Ranger Sarah Britz photographed a lovely photo series of one of our herds of elephants at a watering hole. Guests enjoyed this lovely wildlife sighting whilst on their Big 5 safari here in the Eastern Cape! Sarah had the following to say about this unique and wonderful sighting:
“As a ranger at Shamwari Game Reserve, I will never get tired of watching is a herd of elephants at a muddy water hole. This series of photographs was taken shortly after we had some well-needed rain following a very dry season in the Eastern Cape.
Elephants are water dependent animals, drinking on average 18 to 26 gallons of water daily. A male elephant can consume up to 55 gallons of water in less than five minutes. Apart from their need to drink, elephants also love to swim, wallow in mud and spray themselves with water and mud in order to protect their skin from the sun as well as to cool off during hot and dry conditions.
Rain makes our elephants very excited, as it fills up our dried up pan systems for them to swim and play in. I was fortunate on this day to be able to watch a herd of elephants playing in the mud and water from just a few meters away. For me, elephants are my favourite sightings because they never cease to make you smile. Their behaviour and interactions are always interesting and often amusing, especially when watching the younger animals.”
If this doesn’t make you long to go out on a safari and see these magnificent animals in the wild, I don’t know what will. Shamwari Game Reserve is the ultimate malaria-free safari destination where memories of a lifetime are made coupled with fantastic wildlife experiences.
