Episode 2 Gordon Buchanan: Elephant Family & Me

African elephants are one of my favourite animals.

They're emotional...

..and intelligent.

ELEPHANT GROWLS

For them, family is everything.

I'm Gordon Buchanan - a wildlife cameraman.

For the last 25 years, I've tried to get close to wild animals.

Now, I'm in Africa to follow my dream

to get to know an elephant family.

In order to understand a family of elephants,

I'm going to do something that few people have ever done,

which is to actually be on foot with them.

I really believe that, to better understand any animal,

you have to inhabit their world.

In the case of the elephant, that is easier said than done.

I'm returning to see struggling first-time mum Wendi...

Hey, Wiva.

..and her baby, Wiva.

He's here. Hey, how are you doing? ELEPHANT TRUMPETS

In 25 years of watching wild animals,

I have never, ever seen something as magical as this.

It's the dry season - the most difficult time of the year.

I want to see how they cope.

That's the one thing - despite the fact

that it's tinder dry around here,

this whole herd of elephants just walked up behind me

and I didn't hear them.

BENJAMIN SHOUTS COMMAND

And an unexpected arrival changes everything for Wiva.

This is the most exciting thing that can happen to an elephant family.

LOUD TRUMPETING

Can you tell?

I hope this experience can show me what the future holds

for Africa's elephants.

It is wonderful to be back in Kenya, and I'm heading back down to

Tsavo National Park in the south-east of the country

to catch up with my elephant family.

When I was last here, Wiva, the smallest member of the herd,

was running into trouble with some of the biggest members of the herd -

the big bulls.

She was just about to enter her very first dry season.

The dry season is the riskiest time of the year for any baby elephant.

So now that the dry season is in full grip of Tsavo,

I want to catch up with them to see how they're doing.

And I am very excited about that.

When I first met Wendi four months ago, it was an alarming experience.

-BENJAMIN:

-Wendi, stop. Wendi, don't...

don't...don't try to do anything funny.

Wendi!

-Not sure I like that.

-Don't grab the camera.

Meeting any elephant face-to-face is potentially dangerous,

but I have help.

Group of elephants here, and Benjamin up ahead.

Benjamin Kyalo is my mentor.

Hello, hello.

-Hi, hi.

-How are you?

-How are you?

-Good.

-Just park here.

'He's spent the last 16 years with this herd.'

Benjamin never stops smiling. HE LAUGHS

How are you doing?

-I'm fine, and you?

-Good.

-Great to be back.

-How have you been?

-Good.

-Yeah, welcome back.

This is the only place I know where I can safely

walk with wild elephants.

BENJAMIN WHISTLES Hey, Wendi.

Hey, Wendi-Wendi.

'I wonder if Wendi remembers me?'

Hey, Wendi-Wendi. Hey, you.

Don't grab me.

No grabbing.

There's nothing in the car.

Nothing for you.

'This is one-year-old Wiva...'

Hey, you.

'..Wendi's first baby.'

Hey, Wiva.

Look at this beautiful elephant.

Oh, wow.

Am I OK here?

Am I OK here?

Wendi? Wendi, are you OK?

WENDI SNORTS

Are you OK with me here?

Just have a sniff. Do you remember me?

Do you?

You had a sniff before, so I imagine you do.

WENDI SNORTS

HE LAUGHS

It's amazing that such a huge animal

can be quite so tender.

HE LAUGHS

It's like being caressed by a very soft vacuum cleaner.

That's the closest I've ever been to Wiva.

Hey, Wiva. Look at you.

You beautiful elephant.

It's amazing not only to come back and find to find her -

to find her well and find her happy -

but to find that she's actually kind of developing.

LOW GROWLING

She looks...she looks bigger.

I'm not sure whether that's because I'm closer to her,

but she definitely looks as if she's grown.

And more...more independent.

Kind of less like a baby, I think.

No, she has definitely grown. She definitely has.

HE LAUGHS

Pretty sure the last time I was here,

she could walk under her mother's stomach without touching.

