In the bustling streets of Sri Lanka, Asian elephants are known to roam freely, often coming into close contact with humans. In a recent viral video captured by BBC Earth, one cheeky elephant stole the show as it stopped traffic in search of a tasty treat.
Known for their intelligence and playful nature, elephants are always on the lookout for opportunities to satisfy their appetites. In Sri Lanka, where Asian elephants live in higher densities than anywhere else on Earth, encounters with these majestic creatures are not uncommon.
In the video, the mischievous elephant can be seen confidently walking down a busy road, causing vehicles to come to a halt as it casually searches for food. With people never far away, dangers are present, but so are opportunities in terms of getting a cheeky meal.
The footage is taken from the upcoming series ‘Asia’, which promises to take viewers on a dazzling journey across Earth’s biggest continent. From the vast Arabian Desert to the unexplored jungles of Indonesia, viewers can expect to witness dramatic wildlife stories captured in extraordinary locations.
With rare species of bears, rhinos, and big cats featured in the series, ‘Asia’ showcases the surprising variety of animals that thrive in Asia’s diverse environments. From the Tibetan plateau to the Gobi Desert and the Himalayas, the series is set to offer a unique glimpse into the wildlife of this fascinating continent.
As the video of the cheeky elephant stopping traffic continues to captivate viewers, it serves as a reminder of the beauty and wonder of the natural world. With 50 years worth of entertaining and thought-provoking natural history content available from BBC Earth, nature enthusiasts can expect to be enthralled by the captivating stories that unfold on screen.
Watch the video by BBC Earth
Video “Cheeky Elephant Stops Traffic for Treats | Asia | BBC Earth” was uploaded on 11/28/2024 to Youtube Channel BBC Earth
1:29 If you slowdown and look hard enough you can see that on one of the elephant's toes there's a green caterpillar just coming along for the ride.
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Elephants are large placental mammals that constitute the family Elephantidae, they are the only extant family of the order Proboscidea, elephants were a far more diverse family, but now, there are only eight extant species under two genera and the only two elephant genera alive today are Loxodonta (African Elephants) with two extant species being the African Bush Elephant (Loxodonta africana) and the African Forest Elephant (Loxodonta cyclotis) and Elephas (Asiatic Elephants) with six extant species being the Indian Elephant (Elephas indicus), the Sri Lanka Elephant (Elephas maximus), the Bangladeshi Elephant (Elephas bangladeshiensis), the Indochinese Elephant (Elephas vietnamensis), the Sumatran Elephant (Elephas sumatrensis), and the Bornean Elephant (Elephas borneensis)
There were many extinct elephant species that many were not just extinct species of african elephant or asiatic elephant, there were also extinct elephant species in different genera as well
Especially extinct elephants that are in the only living elephant subfamily, which is the subfamily Elephantinae
The four-tusked elephants (genus Primelephas) are an extinct elephant genus with two known species: the Maglio's Four-Tusked Elephant (Primelephas gomphotherioides) and the Coppens's Four-Tusked Elephant (Primelephas korotorensis)
The african elephants (genus Loxodonta) were not only constituted by two living species, but six other extinct species were also known, which include the African Scrub Elephant (Loxodonta cookei), the African River Elephant (Loxodonta expotata), the African Desert Elephant (Loxodonta atlantica), the African Grass Elephant (Loxodonta adaurora), the African Marsh Elephant (Loxodonta kararae), and the African Mountain Elephant (Loxodonta pharaohensis)
The straight-tusked elephants (genus Palaeoloxodon) are an extinct elephant genus with sixteen recognized species, which include the Dietrich's Straight-Tusked Elephant (Palaeoloxodon recki), the Maglio's Straight-Tusked Elephant (Palaeoloxodon ekorensis), the Pomel's Straight-Tusked Elephant (Palaeoloxodon iolensis), the Garutt's Straight-Tusked Elephant (Palaeoloxodon mammontoides), the Occidental Straight-Tusked Elephant (Palaeoloxodon antiquus), the Bate's Lesser Straight-Tusked Elephant (Palaeoloxodon cypriotes), the Xylophagou Lesser Straight-Tusked Elephant (Palaeoloxodon xylophagou), the Tilos Lesser Straight-Tusked Elephant (Palaeoloxodon tiliensis), the Naxos Lesser Straight-Tusked Elephant (Palaeoloxodon lomolinoi), the Crete Lesser Straight-Tusked Elephant (Palaeoloxodon creutzburgi), the Adams' Lesser Straight-Tusked Elephant (Palaeoloxodon mnaidriensis), the Busk's Lesser Straight-Tusked Elephant (Palaeoloxodon falconeri), the Turkmenian Straight-Tusked Elephant (Palaeoloxodon turkmenicus), the Indian Straight-Tusked Elephant (Palaeoloxodon namadicus), the Chinese Straight-Tusked Elephant (Palaeoloxodon huaihoensis), and the Japanese Straight-Tusked Elephant (Palaeoloxodon naumanni)
