Africana: Elephants on a Binge

The 2,500 elephants that roam South Africa's huge Kruger National Park are normally friendly enough. Last week however, even park rangers kept their distance from the beasts. One elephant recently sat down on a Volkswagen and flattened it, though the two German tourists inside had time to escape.

Others try to scratch themselves by rubbing against autos, with unfortunate results for the bodywork. Some smash down boundary fences, uproot trees and chase African herdsmen; occasionally, they kill someone. Whether they turn vicious or merely playful, all of them sway and totter about a great deal, as if they were drunk....

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