might amplify the signal connected to the firing off sensory neurons, possibly helping the animal perceive the location of a contact along each whisker. This would help elephants navigate despite their eyesight.

The study also found that when compared with each other animals that have whiskers, elephants have more in common with a cat than a rat, though the shape and internal structure of cat whiskers differ.

The team '' showed that really elegantly,'' said John Hutchinson, an evolutionary biomechanist at the Royal Veterinary College in London who wasn't involved with the research.

'' That impressed me. I just always thought, ' Whiskers ' - well, they're just whiskers.'' 

The World Students Society thanks Alexa Robles-Gil.