The Ties that Bind
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In elephant families, it is the matriarchs who lead, guide and decide what's best for the herd as a whole. A family typically comprises and older matriarch, three or four of her daughters and their calves. A herd is usually made up of six to 12 individuals, although groups of 20 are not uncommon. The females assist each other with births and share childcare. In the search for food, the matriarch leads. Often the herd will follow in single file, babies holding the tales of the other females. Elephants place a high value on family. If a calf is orphaned, other mother's will allow it to suckle. They form lifelong bonds that have been proven to transcend separations of decades and even countries. They weep, mourn and honour their dead.
Despite these extraordinary qualities, elephants are being hunted as never before. In two years, the elephant population of Mozambique went from 10,000 to 5,000. African elephants are listed as Vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), while Asian elephants are endangered. We have abundant evidence that elephants suffer terribly if they are forced to live lives without stimulation or family and yet there are 40 lone elephants in zoos in Europe alone. In 2013 and 2014, over 40,000 elephants were killed by poachers. In Zimbawe, poachers killed over 80 elephants by putting cyanide in their water holes. If the current rate of poaching continues, elephants will be wiped out within ten years.
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