The biology of an elephant in a crowd
An adult Asian elephant has a core body temperature of around 35.9°C and almost no sweat glands across most of its body. It dissipates heat primarily through its ears, a network of large blood vessels that radiate warmth when flapped, and through mud or water applied to the skin. Strip away the mud bath, pack the animal into a dense human crowd under direct sun for three to six hours, and you have created the conditions for hyperthermia before the procession has even reached its halfway point.
