This is the emotional moment a mother elephant cuddled her calf with her trunk as they were reunited days after the youngster was separated from its herd.
Aerial shots showed the animal, aged between four and five months, safely asleep and tightly pressed against its mother after a touching reunion.
Park officials found the calf and returned it to the herd after it disappeared on December 29. It had been lost and alone in the Anamalai Tiger Reserve in Tamil Nadu, India.
Wardens found the baby wandering around, distressed and looking for its mother.Elephant herds rarely move on when a calf goes missing but may press on for safety if they sense imminent danger.The calf was fortunate staff were able to locate its family with drones, as they had walked 2.5 miles.
The calf was washed down to remove any human smells and driven back to the herd for the moving reunion with its mother after three days apart.
Wardens found the elephant wandering alone and sent out drones to locate the herd The missing calf was some 2.5 miles from its family and was in clear distress
The elephant (pictured behind its mother) was driven back to the herd and reunited