Dzanga Forest Elephants

Category: Elephants, Forest | Date: Jun 21 2008 | By: dzangaforestelephants

We are still experiencing a period of calm in the area with our daily observations of elephant numbering between 70 and 100 elephants. Around camp which is located two kilometers from the clearing we have heard no gunshots so the area is safe for the moment. Three days ago however I saw two leopard skins that had been confiscated by park guards along with a massive amount of bush meat. The trove had been confiscated in the area north of the clearing which is infiltrated by poachers from a village notorious for illegal activity. One wonders how long such a level of poaching can be sustained for the smaller game.

We are also seeing a lot of musth amongst the younger bulls of the population. During the last three weeks we have seen three younger bulls in musth as well as three of the older well known bulls also in musth, Menelaus, Moses, and Malcolm. Orlo, a bull I described in an earlier blog, was observed guarding a female although he was not in musth.

Menelaus & Malcolm

Although there has been an abundance of musth observed in the clearing, the only copulation we have witnessed was between an non-musth male and a young female, Matoma III. Below is a photo of the mating. To the right is Matoma III’s mother, Matoma I and the younger sister of Matoma III, Matoma IV. The male was not guarding Matoma III but chased her around the bai and mated with her once he caught up with her. Matoma I and IV vocalized during the act and I could only interpret their sounds as ones of protest. This is usually the reaction of the other elephants during a mating, a chorus of vocalizations which start during the copulation and continue well after its completion. A lot of nervous energy in the air. This mating lasted less than a minute and then the male wandered off. Matoma III was observed on subsequent days in the clearing but attracted no other males.

Matoma III Mating

During a musth guard of a female there is far more romance than the scene depicted above. Musth males guarding females protect her from the younger randy males and allow her access to favored mineral sites in the bai. There is a rhythm to the scene and the younger and less dominant males skirt the edges of the clearing keeping close tabs on the courting couple. This guard usually last about 2-3 days when there are several copulations.

We should be well into a rainy period but since the end of May the rains have been scant which is unusual for this period of the year. There is cloud build up, thunder and lightning but very little rain. The surface of the clearing is dry and the elephants are still able to excavate holes for the extraction of minerals, an unusal sight for the month of June.