Elephants on safari

African elephants can live around 50 years in the wild, with one of the oldest known living elephants being a Kenyan matriarch who has surpassed 60. Survival depends on water access, food availability, and protection from poaching and habitat loss across their ranges.

An adult African savannah elephant weighs around 5,000 to 6,900 kg, while females are smaller, averaging 2,500–3,500 kg. Weight varies with age, sex, and resources.

Elephants eat around 100 to 150 kg of vegetation daily, including grass, leaves, bark, and fruit with their daily food intake about 4 to 7% of their body weight. They can feed for between 16 and 18 hours a day depending on habitat and food availability.

Elephants drink around 70 to 200 litres of water per day. In hot, dry conditions they may visit water sources multiple times daily, which is why game drives and camps are often centered around rivers, pans, or waterholes.

Elephants flap their ears to regulate body temperature. The thin, vascular ear surface helps with blood circulation, helping to keep elephants cool in temperatures that can exceed 40°C in savannah environments. Elephants will also flap their ears and trumpet as a warning sign. 

Elephants use audible sounds as well as low-frequency infrasound that can travel up to 10 km through air and ground vibrations. Visual signals such as ear posture, trunk gestures, and body orientation also act as a form of communication, as do chemical cues from scent and dung.

Elephant families consist of related females and calves, led by a single matriarch. These herds cooperate in feeding, protection, and movement. Males leave at maturity (around 12–15 years) and become more solitary or form loose groups with other bachelors.

A matriarch is the oldest female leading the herd and her knowledge can span decades, guiding decisions on water and migration routes.

Elephants typically travel 6 and 25 kilometers (10–15 miles) per day, but in rare instances elephants have been known to travel almost 200 km in a single day.  Movement largely depends on habitat and resource distribution.

Elephants do not migrate predictably like some herbivores, but do follow highly consistent seasonal movements driven by water and food availability. These routes are often learned and passed down through generations, with matriarchs guiding movement along traditional corridors, adjusting daily and seasonal ranges in response to resources.

Savannah elephants are larger and live in more open areas, and travel vast distances, while forest elephants are smaller with straighter tusks and live in dense rainforests. After genetic studies, these two types of African elephant are recognised as separate species.

In drier areas, like Zimbabwe’s Hwange National Park, the best viewing period for elephants is typically in dry seasons when herds concentrate around water sources. However, sightings occur year-round in systems with permanent water like the Okavango Delta.

Like most wild animals, elephants are most active at dawn and dusk when temperatures are cooler. They often rest or reduce movement during the midday heat, which is why wildlife activities are typically split into morning and afternoon game drives, walks or boating options.

African forest elephants are Critically Endangered and savannah elephants are listed as Endangered. Both face ongoing population pressure despite protection in key reserves.

No wildlife sighting, including that of elephants can be guaranteed. However, in many of our safari areas such as Botswana’s Okavango and Linyanti, Zimbabwe’s Mana Pools, and Kenya’s Mara Triangle, the probability of encounters is very high.

Remain still, keep noise low, and quietly follow your guide’s instructions should an elephant approach your vehicle on safari. 

Elephants are generally non-aggressive but can be dangerous if stressed, surprised, or protecting calves. Most incidents occur when distance is not respected and all Wilderness guides are trained to maintain safe viewing protocols at all times.

Key threats to elephants include habitat loss and fragmentation, human-wildlife conflict, and ivory poaching. Expansion of agriculture and human infrastructure also disrupt traditional migration corridors.

Ivory poaching disproportionately removes mature bulls from elephant populations, which disrupts reproduction and social structures. This has caused declines of up to 60% in some populations over recent decades.

Tourism helps fund anti-poaching units, research, and protected area management, while also supporting local employment and community income streams, extending into a broader conservation economy where initiatives such as elephant-friendly farming can help benefit those living alongside wildlife.