Rob and Victoria Sears kindly shared these photos of two elephants lying down sleeping right outside their bungalow at Eagles Nest Lodge, Mashatu Reserve in south eastern Botswana.

"Victoria and I were awoken by loud snoring outside our bungalow at about 4am. Victoria shone the torch outside and saw 2 huge Elephant having a snooze 1 meter away from the patio!!! I managed to take a few snaps (with flash) and the old boys didn't even stir, they were fast asleep..." Rob Sears (April, 2009)

You quite likely haven't seen an elephant lying down. That's because elephants don't sleep much and when they do they usually nap standing up. They might lie down if they feel secure and then generally only for about 30 minutes or so at a time usually while others nearby are awake and alert. In the case of calves, who you are more likely to see lying down, the herd will stand around them keeping watch while they sleep.

Apparently these two elephants felt very relaxed at Eagles Nest Lodge. Perhaps Elephants Nest would be appropriate.

Mashatu Game Reserve is a wholly preserved and untainted wilderness in eastern Botswana at the confluence of the Limpopo and Shashe Rivers. Mashatu, ‘Land of Giants’ takes its name from the locally-sacrosanct Mashatu tree and the giants that roam its terrain. As one of the largest private game reserve in southern Africa, Mashatu is 25 000 ha (75 000 acres).

Thanks Rob and Victoria.

ZZZzzzzzzzzz