There have been numerous reports relating to strange animal behaviour before the occurrence, providing further evidence for the existence of some sort of "sixth sense" some animals may possess.
To give just one such report, wildlife officials in Sri Lanka expressed their surprise, when they found no evidence at all of large scale animal deaths from the Indian Ocean tsunami, indicating that animals may have sensed the wave approaching and fled to higher ground.
An Associated Press photographer who flew over Sri Lanka's Yala National Park in a helicopter saw wildlife, abundant and in great numbers; elephants, buffalo, deer and many other species were sighted, and not a single animal corpse.
Despite the fact that floodwaters from the tsunami swept into the park, causing serious damage, such as the uprooting of trees, the animals remained, apparently, unharmed and may have sought out to higher ground.
Recent scientific tests and experiments, on animals such as rodents, have indicated that some animals may have some sort of "sixth sense", that allows them to detect earthquakes.
It is indisputable that animals do possess certain mechanisms by which they are able to avoid predators, or locate prey (depending on the animal species). It is thought that these sense mechanisms might also help them to "sense" earthquakes, and other disasters.
There are 2 theories explaining why animals may be able to detect earthquakes: the first is that they are able to detect the Earh's vibrations, and the second is that they can detect changes in the air or gases released by the Earth.
One explanation for the mystery at Yala National Park (see above) is that the animals may have moved to higher ground to avoid the huge waves and flooding that ocnocurred, on detection of the earthquake.
But some researchers are sceptical; to this day there has been no conclusive evidence as to how animals may be able to detect earthquakes, and whether or not they possess such a "sixth sense" still remains open.
Despite several documented cases of unusual animal behaviour prior to earthquakes, no connection between a specific behavioural aspect and the occurence of an earthquake has yet been made.
However, there is still universal agreement amongst scientists that it is possible that animals are able to detect environmental changes before humans.
Further research continues around the world, in the hope of establishing whether there is a substantial link between animal behaviour and earthquakes (and, perhaps, other natural events). It is hoped that such studies will help to aid future earthquake predictions.
