Throughout many generations, they have developed a special knowledge in order to survive here: their instinct leads them to hidden water sources that are buried somewhere in the desert. Elephants in the locations have become a problem due to clashes with local villagers in locations such as Namibia and Sri Lanka. At birth, the baby elephants, also called calves, weigh approximately 260 lbs. Twenty-five years ago, out of eighty local desert elephants, poachers killed all but three. Its Evolution to survive in the Desert . They then head southwards, moving briefly into northern Burkina Faso before moving northwards again. The film starts in the southern region of Africa by the Okavango River. The film was released alongside Dolphin Reef as a Disney+ exclusive on April 3, 2020. Although not a separate species, and not much different from other Savannah elephants Loxodonata africana africana, Namibia’s desert-dwelling elephants are … These are the harshest conditions in the world for elephants. South Africa’s game reserves also have healthy populations of elephants and the rare desert elephant (shown) can sometimes be spotted near Namibia’s Skeleton Coast. [4] The rains failed again in 2008 and the following year the adult elephants were digging down to access water deep below the surface but the youngsters could not reach the water with their trunks and were dying. This project takes you to the northwestern regions of the Namib Desert, traditionally known as ‘Damaraland’. Mali and Namibia are the only two countries in Africa where you can see the extremely long trek of the desert elephants. They are philosophical, stating that the elephants eat the topmost foliage of a tree, the camels browse the sides and the goats browse near the base. They tend to stay near the ephemeral rivers where there is greater availability of food. [1], In the Hoanib River area male elephants have tusks, but about a third of the female elephants there are tuskless. The Malian population, which is believed to number about 400, makes a three hundred mile migratory journey each year, moving up to 35 miles a day. ... An older female leads … [2] In 1995–1996 there were good rains in Namibia and the elephants expanded their range southwards to the Ugab River. They face pressure from poaching and from changes in land use by humans. They do this in a group, following the matriarch who leads the herd. The African elephant is listed as a threatened species. Matriarch elephants can remember the location of this delta and lead herds there even after years without visiting it. The matriarch leads the herd and decides when the herd will eat, when they will move to a new location and when they will charge or retreat from a threat. Forage Behavior of Desert Elephants (Loxodonta Africana) in Namibia. Desert elephants have big feet. The Namib Desert is a coastal desert primarily locatedin Namibia, Africa, and is one of the largest coastal deserts in the world, according to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). They tend to migrate from one waterhole to another following traditional routes which depend on the seasonal availability of food and water. Elephant is an American nature documentary film about elephants directed by Mark Linfield and Vanessa Berlowitz and narrated by Meghan, Duchess of Sussex. [3], Rock art dating back to Neolithic times throughout the Sahara show that elephants were at that time widespread across much of North Africa. The desert elephant conservation project gives you an insight into Namibia and its breathtaking nature and wildlife. It also encourages them to act as guides and generate income from eco-tourism. [1], The desert elephants were absent from the southern Kunene Region during the war for independence. Desert-dwelling elephants were once more widespread in Africa than they are now and are currently found only in Namibia and Mali. Until recently, the Desert Elephant was considered a subspecies of … In the wet season they prefer buds and fresh green leaves but in the dry season they subsist on drought-tolerant plants such as the camelthorn (Acacia erioloba), myrrh bushes, the mopane or turpentine tree (Colophospermum mopane) and the leaves and seedpods of the ana tree (Faidherbia albida). The adaptation to such a tough ecosystem has created a good number of physical and behavioral differences compared to the well-known African Savanna Elephant. The desert elephants of the Northern Namib Desert in Namibia’s Kunene Region live in an extremely arid environment of less than 150mm of annual rainfall and periodic drought. This means there is more competition between the elephants and the humans. A little-known and surprising group of desert-dwelling elephants roams the far northwest of the Kunene region of Namibia in South West Africa. In elephants the oldest individual in the herd, the matriarch, leads the herd across the desert to a waterhole that no one knows about except her. They are elusive and tend to seclude themselves among Acacia trees during the day, emerging to drink and feed at night. Perhaps best known for its rich cultural diversity, Mali is also home to the northernmost herd of African elephants. At first glance, the desert elephants of southern Aelcio seemed to be at an evolutionary dead end early on in the Elephantland project. The herd has a chance to recover…, BBC.Natural.World.2008.Elephant.Nomads.of.the.Namib.Desert.WS.PDTV.XviD.MP3.MVGroup.avi (638.47 Mb) Subtitles: [eng] [rum] - English They moved north for safety, returning to the Ugab River in the mid 1990s by which time many indigenous people had