The great 'jungle' of the Congo has not always been rainforest. Two to three thousand years ago, this area was largely grassland. Over the past few million years, Africa's climate has swung between extremes of high temperature and humidity and cooler, dryer periods, and in response, the forests have waxed and waned like a tide over the Congo basin. Inevitably, this ebb and flow has influenced the Congo's wildlife. Forest life has also altered the size, shape and behaviour of other species.
Forest elephants are small, with downward-pointing tusks, as befits life in dense forest.
Presumably an elephant matriarch just can't protect a large family in dense forest. For the previous few years, it had been too dangerous to visit, due to the bitter civil war raging near Brazzaville. It was worth the wait. Finally, we walked to the edge of a sunny clearing called Maya Nord. Maya Nord is the jewel in the Congo's crown, a small yet perfect capsule of Congo wilderness.