Kenya, A Shades of Gray Safari
Part One, Elephants of Amboseli
This photo safari focused on the 2 largest land mammals in the world, elephants & rhinos; both being “shades of gray”.
This safari, led by world famous wildlife photographer Marsel van Oosten and his videographer wife Daniella Sibbing of https://www.squiver.com, provided the most exceptional ground level photographic opportunities imaginable for elephants and rhinos.
Elephants have complex social structures
Adult females are supreme in this matriarchal society. Herds are comprised of related females and their offspring. Young males leave the herd as “teenagers”, usually at the age of 12-15 yrs. They then roam independently or in bachelor herds as they mature and search for mating opportunities.
A tight knit family group on the move. Elephants may have the best sense of smell in the animal kingdom. Here a young elephant sniffs the air to pick up our scent. It is believed that elephants can sniff out water from 10+ miles away.
Elephants cross a dry lake bed in Amboseli
Several small elephant families trek across the dry lake bed in beautiful early morning light
Elephants may walk up to 30 miles a day in search of food and water
Elephants often travel single file with the young elephants protected and wedged between older, larger elephants
The most heart pounding wildlife experience of my life occurred with this bull in musth
Musth is a hormonal cycle of male elephants characterized by increased aggression and sexual behavior. This elephant took a particular interest in me as I crouched low next to the safari vehicle.
The approach
Ears flared, looking down and walking straight towards me
He paces in front of me, turns and bluff charges while coiling his trunk and slinging it from side to side
He contorts his trunk and blows dust while kicking up dirt with his foot
A trunk and head toss
This big guy put on quite a show….
This bull elephant kneeled down on his front legs and dug his tusks into the ground, staring right into my eyes
He scooped up dirt with his tusks and tossed it in my direction
As he stood up, throwing more dirt, his trunk outstretched… he continued to stare at me with one eye
With an open mouth , his trunk extended out of my camera’s field of view and almost over my head
The video below shows the complete action sequence of my above images involving this epic bull elephant encounter.
Video courtesy of Daniella Sibbing of https://www.squiver.com
And this concludes his full repertoire of exciting behaviors
Standing tall and coiling his trunk before walking away
Stay tuned for “Shades of Gray” part 2, Rhinos of Solio
Stay focused
Rick