'When I first came here,

'Wiva was the star attraction for the females in the herd.

'She never went anywhere without a group of nannies...

'..and for a good reason.'

Here comes a big male.

MALE BELLOWS

'Wendi was an inexperienced new mum.'

LOW GROWLING He is a scary beast.

'She wasn't by Wiva's side when it really mattered.'

Look! Look, look, look. There's...

Wiva's just right in front of that big bull.

She just does not have a clue how dangerous he is.

All these females know how dangerous this is -

that's why they're trying to chaperone her

and get her well out the way.

GROWLING

Now, Wendi and Wiva have new challenges to face.

WIND HOWLS

It's the dry season.

Midday temperatures can reach 30 degrees Centigrade.

Elephants need up to 150 litres of water a day,

and supplies are dwindling.

GROWLING

To make matters worse for Wiva,

the herd now have to roam further into the bush to find food.

GROWLING

Elephants must eat 5% of their own body weight each day...

..and the shortage of forage means it's more difficult

for Wendi to produce the milk that

Wiva will need if she's to survive.

WOOD CRACKS

The herd are on a constant search for the most nutritious plants.

Somewhere like this is very, very thick,

and that's why the elephants are here - there's good feeding here.

And it's much greener, actually.

When you look around, you can see these trees.

In the wet season, elephants feast on the abundant greenery.

Now, woody branches, bark and twigs are all that remains.

Wiva learns by watching.

Elephants rely on as many as 100 species of plants,

so it takes years to learn where and when each is available.

As they move through the forest,

elephants like Wendi and Wiva are doing a crucial job.

They are the primary seed disperser here.

So many of these plants - the majority of them -

have probably been spread by elephants.

Because what they do is...

..in eating this vegetation, eating seeds,

what they're doing is laying down these big seed bombs

in the form of dung.

The presence of elephants means a healthy forest.

LOW GROWLING

Wendi's lived in the bush for the last seven years.

But like most of this herd, she wasn't born here.

At just two days old, she was found alone...

..orphaned.

She was rescued by the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust,

and brought here to Tsavo when she was a couple of years old.

Benjamin helped her return to the wild.

She's now 13 years old and a mother herself.

I want to see how she's getting on.

ELEPHANTS VOCALISE IN DISTANCE

'Wendi's quite an incredible elephant.'

The chances were that she would never survive.

It's a miracle that she made it kind of past her first week,

given how early she was orphaned.

And to have gone through this...

you know, whole process through her life,

to be able to go into the wild and actually have a baby of her own,

that's...

..that's something that's really wonderful.

It's kind of... She has an incredible story.

So how is Wendi doing raising her own calf?

My plan was to follow Wendi and Wiva into the bush today...

SHAVER BUZZES

..but just a few hours ago...

..something extraordinary happened.

Oh, my goodness.

There cannot be anything

as adorable...

..as a new-born elephant.

That is the cutest thing I've ever seen.

It's amazing. Look at it.

'This baby is just a few hours old.'

Oh, wow.

That just makes your heart melt.

Oh, my goodness me.

Oh!

I'm incredibly lucky to see this.

Her mother, Galana, must have just brought her here from the forest.

Couldn't have walked far -

I think it must have been born really close to here -

but the first thing it's done is move closer to where Benjamin is,

and the rest of the workers.

They've given out some supplementary food, some hay.

Galana is also a rescued elephant,

so having her first baby is great news.

She's been pregnant for 22 months.

And she is tiny.

She's maybe only about that size.

Oh, God, that's just adorable.

Out my way.

This new arrival's been named Gawa.

-It's incredible.

-So incredible.

Wiva's no longer the baby.

Wiva is no longer the baby. Now, we've got a new baby.

Was it just born through the night?

Yeah, just a few hours old now.

At this stage, Gawa's eyesight is poor,

so she uses her trunk to keep in constant touch with her mum.

You can see she's wobbling when she's walking...

GORDON LAUGHS

-..meaning that she's just a few hours old.

