SRI LANKA: Safari Adventures

Safaris are a good way to see wildlife up close and personal in their natural habitat.

Sri Lanka’s wildlife safaris are in some of the best national parks for spotting elephants, leopards, sloth bears, deer, crocodiles and exotic birds.

We were fortunate to go on 2 safaris in Sri Lanka.

Our first safari was in the northern part of the country near Minneriya National Park, which is generally the best place to find elephants in their natural habitat.

 

Sri Lanka is home to the Sri Lankan elephant (Elephas maximus maximus), a subspecies of the Asian elephant. Sri Lanka has around 6,000 elephants, one of the largest wild elephant populations in Asia.

We rode in a open-top truck looking to find them during their afternoon activity. After a short while our guide knew there was something moving in the forest so he drove in deeper. Out came a big female. 

I will say, when she looked right at us and walked towards us I was a bit unnerved. She must have figured we were harmless and moved back.

Herds are led by a matriarch and mostly consist of females and young ones. 

A second elephant followed her out.

And then a third one.

Now, look closely..... Bottom left... Between the legs and trunk.

Our patience paid off as a baby elephant came out. Our guide figured it was about 2 or 3 weeks old. A newborn elephant weighs around 100 kg (220 lbs) and drinks up to 11 liters (3 gallons) of milk per day.

Two females constantly stayed around the baby. In elephant herds, other female elephants (aunties) help care for the baby, a behavior called allomothering.

This was exhilarating, but, also a bit scary and I felt a bit intrusive.

While the females are hanging out together protecting their young, the adult males (bulls) roam alone.

Later we found another group of elephants with another young one in the midst.

 We also went on a safari in Yala National Park in southeastern Sri Lanka. Yala is Sri Lanka’s most famous national park and home to the highest density of leopards (Panthera pardus kotiya) in the world. So it is the best place to spot elusive leopards. If you are lucky.

Other wildlife in the park includes elephants. We found a mom with her young calf.

Female elephants nurse their calves for up to 2–4 years, though some may continue suckling for comfort up to 5 years. After about 6 months, calves start eating solid food (grass, leaves, and bark) while still nursing.

 

Baby elephants nurse by using their mouths (not their trunks) to suckle from their mother’s mammary glands, which are located between her front legs. Look closely at this picture and you can see the calf suckling her/his mom!

While looking for leopards we found some ox.

Leopards are stealthy hunters and prey on deer, wild boar, monkeys, and even small crocodiles.

 

 

 

When looking for leopards one has to be v-e-r-y patient—leopard sightings are rare. The best place to look for them is resting on rock formations, up in trees or crossing dirt tracks.

The Sri Lankan leopard is a unique subspecies of the leopard, found only in Sri Lanka.

Since we're killing time looking for leopards...

COCKTAIL PARTY TRIVIA: 

The Sri Lankan leopard is larger than other Asian leopards. 

They have golden-yellow fur and dark rosettes. 

They are the top predator in Yala (unlike in Africa, where lions compete for dominance). 

Leopards live alone and mark their territory with scent. 

Unlike lions, they don’t roar often, but use growls, hisses, and purring sounds to communicate. 

Knowing all this.... we are still looking.

FINALLY, we found one! YES! Those spots in the distance!

Lying on her/his back, in the forest, s/he rolls over with her/his leg up in the air.

Well, I have to admit, our guide found the leopard. We had been looking on rocks, up in trees and on dirt crossings.

We probably shouldn't quit our day jobs, we'd be hopeless as safari guides.