An elephant’s trunk is a fascinating and unusual appendage. However, as this footage shows, it doesn’t come with an instruction manual.
Hannes Van Rensburg submitted this delightful video to Latest Sightings. He filmed it on the S82 Mativuhlungu Road in South Africa’s Kruger National Park.
Watch the video here:
Never Miss A Viral Safari Video
Fascinating moments, like this elephant calf’s trunk tutorial, are popular with our members. To be among the first to see our latest sighting videos, join our exclusive alert list. Click the button below to join the WhatsApp chat right now, and never miss another thrilling moment.
Amusing himself
Hannes was watching a herd of elephants when his attention was drawn to the antics of a tiny male calf.
The youngster in question appeared to be less than a year old, easily able to pass under its mother’s belly. Still dependent on its mother’s milk, the calf entertained itself while the family fed.
The trouble with trunks
As Hannes filmed, the calf sank to his knees, seemingly rubbing his trunk on the ground.
Elephant calves usually start learning how to use their trunks at 4-6 months. With about 100,000 muscles and tendons, it takes roughly two years to master, and there is no instruction manual.
Trunk tutorial
As the calf stood up, it became apparent that it was trying to do just that. In the image below, you’ll note that there is a pebble at the tip of his trunk.
The tip of an African elephant’s trunk has two fingerlike projections that can be used to pick up small objects. As Hannes watched, he noticed that the calf was trying to use these to pick up the pebble.
Eventually, it managed to do so. Then, mimicking the actions of adults, he curled his trunk towards his mouth.
Tricky transfer
However, he seemed to have difficulty guiding his trunk tip to his mouth, even using his leg to help.
Unfortunately, he dropped the stone before he could coordinate the movement.
Get our Best Sightings as they Come in
Undeterred
As if realising the importance of learning this skill, the calf was undeterred.
Consequently, he quickly selected another stone…
… Carefully wrapped his trunk around it…
Before standing and again trying to guide it towards his mouth. Once again, the stone fell to the ground, but the plucky calf was not about to quit.
Third time lucky?
Showing remarkable patience, he selected another stone. Notably, this time he didn’t go to his knees.
Next, he used his foot to help position it before delicately picking it up with the tip of his trunk.
Carefully, he curled his trunk towards his mouth, only for the stone to roll out, getting caught in the folds of his trunk.
Once again, he raised his leg, as if struggling to coordinate the final steps of the movement.
And this time… it worked! With patience and lots of practice, the conscientious calf had learnt one of many uses of his amazing trunk.
As the herd prepared to move on, the calf sucked on the tip of his trunk, comforting and congratulating himself on a job well done.