# How does an elephant "trumpet"? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 2, 2014, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-an-elephant-trumpet/687541 "2014-05-02T22:06:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-an-elephant-trumpet/687541/1 "2014-05-02T22:06:23Z")
Where does the sound come from? ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-an-elephant-trumpet/687541/2 "2014-05-02T22:07:02Z")
Air from his/her extended trunk. Source, hours and hours of National Geographic and Wild Kingdom. I’ve seen them do it. [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DWW-5OCe5NU) ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-an-elephant-trumpet/687541/3 "2014-05-02T22:12:57Z")
They are quite noisy. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/_L5Jp1l3kMQ/maxresdefault.jpg "The Elephant Sanctuary | Shirley & Tarra's Trumpeting Party") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_L5Jp1l3kMQ) ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-an-elephant-trumpet/687541/4 "2014-05-02T22:15:41Z")
They can only produce a few notes because their fingers are too big for the valves. ---
**Author:** ![picunurse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@picunurse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picunurse)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-an-elephant-trumpet/687541/5 "2014-05-02T22:16:27Z")
How do you talk? Air from the animals’ lungs pass quickly through a fenestrated membrane in the airway path, making a sound. The fenestrated membrane can be different in different animals. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-an-elephant-trumpet/687541/6 "2014-05-02T22:19:08Z")
I’m still waiting to hear them whistle. 😉 _Lauren Bacall — ‘If you want me just whistle. You know how to whistle don’t you? Just put your lips together and blow.’_ ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2014, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-an-elephant-trumpet/687541/7 "2014-05-02T22:26:04Z")
I wondered if the sinus cavities were involved, too, but maybe it’s just a matter of how fast or slow the air passes through the trunk .[Here’s an article about how they produce different sounds.](http://www.elephantvoices.org/elephant-communication/acoustic-communication.html) Elephants make a fascinating variety of noises, and much of their communication is actually done below the range of human hearing. An elephant’s infrasonic rumbles can travel a great, great distance along the ground, and other elephants feel them with their feet rather than their ears. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-an-elephant-trumpet/687541/8 "2014-05-03T00:44:26Z")
The trunk isn’t the only end where sound comes out. Trust me on this, don’t ever stand behind an elephant. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![NeonMadman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/58f4c7/32.png) [@NeonMadman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NeonMadman)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-an-elephant-trumpet/687541/9 "2014-05-03T02:11:42Z")
So, essentially, an elephant’s trumpeting is the sound of it blowing its nose? ---
**Author:** ![Flywheel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Flywheel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flywheel)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-an-elephant-trumpet/687541/10 "2014-05-03T02:40:43Z")
…and why can’t a trumpet “elephant”? ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-an-elephant-trumpet/687541/11 "2014-05-03T03:51:10Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > Air from his/her extended trunk. > > Source, hours and hours of National Geographic and Wild Kingdom. I’ve seen them do it. > > [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DWW-5OCe5NU](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DWW-5OCe5NU) > [@picunurse](#): > > How do you talk? > Air from the animals’ lungs pass quickly through a fenestrated membrane in the airway path, making a sound. The fenestrated membrane can be different in different animals. Are these two answers both true? Are they consistent with one another? ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c57346/32.png) [@Little\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Pig)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 5:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-an-elephant-trumpet/687541/12 "2014-05-03T05:55:10Z")
> [@NeonMadman](#): > > So, essentially, an elephant’s trumpeting is the sound of it blowing its nose? That’s what I first thought but now I’m thinking it works kinda like the gyrations our bodies go through to generate a sound we blow a fart. Guess we’ll just have to wait until a pachydermiologist replies to this thread. ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2014, 7:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-does-an-elephant-trumpet/687541/13 "2014-05-03T07:01:38Z")
> [@NeonMadman](#): > > So, essentially, an elephant’s trumpeting is the sound of it blowing its nose? I hate to think what its handkerchief must be like!