-Yeah.

So must have been born close by?

-Yes, close by.

-Yeah.

And Galana came up here because she

knows it's much more safe that being

out in the bush on her own.

-She's come home.

-Yeah, coming home...

..to show us her baby.

But that's wonderful that an orphaned elephant

can be returned to the wild and have a wild baby,

-and her story, Galana's story, can continue.

-Continue.

-Yeah.

She'll be suckling Gawa for the next four years or so.

For the time being, it's quite a stretch.

Just a little bit higher up.

Come on, you can do it.

You can do it. She's just almost on her tiptoes

trying to reach up to her mum's udders.

Nearly there.

Come on.

A baby elephant like this is still

going to be quite weak,

quite unstable on its feet. So it

just needs to get as much milk...

LOUD THUD ..into it as possible.

BELLOWING She's fell over!

GROWLING

Suckling will take a bit of practice.

Gawa will need to drink up to 12 litres of milk every day.

It's low in fat and high in protein.

There you go.

Galana's just pointed -

she's pushing the baby's head in

towards right place.

In 25 years of watching wild animals,

I have never, ever seen something as magical as this.

It's one of nature's miracles.

HE LAUGHS

The rest of the herd have been in the bush all night,

so they won't know that a new baby has been born.

The birth of a calf is a big moment.

I wonder how they'll take the news.

OK, here come the rest of the herd.

Everyone's just moving up through the trees.

I'm just going to back off a little bit because there's a couple of big

bulls in here. I'm really,

really interested to see what's going to happen

once they realise that there is a new baby.

GROWLING

DEEP GROWLING

LOUD GROWLING

To witness this celebration is wonderful.

GROWLING CONTINUES

It's sheer elephant joy.

TRUMPETING

That's the excitement right there.

GROWLING

Yeah, they couldn't have known that this baby was born and they've

just realised that they've got... TRUMPETING

..a new member to the herd.

This is about the most exciting thing that can happen.

Actually, this is the most exciting thing that can happen

to an elephant family. TRUMPETING

Can you tell?

GROWLING CONTINUES

LOUD TRUMPETING

Everyone's just crowding round.

Wiva's in there somewhere.

She looks like a giant in comparison to this baby.

The herd are clearly moved.

Secretions from their temples show their emotion.

TRUMPETING

GROWLING CONTINUES

It's almost as if they want us to be part of this celebration.

They've all come up, all these big females...

LOUD TRUMPETING

..just shepherding the new baby and bringing her closer to us.

TRUMPETING

TRUMPETING

And it's not just the herd who are thrilled by the new arrival.

I feel very proud.

It's like getting more babies.

I'm a grandfather now.

TRUMPETING

It's almost impossible to take my eyes off this baby.

It is cute in every single way.

From the tip of its trunk, to the end of its tail.

HE LAUGHS

From its tiny toenails to its little fuzzy back, it's just adorable.

It seems that this herd has got a new little princess,

and it'll be very interesting to find out how Wiva responds.

With the birth of baby Gawa, the herd's priorities will change.

Wiva might not be the centre of attention any more.

ELEPHANT VOCALISES IN DISTANCE

In order to best see the difficulties faced by elephants,

I need to get into the air.

-Right, you comfortable?

-I'm all good.

-Beautiful, right.

I'm about to pre-rotate.

'This might look like something from a Bond movie,

'but it's an ingenious way to track elephants.

'I'm trying my very best not to look nervous.'

-And we're off.

-GORDON LAUGHS

Woohoo. All right.

Beautiful.

Let's go find some ele's.

Keith uses this gyrocopter for surveying Tsavo's elephants.

Being up in the air like this just gives a much better idea of where

these elephants are going.

You're so enclosed on the ground,

and you can get a bit of a sense of the landscape on top of the rocks,

but it's not until you're right up

here in the air you actually can see

literally for miles and miles and miles.

Elephants are a big needle to look for, but this is a

very big haystack in which to look for them.

Let's see if there's any juveniles. I've got bulls.

