Comfort Zones & Pressure Zones Of Wild Animals

Over many years of taking groups to wild places in Africa, I’ve found that the simple concept of being aware of animal comfort zones and pressure zones is one of the most import things for people to understand before they depart on one of my adventures, and it's VERY relatable to us as we have all met people who get into our pressure zone!

If we imagine that every wild animal has an invisible space around it. When we stay outside that space, the animal feels relaxed and comfortable. If we move too close, we start to create pressure.

Once you begin to notice this, you realise the size of this space for each animal, and that animals are constantly communicating with us.

They often give us many opportunities to recognise that we are getting too close.

Understanding Pressure Zones Through Human Behaviour

One of the easiest ways to understand comfort zones and pressure zones in wildlife is to think about our own personal space.

Most of us have experienced a conversation where someone stands too close. Instinctively, you take a small step back to create a bit more space so you feel comfortable again. Sometimes that person steps forward again and closes the gap. Your first response was silent, simply increasing the distance between you, and you might do this a few times.

If it continues, you might politely say something like, “Would you mind standing a little further back please?” That would be your verbal response, clearly communicating your boundary/ pressure zone.

If the person still doesn’t respect that space, most of us would eventually walk away so we can feel comfortable again. In some situations, if the pressure continues, and the person refuses to listen to the verbal requests, then the interaction could become physical.

Wild animals respond in surprisingly similar ways.

They often start with very subtle signals, pausing, looking at you more carefully, or shifting their position. If the pressure continues, their communication may become more obvious, or they may simply move away to regain their comfort.

In most cases, animals are not trying to be aggressive. They are simply requiring more space.

The Comfort Zone

The comfort zone is the distance where an animal is happy to carry on with its day.

In this zone an animal is likely to:

• Continue feeding

• Groom or rest

• Move normally through the environment

• Occasionally glance at you but remain relaxed

When we’re observing animals in their comfort zone, we are observing their most natural behaviour. This is always the goal when I’m travelling with groups in wildlife areas, and over time I’ve also found a very simple way to explain distance to people. The rule of thumb.

The Rule Of Thumb

Something I mention when we are preparing to walk in the bush is what I call The Rule of Thumb.

If you stretch out your arm and hold up your thumb, you should be able to cover the animal completely with your thumb if you are still within its comfort zone.

It works just as well for a butterfly (around 2 metres) as it does for an elephant (around 100 metres).

If the animal disappears behind your thumb, you are usually at a respectful distance and likely still within its comfort zone.

It’s a very simple guideline, but it helps people immediately visualise the space animals need.

It also has a few other advantages:

• It slows people down. Instead of rushing closer for a better view or photo, it encourages people to pause and observe from where they are.

• It works for any animal. From insects and birds to large mammals, the principle is exactly the same.

• It helps you read behaviour. If you can cover the animal with your thumb and it continues feeding, resting, or behaving naturally, you know you are probably at a good distance.

The most rewarding wildlife encounters happen when animals don’t feel pressured at all. When they are relaxed, they continue their natural behaviour, and that’s when you get to witness the most interesting moments.

In the end, good wildlife viewing isn’t about getting as close as possible, it’s about being close enough to observe, while still allowing the animal to remain completely comfortable.

The Pressure Zone

If we move closer, animals will often begin to show signs that they’ve noticed us.

In my experience, the first signals are almost always quiet and easy to miss.

The animal might:

• Stop feeding briefly

• Lift its head and watch you

• Turn its body slightly toward you

• Freeze for a moment while it decides what you are

• Position itself so it can keep you in sight

At this stage the animal is simply gathering information. It is trying to work out whether you are a threat, something interesting, or just part of the background of the landscape.

One interesting thing to note is that some animals, such as elephants, will be keeping an eye on you but pretending to continue eating at the same time. This is called 'false feeding'.

If we completely pause at this moment and avoid moving any closer, the animal will often relax again and return to normal behaviour.

