Rumble in the Jungle

When describing elephants we often discuss their gentle nature, superior intelligence and incredible range of emotions.

Rarely though do we consider their aggression. This is in part due to how infrequently we see such a display from the world’s largest land mammal.

Once a year though, male elephants enter a period of ‘musth’, during which their testosterone levels go through the roof and they attempt to broadcast their viability as a partner to as many cow elephants as possible.

Bulls tend to have their first period of musth around the age of 30, it doesn’t last long, perhaps a few days, but as they grow older these periods last longer each time. A bull in musth is a totally different animal and fights between rival males can be staggering. As this one was. Two 6 tonne animals fighting like this is an incredible sight, particularly when in a swamp and water droplets explode and dance around their straining bodies.

It was without doubt the fiercest clash between elephants I’ve ever seen, and perhaps may never have a moment like it again. 

Perhaps the most exciting part was not the fight itself, but the moments after, as the bull that had lost (known as Vronsky) climbed out of the marsh and proceeded to wrap his trunk around our radio antenna, before moving to the side of the vehicle I was lying and standing over us for a couple of minutes - long enough to get the heart rate going for sure.