Come on in, the Mud’s Fine… Plus a Dramatic Rescue Effort by Elephants in Chobe National Park: On Safari (Part 1)

/ Curt Mekemson
This baby elephant had just wrapped up a mud bath in Chobe National Park, Botswana. It was about to become part of a dramatic rescue effort.

Today, I am starting my series of posts on Peggy and my recent safari to Botswana, Zimbabwe, and South Africa. It was an incredible adventure, one of our best ever. We owe a large vote of thanks to Peggy’s brother John and his wife Frances for asking us if we would like to join them on the Collette Travel Agency organized trip. Along the way, we visited four national parks, Victoria Falls and Cape Town— staying in accommodations that ranged from a safari lodge, to a tent camp, to a house boat, and comfortable hotels.

Peggy, Frances, John and I with an elephant backdrop on safari in Chobe National Park, Botswana. We were in an open-sided river boat on the Chobe River that provided great views of the wildlife. Since elephants are my subject for the next three posts, I decided repost this photo I used in my last blog.

As for the wildlife we saw? It was incredible! That’s the only way I can think to describe it. In addition to seeing a great variety, we watched them going about their daily business of eating, sleeping, fighting, breeding and even pooping. (Elephants do a lot and hippos whirl their tails like a fan when going. It’s best not get caught in the splatter zone.) What we hadn’t expected to see was the colorful birdlife. It was a plus. Our guides also went out of their way to introduce us to local African culture, which I appreciated a lot, given my service as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Africa.

While we weren’t on a photographic safari, per se, we took a few. Make that 5,000. Grin. We will share some of the best. Exploring in open safari vehicles and boats, plus a “walking safari” provided excellent opportunities for both observation and photography. Our approach will be to feature one animal per blog for the major animals and then move to combined posts for the the birds and animals we saw fewer of.

I’m starting today with elephants. I was going to do two posts on these large, intelligent, family oriented animals but decided on three after I noted a rescue effort by family members when I was reviewing our photos of elephants enjoying a mud bath in Chobe National Park. It reflects an important aspect of how elephants care for one another.

But first, let me begin by noting that elephants take lots of baths, both by cavorting in mud and spraying water (and muddy water!) on themselves. Getting clean isn’t the objective, obviously. With minimal hair and few sweat glands, keeping cool in the hot African sun isn’t easy. The mud baths provide an opportunity to cool down, but they also serve as sunblock, and, to a degree, insect repellent. Elephants can get sunburned. And what blood sucking bug wants a mouthful of mud?

Many of the elephants we saw had mud caked on their wrinkly skin like this one in Matusadona National Park, Zimbabwe.
This family of elephants had been grazing on an island in the Chobe River and then crossed over to the shore through the river. Along the way, they had washed off much of their mud. It was time for another mud bath.
The bath was located conveniently on their way back into the trees where they would feed on leaves, even if they had to knock over trees to get them. Mom, and the baby shown at the beginning of the post, seem to be having a grand time.
Not all was well, with the family, however. One was down and obviously having problems, possibly with a rock embedded in her foot. A concerted rescue effort was about to take place.
Members of the family were able to persuade her to stand up and worked out a plan. What happened next was dramatic, to say the least.
At first I thought that all of the elephants had crowded together to share the mud hole. Now I am convinced that they joined together to help push the young female out of the hole. Even the calf was lending a shoulder. The young male on the right may have been offering a trunk for support.
The adults, having achieved their objective of starting the injured elephant on her way, moved on. The two younger elephants continued to provide support.
But then, she fell again, despite their boost…
And ended up back in the hole. The youngsters switched locations to encourage her to get up again.
And put their whole bodies into the effort.
They succeeded and she began crawling out on her own. It wasn’t easy.
Note how she is using her trunk for leverage and balance, pulling it toward her and making the dust fly. I’ll write more about this marvelous appendage in my next two posts.
Between pulling with her front legs and pushing with her hind legs while using her trunk for balance, she inched toward success. The other elephants moving on likely provided incentive.
Finally, she made it! Ears flapping she rushed off to catch up with her family.

Searching on the net, I found where moms help their babies out when they are stuck in mud holes. I also read that when an adult went down, possibly because of old age, the other elephants gather around and help it stand, leaning in to provide support. Such behavior suggests the caring, empathetic nature of elephants. My post today provides a unique example, particularly the role played by the younger elephants.

I’ll conclude today by providing an example of another mud bath, this time traveling into Hwange National Park in Zimbabwe. Several artificial water holes have been established in the park to provide wildlife with water in dry season. It also serves to spread the animals out to reduce overgrazing. Peggy and I took these photos from an observation tower that had been set up beside one of the water holes.

One elephant left its bath while another remained, seeming to play submarine and blow bubbles. Actually, it was using its trunk and possibly its tusks and feet to stir up mud for its mud bath.
Having stirred up enough, the elephant surfaced. We were amused by the secretary bird who seemed shocked to see this ‘dark creature rising from the black lagoon.’
It seemed to offer a salute. Maybe it was scratching its head…
And who knows what it was up to with this pose. The photo-bombing secretary bird didn’t seem impressed.
It finished off its bath by spraying itself with muddy water it had sucked into its trunk. I’ll leave you with the vision. In our next post, we’ll continue to explore the fascinating world of elephants, plus visit an elephant graveyard.

