by Mike Loomis
March 23, 2003
We got up at 4:45 this morning and had a quick breakfast of coffee and crepes. We headed for the field at around 5:45 after the trackers had scouted the area. We followed the relatively fresh tracks of a single elephant. We heard it vocalize once, but we were never able to get close enough to see it. After hiking for three and one-half hours, we returned to camp. Karen Weinbaum, a Peace Corps volunteer working with WWF-Cameroon in the Djembe area, and Michele Tongo headed right back out to look for fresh elephant signs. Karen has been monitoring in the area and had an educated guess as to where the elephants might be.
She came back to camp within a half hour after finding two elephants. Everyone quickly mobilized and headed back out. After about 20 minutes, we could hear the elephant moving through the forest. We started stalking the elephant in very dense undergrowth. Desire, Mario, Michele, and I approached to within about 15 meters of the elephant. The rest of the team took refuge behind, and in, trees, with several members climbing ten feet or higher. From this position, the team could hear sounds of the ensuing chase.
Meanwhile, I fired a dart that was deflected by brush and missed its target. The elephant moved off a short distance and stopped, giving the group and I an opportunity to approach within 15 meters again. The elephant was facing me, so I didn’t have a shot. The elephant saw the team and moved off again a short distance away. It was again in very thick undergrowth. We began stalking again. We could not get a clear shot at the elephant, so Desire attempted to get closer. The elephant charged Desire, but broke the charge off quickly. I went to Desire’s position where I could barely see the elephant. There was a small clearing about five meters ahead of me, so I crawled on my hands and knees to the clearing. The elephant was facing me, but when I stood up I still did not have a clear shot. Mario and Michele were off to the left and got the elephant’s attention. The elephant turned to face them and then turned to run directly away from me, giving me a clear shot at its rear. I fired and hit the elephant.
Mario, Desire, and Michele ran after the elephant, and the rest of the team joined in the chase. Twelve minutes later, the team found the elephant lying down. The elephant was intubated and equipment for monitoring the animal’s vital signs was attached. Desire and other members of the team attached the collar while I monitored anesthesia. Karen ran the respirator. This elephant is a mature bull which is well known to the staff at Djembe because it has an injury to its trunk, probably caused by a poacher’s snare.
The tracking collar we put on the elephant is different from the collars used before. In addition to the VHF transmitter, the collar has a GPS receiver and an UHF transmitter that transmits location data to NOAA weather satellites. We are hoping to be able to collect very accurate position data from this collar.
We finished attaching the collar, reversed the anesthesia, and removed the breathing tube. Soon after, the animal stood up, faced the team for a few minutes, vocalized, and ran off into the bush. From the time the elephant was darted to the time it recovered and ran off into the bush was 58 minutes.
We headed back for camp, and on the way back, saw a bush viper which we photographed after I gently prodded it with a stick. After returning to camp, a celebration ensued (which was still going on four hours later). The elephant was toasted with champagne and named Djembe. Our afternoon hike was cancelled and we leave for the Dounje natural salt lick tomorrow morning at 8:30.
About the author:Dr. Mike Loomis is Chief Veterinarian at the North Carolina Zoological Park.
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