The linear-tusked elephants (genus Eoloxodon) are an extinct elephant genus with two species: the Kenya Linear-Tusked Elephant (Eoloxodon nawataensis) and the Plains Linear-Tusked Elephant (Eoloxodon atavus)
The asiatic elephants (genus Elephas) were not only constituted by six living species, but twelve other extinct species were also known, which include the Jordan Elephant (Elephas jordanensis), the Arabian Elephant (Elephas arabicus), the Turkish Elephant (Elephas turcicus), the Caucasian Elephant (Elephas caucasicus), the Syrian Elephant (Elephas asurus), the Chinese Elephant (Elephas rubridens), the Falconer's Elephant (Elephas hysudricus), the Flat-Headed Elephant (Elephas platycephalus), the Javan Elephant (Elephas sondaicus), the Blora Elephant (Elephas hysudrindicus), the Beyer's Elephant (Elephas beyeri), and the Sulawesi Dwarf Elephant (Elephas celebensis)
The mammoths (genus Mammuthus) are an extinct elephant genus with twelve recognized species, which include the Barbary Mammoth (Mammuthus africanavus), the Cape Mammoth (Mammuthus subplanifrons), the Sardinian Mammoth (Mammuthus lamarmorai), the Cretan Dwarf Mammoth (Mammuthus creticus), the Southern Mammoth (Mammuthus meridionalis), the Romanian Mammoth (Mammuthus rumanus), the Woolly Mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius), the Steppe Mammoth (Mammuthus trogontherii), the Jefferson's Mammoth (Mammuthus jeffersonii), the Columbian Mammoth (Mammuthus columbi), the Imperial Mammoth (Mammuthus imperator), and the Channel Island Mammoth (Mammuthus exilis)
"Clever girl" is not only in Jurassic Park!
Nature's token collectors
Cute elephant 😂🥰😍
As cute as it is… If this was a human he would be treated way worse… Shows how devolved we are as people.
Good bless Raja.
He is amazing
Gentle giants ❤
2:55 Did Raja just wink at us? 😉❤
There is a dark side to the story. Elephants are fighting for survival in Sr Lanka. Human encroachment into elephant terrain are forcing these majestic animals to come out and fight for their land rights. But the Elephants are losing .Their numbers are decreasing. Almost 500 elephant deaths a year. Animal Protection Education for children is a sine quo non in Sri Lanka.
😮😮😮❤❤❤😊😊😊🎉🎉🎉
People in Sri Lanka must be so kind that animals are not afraid of them.
Love Raja! 😍🐘🤗👑❤️
2:27 Raja: "Alright, this is a stick up."
#Visitsrilanka
So beautiful…the elephant, the environment, the people.
The Hindu god Ganesh has the head of an elephant and is known to place and remove obstacles in one’s path. I think I know where the inspiration came from.
This is in our village 😍 we have good relationship between us and elephants. Come visit Sri Lanka 🇱🇰
A tourist attraction too
This is gangster behaviour.
haha that's the elephant's toll booth
This is beautiful video and love it ❤. But as a Srilankan, we dont accept feeding wild elephants on the road, because some elephants have addicted to 'human' food and attacking vehicles on the road.. They are rolling over small vehicles like tuk tuks and cars to loot more food, if you dont give food or they are not satisfied what you gave.. In this same road..
So if you see elephant on the road, do not get close, and pass very quickly when you get a chance 🙂
Just Stop Oil tried to recruit him, but wage would just be a 100 peanuts a week with frequent overtime.
The cutest extortionist ever.
yesterday one of the largest tuskers called Deega2 died of an illegal electrical fence. 😢
Symbiotic relationship 😂
That bread was goven with plastic cover on?😮
Gorgeous road block
When I was in Sri Lanka in 1994 on my first day i walked outside and here comes this giant elephant at me . I went to another location and I saw a family a mum dad and two young ones. If you ever get to an elephant in the wild you won't forget it. They are an amazing mammal to look at.❤
The elephants do the same type of behavior in Thailand, they block until they get share of the sugar cane from the truck that is passing by. 👍
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Even Sri Lankan elephant are entrepreneurs madam et messieurs, good luck Raja!
2:38 plastic……
I’d pay this live road toll any day…
Elephants have a very clever way of finding food.
Reminded me of the Al Capone saying, you can get much further with a kind word and 4 tonnes , than just a kind word 😅
He indeed is a king ❤❤❤
Go the ellies
Road Tex 😂😂😂😂😊
Its truly amazing as well as it is a big problem. These elephants are searching food on streets and those streets not populated every time. In the mean time elephants search foods near villages and houses.
Not smart. One day it's gonna bypass the human and go straight at the car.
Is this being narrated by Winnie the pooh
Elephant : Treats or Tricks…. No food means i will messed you up
What would your reaction be if this elephant was blocking your path? Tell us below 👇