Elephant calf rescued after traumatized by poaching

Zimbabwean national park rangers have rescued a weeks-old elephant calf traumatized by watching poachers kill his mother and other family members near the country's Hwange national park, home to around 40,000 elephants as one of Africa's prime protected areas for the jumbos.

"The male calf, named Africa, was found covered in blood while running around a small town adjacent to Hwange. The calf was extremely traumatized and dehydrated, having witnessed the death of his mother and family," said Roxy Danckwerts, founder of the Zimbabwe Elephant Nursery, over the weekend as the nursery took the responsibility of sheltering the calf.

She said Africa, the young calf that was yet to grow teeth, was receiving specialized and intensive care in the Harare-based nursery, where experienced handlers took shifts to be around him 24 hours a day since he was airlifted to the facility from Hwange on Jan. 20.

Elephant calves are very vulnerable due to their emotional complexity and close social bonds. Raising orphaned elephants is extremely difficult and requires a lot of patience, empathy and love, animal handlers say. In addition, the milk formula to raise elephant calves is complicated and unique.

Danckwerts said Africa's system was tolerating the milk formula better than anticipated, but his mental trauma was a bit worrying as he showed signs of being insecure and he would cry if the handler moved too far away.

"He is sucking all our fingers for comfort, which is also a sign of feeling insecure, and he is seeking touch from all those around him. On the physical side, he has an umbilical hernia, which may have arisen from the stress of running away and fear. We hope this will correct itself, but if not, he may need surgery in a few months time," she said, adding that she and the staff had a battle ahead of them to keep baby Africa alive.

But with a strong combination of commitment, compassion, experience and love, Danckwerts said, they are confident that Africa the calf will survive to roam freely on the African continent.

The calf is the latest of six orphaned elephants sheltered by Zimbabwe Elephant Nursery. The sanctuary was founded in 2014 by Zimbabwe National Parks and Wildlife Management Authority and private Wild Is Life Trust to rescue and rehabilitate orphaned elephants, for release back to the wild.

The sanctuary was visited by Chinese President Xi Jinping in last December during his two-day state visit to Zimbabwe. Xi interacted with a female orphaned elephant Moyo, reiterated Beijing's commitment to wildlife protection and pledged to help Zimbabwe improve its capability in this regard by donating equipment and conducting exchanges of experience as he placed wildlife protection as one of the key areas in China-Zimbabwe cooperation.

Zimbabwe, home to 80,000 elephants, 2,000 lions, 750 rhinos, faces mounting challenges to counter poaching. But the country still manages to retain some of the continent's most successful conservation practices to keep the numbers of the endangered animals stable with few international support.