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 Welcome to the special Keeper's Diary for Foster Parents.
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You have selected the following month for viewing: October, 2016
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Monthly summary for Ithumba Unit : October, 2016
As this dry season continues, and we desperately wait for the onset of revitalizing rain, every morning the dependent orphans can be met by any number of Ex Orphans and wild elephants. One morning over 120 elephants were counted as they waited for a refreshing drink from the stockade water troughs. On that morning we calculated that they consumed over 30,000 litres of water from the water troughs - a record amount of water drunk in just one morning!
One day when the orphans emerged from their Night Stockades to enjoy their morning supplement of lucerne, they were joined by a completely wild young bull who came from the east, and who mingled amongst them just as if he were one of them! Our older Ex Orphan bulls, Madiba, Zurura, Buchuma, Tomboi and Taita have been joining the dependent orphans in the mornings as well; all partial to the delicious lucerne supplement.. Such competition from Senior Elephants sometimes means that the younger orphans such as Laragai and Kithaka grab their share of lucerne in their trunks and retreat back to the stockades in order to be at a safe in order to enjoy their lucerne in peace.
This month our orphans have had the company of numerous wild elephants who have learnt that the Northern area of Tsavo, with its reliable water source and plentiful browse, is a great dry season range for them unlike the difficult conditions experienced in the southern section of the Park. Some of these visiting wild elephants have come with young calves at foot, with whom the orphans have enjoyed playing. One day the orphans were startled when a group of thirsty Ex Orphans arrived blocking their exit. The dependent orphans tried to climb out over the steep sides but couldn’t manage, and a shrill trumpet from a wild elephant scared them even further! Eventually, they all managed to scramble out, running in fright off into the bush where they began browsing in instead. Most of the time the older bulls are calm and willing to share space and water with the younger orphans, but on one occasion this month the orphans were met by a very grumpy bull who didn’t want to share water at the mud bath venue with anyone, so the orphans simply had to wait their turn! On another day a more friendly wild bull broke an acacia branch especially for the orphans to feed on, which they greatly enjoyed. Garzi is perhaps the most interested in learning all he can from his Seniors as well as the wild elephants. He can often be found gazing in awe at the older wild bulls and we can’t help but think that he is wondering when he too will be that size. Often he engages his older friend Kenze, who is always willing to oblige and demonstrate pushing and wrestling tactics, which is always the favourite sport of the young bulls.
One day Sirimon was very funny at the mud bath, when he snatched a milk bottle when the Keepers were distracted! Only when the second sitting of orphans arrive did the Keepers realise that they were a bottle short, and turned only to find Sirimon happily enjoying his stolen treat whilst walking towards the mud bath! By the time the Keepers chased after him, he had already drained the bottle of milk, and dropped it empty as he hurriedly retreated, feeling very pleased with himself! The girls in the herd have little tolerance of nonsense from the bulls. Narok and Laragai in particular are always stepping in to break up tussles between Barsilinga, Lemoyian and Kithaka!
Early on in the month Murka, Naisula and Kitirua seem to have separated from Olare’s group, although we have learnt that such separations are often only temporary, often disappearing for days at a time, and even up to a week. However, when they return they are always eager for water and lucerne, pushing the juniors aside until they have had their fill.
New mother, Galana, and her baby Gawa, are still with Yatta’s group, along with Gawa’s Nannies which include Ex Orphans Naserian, Loijuk, Ololoo, Orok, Makena, Ithumbah, Kenze and Lualeni. The junior dependent orphans, and especially Narok, Bomani and Laragai adore playing with babies Wiva and Gawa. Bongo and Kithaka are amidst those who remain indifferent and tend to push the babies away when they come near them! We end the month praying for the rains to break and transform the aid landscape into a Garden of Eden again.
Monthly summary for Kibwezi Forest/Umani Springs Unit : October, 2016
Lima Lima continues to entertain her Keepers with her greedy behaviour, so they have decided to feed her last in order not to disrupt the feeding of the others whilst they are taking their milk. In this respect she is being treated as though she were still a Nursery baby when in fact she is just a very greedy girl! Sometimes, in the mornings, she pushes against her Stockade Gate, impatiently demanding her milk, and in the process making such a racket that the Keepers have to relent and feed her first so that everyone can get on with their morning duties!