-I've got calves.

-Good eyes.

Hang on.

-Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.

-Check in the centre of the herd there.

Right, here we've actually got them, right...

I think that's them underneath us now.

There they are just down there.

There are dangers here for the elephants.

This wilderness is not endless.

And it eventually gives way to civilisation.

Tsavo National Park is divided into east and west.

To cross from one to the other,

many elephants have to move through farmland and over several roads.

HORNS BLARE

Stretching from Nairobi to the port of Mombasa,

this is one of Kenya's busiest roads.

It's hazardous for both elephants and motorists.

TRUCK HORN BLARES

Just a month ago, a baby elephant was killed not far from here.

It's a tough life being an elephant.

Some have to travel hundreds of miles just to find food and water.

But in doing so, they play a vital role maintaining ecosystems.

Inevitably, if you follow an elephant path,

it will lead you to water.

And this river, the Tiva River, looks completely dry, but it

doesn't mean to say that an elephant can't find something to drink.

The surface is kind of... It's all dry and baked in the sun.

But as soon as you start wiping away the top, dry stuff...

..it's damp - sort of damp to the touch.

But obviously you can't drink

or get any of the moisture out of this sand.

But elephants are like a big excavator.

They can use their big tusks just to

dig down really deep into the sand.

They can use their long trunk to just scoop and scrape.

So that combination of scraping, scooping...

HE LAUGHS

..gets you down to..

..the water.

But a lot of these smaller animals can't dig.

It's the elephants that do all that digging.

And once they've drank their fill...

..and they move away, a whole range of other animals will come in.

And it's just another way that the elephants not only benefit habitats,

but how elephants - the presence of elephants - benefit other animals.

Without elephants around in the dry season to dig these holes,

a lot of other animals would go thirsty.

So water is essential to elephants,

and elephants are essential to other

animals that need to access that water.

It's been a few days since I've seen Wendi and Wiva.

I want to catch up with them.

They have a better chance than most elephants in the park.

They don't have to travel far

because Benjamin keeps the water holes topped-up.

A place like this is essential for an elephant's wellbeing.

A thick coat of mud keeps them cool, acts as a sunscreen,

and keeps insects off.

GROWLING AND SNORTING

TRUMPETING

Oh, yeah!

The herd are more relaxed around me at the water hole, and I'm noticing

that there are big changes in the relationship between Wendi and Wiva.

Ah, I absolutely love how...

..together these two are.

Wendi is just... TRUMPETING

..the picture of a perfect mother.

'With the nannies focusing on Gawa,

'Wendi is now giving a great job

looking after Wiva without their help.'

GORDON LAUGHS

Erm, it wasn't always like that.

Oh, big jump.

HE SNICKERS

That's pretty classy.

She did that with style.

OK, and here comes Gawa coming down.

Oh, look.

Come on, Gawa.

Baby Gawa, with nannies in attendance,

is preparing for her very first bath.

When you're just a few days old,

everything is an adventure.

She's right on the edge.

If you're not careful, you're going to fall in, baby.

Careful, careful, careful.

Careful! Oopsy daisy.

That's one way to do it.

HE LAUGHS She's fine.

Anything Wiva can do...

..Gawa can do as well.

'In comparison to Gawa, Wiva is looking strong and confident -

'so much so, she's taking the hard

'way out of the water hole.'

Up you come. You can do it.

You can do it. Wendi lends a helping trunk.

Bit of help? Or is that a hindrance?

No, that's a help. HE LAUGHS

In times of real need, the nannies are still there for her.

That is so lovely to see.

Look, she's getting crowded round by other elephants.

They see that she's struggling a little bit,

and are just helping her out. There's a trunk coming down.

That's really wonderful. Do you know what?

That's sort of a testament to how much Wiva has come on.

She's pushing herself, she's testing her abilities.

She's back on dry land.

Now, it's Gawa's turn.

LOW GROWLING

Oops. Ooh, I think you've come up too soon.

That baby's going to struggle.

