The secret to an elephant's grace? Whiskers

So how do the thick-skinned animals with poor eyesight pull off such delicate tasks? In a word, whiskers. New research published Thursday in the journal Science details how the whiskers that cover an elephant's trunk have unique properties that lend the largest land mammals remarkable dexterity. Elephants are born with about 1,000 of these bristles, lead author Andrew Schulz told AFP, many of them anchored in the trunk's wrinkles to act like feelers and help the animals assess their surroundings.