Search Jump: Comments
    Chapter Index
    Back to Story
    Cover of Leaving Time
    DramaLiterary Fiction

    Leaving Time

    by Picoult, Jodi
    “Leaving Time” by Jodi Picoult is a gripping novel that intertwines mystery, grief, and the bond between humans and elephants. The story follows Jenna Metcalf, a 13-year-old girl searching for her mother, Alice, a renowned elephant researcher who disappeared a decade earlier under mysterious circumstances. With the help of a skeptical psychic and a disgraced detective, Jenna uncovers buried secrets about her mother’s work and the tragic events at an elephant sanctuary. The novel explores themes of memory, loss, and maternal love, while weaving in fascinating insights into elephant behavior and emotions. Picoult blends emotional depth with suspense, culminating in a surprising twist that redefines the narrative.
    PreviousNext
    Leaving Time

    Chapter 22: Alice

    by Picoult, Jodi

    The chap­ter explores the intri­cate mat­ing rit­u­als of ele­phants, empha­siz­ing how com­mu­ni­ca­tion com­bines vocal­iza­tions and phys­i­cal ges­tures. For instance, a matriarch’s “let’s go” rum­ble is paired with body posi­tion­ing to guide the herd. Dur­ing mat­ing, males pro­duce deep, gut­tur­al musth rum­bles, which vary between indi­vid­u­als and are accom­pa­nied by ear move­ments and urine drib­bling. These sounds serve mul­ti­ple pur­pos­es, from assert­ing dom­i­nance to attract­ing mates, show­cas­ing the com­plex­i­ty of ele­phant social inter­ac­tions.

    Female ele­phants play an active role in mate selec­tion, respond­ing to male musth rum­bles with cho­rus­es that attract mul­ti­ple suit­ors. This allows females in estrus to choose the health­i­est and most viable mates, often reject­ing unsuit­able males even after mount­ing. Days before estrus, females emit pow­er­ful roars to draw more males, increas­ing their options. The actu­al mat­ing is marked by lyri­cal estrus songs—repetitive, purring vocalizations—followed by cel­e­bra­to­ry sounds from the herd, akin to those heard dur­ing births or reunions.

    Unlike whales, where males with com­plex songs attract females, ele­phant mat­ing dynam­ics are female-dri­ven. Females sing out of bio­log­i­cal neces­si­ty, as their brief six-day estrus win­dow demands effec­tive long-dis­tance com­mu­ni­ca­tion. Pheromones are inef­fec­tive over miles, so vocal­iza­tions become crit­i­cal for attract­ing poten­tial mates. This high­lights the evo­lu­tion­ary adap­ta­tion of ele­phants to ensure repro­duc­tive suc­cess in vast habi­tats.

    The chap­ter con­cludes with a spec­u­la­tive ques­tion about whether ele­phant calves learn estrus songs from old­er females, sim­i­lar to whale song trans­mis­sion across gen­er­a­tions. This curios­i­ty under­scores the poten­tial for cul­tur­al learn­ing in ele­phants, where daugh­ters might refine their mat­ing strate­gies based on mater­nal expe­ri­ences. The par­al­lels between ele­phant and whale com­mu­ni­ca­tion sug­gest deep­er lay­ers of social learn­ing and adap­ta­tion in the ani­mal king­dom.

    Down­load PDF Sum­ma­ry

    FAQs

    • 1. How do elephants combine communication methods during mating rituals?

      Answer:
      Elephants use a combination of vocalizations and physical gestures during mating rituals. Males produce deep, guttural “musth rumbles” accompanied by ear waves and urine dribbling, while females respond with lyrical “estrus songs” that include throaty purrs, ear flapping, and temporal gland secretions. These vocalizations are paired with body language—for example, a female may run away from an undesirable mate even after being mounted. The chapter explains that this multimodal communication helps attract potential mates from miles away, as pheromones alone are ineffective over long distances.

      2. What evolutionary advantage does the female elephant’s estrus song provide?

      Answer:
      The estrus song gives female elephants a selective advantage by allowing them to attract multiple males and choose the fittest mate. Since females are only fertile for six days and males may be far away, the song broadcasts their availability across long distances. By triggering a chorus from the herd, it creates competition among males, enabling females to select older, healthier partners with higher survival traits. This contrasts with species like whales, where males compete through song complexity; elephants prioritize female choice to ensure stronger offspring.

      3. Compare and contrast elephant mating communication with that of whales, as described in the chapter.

      Answer:
      While male whales use complex songs passed through generations to attract females, elephants reverse this dynamic: females sing estrus songs to summon males, and the herd’s collective vocalizations help evaluate mates. Whale songs are cultural (learned across oceans), whereas the chapter speculates whether elephant calves might learn estrus songs from older females during mating seasons. Both species rely on long-distance communication, but elephants emphasize immediate biological necessity (short fertility windows), while whales focus on prolonged male display.

      4. Why might the author describe elephant mating as a “song and dance”?

      Answer:
      The metaphor highlights the intricate, performative nature of elephant courtship. The “song” refers to layered vocalizations like musth rumbles and estrus purrs, while the “dance” encompasses physical cues—ear flapping, urine dribbling, and body positioning. This duality ensures effective communication in environments where visual or olfactory signals alone fail. The phrase also underscores the social spectacle: mating culminates in a herd-wide “symphony” of roars and trumpets, akin to celebrations during births or reunions, emphasizing its communal significance.

