Pinnawela elephant orphanage Photo

Photographer’s Note

Pinnawela elephant orphanage has existed since 1975 and has grown to become one of the most popular attractions of Sri Lanka.

Before the arrival of the British in 1815 an estimated 30,000 elephants lived on the island. In the 1960s, the elephant population was close to extinction. This prompted the Sri Lankan government to found an orphanage for elephants that had lost their mothers or herds. Today, their number is around 3,000.

Pinnawela, about 80 km northeast of Colombo, is regarded as the biggest herd of captive elephants in the world. Among the elephants is one that lost a foot when it stepped on a mine. Another is blind and is totally reliant on humans. The elephant herd in Pinnawela makes the journey to the river twice a day to bathe

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xavshot (63133) 2009-04-14 12:19

Bonsoir Claude
très jolie vue sur ce troupeau. Tu as bénéficié d'une belle lumière pour faire ressortir ce paysage. Beau travail et note intéressante.
Xavier

KateinDenmark (1117) 2009-04-14 13:21

This is an excellent image that captures the scope of it's subject. So often elephant pictures feature a huge elephant. I like that there are so many here and that they seem so small in relation to the world they live in. This is a nice advertisement for the refuge. Well done!

Sincerely,
Kate

globalvillager (104) 2009-04-14 14:43

Elephants are large animals, but your picture says the opposite. Beautifully capture, I like how the color of the animals is so similar to the color of the land. A bit of cropping adjustment may help, removing the awkward skyline. Thanks for sharing,

sacimar (7694) 2009-04-14 19:11

Hi Claude,

amazing place, excellent picture showing the elephant orphanage, good colours and perspective, nice job,

Regards

Sergio