Nandu is a baby elephant who lives with his mother, aunts, and cousins in a herd. The oldest female leads the herd and remembers where to find water in the dry season. Elephants talk to each other with deep rumbles so low that we cannot hear them, but other elephants feel them through the ground many kilometres away. Nandu uses his trunk to smell, to drink, to spray water, to pick up a single leaf, and to hug his mother. The trunk is really a very long nose and upper lip with thousands of muscles and no bones.
Other animals communicate too. A dog wags its tail when happy and growls to warn you. Bees do a wiggle dance to tell the hive where flowers are. Birds sing to say this is my tree and to call a mate. Monkeys give one alarm call for a snake and a different one for an eagle, so the troop knows whether to look up or down. Ants leave a smell trail so others can follow it to food. Fireflies flash light signals at night. Dolphins whistle and click, and every dolphin has its own name whistle. Animals living in groups, like elephants, wolves, and monkeys, also help each other, share food, and protect their young.
Example: Watch a dog, cat, or bird for ten minutes. Write down every sound and movement it makes, and guess what each one means. For instance, a cat rubbing your leg is saying hello, and a bird puffing its feathers may be cold or angry.