Kosik
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Kosik (Korean: 코식; pronounced Ko-shik) 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," "no," "sit," "lie down," 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."
[edit] References
- "Random Samples" (October 6, 2006). Science 314 (5796): 29. doi:. ISSN 0036-8075.
- Associated Press Article
- TV program about Kosik at YouTube (Korean)
- Kosik speaks at Google Video (Korean)