50 thoughts on “Come on in, the Mud’s Fine… Plus a Dramatic Rescue Effort by Elephants in Chobe National Park: On Safari (Part 1)”

    • 😳Indeed you were. Interesting that I wasn’t aware of a rescue effort until I was going through my photos afterward. Fortunately, as usual, whatever was happening seemed interesting, so I just kept taking pictures, which enabled me to piece the story together. Hopefully, I got it right. Thanks John.

      Reply

  9. I’ve always known that elephants are capable of love, caring, and empathy, Curt. What great photos and what an amazing rescue. I was particularly impressed with the determination of the little ones. So sweet. And lots of mud! I’m glad you had an incredible trip and I’m looking forward to more posts!

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  11. just a few photos hahahah Curt.. 5,000 wow. I can see how and why. The first pic looks just like a statue and I thought it was at first. So endearing the way they help each other and getting out of that watering hole was something else. I wish I could embrace my wrinkles like they do.. lol. Fascinating the internal instinct of rolling in mud that helps survival. Makes me want to go!!!!💕

    Reply

    • Elephants are amazing creatures, Cindy, and the more I learn about them, the more amazing they seem. The rescue effort was as impressive as any similar human effort would be. Instinct and learned knowledge, I think, that is passed down through the generations. And by all means, go! 🙂 I have a couple more posts coming up on elephants. The next will be on Monday. Thanks. –Curt

      Reply

      • They really seem to be. My daughter has always had a fascination with them. I love the instinct of survival and support of each other. I’ll be looking for them. Happy weekend❤️

  12. What a fantastic post and beginning of this series, Curt. I love elephants, and what a perfect photo with the ‘elephant backdrop.’ I didn’t know they could get sunburned, so that’s interesting about how the mud baths prevent this, along with keeping them cool. Looking at the rescue effort photos and reading your narrative gave me chills. I’ve read some non-fiction books on elephants, so I know how family oriented they are. But to ‘watch’ this rescue is so heartwarming. The babies are adorable too. I wish I could experience something like this, but glad you both had such an amazing adventure. I can’t wait to see more of these incredible creatures.

    Reply

    • First, thanks Lauren. The trip was magical in so many ways. Here’s another fact on the sunburn issue we didn’t get to witness. When a baby is first born, its skin is even more sensitive. The adult females form a circle around the baby and kick dirt on it to protect it from sunburn.
      I have two more posts on elephants coming up before moving on to the animals. Monday will be on the elephant’s trunk, an absolutely incredible appendage! 🙂

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  13. Elephants have bigger brains than humans do, so it’s not surprising they have a well-developed social structure. I can just see them at the next mudhole, where the rescued elephant toasts her compatriots with a blast of water: “here’s mud in your eye!”

    As for the hippo, I’ve heard they’re dangerous. But I didn’t know it was because when you encounter them, the sh*t could hit the fan.

    Sounds like an awesome trip. And you’re just getting started!

    Reply

    • Laughing, Dave. They even have an extra eyelid to deal with the ‘mud in the eye.’ Blast away!

      I saw a hippo in a zoo once that had a warning notice up about staying clear. Probably worked better than staying clear because hippos are dangerous.

      I video taped the whirling tail poop flying on Lake Kariba, Zimbabwe. It’s real!

      And yes, the trip was awesome! Worth many posts. Grin.

      Reply

  15. The elephants are magnificent, the baby elephants are cute, the photos are impressive and appealing, but you know what tickled me most? Your comment about it being “interesting that I wasn’t aware of a rescue effort until I was going through my photos afterward.” That often happens for me with insects and such, but it just made me laugh to know that even big subjects sometimes have to be studied ‘after the fact’ for their significance to be revealed. You’re right that digital cameras have made 5,000 photos possible — and of course 5,000 photos also provide a nice, in-house activity for winter. Sort away!

    Reply

    • The noticing after-the-fact happened several times in our African photos, Linda. I don’t think anyone in our group noticed what was happening with the elephants. They were too far away. My new camera with its 1000 mm equivalent lens made all of the difference. Once I figured out what had happened it was easy to go in and find other related photos. As for the 5000 photos, I’ve already been through and organizing them by animal for the blog. It has been a busy month since we returned. Grin. Glad you enjoyed the photos. Thanks. Elephant trunks will be up tomorrow.

      Reply

  16. Dave’s comment was funny. :o) I am so fascinated with the rescue story and so glad you were able to capture so much of it in photos. I, too, have discovered things when looking at photos later, but I am pretty sure I’ve never captured a whole story through a series of shots, as you have here, and it’s just wonderful. As others mentioned, I am touched by the role of the whole family and how the example set by the adults works so well on the juveniles.

    Reply

    • I looked through lots of photos on the net of elephants helping other elephants, Crystal, and never saw one of the kids pitching in the way they did. It was really special and I’m ever so glad I caught it, even after the fact!
      I started out with thoughts of doing one post on the elephants, I am now working on number three. I assume that you, Pedro and respective families are well along in Holiday preparations. The very best to all of you!

      Reply

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