Elephants in the Serengeti National Park

We saw elephant families of up to 30 individuals, swimming and playing in the mud at waterholes, spraying dust on their backs to cool themselves off, or grazing quietly and stripping down trees. African Elephants are the largest land animals on earth, and there is no way you cannot be impressed by their bulk when you get up close. Poaching in the Serengeti has come under control in the past two decades, so their numbers have been steadily increasing, and we saw lots and lots of babies in June 2010. You do have to watch their behavior, sometimes they can be irritated if you get too close, but as long as you stay quiet and remain in the vehicle, they'll amble on by with just a snort or two. Here's a short video of a mother and her calves, so close we could almost touch them. Right after this moment, we spent half an hour watching the rest of the gang play at a waterhole.

More about elephants ...