In the land of the super tuskers
Photographer reveals race to capture world’s biggest elephants on film to bolster the war on poachers Lensman searches for last remaining 18 on planet
There are not many left but the photographer David Yarrow is determined to capture the world’s last remaining super tuskers on film.
Photographer David Yarrow’s latest stunning pictures taken in Africa last week show a few of the estimated 18 elephants left with tusks so long they almost reach the ground.
The 51-year-old, who grew up in Kilmacolm, Renfrewshire, was photographing the mammoth creatures at the Tsavo National Park in Kenya after searching for them by air.
He said: “I have put myself in relative harm’s way. It’s part and parcel of the gig. You’ve got to impose yourself on the situation.
“You’ve got to have a camera on the ground to get an idea of their enormity.
“All that requires safety – you can’t just walk up to them. They will kill you.”
To achieve his spectacular close-range shots, David often uses remotely operated cameras enclosed in protective steel containers, which he controls from 50 metres away.
David, a multi-millionaire former financier, said he said he was running away from a stampede when he tripped, smashing a tooth and his phone.
Most of the big tuskers are found in Kenya, with a large number in Tsavo National Park.
Jenny Cousins, WWF regional manager for East Africa, said: “The selection of large tuskers by poachers has driven a decline in tusk size.”
David’s spectacular images will be sold for up to £50,000, with much of the money going into conservation efforts in Africa.
The Tsavo National Park in Kenya is a land of giants and a land of absolutely no tourists. I was hiding under my Land Rover to take this. This cow is about 50 years old. We all worry that she will not make it through the year unless it rains soon. It was so hot today but I’m told that means the rains are not too far away My goal is to take a portrait of one of the last sevenor eight super tuskers left. Tsavo is vast, the odds are slim, but we will search by air and by road and hope for our moment. The biggest elephants in the world are here, we just have to find them