It is well known that elephants love water. Savanna elephants typically drink twice daily, and often take a dip to cool themselves and shed parasites.
Sarah Britten sent Latest Sightings this footage of an elephant swimming with a raft of hippos. She filmed it in South Africa’s Timbavati Nature Reserve.
A tranquil scene
Sarah’s video opens with a tranquil scene. The still waters of a waterhole reflect a bank of clouds pierced by the setting sun.
Then her camera zooms in on a lone elephant bull approaching the water. After a long, hot day, it is no doubt looking forward to cooling off.
Consequently, the elephant enters the water, all but submerging itself. One can easily imagine the relief it feels as its body cools and it is relieved of the weight of its 6-ton body.
Despite their massive bulk, elephants are competent swimmers, known to cross deep rivers when necessary.
Here be hippos
As the bull makes his way across the waterhole, we see that there is a raft of hippos ahead. Hippos typically spend the daylight hours in water, emerging at dusk to feed.
Hippos are highly territorial and occasionally drive other animals from the water. But how will they react to the approaching bull?
Harry-casual hippos
Without hesitation, the bull wades right up to the hippos. Despite, or perhaps because of his imposing bulk, they ignore him
Considering how frequently elephants like to bathe, the bull’s presence is nothing new to them. However, it does look like the elephant is trying to get a response from them. What that might be is anyone’s guess.
Threat gesture?
However, when the bull submerges his head, one of the hippos (presumably the dominant bull) opens his mouth wide.
This is a typical threat gesture hippos make to warn off intruders.
Built-in snorkel
As the elephant resurfaces, we see the tip of its trunk emerge. As you’d expect, elephants use their trunks as a snorkel when swimming.
An elephant’s trunk is a fusion of its nose and upper lip. Comprising around 50,000 muscles, elephants use them to feed, to comfort one another, and as a weapon.
Please notice me
Having tried and failed to interact with the hippos, the bull ups the ante by thrashing around in the water. Still, the hippos ignore him.
With elephants being among the few creatures larger than a hippo, perhaps their disdain stems from jealousy. Regardless, the bull then seems to tire of their indifference and makes to leave the scene.
Subsequently, he appears to have second thoughts. Rounding once more on the hassle-free hippos, he once again thrashes the water.
Get our Best Sightings as they Come in
I’ve got better things to do
And once again, they ignore him. Finally, having found no hint of companionship, the bull leaves the water.
Once he is on the bank, he stops to feed on some juicy grass at the water’s edge. Now thoroughly cooled, he needs to continue his near-relentless consumption of plant matter.
As the video concludes, peace is restored at the waterhole. Such is life in the African bush.