Protective & Loving Dominant Bull Elephant, Sebakwe

By ffc_admin

From the beginning when orphan elephant, Kumbura arrived, Sebakwe was the bull who really showed her the most attention and support. The two bonded beautifully and Kumbura even tried to suckle from him. It’s so heartwarming to see the elephants behaving in this way, since usually in wild herds, older males will be in separate … Continued

Marvelous Mambo, Young Elephant Bull and Big Brother

By ffc_admin

On this glorious day out, young bull, Mambo enjoys a momentous mud bath with Kumbura and Limpopo, before Mom, Lundi joins in. The pair, mother and son, enjoy some very special bonding time applying sand after their time in the mud, loosening the sand with the edges of their strong feet and then tossing it … Continued

What it means when we call elephants “ecosystem engineers”

By ffc_admin

HERD Operations Manager, Juan Ferreira shares some insight into elephants and their impact on the environment. Elephants are considered as ecosystem engineers, sculpting the landscape they move through and creating microhabitats for smaller mammals and invertebrates as well as facilitating much needed plant diversity. As the Jabulani elephant herd and wild elephant herds in the … Continued

Stop Snaring ~ A Multi-Language Message from Our Elephant Carers

By ffc_admin

We invite classrooms across the country or continent to share these videos with your students and spread the message! #STOPSNARING Our multi-language videos about snaring aim to reach more and more people across South Africa and beyond, and will form part of our community collaborations in schools, starting with English, Sotho, Shangaan and Shona. Watch … Continued

The Anatomy of an Elephant ~ The Elephant’s Hair

By ffc_admin

Khanyisa’s hairy albino chin! Elephants are anything but hirsute, but their sparse, strategically-placed hair is as important to them as is the head-to-toe covering preferred by many other mammals. In murky waters the bristle-like hairs on the snouts of the Amazon river dolphins allow them to forage in the muddy sediment while the tip of … Continued

Farewell Fenya ~ You Are Always in our Hearts

By ffc_admin

Adine Roode, founder of HERD, together with wildlife veterinarian Dr. Peter Rogers and the dedicated team of elephant carers at HERD fought day in and day out to gain her trust, and provide her with treatment and care. Blood tests were taken which showed very low albumin levels and a low red blood cell count … Continued

A New Orphan Elephant Calf at HERD: Fenya the Survivor

By ffc_admin

A second elephant calf snare victim was brought into our care at HERD Elephant Orphanage, South Africa, on 17 February 2021. This young female elephant calf was found on a private game reserve in Phalaborwa, in Limpopo province by local resident, Willem Botha and his son, Liam. She had a wire snare wrapped tightly around … Continued