KUALA LUMPUR: Elephants are remarkable animals due to their spatial abilities, including the capacity to remember an area even after a long period has passed, says Dr Jamhuri Jamaluddin.

The senior lecturer at Universiti Putra Malaysia's (UPM) forestry and environment faculty is conducting research under the Wildlife and National Parks Department (Perhilitan) to monitor and analyse elephant movements.

Jamhuri said that with this ability, the wild animals can remember routes they travelled on, even after they have been relocated.

In line with this, he does not rule out the possibility that the female elephant, whose calf was killed by a lorry in Gerik, Perak, on Sunday (May 11), may return to the scene of the incident.

"Elephants possess spatial memory, including the ability to remember specific areas and understand the concept of death. They can 'lock in' a location and return to visit it. That is the remarkable instinct of elephants, and science has yet to explain how they can remember in such a way," he told Bernama recently.

Jamhuri also said that elephants exhibit remarkable social behaviour, forming strong emotional bonds with members of their herd.

"The emotional intelligence of elephants is not a myth, as these animals understand the concept of death and know the area where a family member has passed. They know, and sometimes, they even return to the same place, even if only the bones remain," he said.

"The relationships among elephants are biological, social, and emotional, to the extent that a mother elephant will care for her calf for many years," he added.

A male elephant calf, estimated to be five years old, was reportedly killed after being hit by a truck on the Gerik-Jeli stretch of the East-West Highway.

Videos and photos of the incident went viral on Mother's Day, showing the mother elephant trying to free her dead calf trapped under the truck, evoking emotional responses from the public. — Bernama