> while eewhere in rica, the elepnt populatn is in decline,e, in south afafrica, r numbmbers are growowinghere, natuture reserves s are fencen d eqequipp with manmade watering h holes. protected ad we-prorovidefor, t the elephant populationon has flourisishedo much so o that they'veve becoa problem. the elephants str ees s and rubs n nak, oftenn uprooting g em in the e proces, and destroyiying the habititat r animals s and plants i in the k rely on. elephants are particularly partl toto onef the park largest trees, the m marula. >> mararula trees arare highly sought after trees by elephants and that's because they have a lot of foragage for the elephas anand we are seeeeing a lot ofof impapact on these e trees andr examample on this s study sitee we've seen a a decline of f 35f the e marula treeses since eleps have been inin the system.m. so marulala trees are a a very important t species. thehey pre foodod for the sysystem, thy providide habitat anand so we w them as a keystone species. t the elephantsts often flattn the e marula treeses just so y can get to the leave b but so fa the m ma