This is the heart-wrenching moment a baby elephant found its mother dead in the forest – and refused to leave her side.
The two-year-old calf nudges its mother again and again – and even sits on her – during the vigil in Rajaji Reserve Forest in northern India.
The desperate attempt to rouse the 40-year-old mother went on for hours until a rescue team was sent in to take the baby away from the sad scene.
The desperate attempt to rouse the 40-year-old mother went on for hours until a rescue team was sent in to take the baby away from the sad scene
The two-year-old calf nudges its mother again and again – and even sits on her – during the vigil in Rajaji Reserve Forest in northern India
The two tamed elephants brought in to drag the youngster away from the scene – named ‘Rangeeli’ and ‘Radha’ – struck rangers as being overwhelmed by sadness at their task
Park rangers guessed the mother elephant had died after falling down a hill and getting her neck stuck in a tree.
Park rangers guessed the mother elephant had died after falling down a hill and getting its neck stuck in a tree
Rangers also pulled on the baby’s tail to persuade it to budge, before it was eventually pushed onto the back of a lorry
The director of the camp where the young elephant has been sent said: ‘The calf has now been adopted by one of the jumbos who was present in the rescue operation, and the baby seems to be liking its new found mother’