Wildlife Champion

In our series about people with a passion for a species, we ask film-maker Gordon Buchanan why he has chosen to champion the African elephant.

Why film-maker Gordon Buchanan has fallen in love with the African elephant

When did you first become interested in elephants?

The African elephant is one of the most recognisable animals on the planet, but it wasn’t until I made the mini-series Elephant Family & Me in 2016 that I’d really focused on them. With a lot of the predators I’ve filmed, their behaviour is mainly about finding enough food to survive, whereas the relationships elephants have with one another and the love and care they show each other are really quite remarkable. Once you start to get to know these giants, it’s impossible not to fall for them.

What is so special about the elephant?

They live together in matriarchal groups, which are generally very harmonious, and communicate information that has been passed down the generations for thousands of years in ways that we don’t really understand. They hear through their feet and can communicate with other herds that are several miles away. They also play a very important role in the ecosystem – many trees and plants depend on them for seed dispersal

The love and care elephants show each other is really quite remarkable.

and they excavate water holes that other species rely on. In areas where elephants have been hunted out, there is a huge knockon effect on other species.

Aside from ivory poaching, what are the challenges?

Elephants need large territories to roam around and these are hugely impacted by human activity. Towns and villages that sprung up, say, 20 years ago may be on a route that elephants only need to use once every 50 years. An older elephant may remember a place where they found water under certain conditions, and the herd finds itself walking through a settlement that wasn’t there the last time they used that route.

Do zoos and wildlife parks have any role to play?

This is a difficult one. Keeping certain animals in captivity is not too problematic. If a tarantula or a snake, for example, has shelter, along with a food supply, no predators and access to veterinary care, then its life expectancy can be much longer than in the wild. But an elephant’s life span, once it’s in captivity, becomes considerably shorter. Elephants need to be able to roam around; they’re intelligent and have complex emotional needs, too. I don’t like to see elephants in captivity.

Do you feel there is hope for the future of elephants?

I do. More is being done now than ever before to tackle the problem of the ivory trade, and there is generally more understanding about the way elephants live and their needs. But we all need to take responsibility for the fact that we share our planet with other species. We need to really think about the things we buy and have in our homes – where they come from and how they are produced and reach us, as well as the effect this has on environments and habitats around the world. Jill Shearer