Due to the prolonged drought this season, we are desperately waiting for the onset of the November rains and in the meantime the orphans have been enjoying lengthy mud baths, covering every inch of their bodies with a protective layer of mud against the harsh sun. One day the Keepers were amused to see Jasiri flapping his big ears as he bounced around in the waterhole in a poor attempt to mimic Lima Lima and Sonje!
The orphans have been going on long walks towards the Chyulu Hills foraging for fresh vegetation further afield, although the fresh water of the Umani Springs is an ongoing attraction that makes the Kibwezi forest such an appealing oasis compared to arid Tsavo in these dry months. For that reason there have been numerous wild elephant herds converging on the Umani Springs for the fresh water and shade of the forest trees. As usual, Orphan Matriarchs Murera and Sonje are apprehensive about close interaction with the wild herds, anxious to keep their little herd intact. Lima Lima and Zongoloni tend to approach the wild herds the most, even grown wild bulls, but especially when there is a baby in the mix! Quanza is adept at finding fresh water to drink, often leading the orphans to leaks in the water pipeline. Alamaya is still very close to his friend Lima Lima and one day, when he got left behind in the compound, sounded the alarm as the Keepers were busy doing a head count! Instantly all the orphans ran to meet and console him. At times Faraja resorts to behaving like a young baby again, only walking with his Keepers in front of him out in the bush.
Sometimes feuds ensue over the tastiest morsels of vegetation out in the bush, acacia bark being much sort after. Zongoloni is very apt at sourcing this and often finds herself having to protect her prize! Recently, during the height of the dry season, we have been feeding the orphans nutritious lucerne pellets which are greatly relished. Ziwa usually tries to be first out of his Stockade in the morning in order to get more than his fair share and chases away any bushbucks who have sneaked in ahead of the orphans! One day some Guinea fowls came to the area where the elephants enjoy their supplements and although they could have fed peacefully together, Ziwa had other ideas, trumpeting loudly so that the birds took to the trees.
One day a fight broke out between Sonje and Ziwa when she tried to discipline him for pushing little Mwashoti over whom she is very protective. Mwashoti is often allowed the privilege of being able to lead the orphans on their daily walks despite his compromised foot, Murera and Sonje being slower due to their compromised legs. One day when the older girls were distracted, jealous Ngasha misbehaved by trying to remove some grass from Alamaya’s mouth, there being not much that little Alamaya could do about it, as Ngasha is bigger him. Ngasha and Faraja, who are evenly matched in size, frequently engage one another in strength testing tussles, an all important practice for young bulls.
Monthly summary for Nursery Unit : October, 2016
As we approach what should be the end of the dry season and pray for the short seasonal rains due in November, we can take stock of what has been a very busy month for us, with 6 rescues to the Nursery alone, and a further two who were orphans too young to be alone in the wild, but old enough to go straight to the Voi rehabilitation Centre. Towards the end of the month, dry hot sunny days started to cloud over and the first few small showers began to break, which we hope will develop into more substantial downpours during the month ahead, since much of the country is in desperate need. We often see this pattern of heightened rescues during a harsh dry season when desperate elephants come for water in places where their calves can become trapped, or their calves become too weakened by drought conditions and are unable to continue and keep up with the herd so are abandoned so that the rest of the herd is not compromised, or when elephants invade human croplands which results in conflict and injury as the humans defend their livelihood.
For those who arrive into our care too far gone to save, at least we can offer them a peaceful end surrounded by love and compassion. We are always uplifted by the progress of survivors and the improvement of others who have been here for some time but who have had much to overcome. Murit is one little bull that continues to excel and teach others younger than him the ways of growing into a decent and sociable male elephant, being a very caring individual. Luggard, who despite a broken leg due to two bullet wounds, is one of the most playfully entertaining babies in our midst and is growing stronger every day. Precious little Tamiyoi, who has overcome so much since we first rescued her exactly a year ago, steals all hearts having battled her way through ill health that has stunted her growth and sapped her energy for so long. However, she has finally emerged on the other side and plays and browses alongside her older and bigger peers now, so – we are overjoyed to be able to add her to the fostering program this month.
