The explosive images were captured by ecologist Charles Vanpraet, 70, as he worked at the Amboseli National Park, Kenya.
The tusked warriors all belonged to a group of young bachelor African elephants and had been making their way through a caravan of parked tourist safari vehicles.
Too close for comfort? African bull elephants fight as safari tourists watch from their 4x4 in Kenya's Amboseli National Park
At close quarters: Ecologist Charles Vanpraet
said the rampant males had been near a group of females just moments
before the epic fight - putting them on edge
Just showing off: The group of young bachelor
African elephants had been making their way through a caravan of parked
tourist safari vehicles when the tussling began
Charles said: 'Most of these fights are over 'girls'.
'It was a very fierce and loud battle which went on for almost an hour.
Bird's eye view: The tourists had parked up to watch, not realising it would spill over towards the caravan of cars
Fierce: Belgian ecologist Charles Vanpraet said it was 'a very fierce and loud battle which went on for almost an hour'
'It had started on the
other side of the road and the tourists parked up to watch, without
realising it would spill over towards the caravan of cars.'I don't think any damage was done to any of the vehicles but it does happen.
'Afterwords everything just calmed down and they all walked off side-by-side as if nothing had happened. There was no love lost.
'The bachelors travel together but really they want to be in a herd with females, and they will compete violently to win the admiration of females after showing they are the strongest.
'But they need each other while they are not in a proper herd, so they make up easily.'
All's well that ends well: Apparently,
afterwards they calmed down and they all walked off side-by-side 'as if
nothing had happened'
No comments:
Post a Comment