Safari-goers spotted the heartbreaking sight of a baby elephant without its trunk.

Footage captured in Kruger National Park, South Africa, shows the calf wandering around with its family.

The poor creature is bizarrely lacking the iconic appendage.

It is not known how this occurred, but the filmer writes that it was likely removed by a predator.

He adds: "Crocodiles grabbing baby elephants by their trunks while drinking water have been recorded in Kruger before and this was the most likely reason for this baby elephant losing its crucially important body part.

"An individual can simply not survive without its trunk. Elephants use their trunks to feed, drink water and smell.

"Unfortunately, the future for this poor little one looked very bleak."

The footage was captured on September 1.