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they flap them and then they have a nice breeze because they are so big=)

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The tissue in a elephant's ears is very thin with large blood vessels right at the surface. When an elephant is too warm, their overheated blood travels through the large vessels in the ear.

By flapping their ears, the surface area cools a bit and excess heat from the blood is released into the air. In this way, the blood is cooled down and then recirculated into the elephants body, helping keep their body temperature down. This cooling strategy is aided by the size of the ears and the speed at which an elephant moves it ears.

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How does an elephant use its ears to keep cool?

Elephants have large, thin ears with a network of blood vessels. To cool down, they flap their ears, causing air to flow over the vessels and help regulate their body temperature. This process cools the blood circulating through their ears before being sent back to the rest of the body.


How does an elephant use its ears keep cool?

The elephant uses his ears to cool his body in two ways. The actual movement of the ear produces small relief, but the excess surface area allows the blood to cool before returning to the major organs.


How does the elephant use its huge ears to keep cool?

The ears of the elephant has a great number of blood vessels that run through it. When the elephant flaps its ears, the blood that is passing through its ears get cooled and eventually the body temperature of the animal gets regulated. Since elephants in Africa live in the hot savannah, they have large ears that help the animal keep itself cool.


How dose an elephant use its huge ears to keep cool?

Elephants use their large ears to regulate their body temperature through a process called thermoregulation. They flap their ears to dissipate excess heat and cool themselves down. The large surface area of their ears helps in releasing heat from the blood vessels in the ears, which cools the body.


How does an elephant use it's huge ears to keep cool?

Elephant ears have a very large surface area to volume ratio - with blood vessels spread out throughout. This means that the blood vessels are close to the surface, allowing for heat to radiate out. Elephants can also use their ears to fan themselves with - they are large so create a nice breeze.