Dawn produced a new trampling of elephant tracks heading east from the airstrip. It wasn’t long and I’d caught up with them. It was Toothpick and others, a herd of about 15 elephant.
There’d been some rain in the early hours and the elephant were loving dusting themselves with the moist red soils.
After being with them about an hour a young female had a sense of humour collapse and wanted to take it out on me. Well not really, but she made a big fuss of it, charging at the car and then trashing any bush next to her. Then running off and coming back from another angle trashing the next bush. And each time I moved she came again screaming and trashing bushes. A couple of other youngsters joined her and I was treated to this symphony of screaming elephants trashing bushes.
And as quickly as it started, it stopped and they were feeding only meters away.
I left the herd and followed up on reports of many elephant at Bandama.
The herds I had there yesterday were back and Spud was dominating the clean water coming in to the pan. He was boss here for about half an hour. Having quenched his thirst he moved into the pan for some relief from the hormones driving him insane. He’s in full musth and not comfortable with himself. Anything to relieve his state of discomfort.
He left he herds and headed west on his own.
I left the elephant and back to camp to get the blog up this afternoon as tonight we start our night shift again.
There was still plenty of cloud around at dawn following the rains, but they provided just the perfect gap at dawn letting through the most lovely light against the dark background of the skies.
The elephants are really back!
Heading east at dawn there were elephant tracks smothering just about every track we travelled on, all heading east.
At the pan north east of Chivi we waited hoping the herds would shortly arrive there. But it wasn’t long and we heard branches breaking to the south and that’s pretty rough mopanie country in there, which meant I was keen to wait for them to arrive at the pan.
But something told me “a bird in the hand is better than 2 in the bush.”
So we ploughed our way through the mopanie stopping to listen occasionally until we found the elephant.
It was a big herd and all were feeding in the mopanie. We spent hours with them as they slowly fed all around us. At one time we must have been surrounded by about 40 elephant. Some were only meters away.
Mandlovu was pulling branches from the very tree giving us shade, while I was filming a youngster lying down playing with his trunk with others feeding on trees all around the vehicle. Then the car rocked and from behind a young bull was pushing us. It was just a nudge really and seemingly happy with himself he moved off.
We were with the elephant for hours and around midday the herds headed south east. Bandama was in their sights. We stayed with the herd all the time, just be sure they didn’t change their minds on course and only the last 500m did we race ahead to the pan.
In position on the southern side of the pan, we were greeted by the most spectacular sight, probably one of my best ever, as some 80 elephant moving in single file came pouring out the mopanie woodland to surround Bandama pan and move right through it splashing and wallowing on their way. I don’t know what it is but seeing all these beasts on the move together like this just has the amazing awe about it!
Following up behind them was the small family group with their 3 tiny calves and these little guys were quick to take to the water for a fun time, knowing mom would shortly be moving them on again.
Just another WOW day with the elephants of Malilangwe!
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