moved into the area following Namibia's independence. I found this a bit slow and lots of repeating from the first two Echo stories. At certain times of year they move inland along narrow traditional paths to mountain areas in search of myrrh bushes (Commiphora spp.) Adult bull desert elephants are usually solitary and roam over large areas. Documentary hosted by Russell Boulter and published by [1] Elephants have traditionally lived in this area and in the earlier part of the 20th century there were about 3,000 in the Kunene Region. Elephants Nomads of the Namib Desert - hour long look at two desert elephant families and their struggles living in the desert. The Desert Elephants of Namibia suffered a poaching holocaust in the 1980s. narration. Researchers found the desert-dwelling elephant DNA was not significantly different from the DNA of other savanna elephant populations in Namibia, except from those of the Caprivi Strip. This is often attributed to the immense scarcity of resources, water, food, or shelter in the desert. The homeland and lifeline of the desert elephants is Hoanib – one of the nine dry river valleys in Namibia. BBC.Natural.World.2008.Elephant.Nomads.of.the.Namib.Desert.WS.PDTV.XviD.MP3.MVGroup.en.srt (30.44 Kb), Categories: Nature | Russell Boulter | BBC | BBC Natural World | 2008 | English | Name | Amazing Africa, Namibia to issue permits to shoot endangered bull elephants, Africas Wild West: Stallions of the Namib Desert, BBC.Natural.World.2008.Elephant.Nomads.of.the.Namib.Desert.WS.PDTV.XviD.MP3.MVGroup.avi, BBC.Natural.World.2008.Elephant.Nomads.of.the.Namib.Desert.WS.PDTV.XviD.MP3.MVGroup.en.srt, https://docuwiki.net/index.php?title=Elephant_Nomads_of_the_Namib_Desert, Filename.....: BBC.Natural.World.2008.Elephant.Nomads.of.the.Namib.Desert.WS.PDTV.XviD.MP3.MVGroup.org.avi. The desert elephants of Namibia’s Kunene Region are a distinctive population adapted to life in an extremely arid environment. BBC It was believed at one time that they were a subspecies of the African bush elephant, but this is no longer thought to be the case. Desert elephants pass on knowledge -- not mutations -- to survive Date: August 3, 2016 Source: Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Colin Ross. African elephants are known for hanging around rivers and mashes in the savanna and the edge of jungles. Desert elephants or desert-adapted elephants are not a distinct species of elephant but are African bush elephants (Loxodonta africana) that have made their homes in the Namib and Sahara deserts in Africa. Shani has also been raising her spirited son Jomo, a very energetic young elephant who just wants to play with the other animals, such as lechwes and baboons . Desert-dwelling elephants were once more widespread in Africa than they are now and are currently found only in Namibia and Mali. This is often attributed to the immense scarcity of resources, water, food, or shelter in the desert. Echo of the Elephants: The Final Chapter - recap of the first two DVD and an update on what has happened to the elephants. They are herbivorous, and their diet varies with the time of year. By the 1980s these had greatly diminished in number, however since then, conservation measures have been put in place and by 2013 the number of elephants had increased to about 600. The desert elephants of Namibia’s Kunene Region are a distinctive population adapted to life in an extremely arid environment. They are one of only two populations of “desert” elephants in the world (the other is in Mali, North Africa) and have a number of … Desert elephants or desert-adapted elephants are not a distinct species of elephant but are African bush elephants (Loxodonta africana) that have made their homes in the Namib and Sahara deserts in Africa. Himba and Dusty are born in a boom year, but when the short-lived rivers on which they depend disappear underground, their lives depend on the memories, experience and decisions of the females who lead their tiny families. This is the remarkable story of two baby elephants struggling to survive their critical first six months in the oldest desert on earth. The desert elephants found in Namibia share a special reproductive burden. The film takes place in the Northwestern Namib Desert. Researchers found the desert-dwelling elephant DNA was not significantly different from the DNA of other savanna elephant populations in Namibia, except from those of the Caprivi Strip. The killing of a 50-year alpha bull elephant in Namibia has caused an uproar, with conservation groups accusing the government of authorising the … Extraordinary in their endurance, the small families make marathon treks between the remote shores of the Skeleton Coast and the high Kabere Mountains of the interior. Since the Okavango River was starting to run short of water, Gaia, an experienced matriarch, knew that she would need to train Shani and lead her herd to the Zambezi River for water. The Desert Elephants of Namibia suffered a poaching holocaust in the 1980s. They know when the elephants will pass through their villages, visiting the ponds they also use for watering their herds. During a threat the herd will group aro… The matriarch leads the herd and decides when the herd will eat, when they will move to a new location and when they will charge or retreat from a threat. This is a video of the desert elephant taken from the BBC's Planet Earth documentary series. They may walk up to 70 kilometers at night to find water points, which is the cause of their bigger feet. Ager notwithstanding, many historians tend to accept Mr. De