African Elephants at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park instinctively created an “alert circle” during the earthquake.

The action was caught on camera, as seen below. The San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance says elephants circle to protect the young and the entire herd from threats.

“Elephants have the ability to feel sound through their feet,” The SDZWA said. “This video demonstrates the strong social family structure in elephant herds.”

The herd consists of Ndlula, Umngani, Khosi, and youngsters Zuli and Mkhaya, who went back to normal after about 4 minutes, though they did stay close to one another, the zoo said.

A herd of elephants at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park jumped into action to protect their young after a magnitude 5.2 earthquake struck the region.

The earthquake struck San Diego County with an epicenter near Julian at about 10:10 a.m. Monday. The temblor was felt from Los Angeles to Tijuana, Mexico and was followed by several aftershocks.

Follow NBC 7’s live blog for updates on the earthquake.