Most wildlife are incredibly tolerant when we give them the distance that allows them to remain within their comfort zone. When we do this, we get the privilege of watching animals behave completely naturally, which is always the most rewarding experience in the wild.

When An Elephant Came Into My Pressure Zone

One morning whilst packing up our camp during a reconnaissance trip in Kenya with a friend, we were observing a large bull elephant at what I would consider a comfortable distance of around 100 metres as he emerged slowly from the forest.

The elephant was feeding quietly and had noticed us straight away. His behaviour was very calm and relaxed, and for a while we simply observed each other across that distance, both of us clearly within our comfort zones.

Before long, the elephant began to walk in my direction, slow and deliberate, and it didn’t take long before he had covered the ground between us.

Although I knew I should probably have moved back to the vehicle (and if someone asked me what the sensible thing to do is, I would absolutely recommend doing exactly that) on this occasion I stayed where I was and watched as this elephant calmly approached. I did not think he would come the all the way to me.

This was not a situation where I had entered his pressure zone. Quite the opposite. He had chosen to close the distance himself.

Elephants are incredibly perceptive animals and very good at reading intent. He clearly knew I was no threat. I stayed completely still and calm, even though by now he was very much inside my own pressure zone. But I did not feel any pressure at all, only calm.

In fact he came so close that he sniffed me, and his trunk gently touched my cheek and the top of my head. In that moment I looked up past his huge crossed tusks and trunk at his enormous head above me and into his beautiful eye. For a few seconds we looked at each other.

It was a moment I will never forget, sitting there in the bush with a completely wild elephant who had chosen, entirely on his own terms, to come and investigate me.

Moments like this are very rare, and they only happen when animals feel completely relaxed and unpressured.

For those wondering why this might of happened, I think this elephant may have been on his last set of teeth, and looking for something easy to eat, as when he left me, he went to our vehicle and opened a few bags.

A Lesson From A Hippo

Hippos are another animal that teach this lesson very clearly.

I’ve spent quite a bit of time around rivers and lakes where hippos live, and they’re excellent at communicating when they feel pressured.

Often the first sign is just a hippo lifting its head slightly above the water and watching you.

Sometimes they give a small snort, and sometimes a very loud call. Hippo vocalisations can be heard hundreds of metres away.

Those signals are not aggression, they are simply a message: “I know you’re there" and "This is my space".

If you give hippos PLENTY OF SPACE and completely avoid pushing closer, things remain calm.

In terms of comfort zones and pressure zones, one of the worst places you can ever find yourself in Africa, is between a hippo and the water, so situational awareness is always very important, all the time.

Animals Are Usually Patient With Us

One of the things that continually impresses me when spending time around wildlife is how often animals give us several opportunities to understand their signals. If we are paying attention that is!

This can vary depending on the environment, as animals existing with predators tend to react more quickly because hesitation can be dangerous. In quieter areas with a lot less predators, animals are often more tolerant. Their response can also depend on how much human contact they are used to.

In most cases, animals don’t jump straight to dramatic behaviour. Instead, they communicate gradually through:

• Body language – lifting the head, turning to face you, becoming alert, or freezing briefly

• Movement – repositioning, placing themselves between you and their young, or slowly moving away

• Sound – snorts, alarm calls, or other warning sounds to alert the rest of the herd

These signals can build in stages as the animal assesses the situation. If we are paying attention, we usually have time to pause, increase our distance, and allow the animal to relax again.

A Simple Thought When You’re In Nature

Whenever I’m out in nature, whether I’m on my own or with a group, I try to keep one simple thought in mind:

Am I allowing this animal to remain in it's comfort zone?

If we consider comfort zones and avoid creating unnecessary pressure, wildlife encounters are calm, enjoyable, and very rewarding.

Remember!

We rarely know what has just happened in an animals life in the moments before we arrived.

Just like us, animals have their own experiences and stresses that we may know nothing about.

An animal may have just been chased by a predator, separated from its group, protecting young, or recovering from an earlier disturbance, and may act very differently from the last.

Because of this, always give animals both space and time, and stay in their comfort zones.

Angus