Page 16 -

nAtUre

The mother was stroking its head, but the
baby was unresponsive.
The only solution was to wait till dawn and
bring in a veterinarian by helicopter and then,
using two vehicles, drive the elephants off and
isolate the calf.

Francoise describes how the calf was hurriedly
anaesthetised using a drug dart. To fully
appreciate how narrow the gap is between
elephants and humans when living in cordial
circumstances, it is important to visualise
the trauma involved in this operation and its
remarkable aftermath.
Rangers cut away the wire and applied
antiseptic salve and then injected a fast-
reaction recovery drug before rapidly
withdrawing. From a distance, they watched
Lawrence and Francoise Anthony the agitated herd rush towards the calf as it
unsteadily wobbled towards its mother.
were habituated to their new habitat and One day, Mnumzane, the disoriented male Francoise says, “Freed from the snare, his trunk
could be freed. orphan of the previous matriarch and now an curled up against her belly and his little mouth
almost fully-grown bull, charged Lawrence searched hungrily for her teat” . . . there was
Their night-time arrival at Thula Thula, during a with murderous intent. Nana stepped silence among those watching.
violent thunderstorm, could hardly have been between them. Mnumzane eventually left the
more traumatic: heavy curtains of rain, bolts herd, as is the habit of maturing males, and The team departed to allow the herd to
of lightning and the screaming of engines as became an affectionate friend of Lawrence’s. disappear deep into the bush, which they
heavy trucks struggled to extricate themselves But that’s another story – a very moving one. were expected to do for days – perhaps
from the Zululand mud, and then a cannon- even weeks. That evening, Francoise invited
like shot as a tyre burst. It took hours before Indeed, there are so many stories. the rescue team to a sunset champagne
the trumpeting elephants were inside the celebration a couple of kilometres from the
boma. If Lawrence went overseas or to another lodge. When she stepped out of her house
part of the country, the herd would sense ready to go, “who should be at the entrance of
More traumas were to follow, including a mass his imminent return and travel miles to the lodge to meet me? The entire herd!”
break-out from the boma. wait at the house to greet him. He called it
‘spooky’. Francoise, in her own book, describes Incredibly, after the racket of the helicopter;
Nana never ceased to patrol the boma fence something spookier. after the panic; after the stampeding and the
seeking a spot where the current might be trumpeting of the distressed cow forced to
off. Lawrence camped nearby, continually After Lawrence’s death, rangers spotted abandon her calf . . . there they were, “every
calling out to Nana assuring her of his good a new-born, very emaciated calf, its trunk single one of them. They stayed with us for
intentions. But every time he came near the and face deeply cut into by a thick wire hours . . . who knows what they were thinking?”
fence Nana would charge, stopping short of snare. It was unable to suckle. When Vusi,
the electric barrier. The weeks passed. Day Francoise's right-hand man, went to see Was it gratitude? Did they want to say
after day Lawrence kept vigil but came nearer what could be done he spotted the herd something? Of course, they did.
and nearer the fence. Each time Nana charged. through binoculars, but no calf. It was late
Towards the end, Lawrence just stood his afternoon. He sat in his vehicle and was One day, I believe, we’ll find a way to
ground at the fence, calling her name. surprised to see the herd coming towards communicate with another species. And
him. They stopped metres away and Vusi one day we’ll crack the code and speak with
One morning, he found Nana waiting for him spotted the calf below its mother’s belly. elephants.
at the fence. She was very calm. He moved,
very slowly, within touching distance, and
found himself looking up at her enormous
form towering above him.
Then, “Nana’s trunk snaked through the fence,
carefully avoiding the electric strands, and
reached my body. She gently touched me. I
was surprised at the wetness of her trunk tip.”

She stood and looked at Lawrence for a few
moments before turning back to the herd,
20 metres away, where Frankie, her closest
companion, greeted her with apparent
excitement. Lawrence decided that the
following day he would release them. When
he arrived at dawn they were crowded at the
fence “as if they anticipated something special
was about to happen”.

He let them out. The matriarch, Nana, visits Francoise at the house

14
DPL