A baby elephant is clinging to its mother’s trunk as it tries to climb up a steep bank – but slips past its mother’s arm and ends up with all four legs and trunk flying in the air.
The young man was lifted into the air by his mother as he tried to overcome a difficult obstacle but fell into the dust rather carelessly.
In the end, it tripped on its own two feet and the mother led it to a smaller and more manageable part of the bank to climb.
The special scene was captured on camera by Brit Mark Bowler at Addo Elephant National Park, South Africa.
Mr Bowler, a conservation biologist from Edinburgh, Scotland, was just two feet away when the calf fell.
The 37-year-old said: ‘There were about 50 in the herd. They ran as they crossed the street and came up to the waist-high shore.
‘The babies struggled to get through, and mothers started to get a little nervous – there was a lot of deep rumbling and ear clapping going on.
‘I admit I was scared, but there was nowhere I could go – my car was surrounded.
“There was a tiny elephant that needed help to get to the bank. The mother tried to pull the calf up from above, but then she dropped it.
‘At one point, the baby was on all fours in the air, mouth open and trunk flailing. It must have been tough, but the mood seemed to change after it fell, and it looked more sulky than excited.
“Then the mother was more concerned with comforting her child than rushing to the bank.
“She eventually changed her tactics and led the baby to a less steep path.”
He added: ‘It was all happening very quickly, and the adrenaline was pumping. I have never seen anything quite the same before or since.
‘I can almost feel the deep rumbling and my own heart rate going up even when I look at the images now. ”
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