Across Africa, elephant poaching is happening on an industrial scale. Though elephant killing is down in Kenya and conservationists are hopeful, the battle to save the largest animals on the Earth is far from being won
In the Samburu National Reserve in northern Kenya, when the fierce heat of the sun has softened into a gentle evening glow, David Daballen and I climb into a jeep to find some elephants.
As we drive through the savannah, Daballen, a conservationist at Save the Elephants, points out family groups and individuals within them. “These are the Butterflies, this group is Storms, here are the Spices,” he says. We have been looking out for Cinnamon, the Spices' matriarch, and suddenly there she is: around 50 years old, huge and tuskless, having been born without any precious ivory. Close to her is Habiba, who was orphaned along with seven siblings when poachers killed their mother in 2011. The orphans were adopted by Cinnamon and the rest of the Spices.
They are a crucial part of the ecosystem, and an iconic species. Can you imagine them no longer existing?
Related: Elephants on the path to extinction - the facts
The rangers could hear the bull making death sounds a loud rumble
It's not like the battle has been won the threat is still very real but it's not on the scale of a few years ago
Elephants have a humbling effect on humans; they make us realise that perhaps we are not the masters of the universe
Related: Why the Guardian is spending a year reporting on the plight of elephants
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