Heart-wrenching footage from Kerala: Mother elephant’s desperate bid to save fallen calf ends in tragedy

Heartbreaking CCTV footage from Kerala’s Wayanad district has captured a herd of wild elephants desperately trying to reach a calf that rolled down a steep plantation slope. Despite the adults’ frantic efforts, the young elephant was later found dead, in an incident that has drawn widespread attention after the video circulated on social media.

The incident occurred on Sunday at Muthumari, Kattikkulam, near Mananthavady, on the edge of the forest, according to a report by Onmanorama. The footage, retrieved from a nearby plantation and shared online on Monday, shows the herd gathering around the distressed calf as it struggles on the slope.

CCTV captures herd’s frantic efforts

The video shows the calf tumbling down the incline and crying out, while its mother and other elephants attempt to reach it. Their loud trumpeting can be heard as the herd appears to respond to the calf’s distress.

The North Wayanad Forest Division’s Rapid Response Team (RRT) reached the location on Sunday after receiving information about the incident. However, officials were unable to approach the calf because the herd had gathered around it.

Forest personnel returned on Monday morning with a joint team from the Begur Forest Range and the RRT. They managed to move the elephants back towards the forest, allowing them to reach the calf, which was found dead.

Forest Department officials subsequently took the carcass to a location deeper inside the forest and buried it.

Similar incidents highlight elephants’ response to calf deaths

The Wayanad incident follows other reported cases in which elephant mothers have remained beside their dead or injured calves, preventing people from approaching them.

In Malaysia, a baby elephant died after being struck by a lorry while attempting to cross the East-West Highway in Perak on Mother’s Day. According to reports by The Star and The Straits Times, the calf’s mother emerged from nearby forest and tried to reach it, with footage of her distress spreading widely online. The collision brought traffic to a standstill, and the mother reportedly damaged the lorry.

Another incident was reported in October 2025 in Barunachari village in Bangladesh’s Chittagong Hill Tracts. A wild elephant calf reportedly slipped from a steep hillside and fell into Kaptai Lake. Forest officials struggled to retrieve its body because the mother remained nearby and drove away those who approached, according to local reports.

Why approaching a distressed herd can be dangerous

Forest personnel may face significant challenges when trying to reach an injured or dead calf surrounded by adult elephants. Protective behaviour can make it dangerous to approach, sometimes delaying access to the animal.

The Wayanad case underscores the difficulties forest teams face when responding to wildlife incidents in areas where plantations and human activity meet forest habitats. It also serves as a reminder that, when elephants are distressed, people should keep their distance and allow trained wildlife officials to manage the situation.