When we did receive a slight rain shower overnight at the beginning of the month, the orphans enthusiastically rolled around in damp soil the following morning, excited and happy. Naseku, Maramoja and Mbegu were some of the most vigorous and excited rollers! Meanwhile, on dry, hot days, the orphans relish their mud baths, Godoma loving mud baths almost as much as she hates coconut oiling days! She is usually one of the first into the mud, rolling around and running up and down, splashing mud everywhere in the process. Sana Sana has been getting on with Pare and Lasayen really well and some days we watch these three walking off and doing their own thing together, browsing and playing as a little trio.
Ndotto and Rapa are becoming good friends, but Rapa still tends to bully the younger ones from time to time. Mbegu has little time for Rapa and is jealous of his friendship with Ndotto. A rather unlikely friendship that has been unfolding for some time now is between young elephant orphan Jotto and our female orphaned ostrich Pea, who adores all the young babies and patiently allows Jotto to suckle on her wing feathers and her thighs and sometimes even sleep on her soft back. These two are best friends, and Jotto will even leave the company of the Keepers to be with Pea, much to the delight of Tamiyoi who can then have the undivided attention of the Keepers.
Esampu is still very greedy and has been the cause for chaos on more than one occasion this month, interrupting the milk feeding of the other babies. Because of this, the Keepers have taken to making her the last one to come down for feeding when the others have already finished their milk so she can’t cause such disruption! In fact all of the babies often make the Keepers laugh out loud due to their funny little antics and strong personalities. One day Esampu and Ambo were fighting over the right to drink from a water trough which was large enough to accommodate both, with a lot of pushing and tail- biting involved! At times the Keepers have to intervene to restore order when things become too rough, but they do so only by tone of voice and the waggling of an accusing finger, because an Elephant never forgets! Tagwa is another who is prone to picking a fight whereas in the beginning it was she who used to be pushed around by the others. She has evidently decided to now stand up for herself!
There have been quite a few close encounters with the Nairobi Park wild lions this month, who have been hunting warthogs around the Elephant Stockades, in the process posing quite a threat to our young giraffe, Kiko. Fortunately, since there are no elephants in the Nairobi National Park other than our own, the lions are not used to them and stick to what they know, which unfortunately includes Kiko’s kind! However, he has learned to steer clear of them, and when they are around, he quickly returns to the Stockade compound, often refusing to return to the forest even the next day, making a nuisance of himself in the compound instead! One day a lioness caught a warthog right next to Tamiyoi and Malkia in the forest giving them a huge fright!
Our blind rhino, Maxwell is always eager to play with the elephant orphans and one day helped them chase a group of warthogs that were eating and playing near his gate! Kamok and Kauro love to spur him on when he is in these moods and trumpet to encourage his games. We love watching Max in these playful, jovial moods, running around and tearing at the ground with his horn, indicating happiness and contentment despite his disability!
Monthly summary for Voi Unit : October, 2016
Panda’s extreme greed seems to have amplified this month, probably due to the extremely dry conditions across the wider Tsavo region making the sourcing of browse more challenging. Having downed her share, she immediately homes in on that of the others, targeting those younger than herself such as Araba, creating a disturbance so that the Keepers have to be on “Panda duty” at feeding times. Another day she jumped the queue; whereas ordinarily the orphans come for their milk in manageable groups, and are obedient to this normal routine, Panda rushed in before the others in order to be first. Due to the drought conditions, lucerne cubes as well as bales are available to supplement their intake during challenging conditions, which are greatly enjoyed by all. The competition at milk feeding times sometimes result in collisions, such as the day that Rorogoi and Bada ran into each other!
Suswa is still very attached to her Nursery playmate, Arruba, and we are sure that this friendship will endure for years to come. In the mornings they team up to charge the baboons who try to snatch some of their supplements and daily they can be seen browsing together away from the others, content in each other’s company. Nelion is growing into a strapping young bull and enjoys displaying his long tusks by punching and digging huge chunks of soil out from the walls of the mud wallow. He often tries to engage Tundani, who is equal to himself in size, to wrestling games, but Tundani is a very mellow character and is usually more interested in browsing than participating.
