Celebrate World Elephant Day with these Nat Geo documentaries

They are smart. They are family orientated. They remember forever. They have complex emotions and they look after each other.

With World Elephant Day approaching on August 12, National Geographic Wild has lined up a jumbo block of content dedicated to these tusked giants.

Not only are they the biggest of the big five, they are also the largest land mammal on earth, weighing up to seven tons each.

Stomping off at 1.15pm, Elephant Queen follows the old elephant matriarch, Mensah, who must take her young calf and the herd to safety after the death of her mother. She is their final hope and must lead them to their ancient feeding grounds.

Elephant Queen. Picture: Earth Touch LTD

Botswana is home to more elephants than anywhere else in the world. It’s the setting for a titanic battle.

Every year, thousands of elephants trek over 11 000km in search of food and water. But the desert is a hostile place, especially as the dry season takes hold, so they must use their strength and cunning to survive. Along the way, they are shadowed by some of the most ruthless predators on earth – lions.

Experience their remarkable lives in Elephant King of the Kalahari at 2.05pm.

Confronted by fire, famine, predators and poachers, three elephant families overcome adversity in ways that feel almost human in nature.

Elephant King of the Kalahari. Picture: Earth Touch LTD

An Elephant’s World, at 2.50pm, follows the journeys of elephant herds in Kenya, India, and Mali as they migrate towards food and safety, using knowledge shared over generations.

We get a glimpse into the minds of elephants, seeing that their unique abilities to communicate, educate and empathise provide them with extraordinary skills to survive.

In Baby Elephant Rescue at 3.38pm, a perilously ill and orphaned elephant calf has been found abandoned. He’s the victim of the growing battle for space and resources between people and elephants in Sri Lanka.

Will he be rescued in time?

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