Elephants Guided by the Matriarch
In Elephants Guided by the Matriarch, narrator Gordon Buchanan describes the challenges that African elephants face as they travel over the savannas. Baby elephants have to learn where to go and how to navigate potentially dangerous water crossings as they move from place to place. Since elephants travel great distances, the expertise of the elephant matriarch is critical to their survival. This video is excerpted from BBC's Animal Babies, a heartwarming show that follows the first breaths, first steps and first feeds of some adorable baby animals, revealing the challenges they face to survive in some of the toughest but most beautiful places on the planet.
Lesson Express
Q: How does the river serve as both a positive and negative part of the elephant family’s life?
A: The river provides elephants with drinking water and it also allows them a place to cool off and splash around in as they play. On the negative side, rivers and other bodies of water become barriers and can make travel from place to place much more difficult.
Q: What happened when the mother elephant (matriarch) wasn’t there to help the group cross the river?
A: The current was stronger than they expected and, without the guidance of the mother, the group chose a difficult and dangerous portion of the river to cross.
Q: What is a poacher and how did the video describe the impact of poachers on the elephant group?
A: A poacher is someone who hunts illegally. A poacher killed the elephant matriarch, who the elephants rely on to lead them safely in their travels across the water. Without the mother, the elephants ended up trying to cross at a deep, fast-moving section of the river.
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