Dinosaurs in the Valley

In the evenings, when the sanctuary is quieter and there are fewer people around, you can hear the elephants making noises from down in the valley. Lately, there have been huge bellows arising up the hill. We joke that the noise sounds like “dinosaurs in the valley.”

When elephants bellow like that, they’re often looking for each other. These days, the sounds are most often coming from Rana and Mara. They could be separated by an entire yard or simply 20 meters apart and they would still call to each other. During the evening, these noises are often Rana calling for Mara, we assume, after she wakes up from a nap and her friend is no longer there. When we hear this, we always wait for the next sound, which is Mara giving a sleepy squeak, followed by rumbles just a few moments later. Although this kind of bellow can often be related to something negative, since the first week Rana arrived, she showed us that she likes to be a little dramatic when it comes to her noises.

Photo of a very muddy Rana

Comments(8)

Sue says
February 3, 2025 at 2:19 pm

I imagine these are some of the most wonderful sounds you could wish to hear!!! ❤️🐘❤️
Zoi Flores says
February 3, 2025 at 2:51 pm

LOL!!! I’d love to hear to those dramatic sounds from Mad. Rana. 💚🐘
Kenneth B. Newman says
February 3, 2025 at 3:33 pm

So once the African Elephants arrive at GSE, will the Asian Elephants noises by somewhat understood by them? And will noises made by the African Elephants be heard by the Asian Elephants? Will the two separate herds be able to see each other thru the fences?
- REPLY
  Sara says
  February 3, 2025 at 3:35 pm
  
  There’s no way to know if they’ll understand each other, though elephants have an amazing ability to communicate, so there’s always a possibility. They’ll certainly know the others are there, since elephants can sense things for miles at a time. They will have separate habitats at different locations at the sanctuary, so they won’t see each other.
Beth says
February 3, 2025 at 7:58 pm

Please, PLEASE find a way for us to hear what you do!! Sounds magically, mysteriously magnificent.
Love and gratitude for your work❤️
- REPLY
  Alejandra Enquin says
  February 4, 2025 at 4:34 am
  
  Que lindas son estas dos “dinosaurias “adorables ,divertidas ,exageradas y dramáticas cuando se redescubren y reencuentran después de un corto momento separadas.Rana & Mara disfrutan el Santuario con tanta alegría!!🙏✨️🌿🐘🐘🌿🎊😘😘🍉🍉
Rebecca Bostwick says
February 8, 2025 at 3:44 pm

Hi, I’m Rebecca (Beci) Bostwick and wanted to let you know that I got off of Facebook and IG about 3 weeks ago. I deactivated them for my mental health. I am glad I get these newsletters because you guys are the only thing I miss from Social Media. Keep up the great work you guys do. Ty fir everything you do.
- REPLY
  Kat Blais says
  February 8, 2025 at 3:58 pm
  
  thank you, that’s very kind. we absolutely understand leaving social media. the blog won’t have as many rescue updates, just because when we do rescue pupy and kenya there is so much to do. but you can sign up for text updates and then you shouldn’t miss a thing. i’ll include the link in case you are interested and haven’t signed up yet. https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScX9h9YwOXKM6GlNXoGr9BXZMq3-a1AWtrjzGmDg_WOUddd1Q/viewform

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