[tortoise]

The Great White Hunter Karamojo Bell in the wilds of Africa at the turn of the century, harvested Bull Elephant with a mere .243!

Sectional density and velocity are the primary determinants of penetration, all other things being equal, which the .243 has in significant quantity. And penetration is really, really important if you want to drop bull elephants.

And you do not need to shoot the elephant in the eye or anything like that. 6.5mm cartridges were quite popular for elephant hunting in Africa a century ago, primarily because the 6.5mm tends to couple extreme sectional density with excellent velocity, giving better penetration than a great many cartridges with substantially larger bores, and with less recoil too. Even today, the Europeans find 6.5mm adequate for just about everything. It may not be a cannon but it will reliably punch a nice deep hole through the toughest critters.

[ExSoldier]

See, I didn't really know any of that, not ever using the 243 for anything, and of course not ever having had the opportunity to hunt Africa. But I do read a lot of history like the stories of Bell, Ruark, and Colonel J.H. Patterson: The man who settled with the Lions of Tsavo.