A Small Herd of Female Elephants Work Together to Rescue a Tiny Calf From a High Sided Waterhole

When a tiny elephant calf got stuck inside a shallow waterhole with high sides at Kruger National Park in South Africa , the females of the herd came together to help the little one get back onto dry land. Since posting the video, Wild Wings Safari received a number of questions regarding the gender of the animals.

A few people have asked how we know the adult helpers are females. Female elephants have skin folds between the hind legs that can confuse the inexperienced observer and make them look a bit like a male elephant. The easiest way to tell in this video is by the breasts between the front legs, which are visible from time to time (the mammaries can be seen every now and then, but the clearest view is perhaps at 1:48 for the second female, and 1:53 for the first female as she walks away – right breast in both cases). The calf is much harder to call because it is so young, but based on the rounded head and less prominent skin folds we suspect it might be a male. (Females have a more squarely shaped head).

via Mashable