After 25 years as a wildlife photographer, and having always wished to see and photograph a wild elephant birth, my dream finally came true whilst on a safari in Botswana with Stoney & Jan Edwards and their son Tom last December. The poignant moment was made so much more exciting by the fact that we had great light for photography, the elephant chose to drop her baby right in front of us in open country, and the herd interactions and excitement were so moving. It started after we'd had a great morning at Mombo Camp, watching lions, buffalo, leopard and then rhino - four of the Big Five - and then we found a herd of elephants feeding on the floodplains. Big Five in one game drive - amazing. After watching the herd for a while we were about to move off when I noticed one cow acting a bit strangely. I asked our driver to stop and wait a while and quickly discerned she was about to go into labour.
The cow first lay down then stood up again, moving quite awkwardly. I noticed a bulge on her flanks, quite high up, but then noticed her rear was swollen. I was almost too scared to say anything, but murmured to my guests - I think she's going to have a baby! At this stage most of the herd was feeding unconcernedly nearby, though one or two younger cow had moved closer. They may have been her daughters. The cow then rumbled a bit, and let out a brief trumpet. The next thing she had turned her back towards us and I could see the beginnings of the amniotic sac protruding from her birth canal. How co-operative and convenient of her to make sure we could see everything!
The actual delivery was very fast - a few seconds and the calf was lying kicking to free itself from the sac on the ground. The mother initially moved away, rumbling excitedly...and the rest of the herd responded immediately, rumbling, trumpeting and rushing to the scene.
The actual delivery was very fast - a few seconds and the calf was lying kicking to free itself from the sac on the ground. The mother initially moved away, rumbling excitedly...and the rest of the herd responded immediately, rumbling, trumpeting and rushing to the scene.
That was when proceedings really became fascinating. I knew of course that elephants are sentient beings and have a great understanding of life and death, much like we humans do. But the way the herd gathered around and formed a protective screen, then started "digging" at the ground with their forefeet to create what I termed a "birthing pit" or perhaps a soft cradle-like sandpit where the calf would find it easier to stand for the first time, and have a soft landing every time it stumbled and fell. Whatever, there was a seemingly conscious decision by all of them to create this soft sand-pit.
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