Whoa, she's almost doing the splits.

Oh, my goodness me.

Bambi, up you come.

Come on, up you come.

Come on. Come on.

Come on.

Come on.

Oh...

At this age, she has limited energy reserves.

Quickly, she's overwhelmed with exhaustion.

GROWLING

Baby elephants can perish stuck in the mud.

Her head's flat down in the mud. She's...

She's really tired.

The adult members of this herd sometimes lack the experience

to deal with problems.

Normally, herds are led by an older

matriarch who would know how to get Gawa out of this mess.

LOUD TRUMPETING

'Benjamin has to show them the easy way out.'

Just trying to courage encourage them out.

OK, Benj is just going to go in and see if he can push them out.

That's the one.

HE LAUGHS

That's doing it.

Yeah, that's helping, definitely. Look, she's coming out.

Out you come. Keep coming, keep coming.

Keep coming, keep coming.

Keep coming.

Yeah, she's out.

Phew!

Look at that. It's ridiculous - look at that.

That is one very happy, very muddy

baby elephant.

I caught a bit... Oh, yuck!

Thanks a lot(!)

This stinks. It smells so bad.

Jeez.

Imagine being covered in this?

It's honking.

Jesus.

SNORTING

After a very smelly mud bath,

the family top it off with a final coating of dust.

TRUMPETING

LOW GROWLING

Like all babies, Wiva has delicate skin.

It's important to make sure all areas are well covered.

There's nothing happier than a baby elephant...

covered in dirt.

TENSE MUSIC

The dry season hits hard in this part of Kenya.

Wendi and Wiva are spending more time away from the water hole.

I want to follow them to see how they're coping.

TRUMPETING

But, for me, the bush is dangerous.

GROWLING

A number of wandering bulls have joined the group.

GROWLING

I'm going to have to rely on Benjamin to keep me safe.

ELEPHANT BELLOWS

There's a big bull elephant that's been quite...

..quite boisterous...

..about 70 metres over that direction.

My first thought is to run, fast, back to the car,

but Benjamin knows how to deal with this bull.

BENJAMIN SHOUTS COMMANDS

HE WHISTLES

'A sharp shout lets the elephant where and who we are.'

Yeah, shall we move?

'Then, we back off slowly.'

OK, let's shift.

-BENJAMIN:

-Hey!

-ELEPHANT SNORTS

'While we're distracted, Wendi's herd come up behind.'

That's the one thing -

despite the fact that it's tinder dry around here

and you can crash and crunch your way through the bush,

this whole herd of elephants just walked up behind me

and I didn't hear them. They're almost silent.

OK, here they come.

Elephants don't like to be surprised...

HE WHISTLES

..so Benjamin's technique is to let them know that we're here

and to give them space so they don't feel threatened.

I keep on making the same mistake again,

which is forgetting there's other elephants around.

Maybe 15, 20 elephants just walked past. Pumped her up.

'Away from the water hole, my herd are more nervous.'

OK, I can step back

if you want me to step back.

'It's no surprise.'

I can do that.

'There's lots of dangers for my family in the bush.'

LOW GROWLING

CAR ENGINE STARTS

I think I'd have to be doing this as long as Benjamin has

to do this without Benjamin.

It's good - I get a sense of actually being with elephants

and being, erm, alone with them.

But it's always reassuring to have Benjamin right there, cos...

this is how Benjamin spends his life.

It wouldn't surprise me if he knew more about elephants than he does

human beings.

So, yeah, it's quite good for him to step in and say,

"OK, this is getting a little bit dicey, it's time to move out."

ELEPHANT GRUNTS

'It can be intimidating being on foot

'with elephants in the bush.

'Local people often bump into them while walking.'

When that happens, it's frightening for both parties.

'With Benjamin, I feel safe,

'but I can see how you can easily get into trouble.'

Nearly all of Wendi's herd are orphans

who were rescued and returned to the wild.

Some come from south of here on the border of the park,

close to several villages.

