A family of six elephants crosses the open grassland of Amboseli, Kenya, beneath a heavy evening sky, the low sun warming the haze along the far hills. Amboseli's elephants tend to move across the plain along the same paths, and knowing that changed the whole evening. There was no need to follow them. We parked on the road and waited for the family to come to us. They arrived at their own pace, the calves walking close between the adults, small birds riding one broad back and working the grass at their feet. The sun was setting behind them and to the left, and the cloud held back just enough light to keep the scene soft. Savanna elephants are now listed as endangered, and Amboseli's families have been known as individuals since 1972, through the longest-running study of wild elephants anywhere. That evening, all we had to do was let them close the distance.
