When I was fortunate enough to spend some time in the field in Northern Kenya with elephant expert Iain Douglas-Hamilton, founder of Save The Elephants, I noticed that individuals in a herd of elephants seemed to be less socially bonded with one another. They were walking with their heads and trunks down and seemed to be lost, aimlessly wandering here and there. I asked Iain why this was happening and he explained that the matriarch of the group, the oldest female and most important individual, had recently died. Other elephants just down the road in an intact herd with the matriarch present were walking around, heads and trunks up, and playing. They also were clearly closely bonded with one another. 

It's long been known that matriarchs are the 'social glue' who hold elephant groups together. They have a wealth of knowledge about social relationships and travel routes, for example. Now we've just learned that matriarchs more than 60 years of age assess threats from lions more accurately than do younger matriarchs (see also). In response to lion roars that were broadcasted over a loud speaker, groups with matriarchs over 60 more easily determined if a lion's roar was from a male or female and also organized themselves more quickly as a response to the roar. Age trumps beauty for the survival of elephants.