Due to the dry weather, a trio of Ex Orphans, Lesanju, Taveta and Tassia remained close to the Stockades throughout the beginning of the month, much to the bitter disappointment of Kenia who tries to keep her adopted herd together, including babies Araba and Bada. Every morning she attempts to entice her herd away from the compound to avoid interacting with the older orphans, which is not always successful since Panda and Bada are anxious to meet up with the older orphans, or Lesanju’s trio simply trails them out into the bush to browse. On the 17th of the month, the rest of Lasanju’s Ex orphan herd, namely Lempaute, Mzima, Sinya, Kivuko, Dabassa and Layoni were spotted at Ngutuni Ranch, an area that is now fenced into the Park with a fence funded by DSWT which extends down as far as the Elephant Crossings under the recently built Standard Gauge railway. As it was very dry in this area with limited access to water, the orphans were walked back to the Stockades by the Keepers, where supplementary lucerne and water is always available. The whole group faithfully followed their erstwhile Keepers all the way home, and on arrival trumpeted with excitement! At midnight that day Lesanju, Taveta and Tassia came to the stockades to join them, the first time that the group has been all together in the past three months. For the rest of the month all nine members of Lesanju’s herd visited the stockades and mud bath for water and to enjoy the lucerne laid out for them, and with the supplementary food, all have remained in good condition.
The hot, dry weather has also meant that the orphans have gone into the mud bath almost every single day, submerging themselves like hippos and enjoying rolling around in the cool mud, which provides a protective layer against the sun for their skin for the rest of the day. Ndoria is still up to her tail biting antics, so if she enters the water first, Mashariki, Bada, Embu, and Rorogoi choose to wait for Kenia or the older ones to arrive, so that they can reprimand Ndoria when she misbehaves.
Due to the severe drought throughout Tsavo, sadly there have been a number of rescues this month. Most were found already in a state of complete collapse; some sadly too late for us to be able to save, but at least some have survived after much effort. Such victims have been airlifted straight to the Nairobi Nursery as they have all required intensive care, however one remained at the Voi stockades being too big to fit into a plane, but sadly he unfortunately succumbed to his poor condition a few days later. On the 13th we received reports of elephant herds in the Taita Sisal Estate Conservation area, surrounded by the Taita Hills, where more browse as well as water was readily available. One elephant cow was reported with a recent arrow wound which our Mobile Veterinary Unit headed off to immediately treat. Upon arrival, however, it was ascertained that the elephant in question was none other than Ex Orphan Emily. She was immediately operated on, and thankfully the extracted arrow was devoid of poison, making the process fairly straight forward. Mercifully Emily was back on her feet in no time. The DSWT team were relieved to know the whereabouts of Emily’s Ex Orphan herd, and that all looked in good condition despite the drought. The Keepers were happy to see that Icholta’s baby, named Inca, was growing and looking very healthy as well, happy and content with best friend Safi, Sweet Sally’s little wild- born calf. The Ex Orphans were spending time amongst large wild herds, estimated to be around 200 in number within the area.
The anxiety over Emily’s treatment was soon eclipsed by the delight at the end of the month on the 24th when Ex Orphan Thoma gave birth to her first wild- born, a baby bull whom we named Thor, who was just hours old when she appeared with him. The entire herd of Ex Orphans rejoiced with trumpets and rumbles celebrating the arrival of this new member to their unit and that day Rombo and Wasessa, who are sometimes part of Lesanju’s herd, arrived to join Emily’s herd. Thoma’s baby boy is extremely healthy and playful and both mother and baby are doing well, with Nannies Mweya, Seraa and Ndara taking their duties very seriously. By month’s end Emily too had made a full recovery.
Below are the last five entries for GARZI in the daily review of the Keeper's Diary:
Total listings found: 619
Listings below from Page #1 of 124 : From 1 - 5
Date |
Entry |
5/31/2017 |
Garzi left the stockade with a branch in his mouth that he continued to feed on while enjoying scratching on the nearby rocks. Oltaiyoni had a brief chat with Olsekki as Enkikwe tried to pull some grass from Sirimon's mouth. The orphans settled to browse in the Kanziku area until it was time for their next milk bottle at the mud bath. Barsilinga, Lemoyian, Shukuru, Sirimon, Siangiki, Vuria and Oltaiyoni really enjoyed the mud bath at length. Sokotei engaged Bomani in a strength testing exercise as Olsekki played with Garzi. Sokotei decided to take a break to roll on the ground but as soon as he went down on his knees Bomani was quick to throw himself on top of him. Olsekki came to Sokotei’s and both of them ganged up to fight Bomani. After mud bath, Lemoyian engaged Kithaka in a pushing game that lasted unil Lemoyian surrendered. Shortly after the orphans returned back to the browsing field, the Ex orphans in the company of eight wild bulls reported. Mutara and Chaimu’s groups were not there and we are still hopeful our new arrivals Kelelari, Dupotto and Karisa are with them. The Ex Orphans left two hours later after enough wallowing.
