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The myth

African elephants seek out the rotting fruit of the marula tree, because eating it makes them drunk.


The “truth”

Elephants – along with several other species – certainly will travel some distance for a chance to eat marula fruit. But it doesn’t make them drunk, according to a study by scientists at the University of Bristol. Based on estimates of how much ethanol an elephant would need to consume in order to get sloshed, and how much ethanol a marula fruit contains, researchers reckon that it would take about 1,500 fermenting fruits eaten all at once, under ideal conditions, to produce a pissed pachyderm – and that it’s not feasible for one elephant to manage even half that many in a single day. Besides, the animals actively avoid rotten fruit, preferring to take nicely ripe specimens direct from the tree, and even pushing trees over to get at them, while ignoring easily obtained windfalls.


Sources

BBC Wildlife, Mar 2011; Kruger Park Times; PubMed; National Geographic News.


Disclaimer

So how to explain the persistent, centuries-old folk reports of elephants behaving strangely in the vicinity of marula trees? Currently favoured hypotheses include anthropomorphism on the part of observers (humans do get drunk on marula beer), and bull elephants defending prized trees. But if you have information to the contrary, and you’re in a fit state to tell us about it, please write in.