The mother of the young elephant saved it when a crocodile tried to bite off its trunk.
A crocodile emerged from the water and snatched a newborn elephant’s trunk as it swam in the deep end of an African jungle watering hole.
Herd mates looked on in wonder as they trumpeted and snorted in an attempt to shield the helpless calf from the menace. The adolescent elephant overwhelmed the terrified crocodile and stumbled back to avoid the danger, driving it back into the dark waters.
A newborn elephant sips from a watering hole in the African wilderness as a crocodile remains still in the water a few feet away. The crocodile lunges out of the water, snapping its jaws around the calf’s trunk in an instant.
Francois Borman’s camera captured the stunning photographs near the Mana Pools in Zimbabwe’s Zambezi Valley. ‘This is the last thing I expected! I went out in the forest for several hours looking for some action,” he screamed.
I generally have high standards when I’m out with my camera, but this is simply fantastic to behold.
‘A local crocodile spotted the herd of little elephants coming to drink and spent some time observing them while chasing the young calves playing in the shallow waters,’ the observer wrote.
‘It is evident that the tiny elephant was pleased to be in the water, since he leaped into the deep, murky water and began rolling about and yelling.’
Francois Borman, a brilliant photographer and farmer, captured these incredible photographs in Zimbabwe, near the Mana Pools in the Zambezi Valley. The remainder of the herd gathered in surprise, snorting and trumpeting as they attempted to protect the vulnerable newborn elephant.
The newborn elephant flung the crocodile away and stumbled backwards, with a little aid from its mother.
‘It had no concerns about the outside world, and it was certainly not thinking about the hazards that may lie in the murky waters,’ he said.
The small calf crouched down and drank with its lips, wondering how to utilize its trunk. It eventually rose up and attempted 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 stifled shriek, the calf lunged at the crocodile, battling for survival.
‘Time appeared to stand still as the calf struggled, and it almost instantly drew the lizard from the water.’ After additional elephants arrived to assist, the crocodile eventually let go of the calf.
I was pleased when I viewed my photos, knowing they were unique.
“Photographing something like this is the reward—wildlife photographers spend a lot of time waiting to catch those exceptional moments.