image: A young elephant steps out at Whipsnade Wild Animal Park while cameras record the movement of the disc-shaped markers on its legs and back. view more
Credit: John Hutchinson, The Rotal Veterinary College
If an elephant is thundering towards you at 15mph you are probably not too concerned with the finer points of biomechanics or the thorny question about whether they are truly running or not. But for researchers, understanding these points and getting a clearer picture of how elephants move their seven tonnes of bulk at speed offers the potential to improve animal welfare, inform human biomechanics and even help in the design of large robots.
Dr John Hutchinson, a research leader at the UK's Royal Veterinary College (RVC), has already shown that, contrary to previous studies and most popular opinion, elephants moving at speed appear to be running. Now with funding from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) his team is using Hollywood-style motion capture cameras combined with MRI and CT scans of elephants to build 3D computer models of elephant locomotion to show the forces and stresses at work on muscles, tendons and bones.
The research team has been working with elephants at UK wildlife and safari parks and will shortly travel to Africa and Thailand to study wild animals. Fifteen temporary markers are placed on the elephants' joints and the animals then move past a motion capture camera, recording at 240 frames per second, at varying speeds. Back in the lab the researchers can then use the footage to reconstruct the rotations of the elephants' joints on a computer, creating a 3D stick model of the animal.
The computer models are being used to establish how limb structure relates to elephant locomotion and to determine finally if elephants really can run – or in scientific terms, at some point do they have all their feet off the ground at the same time? Dr Hutchinson said: "We are particularly interested how elephants coordinate their limbs and working out which joints contribute most to the length and frequency of their steps. In examining whether elephants truly run or not we need to understand what limits their top speed. Is it the tendons and muscles having to withstand the impact of 7 tonnes of elephant or is it something else?"
This is not a trivial question as Dr Hutchinson explained: "A better understanding of elephant biomechanics offers the possibility for real animal welfare improvements. By developing ways to spot slight changes in gait and joint movements in captive elephants we can catch the early onset of osteomyelitis and arthritis. If these conditions are not treated early they can result in an elephant being put down."
The research also informs other biomechanical studies as the elephant leg has surprising similarities to our own. Humans have the same structure of a straight leg with a long thigh and short foot. Studies of animal locomotion are also key to the design of effective walking robots. By understanding how evolution achieved the joint structure and limb coordination of an animal as large as an elephant we will be better able to construct our own man-made walking robots.
Images are available to accompany this story. Please download from:
http://www.bbsrc.ac.uk/media/pressreleases/06_08_18_elephants.html
Images available are:
A young elephant steps out at Whipsnade Wild Animal Park while cameras record the movement of the disc shaped markers on its legs and back.
Contact
Dr John Hutchinson
Royal Veterinary College
Tel: 01707 666 313
email: jrhutch@rvc.ac.uk
BBSRC Media Office
Matt Goode
Tel: 01793 413299
email: matt.goode@bbsrc.ac.uk
Tracey Jewitt
Tel 01793 414694
email: tracey.jewitt@bbsrc.ac.uk
Notes to Editors
This research story appears in the current issue of BBSRC Business. Business is the quarterly research highlights magazine of the UK's Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council.
The research involves studies with elephants that live at Colchester Zoo, Woburn Safari Park, West Midlands Safari Park and Whipsnade Wild Animal Park.
The RVC Structure and Motion Laboratory conducts research into the structure and function of the musculoskeletal system. This is done from the level of the single muscle fibre all the way up to a whole subject level, including the effects of health and disease on musculo-skeletal function. They are interested in a variety of biomechanical and physiological phenomena in biological systems. This is sometimes most effectively studied in humans and sometimes in animals that have evolved for a narrower range of athletic pursuits. Some of the work relates to musculo-skeletal function and control, while other work focuses on how this is affected by injury and repair of musculo-skeletal disease.
The laboratory aims towards achieving world-class research into comparative biomechanics and physiology, which can be used to further the body of knowledge regarding musculo-skeletal function.
About BBSRC
The Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) is the UK funding agency for research in the life sciences. Sponsored by Government, BBSRC annually invests around £350 million in a wide range of research that makes a significant contribution to the quality of life for UK citizens and supports a number of important industrial stakeholders including the agriculture, food, chemical, healthcare and pharmaceutical sectors. www.bbsrc.ac.uk
About the Royal Veterinary College
The Royal Veterinary College (RVC) is the UK's first and largest veterinary school and a constituent College of the University of London. It received the maximum score of 24 out of 24 in an assessment of teaching standards by the Quality Assurance Agency in February 2000. In 1999 it also became the first UK veterinary school to be accredited by the American Veterinary Medical Association.
The College is one of the leading veterinary research centres in Europe and received 5 out of 5 in the latest Research Assessment Exercise. It also provides support for the veterinary profession through its three referral hospitals, diagnostic services and continuing professional development courses.
The College is based on two main campuses, the Camden campus in London and the Hawkshead campus in Hertfordshire. www.rvc.ac.uk