With the help of its mother, the newborn elephant made a lucky escape when a crocodile tried to bite off its trunk.
A crocodile emerged from the water and grabbed the trunk of a baby elephant swimming in the deep end of a drinking hole in the African forest.
Trumpeting and snorting, herd members stared on in amazement as they tried to protect the defenseless calf from the threat.
The young elephant overpowered the frightened crocodile and staggered back to escape the danger, forcing it back into the murky water.
A baby elephant drinks at a drinking hole in the African bush while a crocodile stands rigid in the water a few feet away. The crocodile suddenly leaps out of the water and snaps its jaws around the calf’s trunk in an instant.
The astonishing images were captured on Francois Borman’s camera at the Mana Pools in the Zambezi Valley in Zimbabwe. ‘This is the last thing I imagined! I was out in the jungle for several hours hoping for some activity,’ he exclaimed.
I usually have high standards when I’m out with my camera, but this situation is just incredible to witness.
‘A local crocodile saw the herd of small elephants coming to drink and spent some time watching them while chasing the baby calf playing in the shallow waters,’ the observer reported.
‘It is clear that the little elephant was happy to get into the water, because he jumped into the deep, murky water and started rolling around and screaming.’
The amazing photos were taken by talented photographer and farmer Francois Borman in Zimbabwe, near the Mana Pools in the Zambezi Valley.
The rest of the herd gathered in amazement, huffing and trumpeting as they tried to keep the helpless baby elephant safe.
The baby elephant threw the crocodile off and staggered backwards with a little help from its mother.
‘It had no worries about the outside world and it was definitely not thinking about the dangers that might lurk in the murky waters,’ he continued.
The little calf knelt down to drink with its lips, unsure how to use its trunk to do so. Eventually it stood up and tried to reach the water with its trunk.
It was chaos when the crocodile jumped on the baby elephant’s trunk and grabbed it.’ With a strangled squeal, the calf charged at the crocodile, fighting for its life.
‘Time seemed to stand still as the calf resisted and with incredible tenacity almost immediately pulled the reptile out of the water.’ After more elephants rushed to help, the crocodile finally let go of the calf.
‘When I saw my pictures I was overjoyed because I knew they were special.’
‘Photographing something like this is the reward—wildlife photographers spend a lot of time waiting, hoping to capture those special moments.
