Emergence is a short documentary featuring Tsavo National Parks incredible super tuskers and the remarkable humans preserving these iconic elephants. Super Tuskers are elephants whose tusks are so large they touch the ground; each tusk weighs well over 100 lbs. There is a genetic variation that is responsible for this rare tusk size. Roughly 21 Super Tuskers exist on the planet and 9 of them live in the Tsavo. Many of these “Tuskers” are reaching the end of their lifespan. 32 bull elephants thought to possess the Tusker gene (known as Emerging Tuskers) and 4 female Tuskers (Iconic Cows) have been identified in Tsavo. With protection, there is an opportunity for these elephants to breed and keep this critically threatened gene pool alive. Emergence sheds light on these rare elephants, the challenges they face, and the work dedicated humans are doing to protect them.
The main character of the film is a Super Tusker named Lugard – a Kenyan national treasure. Like most bull elephants, he is solitary. He is also not comfortable around humans. At 55 years old, Lugard has witnessed a multitude of atrocities including a massive poaching crisis in the ‘70s and ‘80s where the elephant population in the park was decimated.
He continues to navigate the effects of climate change and is living through the worst drought the eastern horn of Africa has seen in 4 decades. The film also features Tsavo Trust, a remarkable NGO that works tirelessly to protect these incredible elephants.