The African elephant is the world’s largest land mammal. He stands more than eleven feet at the shoulder and can weigh in at over seven tons.
Hunting Elephant in Africa is difficult yet rewarding task. When hunting Elephant you should be prepared for many days of tracking solitary bulls or small herds of mature bulls. The trophy size can be estimated by evaluating the size of its foot print. Our trackers are experienced and are able to tell the Elephants age and size just by observing small details of its foot print.
The dung of the Elephant can also be used to estimate its age as well as the quality of its tusks. An older Elephant will typically have much coarser dung and therefore carry more Ivory. When hunting Elephant the day very often ends with the hunter pursuing a bigger trophy than the current one being tracked. Elephants may be the largest land animals, but they can be very difficult to spot due to the fact that they like to hang out in thick brush.
A good pair of boots is a must when hunting Elephant due to the vast distances they are capable of covering. Knowing where all the vital organs are located is of utmost importance when preparing to shoot this animal. Even if you have the largest calibre rifle, a poorly placed shot will have little effect on this creature. Shooting this animal will be up close and personal, therefore a rifle with an open sight or low powered scope will be best.
There are some areas in Africa where Elephants have been found to be very aggressive towards humans. As such these few Elephants are seen as problem animals and killed. When hunting Elephant it is very common to be charged by one. In most cases it will be a mock charge where the Elephant fans his ears and trumpets loudly. They do this in order to display their dominance.
When an Elephant charges you for real, it will be silent with its ears pinned back. Every year there are hunters that get killed by Elephants. When hunting Elephant the size of the trophy is determined by the weight of its tusks. It is difficult to determine the Ivory size because it is genetic and varies though out Africa. It is also difficult to determine the mass of the ivory because inside the tusk is a hollow nerve of unknown size.
