Elephants learn to ignore drones in Kenya

In northern Kenya, at a place called the Samburu National Reserve, elephants are being studied using drones for the first time.

At first the animals were scared of the small flying machines equipped with cameras, because the buzzing sound reminded them of bees, which elephants are frightened of.

In fact, in the past farmers have used drones to scare elephants away from their crops.

But now, research from charity Save the Elephants and the University of Oxford, has shown that the animals have got used to the sound of drones, the drones themselves have become quieter, and this has meant the elephants are learning not to be frightened of them.

The study showed that even if elephants react at first, they quickly calm down.

Frank Pope, CEO of Save the Elephants, explained: "Even when elephants do respond and have a reaction to the drone initially, that reaction usually wears off very quickly.

"If you fly a drone right, if you fly it high, if you fly it gently, they can be an observational platform from which to observe elephants."

For decades, elephants have been observed using vehicles or in some cases from high viewing platforms.

"In the elephant world we've been very interested in drones," added Pope.

"The first application that's been used is really trying to help farmers with elephants that are marauding into their croplands and it's pretty dangerous work pushing elephants out from that farmland.

"And because we know that elephants are scared of bees and they don't like the sound of bees, that makes drones a very good way to push elephants out of crops. So everyone got into this mindset that 'oh elephants must be scared of drones', well it turns out that they don't have to be and that's why this new avenue of research has opened up," Pope says.

As well as onboard cameras, the drones monitoring the elephants have special sensors that record where each animal is and how they move. Later, computers can study this information to spot patterns in how elephants live together.

Thanks to this research, scientists hope to learn much more about elephant families, friendships and behaviour – all while keeping the animals safe in their natural home.

The Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) reported in 2025 that Kenya's elephant population has grown to over 36,000. This is considered a conservation success after decades of decline caused by poaching and habitat loss.