I'm going there to see what problems both elephants and people face.

The numbers are alarming.

Every year in Africa, 30,000 elephants are killed.

Ivory poaching is often cited,

but could the growing human population

be the root of the problem for elephants?

Humans now occupy previously wild places,

and are increasingly coming into conflict.

Every year, hundreds of people are killed by them.

I've met elephants that have had bad experiences with people.

Now, I'm away to meet some people that have had

some very bad experiences with elephants.

'In 2009, Mwakro's mother was killed by a bull

'just a few hundred metres from her front door.'

And she was coming from this direction,

down, following this route. After reaching somewhere there,

the...the elephant noticed her,

-but she didn't see it.

-See it.

And then, after reaching somewhere here, you know,

it was coming very fast. She started running.

So she came running this side.

She was first hit here.

-She died instantly. I say...

-Right.

..we found her here.

God.

'Despite the dangers, Mwakro's father is determined to stay.'

Your father lives here by himself?

Yeah, he lives here by himself. Jambo.

HE CHUCKLES

Jambo.

So what do you think? If you see elephants now, what you think?

How do you feel when see them?

HE SPEAKS OWN LANGUAGE

He thinks about his wife.

And do you feel scared when you see them?

HE SPEAKS OWN LANGUAGE

He's very scared. He's scared because they kill.

You've got a good son that can look after you.

Make sure he looks after you, takes good care.

HE SPEAKS OWN LANGUAGE

-MWAKRO:

-"Who?"

HE SPEAKS OWN LANGUAGE

Him.

THEY LAUGH

He could come and live with me.

The more the merrier.

Does your father not want to leave here?

If he's living by himself, he must get lonely.

He doesn't want to come to where I live.

He says he cannot leave his wife alone here.

-Oh, really?

-Yeah.

There is no easy answer.

This is an area outside the protected park,

where people are entitled to live.

But elephants have migrated through here for thousands of years.

Hungry elephants can be destructive

and see farmers' crops as an easy meal.

A herd came through here recently.

Jambo. Salama.

Do you see elephants coming through?

Moringa?

OK.

'Many residents are too scared to leave their homes after dark.'

CATTLE LOW

SHE SPEAKS OWN LANGUAGE

-SHE SPEAKS OWN LANGUAGE

-Oh.

They came here and they were eating the tamarind.

So they were just around here.

SHE SPEAKS OWN LANGUAGE

She cannot come out just now because she lives alone,

so she just stays inside.

Can you imagine this lady - I don't know, maybe she's sort of...

in her 70s, she lives alone,

and have an elephant coming right outside your house and feeding?

You know, it's sort of this notion that we all love elephants.

Of course we don't all love elephants,

because this lady is being terrorised by them.

At this level, there's no bad people

and bad elephants, it's just a bad situation.

CATTLE LOW

Some elephants return to these farms again and again.

Often, villagers see little choice but to take action.

For these farmers, losing their crops could mean starvation.

It's understandable that people living in rural Africa

might feel differently about elephants than I do.

These pressures have contributed

to the loss of one third of Africa's elephants in the last ten years.

There's the remains of one nearby.

It's...

it's gory and its graphic.

It's a big bull elephant.

They reckoned he was about

45-50 years old.

'In areas where elephant conflict is common,

'ivory poaching is more likely to be tolerated.'

It's complicated,

this abject poverty across Africa,

and in some situations people are driven to killing elephants.

You know, elephants really just want one thing,

which is to actually live peacefully

and harmoniously with their family.

Simply, that's what they're about.

And, erm...

the only thing that's really standing in the way of that is us.

FLIES BUZZ

It's terrifying that this is the reality for much of Africa.

It makes me worry that Wiva's family could encounter poachers, too.

Hey, Wendi-Wendi.

BENJAMIN WHISTLES

(Here comes Wendi and Wiva.)

BENJAMIN WHISTLES

Hey, girl.

I'm just coming to say hello.

You beauty.

WHISTLING CONTINUES

Hey, Wiva.

