“Small but Determined: Baby Elephants Struggle to Keep Up with Herd in South Africa”A trio of baby elephants in South Africa faced a tough challenge as they attempted to keep pace with the rest of the herd. These young elephants, captured on camera by a worker at the Etali Safari Lodge in the Madikwe Game Reserve, were seen grappling with mud and attempting to clamber out of a watering hole.
Kristoff Potgieter, 28, who filmed the footage, observed the herd rushing toward the watering hole to cool off in the warm weather and couldn’t resist sharing the adorable scene.
The filmmaker said: ‘For our guests it was one of the best sightings amongst the many memorable things they saw during their trip’
Filmmaker Kristoff Potgieter focusses on the trio of young elephants from the start of the video
The three baby elephants stick together at the start of the clip and run ahead of the herd
“The Mischievous Trio: Three Playful Elephants Embark on an Adventure”In this endearing scene, three young elephants initially stick together, but their playful antics soon lead them on separate paths.
These troublemakers initially sprint to the edge of a muddy bank, showing caution by waiting for an adult to lead the way across. However, their adventurous spirit prompts them to navigate the muddy obstacle course independently.
As their journey unfolds, they encounter a bit of trouble, creating a temporary roadblock for other elephants attempting to bypass them. Eventually, one of the trio manages to break free from the mud and heads toward the watering hole, while the others continue to struggle.
The three elephants wait for the adults to begin crossing the mud before making their own way across
The young mammals can be seen struggling to pull themselves free from the heavy mud
After some more wriggling, the other two elephants manage to escape the mud and one runs off towards the rest of the herd.
The last baby elephant however chooses to dive straight into the watering hole – ignoring the others that stand around and use their trunks to drink from a distance.
Deciding that it’s time to exit, the youngster – who appears to be impressed by its own ingenuity – then attempts to climb the bank.
But after successfully getting its footing with its front feet, finds that it is unable to pull itself free.
It is forced to struggle once more and can be seen trying in vain to lift itself up and over the edge of the bank.
The young elephants were captured on video at the Madikwe Game Reserve in South Africa
The three youngsters create a bit of a roadblock as other elephants attempt to get around them
One elephant decides to head straight into the watering hole while the others stand around it and drink
Eventually however – after much scrabbling with its front feet – the young elephant is able to pull itself onto the bank where it runs off back to the herd.
Video maker Kristoff stated that the fiercely-contested race was witnessed by many guests.
‘Watching cute baby elephants is one thing I never get tired of,’ he said.
‘For our guests it was one of the best sightings amongst the many memorable things they saw during their trip.’