Beer's conclusion that most of these elephants were African, either from the Atlas Mountains or from south of the desert. It was believed at one time that they were a subspecies of the African bush elephant, but this is no longer thought to be the case. which seem to be a favourite foodstuff. “Namib” means (“vast”). Elephants roam the African desert in groups called herds. ( Photo: Laura M Brown/Desert Lion & Elephant … The Kunene Region in the northwest of Namibia is an area of mostly sandy desert, rocky mountains and stony plains which covers about 115,154 square kilometres (44,461 sq mi). Adult bull elephants can eat about 250 kilograms (550 lb) of fodder a day and drink about 160 litres (35 imp gal; 42 US gal), but they can go without water for up to three days at a time. As the most endangered elephant population in the world recovers, every single calf is vital. As the most endangered elephant population in the world recovers, every single calf is vital. They only tend to give birth every seven or eight years, and even then, the calf mortality rate is incredibly high. The Herd is led by their great matriarch Gaia and her younger sister Shani, who has helped keep their family safe. Less than 100 desert elephants are in Namibia today, and hunting permits for those elephants are on the market. One was recorded as travelling between the Skeleton Coast National Park and the Etosha National Park in a few months. African elephants live in sub-Saharan Africa, the rainforests of Central and West Africa and the Sahel desert in Mali, according to National Geographic. The gestation period of a desert elephant is 22 months. The family groups in which most desert elephants move are small and usually consist of a female elephant and her offspring or two sisters and their dependent young. Elephants often come into contact with human settlements when in search of food or water as a result of the ever-dwindling elephant habitat, and this often leads to tension arising between the animals and the locals. The secretive nature of their existence was only revealed recently, when cameraman Martyn Colbeck followed them whilst working on the BBC’s landmark series Planet Earth. This page has been accessed 12,974 times. As the most endangered elephant population in the world recovers, every single calf is vital. They are one of only two populations of “desert” elephants in the world (the other is in Mali, North Africa). These elephants also belong to the genus Pachyderms, meaning “thick skinned”, the genus includes rhinoceroses as well. Nowadays, these people are living more settled lives and building huts, tending gardens, planting orchards and growing fodder grass at the water's edge of ponds. It’s sixteen hundred kilometres long, fifty thousand kilometres square. These animals are used to life in the semi-desert and know where to find water when it’s scarce. Desert Elephant Project Initiatives. The work volunteers may participate in includes: Maintaining elephant movement tracking and ID database They have to walk hundreds of kilometres to find it. About the Desert Elephant Project. [3], "Help Needed to Buy Water for Dying Elephants", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Desert_elephant&oldid=968539350, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 20 July 2020, at 00:38. As a result, floodwaters from the Angolan wet season take several months to reach the delta, and it becomes a watery respite from the surrounding desert just when wildlife most needs something to drink. Start of the return journey in an easterly direction towards Palmwag Lodge following the game filled valley of the Gomatum river. broadcasted as part of BBC Natural World series in 2008 “Listen,” says, Brown, who has been closely studying some 70 of the remaining desert-dwelling elephants for nearly a decade, “there are many different ways African nations maintain wildlife. The Desert Elephants of Mali Jo Roberts 2009-12-02T11:32:46+00:00 Mali is a beautiful, landlocked desert country in North West Africa. The elephants follow an anticlockwise route that takes them past temporary and permanent water holes. [5], During a prolonged drought in 1983, the Malian Government trucked in water for the elephants. These animals are used to life in the semi-desert and know where to find water when it’s scarce. Catherine first assisted EHRA in 2002 and is now proud to collaborate with and be an ambassador for the important work they do in Namibia with desert elephants and the communities with whom they coexist. The desert’s surface area is 80,900 square kilometers,and it extends inlandfrom the Atlantic Ocean to cover parts of Angolaand South Africa as well. There are no genetic or physiological differences between elephants found across Namibia’s wilderness — or the African savanna elephant’s continental rangeland — but the desert variety seems to look taller. The charities did what they could but the weakened state of the animals made it difficult to help them. In Mali's Gourma region, around the city of Timbuktu, there exists a species of desert-adapted African elephant (Loxodonta Africana). Desert-adapted elephants develop wider footpads to walk over the Namib's sandy terrain. Overview. They tend to migratefrom one waterhole to another foll… These animals traverse some of the most dramatic, arid, and austere scenery in the world. 