Kosik
Encyclopedia
Kosik is a male Asian elephant
(Elephas maximus) in the Everland
theme park in Yongin
, South Korea, born 1990. He made headlines in September 2006 when it was discovered he could imitate the Korean words for "yes" (네), "no" (아니오), "sit" (앉아), "lie down" (누워), and four other words. He makes the sounds by putting his trunk in his mouth and shaking it while exhaling, similar to the way a human whistles with fingers in his or her mouth. Kwon Su-wan, director of the zoo
in Seoul
, said: "We plan to conduct further studies with keepers, veterinarians and scientists on whether Kosik understands the meaning of these words as he speaks them."
Like all cases of talking animals, claims are subject to the observer-expectancy effect
, which may be a meaningless form of mimicry and which are subject to fabrication for many reasons.
Asian Elephant
The Asian or Asiatic elephant is the only living species of the genus Elephas and distributed in Southeast Asia from India in the west to Borneo in the east. Three subspecies are recognized — Elephas maximus maximus from Sri Lanka, the Indian elephant or E. m. indicus from mainland Asia, and E. m....
(Elephas maximus) in the Everland
Everland
-External links:*...
theme park in Yongin
Yongin
Yongin is a major city in the Seoul National Capital Area, located in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea. With a population of nearly 1 million, the city has developed abrutly since the 21st century, recording the highest population growth of any city in the country. Yongin is home to Everland and...
, South Korea, born 1990. He made headlines in September 2006 when it was discovered he could imitate the Korean words for "yes" (네), "no" (아니오), "sit" (앉아), "lie down" (누워), and four other words. He makes the sounds by putting his trunk in his mouth and shaking it while exhaling, similar to the way a human whistles with fingers in his or her mouth. Kwon Su-wan, director of the zoo
Zoo
A zoological garden, zoological park, menagerie, or zoo is a facility in which animals are confined within enclosures, displayed to the public, and in which they may also be bred....
in Seoul
Seoul
Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...
, said: "We plan to conduct further studies with keepers, veterinarians and scientists on whether Kosik understands the meaning of these words as he speaks them."
Like all cases of talking animals, claims are subject to the observer-expectancy effect
Observer-expectancy effect
The observer-expectancy effect is a form of reactivity, in which a researcher's cognitive bias causes them to unconsciously influence the participants of an experiment...
, which may be a meaningless form of mimicry and which are subject to fabrication for many reasons.