When an elephant cow emerged from the bush, she brought with her a delightful surprise. While Mom went about her business, it was clear the calf had only one thing on its mind.
Graeme Mitchley submitted this adorable footage to Latest Sightings. He filmed it while on a game drive in South Africa’s Kruger National Park.
Oversized pedestrian
We join Graeme on his game drive as he stops to let an oversized pedestrian cross the road. Emerging from the dry winter bush, a female elephant makes her way onto the gravel road.
In Kruger, wildlife always has the right of way. After all, you never know what might follow.
Introducing Junior
Subsequently, as she pauses on the road, her calf joins her. It’s almost as if she is introducing it to the observers. Judging by its size, the calf is only a few days old.
African elephants have the longest gestation period of all land mammals. Their pregnancies last 22 months, due to their size, complex brains, and unique hormonal systems.
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Following blindly
However, Mom doesn’t wait around long. As Junior follows, she goes for a quick browse.
To support her massive bulk, she must eat around 120 kilograms of vegetation per day. At this stage, however, her calf is still entirely dependent on her for milk.
In an almost comical moment, Junior walks straight into Mom’s hind legs. At birth, a calf’s eyesight is very poor, and it relies on other senses to navigate.
Interestingly, you can roughly gauge a calf’s age by its height relative to Mum’s belly. Calves less than two years old can easily pass underneath.
Milk dependent
As the calf makes its way around to Mom’s front end, it appears to be asking for something.
As Graeme zooms in, we see the calf open its little mouth. There are no prizes for realising the calf wants to feed.
Calves typically suckle for 2-4 years. Mom will stop nursing an older calf if she gives birth to another calf.
Must have milk
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Subsequently, we see the calf searching for Mom’s teats. They are located between her front legs.
However, it’s plain to see the calf hasn’t quite worked that out yet. Meanwhile, Mom kicks the ground, gathering dust for her ablutions.
Calves suckle directly into their mouths. At this age, the calf has not yet mastered its trunk.
Important rituals
As the calf continues its search, Mom throws dust on her body. Dust bathing is an important ritual that serves to cool her and deter parasites.
As elephants don’t sweat, they also cool down by fanning their large ears, swimming, and mud bathing.
Meanwhile, the calf continues looking for a meal. However, we do note that Mom’s breasts are not heavy with milk.
Hopefully, she was able to replenish it quickly. With a long life ahead of it, this calf needs all the sustenance she can provide.
