Cool-headed elephant fights off 14 lionesses in Zambia

By Ben Hooper

An elephant in Zambia demonstrated his ability to keep a cool head under pressure when he escaped being made into a meal by 14 female lions.

The video, filmed by Jesse Nash on a tour with Normal Carr Safaris at the Chinzombo Safari Camp in Zambia, shows a group of 14 lionesses descending on a young elephant.

The elephant, keeping calm, swats at the lionesses with his trunk while making his way to a nearby body of water.

The pachyderm reaches the water, but only a handful of the predators decide to stay on shore while the more daring members of the pride give pursuit in the shallows — including one lioness riding piggy-back on the elephant’s rear.

The elephant flees further into the water, causing the lioness to jump off its back, but the big cats continue to stalk the elephant.

The video ends with the elephant, finally fed up, charging the lionesses and causing them to flee.

The safari tour group said the elephant survived the encounter and earned the nickname Hercules. UPI