Read this Wildlife Art Journal article

Anyone who has had the great privilege of seeing elephants in the wild will know of the very close bonds that exist in their herds.

Mothers are extremely protective of their calves, always shielding them from danger, suckling them until they are four years old. Other females in the herd are equally watchful of the youngsters, lifting them up with a trunk when they get stuck, giving them a push from behind when needed, waiting for them if they trail behind the herd.

If you've ever been fortunate enough to go on a game drive, you will know that one of the most dangerous things to do is to get between a mother elephant and her calf.

Epic by Larry Norton

In the mid 1980's I witnessed the splitting up of two young elephant calves that had been orphaned as a result of culling operations and were being hand reared in an Harare game park. Without notice or warning a capture team arrived one morning. At government level an elephant calf had been promised to a zoo in Korea and there was nothing that could be done to stop the export. The young male elephant calf, less than a year old, was darted, loaded into a crate and taken away just one month after he and the young female had arrived.
 
The female elephant calf left behind was distraught, running backwards and forwards along the fence, trumpeting, screeching and calling repeatedly for her companion. Again...