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by anguilla on January 2nd, 2009
They aren't.
"At one time many people thought elephants were afraid of mice. It was believed the reason for this fear was that the mouse might get into the end of the elephant’s trunk. The idea was that the mouse might scratch the lining of the trunk or plug up the trunk so the elephant could not breathe.
It is now known that none of these beliefs are true. In zoos, mice have been seen running about very near the tip of an elephant’s trunk, and the elephant did not pay any attention to them.
Elephants have a very keen sense of smell, and they depend on this to warn them of danger. They may not be able to see mice on the floor, but they certainly can smell them as the mice scamper about near the tips of their trunks.
The hole at the end of an elephant’s trunk would be a strange hole for a mouse. I do not believe a mouse would run into this strange hole without looking in first. By the time the mouse could have looked into the end of the trunk, the elephant would have smelled it. The elephant could then “snort” and blow out a little air, which should keep the mouse out of the trunk."
SOURCE: http://www.highlightskidsplus.com/Science/ScienceQuestions/h1sciQelephantsMice.asp
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