The Perfect Parents…

Elephants are amazing parents. In my experience, protecting their young is always their priority.

This picture shows one of the moments when this behavior became obvious. A Thanda Safari herd strolled down an open road at a very fast pace, spread out quite a bit. However, the moment they spotted my vehicle in the distance, they immediately bunched up and placed all their youngsters between them for protection.

Just after I took this picture, I moved out of the way. They then continued their tight formation walk until they disappeared into the surrounding trees.

Another fun fact: When Elephants stop to evaluate a situation they often shake their heads rather violently once they appear to have made up their mind what to do next. I have observed this behavior on many occasions.

Technical data (First): Canon R6 with RF lens f4-6.3/24-240mm | ISO 200 | 1/750sec | f6.3 | ev+0 | 190mm | WB 6500K | AV Mode | Crop to 20% of original image

Technical data (Second): Canon R6 with RF lens f4-6.3/24-240mm | ISO 160 | 1/500sec | f6.3 | ev-0.50 | 190mm | WB 6500K | AV Mode | Crop to 10% of original image

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