Playtime at the elephant orphanage: Animals left motherless by poachers are brought up by 'foster parents' in 50-strong 'family'

Wide-eyed with enthusiasm, this baby elephant clambers over the weary elder lying on the ground.

Just nine months old, he is exploring the world with all the playful curiosity of any excited youngster.

And the older elephants in the group patiently allow the younger ones to scramble on to them – showing how gentle these powerful animals can be.

But tragedy lies behind this remarkable image. For instead of growing up with their natural families, these elephants are orphans, forced to form their own extraordinary family of survivors.
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