Hunting Elephant
Hunting Elephant in South Africa - From a young age we are taught that lion is the king of the jungle. He may be, but if he is it is only because elephant has a gentle heart allowing lion to say so.
In the old days when the great hunters said they are going to hunt big game, they meant the gentle giants – hunting elephant in Africa. In modern times hunting elephants in Africa are not as common as it used to be during the 19th century when elephants were almost hunted to extinction for their ivory – Africa’s white gold.
Hunting elephant in South Africa is possible, but is limited mainly to privately owned land or in cases where the National Park issue quotas. Most elephants in Africa are being taken in Zimbabwe, Botswana and Mozambique.
Hunting elephant in Africa is generally hunted by tracking and this is the proper way. Many outfitters will allow you to shoot from the truck, but here at Lion Heart we feel this is not fair to the elephant and to the hunter. We will give the client the most authentic hunt possible.
Hunting elephants in Africa should be earned with the best part being the long walks after them which can turn from a few hours to a couple of days walking. If elephant walk at their normal pace you have to nearly jog to keep up with them and the moment they realize you are on their tracks they will quickly speed up. It is fascinating to see how such a large animal can silently disappear in the thickets.
Come an experience the ultimate hunting experience, hunting elephants in South Africa with Lion Heart Hunting Safaris.
Most likely areas where you will hunt:
Limpopo Bushveld
Lowveld
Zimbabwe
Shot Placement when hunting Elephant:
In the old days when the great hunters said they are going to hunt big game, they meant the gentle giants – hunting elephant in Africa. In modern times hunting elephants in Africa are not as common as it used to be during the 19th century when elephants were almost hunted to extinction for their ivory – Africa’s white gold.
Hunting elephant in South Africa is possible, but is limited mainly to privately owned land or in cases where the National Park issue quotas. Most elephants in Africa are being taken in Zimbabwe, Botswana and Mozambique.
Hunting elephant in Africa is generally hunted by tracking and this is the proper way. Many outfitters will allow you to shoot from the truck, but here at Lion Heart we feel this is not fair to the elephant and to the hunter. We will give the client the most authentic hunt possible.
Hunting elephants in Africa should be earned with the best part being the long walks after them which can turn from a few hours to a couple of days walking. If elephant walk at their normal pace you have to nearly jog to keep up with them and the moment they realize you are on their tracks they will quickly speed up. It is fascinating to see how such a large animal can silently disappear in the thickets.
Come an experience the ultimate hunting experience, hunting elephants in South Africa with Lion Heart Hunting Safaris.
Most likely areas where you will hunt:
Limpopo Bushveld
Lowveld
Zimbabwe
Shot Placement when hunting Elephant:
Quick Facts
Shoulder Height Male: 3.2 to 4m
Shoulder Height Female: 2.5 to 3.4m
Mass Male: 5000 to 6300kg
Mass Female: 2800 to 4500kg
Gestation Period: 22 month
Number of young: 1
Identification Pointers:
Massive size with long trunk and large ears. Usually have tusks.
Description:
It is the largest land mammal in the world. It is characterized by the long trunk, large ears and the normal presence of tusks. The trunk is extremely mobile and is almost as efficient as the human hand. The large ears serve as a display function but also assist in cooling the body. The back of the ears are well supplied blood vessels, and as the ears are flapped the blood is cooled. Elephants may also squirt water behind the ears to cool the blood. Tusks are characteristic of most elephants, although some individuals and even populations may be tuskless. The heaviest pair of tusks on record came from and Elephant from Kenya. Elephant tusks continue to grow throughout life but because of continuous wear and breakages they never reach their full potential length.
Distribution:
The elephant once occurred throughout Southern Africa but is now restricted to the extreme northern and eastern areas.
Habitat:
Elephant have an extremely wide habitat tolerance as long as sufficient food, water and share are available.
Food:
A wide variety of plants. Although not specialized feeders they do show a marked preference for certain species, for which they will travel long distances. During the rains green grass forms a large percentage of their diet. An adult may eat as much as 300kg per day.
Reproduction:
Calves may be born any time of the year but in some areas there is a peak in births that coincides with the rainy season. Cows are very protective of calves and should anything happen to a nursing mother and cow, the herd will become aggressive and very protective.
General:
Elephants face a number of threats including poaching for the ivory market and encroachment by humans on their traditional areas. when confined to limited areas by outside pressures they can inflict considerable damage on vegetation and it is for this reason that control programs are often essential.
Shoulder Height Male: 3.2 to 4m
Shoulder Height Female: 2.5 to 3.4m
Mass Male: 5000 to 6300kg
Mass Female: 2800 to 4500kg
Gestation Period: 22 month
Number of young: 1
Identification Pointers:
Massive size with long trunk and large ears. Usually have tusks.
Description:
It is the largest land mammal in the world. It is characterized by the long trunk, large ears and the normal presence of tusks. The trunk is extremely mobile and is almost as efficient as the human hand. The large ears serve as a display function but also assist in cooling the body. The back of the ears are well supplied blood vessels, and as the ears are flapped the blood is cooled. Elephants may also squirt water behind the ears to cool the blood. Tusks are characteristic of most elephants, although some individuals and even populations may be tuskless. The heaviest pair of tusks on record came from and Elephant from Kenya. Elephant tusks continue to grow throughout life but because of continuous wear and breakages they never reach their full potential length.
Distribution:
The elephant once occurred throughout Southern Africa but is now restricted to the extreme northern and eastern areas.
Habitat:
Elephant have an extremely wide habitat tolerance as long as sufficient food, water and share are available.
Food:
A wide variety of plants. Although not specialized feeders they do show a marked preference for certain species, for which they will travel long distances. During the rains green grass forms a large percentage of their diet. An adult may eat as much as 300kg per day.
Reproduction:
Calves may be born any time of the year but in some areas there is a peak in births that coincides with the rainy season. Cows are very protective of calves and should anything happen to a nursing mother and cow, the herd will become aggressive and very protective.
General:
Elephants face a number of threats including poaching for the ivory market and encroachment by humans on their traditional areas. when confined to limited areas by outside pressures they can inflict considerable damage on vegetation and it is for this reason that control programs are often essential.