When This Herd Abandoned A Baby Elephant, Help Came From An Unexpected Place

Traveling with backup

Many animals, like wild lions, wolves, giraffes and hyenas like to travel in packs. Stemming from their instinct for self-protection, animals know they are less vulnerable when they have strength in numbers.

Intimidating

Surprisingly, when it comes to elephants, travelling in a herd is more about their social needs and instincts. Adults can reach heights of 10 feet, and weigh over 6 tons, so they’re not vulnerable to many predators. While they may travel in packs, though, they don’t always stick together.

Pack mentality

Female elephants are more likely to travel closely together, along with their young. who stick together, along with their young. Once the males of the herd reach a certain age, they often wander from the group in search of females. The females lead the herd, creating a special bond between members of the elephant family.

Never By Choice

Just like human mothers, female elephants will never abandon their children by choice, but sometimes the unexpected nature of the wild leads to unlikely and often dangerous situations. That’s what happened to one young elephant in South Africa, who was abandoned by the rest of its pack. Defenceless and alone, it was left to fend for itself when something surprising occurred.

Cooling off

The pack found themselves by one of the surrounding area’s natural pools. Living under the harsh African sun, it’s imperative the large mammals stay well hydrated, so herds often gather around bodies of water. As well as water, these muddy pools allow the elephants to roll in the cooling mud which prevents them from overheating. It might seem like fun and games, but venturing into these pools can have dangerous consequences.

Stuck in the mud

When it came time for the herd to leave the area, one of the youngest elephants in the herd found themselves trapped in the mud. Several of the adults tried to push the calf out from the confines of the cement-like mud but to no avail. Would they have to leave one of their young behind?

Calling in reinforcements

The pack wasn’t about to leave the calf alone and defenceless. They called for reinforcements, and pretty soon the entirety of the herd had gathered to help the infant. Despite their best efforts, they could not help to release the calf.Little did they know, the calls they had made to attract the rest of the herd had attracted something else…

Here comes trouble

A jeep full of men started driving towards the wild animals. The car was circling the heard, trying to disband them, but the pack stood defiant. In other circumstances they would have abandoned the area for safety, but the herd would not leave one of their own behind.

Watching from afar

As the showdown between the elephants and the men in the jeep raged on, a crowd of curious tourists watched from afar. They had recognized that one of the herd was in danger, but chose to remain watchful from a safe distance.

Tough decision

As the men in the jeep continued to intimidate the animals, the younger ones soon began to flee the scene. As the other calves began to run away, the adults had a difficult decision to make. Do they disperse with the rest of their young or stay put and fend off the men while trying to aid their young troubled calf?

Left abandoned

Reluctantly, the pack hesitantly left the pool, leaving the calf alone and in despair. The terrified infant continued to struggle against the entrapping mud.  All the while, the men in the jeep soon pulled up to the side of the pool. The question was, were these men’s intentions good or bad?

Here to help

Fortunately for the trapped calf, the men meant no harm. They were rangers who worked at the Elephant Park. They had responded the the pack’s distress calls and had arrived to access the situation. They had intended to scare the rest of the herd off, in order to ensure they could safely approach the calf. One of the men jumped into the muddy pool and and attempted to lift the animal up, but it was simply too heavy.

Try everything

Next, they tried using a rope to get the animal out of its predicament. They tied it to the calf’s back legs and pulled, but again the attempt was unsuccessful. Even as an infant, the small elephant was still too heavy to easily manoeuvre. Just when the rangers were beginning to lose hope, the elephant showed signs of breaking free of the mud’s hold. Within mere minutes, the calf was out of the mud.

Trapped again

The calf was now free but the rangers were committed to ensuring it was safely reunited with the rest of the herd. They all agreed the young calf could not fend for itself alone. The rangers decided to bring the young elephant back to he facility with them until its pack made a reappearance. The men tied the still terrified calf to a tree, making sure it could not escape.

Lashing Out

After having just escaped the trauma of the mud, the elephant was not a fan of being trapped yet again. So used to the freedom of the wild, the calf soon began to cry out in terror. Something had to be done soon.

Feeling lonely

Eventually, the calf managed to calm down. Still wary of its human rescuers, the animal was still under a lot of undue stress. The rangers became worried about the elephant’s wellbeing – it needed to return to its pack soon or the consequences could be dire.

Calling a truce

The rangers provided the calf with some water, hoping it would alleviate the animal’s worry. The animal had been trapped in the mud for hours under the relentless sun. After being offered a bowl of fresh water, the animal’s reaction was immediate.

New friends

As soon as the elephant was rehydrated, it became calm and less agitated. After their act of kindness, the calf was slowly becoming more trusting of the human rangers. Luckily, the situation was suddenly looking a lot less desperate.

A quick wash

While the humans were less concerned about the animal’s current condition, the rangers knew the calf would never survive in the wild without the protection and nurturing of its fellow herd members. They desperately needed to reunite the calf with its pack.

A familiar sound

Just when the rangers were starting to lose hope, they heard a distinctive call from a great distance. The young elephant reacted to the call instantly – it could hear the distant sounds of its pack. The family was on its way to rescue its young. The herd had returned to claim the helpless calf.

Getting a tip-off

The tourists who had been watching the scene unfold alerted the rangers; the pack had returned to the natural pool in search of the infant. The rangers soon released the calf from the the tree and carefully led it back to the pools where its family was anxiously awaiting its return.

Reunited

As they neared the location specified by the tourists, both the rangers and the calf were overjoyed to find the herd waiting. The young elephant rushed towards its family. Amidst the many dangers and fears of the African wild, luckily, this story had a happy ending.