Trapped in the mud and quickly sinking, this pair of elephants seems to have come to an end.
The mother tried to save her cub but got stuck herself- making the rest of the herd understandably wary of trying to save them.
So with no more time to lose, a group of conservationists got into action.
The family herd desperately tries to help the stricken mother and calf as they lie in the lagoon
The mud dries quickly making their mistake harder and the window of time for rescue much shorter
Workers managed to slip a rope under the baby before the hard work of pulling her free begins
The team of workers from South Luangwa Conservation Society pulls the calf first, avoiding the mother’s thrashing trunk
Thinking on their feet, they first threaded a rope under and around the calf and began to pull.
Several attempts have been made to release the young, but it wanted to stay with its mother and resisted.
Finally, trying to avoid the mother’s thrashing trunk, they dragged the calf to safety. But rescuing the heavier mother always proved more difficult.
The rope must be attached to the back of a tractor as they stretch to pull her free. In the end, they succeed in saving her from the muddy grave, and she raced to rejoin the herd – and her baby.
The dramatic rescue took place on the flats of the Kapani lagoon in Zambia.
The calf appears to be calling for help while her mother appears resigned to her fate before the rescue gets under way
Some would argue that rescuing the mother and baby meddles with the natural order
Although the calf appears to be almost free of the drying mud pool, she looks back to her mother
A final attempt is made to pull the calf further away from its mother who continues to thrash around in the mud
Shouting and waving frantically, the team tries to deter the youngster from returning to its mother
A final attempt is made to pull the calf further away from its mother who continues to thrash around in the mud
Rachel McRobb, a member of the rescue team from the South Luangwa Conservation Society, said: ‘Most conservationists believe that humans should not interfere with the natural order and that we should let nature run its course, no matter how cruel or grim it may seem.
‘We agree on the whole unless a wildlife issue is man-made (for example, in the case of a snare or being trapped in a fence, in which case it is justifiable to intervene). card) then nature should be left to her own devices. She has a plan.
‘However – every rule has exceptions and the terrifying plight of a baby elephant trapped in the mud of the Kapani Lagoon and her mother, who had also got stuck trying to save her yesterday, had us all into a frenzy of activity.
‘We simply couldn’t stand by watching them struggle and slowly d.i.e.’
Before the rescue by staffs from the conservation organization, Kapani Lodge and Norman Carr Safaris, the mother and her calf’s herd try to rescue the couple.
When they couldn’t do anything, the group – along with the Zambian Wildlife Service members – moved in while the herd waited on the other side of some trees.
At one point, the calf appeared to be crying out for help while her mother appeared resigned to her fate before the rescue got underway.
Finally there is some joy as the ropes are removed from the calf elephant after it is pulled clear
A cousin from her herd calls to her and she makes a dash for freedom
The focus then turns to the mother elephant who is becoming tired after struggling for so long
Manpower would not be enough to pull the adult elephant from what would have been a muddy grave
After an inch by inch struggle, she eventually senses freedom and starts to scramble through the mud once more
She cries out for her baby and the herd who are waiting for her just beyond the trees
A little weak and wobbly, she makes her escape to the delight of everyone who helped
After the long struggle, the mother makes a dash towards her calf and waiting family
