Elephant helps struggling calf scale roadside barrier in India

KERALA, India - A trio of elephants on the move in India met an obstacle in the shape of a roadside barrier that was too tall for the smallest of them. Luckily, a helping trunk was soon at hand.

Anish Kata was cycling with friends in the area at the time when he witnessed the elephants crossing the road.

"While spotting elephants is common in this region, I have never seen a baby elephant this close. The COVID-19 lockdown restrictions [means] fewer vehicles take these roads and so elephants take this path more often and in the daytime too,” Kata said in his Instagram post.

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Though Kata insisted on keeping a distance from the elephants, knowing the dangers adult elephants pose around their calves, he was still able to witness a “breathtaking sight.”

“One of the baby elephants was really tiny and clearly a newborn that was shorter than the median,” he said.

“What we saw was an adorable sight of the mother elephant lifting her baby with her trunk and helping the cute baby elephant cross over. What a beautiful thing to see in the morning.”