4. DOUENTZA, Mali — Mali’s elephants, Africa’s northernmost herd and adapted to life in the country’s harsh desert, were in desperate need of protection. At least once a year Catherine leads The Matriarch Adventure in collaboration with EHRA, encouraging women to step into the wild. It is the fifteenth nature documentary to be released under the Disneynature label. They consist of families of elephants including young males, and related females, old and young. We follow the footprints of a herd of elephants, hoping it will lead us to them. They have to walk hundreds of kilometres to find it. Although not a separate species, and not much different from other Savannah elephants Loxodonata africana africana, Namibia’s desert-dwelling elephants are … The calves are nursed for about two years. Species. In Disneynature’s “Elephant,” Gaia was the matriarch of their elephant herd and Shani was next in line to lead. Some groups are resident in the Hoarusib River valley and a single group stays permanently near the Hoanib River while other groups move between the two, a distance of about 70 kilometres (43 mi). The desert elephants found in Namibia share a special reproductive burden. However, their range actually extends well into the north, all the way up to the Sahara desert. Now large-scale poaching has ended. We are lucky to find a lead like this, as unlike the common African elephant that lives in Etosha and Kruger, the dwelling desert elephant only drinks once every three days. Many of these new residents had no experience of living with wild elephants. This page was last modified 20:20, 6 April 2019. A local initiative was set up in 1997, "Les Amis des Elephants", which aims to inform villagers of when the elephants are expected to arrive in their area. The Desert Elephant Project is part of a long-term initiative to facilitate peaceful co-habitation between the farmers and the desert elephants of the Damaraland through research, education and development. Day 4: Desert Elephants and Rhino Safari Ends. Along the arid SouthAtlantic Ocean shoreline, the Namib Desert str… They do this in a group, following the matriarch who leads the herd. In a desolate environment with far less territory available to them than their northern relatives, it would’ve been reasonable to not expect much from the lineage in the coming eons. Other bulls have occasionally moved into the area from better-watered regions to the east. The killing of a 50-year alpha bull elephant in Namibia has caused an uproar, with conservation groups accusing the government of authorising the … These elephants also belong to the genus Pachyderms, meaning “thick skinned”, the genus includes rhinoceroses as well. Again the experience of finding a breeding herd of desert elephant will be the highlight of today's journey. These elephants are the remnants of a number of groups which used to inhabit large areas of the Sahel as recently as 1970, before mostly being eliminated by poachers. They remain in the northern parts of their range until the rains arrive in June. They are one of only two populations of “desert” elephants in the world (the other is in Mali, North Africa) and have a number of … An urgent appeal was launched with the help of Desert Elephant Conservation in order to stop the hunt, but five elephants still got killed. [6], These elephants have developed certain adaptations for desert life and tend to have relatively broader feet, longer legs and smaller bodies than other African bush elephants. They usually make the trek in a single night, when the temperature is cooler than by day. 3. They use water, mud or dust for bathing or coating their skin. This harsh tribal wilderness area, runs parallel to the Skeleton Coast National Park, and is home to a small population of desert-adapted elephants. The Desert Elephants of Namibia suffered a poaching holocaust in the 1980s. The leader of the herd is the oldest female and she is referred to as a “matriarch.” The matriarchs have the most knowledge of food and water sources and of their range area. Nowadays they are restricted to the Gourma area, a remote region in Mali south of a loop made by the River Niger near Timbuktu. Some animals were fitted with GPS collars to track their movements and identify corridors through which they need to traverse to complete their journey, so that their routes could be avoided when new human settlements were established. It is considered to be a single species, Loxodonta africana with two subspecies, L.a. cyclotis (forest elephant) and L.a. africana (savanna elephant). Nature [4] The nomadic Touareg people who live in this region with their herds have been tolerant of the elephants. Mali and Namibia are the only two countries in Africa where you can see the extremely long trek of the desert elephants. [4], The WILD Foundation and Save the Elephants are conservation charities that have been working with the Malian Government to conserve these elephants. They only tend to give birth every seven or eight years, and even then, the calf mortality rate is incredibly high. The desert elephants of Namibia are not in fact a different species as many people believe; they are still loxodonta africana and most live in the northern reaches of Namibia but it is the way that they adapt to living in the harshest of conditions and environment that makes them so magnificent and special. In order to understand how desert elephant populations survive and forage for food I chose to summarize scientific literature focused on the relationships between rainfall, vegetation, and the movements of desert elephants in relation to changes in these factors. A group of 10 dedicated women took up Voortrekker's cause, and walked 140 kilometers (about 87 miles) through the desert in order to raise the funds needed to buy the bull elephant's permit.