The ecological logic of The Gathering is straightforward: as the dry season lowers the reservoir level, fresh grass grows on the exposed lakebed, and elephants from across the surrounding forest zone converge on this seasonal resource. What results is one of the great wildlife spectacles of Asia – several hundred elephants of every age and social grouping, interacting, competing, playing, and grazing in the open with no forest cover between them and the viewer. Our guide explains the social dynamics of what you are watching – the family structures, the bachelor herds, the authority of matriarch elephants – as it unfolds.

A Minneriya safari with a knowledgeable guide is an education in Asian elephant ethology. The complexity of elephant social life – the matriarchal family units, the musth behaviour of adult males, the play behaviour of juveniles, the mechanisms of herd communication – becomes visible and intelligible when someone with genuine knowledge is explaining what you are watching in real time.

The Minneriya Reservoir is a significant wetland habitat in its own right, supporting populations of painted stork, lesser adjutant stork, purple heron, Indian cormorant, and several species of tern. The open water and the grassland margins create a birdwatching environment of considerable variety that complements the elephant experience.