"An ominous low rumble rose from the forest. I could see the Scimitar family amassing at the eastern edge of the clearing. The telltale features of the matriarch, Chilonis, were visible just within the tree line. Her wide-splayed, upcurved tusks and distinctive ear shape were unmistakable. She was dusting as she waited for something to happen. What that was, I hadn't figured out yet. But the rumbling was unusual. The family was on edge for some reason."
"As the commotion amped up, the vantage of my research tower in front of the waterhole made it possible to see what was happening deeper in the forest. A cloud of white dust loomed overhead, and the rumbling grew louder and more intense, turning to growls then to all-out roars and bellows. Judging from the number of individuals surrounding Chilonis, I had assumed that one subfamily of Scimitars was waiting for the other half of the family before breaking cover and heading to the waterhole."
A Scimitar elephant family gathered at the clearing's eastern edge under an ominous low rumble, with matriarch Chilonis identifiable by her wide-splayed, upcurved tusks and distinctive ears. A cloud of white dust and escalating rumbling progressed to growls, roars, and bellows as family members clustered. Observers set up cameras, datasheets, binoculars, spotting scopes, and dung maps to collect behavioral data. In 2022 an adult female, Zeta, had been expelled after the birth of her calf Aria, creating unresolved questions about relationships among Zeta, Saber, Katana, Cutlass, and Chilonis. Zeta had previously attempted reintegration, and investigators considered whether resource scarcity drives expulsions or prompts new family formations.
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