Baby Desert Elephant in Namibia Uses Mud as Sunscreen, Cool Down Amid Rare Rainfall

A baby desert elephant found a way to cool down amid the harsh climate in Namibia. The calf covered its body with mud as sunscreen.

Baby Desert Elephant in Namibia

National Geographic filmed a new documentary, "Secrets of the Elephants," narrated by actress Natalie Portman. The series explores the complex emotions and strategic thinking, and dynamic culture of elephants. It will premiere on April 21.

Desert elephants live in the Namibia desert, an arid region in the northwest part of the country. It is probably the toughest place on Earth for an elephant, according to Newsweek. However, they have survived from generation to generation through periods of drought, sandstorms, and, in rare cases, floods.

The outlet shared a photo of a baby elephant covered in mud. It reportedly used the mud as sunscreen.

According to Portman's narration in the footage, the rain is a great break for the infant and her family. She at first seems perplexed by the mud but only briefly. The calf will recall this location and that a thick layer of mud serves as desert sunscreen when she is older.

It'll take the young calf six months to learn to utilize the 40,000 muscles that govern her trunk, but eventually, it'll be as natural to her as an arm is to us. For now, it's one step at a time. The elephants drink as much as they can; however they can.

Elephant expert and National Geographic Explorer Paula Kahumbu told Newsweek that elephants are adaptable and incredible. The documentary also made her realize that elephants in Zimbabwe's Gonarezhou National Park use their trunks as a tool when coming down from cliffs.

Elephants use their trunks for various actions, including probing the ground before them to determine whether it is stable enough to walk on. Khaumbu found the strategy fantastic.

She anticipated easily spotting elephants in the rainforest. However, she was disappointed.

The desert elephants were reportedly difficult to locate. They had to set up video traps and place them across the forest to find them.

They would locate the camera traps and deactivate them. In a way, it showed that they were aware of them, could smell them, and recognized they were made of human material because they would smash them.

Elephants reportedly have advanced communication skills that humans can't understand.

Desert Elephants on the Verge of Extinction

Unfortunately, despite the desert elephants' unique adaptations in Namibia, they are reportedly at risk of extinction.

Only 150 individuals are remaining. There's another population of desert elephants in the West African nation of Mali. Elephants around the globe also face several threats, from climate change and habitat destruction to poaching and human conflict.

Kahumbu said she was concerned with the future of the elephants. Everywhere they went, they discovered that elephants were in danger.

Elephant rangelands are vanishing in Namibia.

Humans and elephants are also at odds, resulting in more killings of the latter. Climate change is making it even harder for them to thrive.

The expert believes desert elephant populations will decline within her lifetime if people don't take action.