An Amazonian effort

Meet Amazon, a 35-year-old elephant bull who proved to be a master at breaking out of the Eden Reserve located in Namibia’s Grootfontein area. Unfortunately, this does result in human-elephant conflict, a solution to the problem needing to be found.

 Enter N/a’an ku sê. In October 2024, the burly bull was fitted with a tracking collar, allowing the N/a’an ku sê team to monitor his movements and behaviour.

 Fast forward to April 2025, and the N/a’an ku sê team embarks on ‘mission elephant’. Darted from a helicopter by our daring veterinarian, Dr. Maaike de Schepper, the collared bull was subsequently lifted into a crate on a truck before waking up in his mode of transport.

The arduous journey to the TimBila Nature Reserve by N/a’an ku sê then ensued, our big boy being released into a pre-release boma. Deciding that his new environment was too good to resist, Amazon practiced self-release in a matter of two hours, soon making the reserve his home.

Monitoring with a drone shows Amazon calm and at peace, eating and taking regular mud baths. Welcome home, big boy. Conflict avoided!