Mysuru: A wild elephant calf left the safety of its mother’s protection and sought the company of other forest department calves, which was a joyful surprise for Mathigodu elephant camp officials. The eight-month-old calf was discovered frolicking with other calves at the Mathigodu elephant camp, surprising forest officials because young calves typically not leave their mothers’ side. Normally, department’s elephants are sent into the forest in a herd for grazing.
The calf arrived with the herd a week ago, with 18-month-old Bhuvaneshwari. When contacted, Mahesh, the deputy conservator of forests (DCF) at the Nagarhole wildlife sanctuary, said that the forest officials returned the calf to Singanur, where it had come from, but that the baby elephant refused to leave the elephant camp. “We tried to return it to its mother three or four times, but it refused to leave our herd. Elephants normally lactate their calves for two years. Despite the fact that the department provided adequate care, calves died after being removed from their mothers. This small one, on the other hand, is very active and eats with gusto,” he added.
He added that the young calf in the camp is being fed with great care. Cooked rice, horse gram, green gram, ragi, and urad dal flour are among the foods it consumes. There are currently 21 elephants in the camp, he informed.