Wiva is definitely...

..a lot bolder.

Bigger and bolder.

Coming really quite close.

It's not something she did before, and it's great to see.

LOW GROWLING

HE LAUGHS

She's completely camouflaged in there.

Hey, Wendi.

OK, I think Wiva might come out.

I'll give it another three seconds,

and Wiva's going to come out of the bush.

(One, two, three.)

HE LAUGHS

Hey, Wiva. Hey, you.

She is so beautiful.

I'm getting to know you.

I knew it was going to be three.

Probably more like 3.5 seconds.

HE LAUGHS

It's great to see baby Gawa, too.

She is two weeks old and looks really healthy...

..if a little unsteady.

You can see how small she is in comparison to Wiva.

Look how wide open her eyes are.

Interested in absolutely everything.

Little Wiva is growing up.

She's confident enough to take on older elephants.

THEY VOCALISE

There you go, Wiva.

Elephant herds have a hierarchy.

Wiva is feisty.

Some day she might even lead a herd of her own.

My family are a long way from human settlements,

but that doesn't mean they're completely safe.

GROWLING

Oh, wow. Just behind the tree...

..big male elephant.

'Four months ago, this bull came to the water hole

'with a poacher's snare wound tightly around his leg.'

Oh, jeez.

Oh, my God.

Oh, no.

He would have died from his injury had Sheldrick's and the

Kenyan Wildlife Service not stepped in.

The snare was removed...

Oh, God.

..and his wound dressed.

It's great to see him.

And I think maybe the biggest surprise of all is

how much that wound has healed.

You can still see a bit of an indentation.

I think he must be the luckiest elephant here.

This shows me that, even here inside the park,

Wendi and Wiva are still at risk.

BENJAMIN CALLS MELODICALLY

This is why Benjamin is on hand to keep an eye on them.

HE CALLS MELODICALLY

HE WHISTLES

They're part of an ongoing scheme

that has rescued over 200 orphaned elephants so far.

This is where they come for baby elephant bush school.

JAUNTY MUSIC

Every day, they're walked from dawn till dusk,

and shown where to find food and water.

Hello.

'At the moment, they're still very friendly.

'But as they grow up, they'll become more wary.'

HE LAUGHS

Everyone's coming over to say hello.

Come on, then. Let's go.

You and me together.

I'll be your...your bush buddy.

Feel like I've just entered a scene from the Jungle Book.

HE HUMS: Colonel Hathi's March from the Jungle Book

'Eventually, they'll join Wiva's herd in the forest.

'But for some, there's still more to learn.'

Hey. Hey, you.

You have a lovely trunk.

As trunks go, it is lovely.

You just want to...

'This reintroduction project gave Wendi a second chance.'

WIVA TRUMPETS

Wiva is developing quickly.

Her trunk control is improving.

She learns by copying her mum.

Wendi has blossomed as a mother,

which has given Wiva the confidence she needs.

Sheldrick's work to protect all elephants here.

As teenagers, males leave the family and form

their own loose bachelor herds.

Young bulls can wander far and wide

and may cause problems at farms and villages on the edge of the park.

GROWLING

There's no easy way to stop these conflicts,

but Sheldrick's have found a way to minimise the problem.

They've built an electric fence over ten miles long...

..to separate farmers from elephants.

Just seeing this fence, it just looks like such a drastic measure,

but maybe that is how the wild has to be.

It can't stretch on for mile after mile as it once did.

It's not endless.

Sooner or later, across Africa,

you're going to bump into, you know, the human world.

So maybe this is not just a way of protecting...

..the people from the wild animals that are living in these places,

but just to actually protect the wild from us.

Because we're eating it up at a rate

that's unprecedented.

And it has to stop somewhere.

So maybe this is literally the line in the sand.

But I think it's just that gut feeling that I have that,

looking back across history,

what conflict have we ever resolved by building walls and fences?

Maybe for the short-term we do need fences...

..but as the number of settlements grows outside the park,

the future of elephants like Wendi and Wiva will depend on their

relationship with their human neighbours.

