Asian elephants play a key role in shaping their environment, creating small water-filled pools in their deep, muddy footprints that provide essential breeding grounds for local frog species, according to researchers.
Experts from the Wildlife Conservation Society in Myanmar found that these rain-filled footprints, left in the mud by elephants, can last up to a year and serve as safe havens for tadpoles, particularly during the dry season.
The study in the Tamanthi Wildlife Sanctuary identified 20 water-filled elephant tracks containing frog eggs and larvae.
As elephants travel through seasonal wetlands, their large size and weight create deep imprints in the mud.
These footprints, in turn, hold water and offer a critical source of moisture during the long dry season, which stretches from October to May, when most wetlands dry up. Frogs use these small ponds to lay their eggs, allowing the tadpoles to develop safely.
Lead researcher Steven Platt highlighted the important but often overlooked role Asian elephants play as “ecosystem engineers.”
He explained that elephants modify vegetation by knocking down trees, dispersing seeds, and creating temporary habitats, such as water-filled footprints and dung piles, that provide shelter and resources for various species.
The study revealed several benefits of these elephant-made pools for breeding frogs. The tracks provide much-needed nesting sites when other water sources are scarce, they are free from predators like small fish that might eat frog eggs, and they often remain filled with water due to groundwater seepage, allowing tadpoles to develop into frogs fully.
These water-filled footprints may also serve as “stepping stones,” connecting different frog populations across the landscape.
By shaping their environment in ways that extend beyond vegetation, elephants help support biodiversity in the regions they inhabit, showing their vital role in maintaining the balance of ecosystems.
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