      5. What unanswered question does the author pose about elephant communication, and why is it significant?

      Answer:
      The author wonders if elephant calves learn estrus songs from older females, similar to generational whale song transmission. This question is significant because it probes whether elephants have cultural learning (passed knowledge) or purely instinctual behaviors. If songs are taught, it would suggest sophisticated social structures where females “correct” mating choices across generations. The speculation invites further research into how elephants balance innate biology with learned adaptation—a key theme in understanding their survival strategies.

    Quotes

    • 1. “It’s really not a stretch to say that, for elephants, mating is a song and dance.”

      This opening line establishes the chapter’s central metaphor comparing elephant mating rituals to musical performance, immediately capturing the reader’s attention while introducing the theme of complex elephant communication.

      2. “The sounds differ from elephant to elephant and are accompanied by ear waves and frequent urine dribbling.”

      This vivid description illustrates the physicality of elephant communication during mating, emphasizing how multi-modal (vocal + physical) these interactions are—a key insight into elephant behavior.

      3. “A female that doesn’t like a particular male might run away from him, even if he has already mounted her, to find someone better.”

      This surprising revelation about female elephant agency challenges common assumptions about animal mating behaviors, highlighting how elephants exhibit sophisticated mate selection strategies.

      4. “Unlike the musth rumbles of males, these songs are lyrical and repetitive, throaty purrs that rise quickly and then trail off.”

      This contrast between male and female vocalizations demonstrates the chapter’s exploration of gendered communication patterns in elephants, with the female’s “song” being particularly evocative.

      5. “I have always wondered if the same holds true for elephants. If the calves of elephants learn the estrus song from their older female relatives during mating season, so that when it’s their own turn, they know how to sing to attract the strongest, fiercest males.”

      This thought-provoking question transitions from observation to hypothesis, suggesting cultural transmission of mating behaviors and setting up potential implications for elephant social learning.

    Quotes

    1. “It’s really not a stretch to say that, for elephants, mating is a song and dance.”

    This opening line establishes the chapter’s central metaphor comparing elephant mating rituals to musical performance, immediately capturing the reader’s attention while introducing the theme of complex elephant communication.

    2. “The sounds differ from elephant to elephant and are accompanied by ear waves and frequent urine dribbling.”

    This vivid description illustrates the physicality of elephant communication during mating, emphasizing how multi-modal (vocal + physical) these interactions are—a key insight into elephant behavior.

    3. “A female that doesn’t like a particular male might run away from him, even if he has already mounted her, to find someone better.”

    This surprising revelation about female elephant agency challenges common assumptions about animal mating behaviors, highlighting how elephants exhibit sophisticated mate selection strategies.

    4. “Unlike the musth rumbles of males, these songs are lyrical and repetitive, throaty purrs that rise quickly and then trail off.”

    This contrast between male and female vocalizations demonstrates the chapter’s exploration of gendered communication patterns in elephants, with the female’s “song” being particularly evocative.

    5. “I have always wondered if the same holds true for elephants. If the calves of elephants learn the estrus song from their older female relatives during mating season, so that when it’s their own turn, they know how to sing to attract the strongest, fiercest males.”

    This thought-provoking question transitions from observation to hypothesis, suggesting cultural transmission of mating behaviors and setting up potential implications for elephant social learning.

    FAQs

    1. How do elephants combine communication methods during mating rituals?

    Answer:
    Elephants use a combination of vocalizations and physical gestures during mating rituals. Males produce deep, guttural “musth rumbles” accompanied by ear waves and urine dribbling, while females respond with lyrical “estrus songs” that include throaty purrs, ear flapping, and temporal gland secretions. These vocalizations are paired with body language—for example, a female may run away from an undesirable mate even after being mounted. The chapter explains that this multimodal communication helps attract potential mates from miles away, as pheromones alone are ineffective over long distances.

    2. What evolutionary advantage does the female elephant’s estrus song provide?

    Answer:
    The estrus song gives female elephants a selective advantage by allowing them to attract multiple males and choose the fittest mate. Since females are only fertile for six days and males may be far away, the song broadcasts their availability across long distances. By triggering a chorus from the herd, it creates competition among males, enabling females to select older, healthier partners with higher survival traits. This contrasts with species like whales, where males compete through song complexity; elephants prioritize female choice to ensure stronger offspring.

    3. Compare and contrast elephant mating communication with that of whales, as described in the chapter.

    Answer:
    While male whales use complex songs passed through generations to attract females, elephants reverse this dynamic: females sing estrus songs to summon males, and the herd’s collective vocalizations help evaluate mates. Whale songs are cultural (learned across oceans), whereas the chapter speculates whether elephant calves might learn estrus songs from older females during mating seasons. Both species rely on long-distance communication, but elephants emphasize immediate biological necessity (short fertility windows), while whales focus on prolonged male display.

    4. Why might the author describe elephant mating as a “song and dance”?

    Answer:
    The metaphor highlights the intricate, performative nature of elephant courtship. The “song” refers to layered vocalizations like musth rumbles and estrus purrs, while the “dance” encompasses physical cues—ear flapping, urine dribbling, and body positioning. This duality ensures effective communication in environments where visual or olfactory signals alone fail. The phrase also underscores the social spectacle: mating culminates in a herd-wide “symphony” of roars and trumpets, akin to celebrations during births or reunions, emphasizing its communal significance.

    5. What unanswered question does the author pose about elephant communication, and why is it significant?

    Answer:
    The author wonders if elephant calves learn estrus songs from older females, similar to generational whale song transmission. This question is significant because it probes whether elephants have cultural learning (passed knowledge) or purely instinctual behaviors. If songs are taught, it would suggest sophisticated social structures where females “correct” mating choices across generations. The speculation invites further research into how elephants balance innate biology with learned adaptation—a key theme in understanding their survival strategies.

    Note