Baby Elephants

 “The primary objective of Udawalawe Elephant Transit Home is to rehabilitate orphaned baby elephants and release them back into the wild.”

Visiting Udawalawee is poignant, and extremely thought provoking. 
This initiative was set up by the Sri Lanka government as a result of the growing 'human/elephant conflict'. 
With increasing populations, humans are encroaching more and more on the elephants' habitat for farmland, cattle grazing, gem mining, timber extraction, and last but not least the disturbing and illegal trafficking of wildlife. 
When villagers chase away wild herds to protect their crops and homes, a calf can get lost in the commotion. Babies get caught in traps, animal snares, abandoned wells or gem mines, and sadly sometimes their mothers are killed. Lone baby elephant calves cannot survive by themselves.

Here orphaned baby elephants are cared for until they are five years old and then returned back to the wild. That is the length of time that baby elephants feed from their mothers. These young elephants form little family groups of four or five, and the team at Udawalawee endeavour to return these little family groups back into the wild together. 

Every elephant receive 40 litres of milk each day - some enjoy drinking from a bucket or using the feeding tube, but the one above looks very happy to be getting his milk from a bottle.

They live in the jungle without boundaries, and come to the feeding station of their own free will, visiting four times a day. They walk in a steady procession within their small 'family' groups one after another. This happens at precisely 9.00am, noon, 3.00pm, and 6.00pm. Just how they know what time it is, I have no idea!!! We were seated and awaiting their arrival by 2.50pm and sure enough at 3.00pm on the dot the first little family group appeared. Woe betide feeding time being delayed or slow; the pathetic cries of baby elephants for their milk is something remarkable to hear. 

As they get near to the milk bar their excitement is tangible, they quicken their pace and then finally run the last few meters jostling for their place at the bar. When they have drunk their milk they then tuck into a pile of freshly cut sugar cane. This they cleverly twirl and twist around using both their feet and trunk in order wind it into a suitable size for eating.

This group have consumed their milk which they do very quickly, and are now grazing on the freshly cut sugar cane. Another little group can be seen beginning to arrive in the distance.

Visitors are kept in a seated, tiered, enclosure to prevent the elephants being disturbed. It is important to limit their exposure to humans because of them being returned to the wild, and it reduces the chances of them succumbing to infections.

On Safari in Kruger National Park

where shrubs have thorns resembling daggers, teeth are pointed and sharp, and claws can rip flesh wide open.

What a scary place for this petite adult Sharpe's Grysbok! - agile but very timid - his defence is to retreat into an aardvark burrow or similar when threatened. 

A Lion lying hidden in the undergrowth with his Lioness

However, little does he know that this younger, powerful, male has also appeared on the scene, and just a few metres away

  He looks around, takes in the scene, then lies down, and is completely hidden

Southern Ground Hornbills are typically seen marching along in small family parties probing the ground for insects. They are on the endangered list, but despite their terrestrial habits, are strong fliers.

This was a close encounter - an elephant charging towards me - a great photo opportunity whilst sitting in our open top jeep, fortunately our ever alert competent ranger moved off quickly.

On a far distant escarpment we spotted a solitary White Rhinoceros complete with his precious horn. South Africa is at the forefront of rhino conservation; some 75% of the world's surviving rhinos live within its borders. It is a continual battle protecting them from the poachers and the rangers latest weaponry is making use of drones.

 A keen eyed Vulture can soar on thermals for hours on end with a vision that is practically unmatched in the annimal kingdom

Yellow-billed Hornbill - nests in holes in the trees. During incubation the female plasters up the entrance to seal herself in; the male feeds her through a slit until the eggs are hatched. 

 During a break for lunch these keen eyed Cape Glossy Starlings were after our food.
We needed this lunchtime to relax a little as we had been up and on the go before daybreak.

The area is suffering a severe drought and is desperate for the rains to arrive. However, these Zebras, for example, don't look under nourished so there must still be plenty of nourishment in the vegetation even though it appears to be dry and parched.

Mum with her two young warthogs - in family groups they are a regular sight trotting briskly across the savannah with their long, thin tails held aloft.

Giraffes are the world's heaviest ruminants and the tallest land mammals which feed from the canopy. They can be found in groups of around 15 and a herd may be all male, all female, or mixed. This male appeared to be travelling alone, but suddenly we spotted a much smaller female following in his wake.

Kori Bustard - loosely related to cranes but more sturdily built. It is the world's heaviest flying bird, weighing up to 28lbs.

The African Buffalo is a powerful animal - they like to wallow in muddy water even more so than elephants or rhinos, and seldom stray more than a few miles from a reliable water source.  The birds that can just be made out on the tree behind the buffaloes are oxpeckers. They feed exclusively on the backs of large mammals eating the ticks and parasites. Sometimes large prides of lions attempt to prey on buffaloes but with very mixed success.

Saw several species of antelope, much revered by the San, the hunter gatherers who once inhabited South Africa - the antelope is the animal most commonly depicted on their ancient rock paintings.

Growing in Kruger Park I saw this wonderous

  Kigelia africana - sausage tree with its voluptuous red velvet flowers but also sausage like gourds up to a metre long.  As daylight falls it becomes a hive of activity when bats and night insects arrive to drink nectar from the flowers.

The sausage tree has been used by indigenous people and traditional African healers for hundreds of years to treat all manner of skin complaints from ulcers and sores to serious conditions such as leprosy and skin cancer. As well as anecdotal evidence from traditional use, there now exists a significant body of scientific research supporting its efficacy. 

The Mosaic

Roll up! Roll up!

a marching band played

the crowds cheered

as Chapman's Great London Circus arrived in Cheltenham town

photo from Cheltenham News
One Spring day in 1934 three elephants were being paraded through Cheltenham town to announce the arrival of the circus. On smelling some interesting aromas drifting across the road from Bloodworth's, a local seed merchants shop, one of the elephants decided to pay a visit, closely followed by the other two.

The first elephant gained entrance, but the second became stuck in the doorway, the third was quickly caught and restrained by his keeper. 
Imagine the surprise of the owner standing behind his shop counter and suddenly seeing this giant shape looming inside the premises. Not only that, but an elephant that was busily helping itself to his seed potatoes, dog biscuits, and other tasty morsels
 

Yum - delicious

The spectators watched with amazment and some alarm

but finally peace and order was restored

so the wind musicians played on

the drummer banged his drum

and the parade proceeded out of town

This series of mosaics in an alleyway off the High Street in Cheltenham depicts a glimpse of our social history from over 80 years ago. It shows the style of clothing worn, including that of the police, and importantly the use of wild animals in a way that most would consider unacceptable today.