Will Burrard-Lucas is a wildlife photographer from the UK. He was the last person to capture stunning images of F_MU1, a beautiful elephant dubbed Kenya’s “Elephant Queen.” The elephant queen was over 60 years old when she died at her home on the plains of Tsavo in Kenya. (1)
Awestruck By The Elephant Queen
Burrard-Lucas says his first sight of her left him awestruck. “If I hadn’t looked upon her with my own eyes, I might not have believed that such an elephant could exist in our world,” he says. “If there were a Queen of Elephants, it would surely have been her.” (1)
With her beautiful tusks as a stark reminder that animals like the queen are killed for the gift’s nature has given them, it is wonderful to know she survived the threat of poachers. Instead, she died of natural causes peacefully. (1)
Honored To Photograph The Elephant Queen
Burrard-Lucas feels photographing F_MU1 was an honor. Not many knew of the elephant’s existence. The photographer met the elephant when he worked on a coffee table photography book featuring the elephants of Tsavo. He partnered with Tsavo Trust for two years while photographing the mighty elephants. (1)
Elephant Queen First Sighting
He arrived in Kenya in August 2017 and was quickly caught up in the project. He traveled with the Tsavo Trust research team, Tembo 2. The team rode around in a broken-down Land Rover while Tsavo Trust founder Richard Moller spotted for them overhead in a plane. Using a radio, he instructed the team towards the elephants. This is how he first encountered F_MU1. (1)
F_MU1 The Elephant Queen
F_MU1 is the code given to the elephant. It took several days to find her as her home covered a vast area the size of Switzerland. Burrard-Lucas says he was speechless when she first stepped out into the open. Despite her age, she moved with “stately grace.” Her tusks caught his attention as they were so large, they touched the ground. (1)
Elephant Queen Images
When F_MU1 approached a watering hole, the photographer deployed his BeetleCam to get some ground-level images to show off her tusks. This encounter set the stage for the entire project, during which he was privileged to photograph the majestic beast several times. (1)
Burrard-Lucas found the elephant to be “gentle and calm.” “Sometimes she would come so close to me that I could have touched her,” he says. (1)
Death Of The Elephant Queen
Drought could be a contributing factor to F_MU1’s death. The lack of rain reduced the water and branches of acacia trees available for food and drink. Burrard-Lucas caught F_MU1 eating every morsel of a large branch she pulled down from a tree during the dry spell. (1)
The photographer’s last encounter with F_MU1 took place at a waterhole, a subtle reminder of the circle of life. A large herd of buffalo commandeered the waterhole before F_MU1 arrived. He placed the BeetleCam next to the waterhole and captured both stills and video of F_MU1 in her final hours. (1)
“As a wildlife photographer, a subject like F_MU1 is incredibly rare,” says Burrard-Lucas. “A creature that is unique – possibly the most remarkable of her kind – and yet an animal that few have photographed before. The time I spent with her was a real privilege.” (1)
His photographs are featured in his book, Land of Giants. (1)