-Hello! ALL:

-Hello!

What a nice, warm welcome.

-Where am I going to sit? Can I sit here? ALL:

-Yes.

-OK.

The charity Wildlife Works is trying to encourage

a new generation of elephant lovers in Kenya.

'School trips like this happen every two weeks.'

-ALL:

-Wow!

This scheme teaches the next

generation why we need elephants.

They're all very excited

about seeing the elephants. I was...

Well, I didn't know what to expect.

I thought maybe they see them all the time,

maybe it's not that big a deal.

But as soon as they spotted them,

everyone got very animated and excited.

What an amazing thing to do.

I'm about to get a lesson on the benefit of elephants.

You're an expert. LAUGHTER

Did you swallow an elephant book?

It's all about building positive relationships.

For Wiva, she's had positive experiences with people.

In her own elephant way, she must view us as friends.

She can't view us as enemies.

She trust us, and I think it's really wonderful to see

that these kids that are going to grow up alongside elephants,

they value elephants.

They see the benefits that they can bring.

They want to have them as their future,

and you can't ask for anything more than that.

It's nearly time for me to leave,

but I want to see Wendi and Wiva again before I go.

They're mingling with another herd.

It's great to see Wiva's confidence building.

TRUMPETING

She's tussling with another calf.

Even after a knock-down...

..she's straight up for more...

..with a little help from mum.

No longer the shy little elephant

I met four months ago.

LOUD TRUMPETING

It's time for my mentor to give his

opinion on how I've progressed.

Gordon...is doing well.

But he needs quite a lot of time

to learn much about elephants.

It is not a thing of one day or two, or a week.

Hey, Chulu.

-Hey, hey.

-HE WHISTLES

Cross, cross, cross, cross. If you are crossing, you cross.

'This would have been impossible without Benjamin.'

Sometimes I do step in to help control the elephants.

Cos these elephants, they don't know Gordon a long time.

So that's the reason why they are trying to play him.

So that's the reason why, most of the time,

'I'm stepping in and try to take control of the situation.'

HE WHISTLES

Down, down, down. Cross, cross.

HE WHISTLES

Because they know me, they've been with me for many years.

So they know.

The naughty ones, they know I know that they are naughty.

So when I step in, then, they know,

"Oh, this guy knows me, so let me just run away."

GROWLING

WHISTLING

'I may not be an expert yet, but I've learnt so much

'about these complex, intelligent animals.

'And according to Benjamin, they're also great judges of character.'

One thing actually Gordon should also learn is that

these elephants can learn one's heart.

Whether you are loving or you are not loving.

So if you are not loving, there's

no way you can stay with elephants.

Most of the time they'll be pushing you around,

or making a lot of noise whenever you are close to them.

So they are very clever.

Hey, you. ELEPHANT GRUNTS

'Many of these elephants were orphaned through conflict

'with humans.'

That's me being checked out.

And yet they're calm with me amongst them.

I think this, my ability to sit here

and be so comfortable around these elephants,

is really just down to them.

Down to the trust that those elephants have in me.

And maybe my... HE CHUCKLES

..ability to trust them,

my ability to just sort of put aside my fear

and actually learn from the elephants directly.

I hope that, in the years to come,

Gawa's relationships with people

will be worthy of this kind of trust.

There is nothing cuter on the face of this planet

than a baby elephant.

That is official.

This year has taught me that it

takes a whole herd to raise a baby.

And for this remarkable family, that includes Benjamin -

he's dedicated his life to them.

It won't be any time soon,

but wouldn't it be wonderful to see

a day when elephants are free of persecution?

We can't help the world's most majestic animals

without helping the people who live alongside them.

Their futures are intertwined.

Every single member of this family is right here.

And I think it's a really fitting way

to leave my elephant family,

is actually just them demonstrating to me -

to us all, really -

why elephants are important.

Why they are extra special

is because they are in it together.

They care about each other,

and all they need from us is for us to care about them.