 | | Playful Bomani and Sokotei |
 | | Orwa at the mud bath |
 | | Teleki and Nasalot |
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5/30/2017 |
The orphans left the stockade in a slow measured walk today, unlike other days where they all rush to the bush without looking back. Narok, Bomani and Vuria who have become regular visitors went into the stockade when the gates were opened. Narok took Naseku and they left together while Kamok and Boromoko exchanged morning greetings by inserting their trunks into each other's mouths. Kithaka took some dry lucerne and started throwing it over his head as Barsilinga approached him for a pushing game. Lemoyian attempted to mount on Naseku but he was brought down by Narok.
Out in the Park Bomani and Roi took a break from feeding to participate in a soil dusting exercise. Kithaka and Barsilinga went into their usual pushing game that ended in a draw. At mud bath time, only Boromoko and Garzi went into the water as the rest stood at the edge of the mud bath as if they were spectators. Afterwards, Garzi found Barsilinga eagerly waiting to have a pushing game with him, a game that didn't last for long as Garzi appeared not to be in the mood. The orphans then settled to browse just a few metres away from the mud bath. In the afternoon the temperature skyrocketed making the orphans want to return for a proper swim in the water; this time all the orphans participated in wallowing. After they browsed slowly on their way back to the stockade.
 | | Narok greets Naseku |
 | | Barsilinga and Boromoko at the water trough |
 | | Orphans enjoy bath time |
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5/29/2017 |
Narok, Bomani and Vuria joined the juniors at the stockade compound soon after they were let out. Narok started a game of rolling on the ground. Her game attracted Naseku, Bomani, Lemoyian and Sokotei. Naseku leaned on Narok and later used her as a scratching surface. Lemoyian ran into trouble with Sokotei when he tried to ride on Naseku. Sokotei stood up and defended Naseku by challenging Lemoyian to a pushing game. Their game ended soon when Sirimon intervened and ganged up with Sokotei to drive Lemoyian away. Shukuru and Barsilinga had a brief chat as they entwined their trunks in morning greetings. Later, Barsilinga played with Garzi while Tusuja tried to challenge Sirimon.
Out in the bush, Lemoyian challenged Kithaka while Olsekki tackled Sirimon. Sokotei teamed up with Naseku to browse and later took a break from browsing to participate in soil dusting. In the afternoon, the orphans settled to browse in the Kanziku area where Oltaiyoni teamed up with Sokotei and Shukuru to browse on all the green vegetation around.
In the evening, back in the stockade compound, Oltaiyoni was transferred to join Siangiki and her group for the night. This was after she was noted to be terrorizing Roi and Kamok whenever she thought it her right to do so. Now she joins the ranks of Siangiki, Boromoko, Sokotei, Sirimon, Enkikwe and Olsekki.
 | | Narok and Bomani rolling on the ground |
 | | Orphans browsing |
 | | Sokotei dusting games |
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5/28/2017 |
Kauro bid goodbye to Tusuja and Naseku his roommates at two o'clock in the morning as he embarked on a journey back to Nairobi for observation. At six o'clock in the morning, the gates were opened for the juniors to come out. Narok, Bomani and Vuria, who spend most of their night just nearby, joined the juniors on the way to the browsing field. Barsilinga and Garzi passed by the water trough and had water before following their friends. After having enough water Garzi decided to scratch his buttocks on the water trough. At the browsing field Sirimon settled to browse with Shukuru as Olsekki settled to feed with Siangiki. Kithaka and Barsilinga had light pushing game while Roi took a break from feeding to scratch on a nearby rock.
Boromoko and Tusuja headed straight to mud bath after having their milk. The rest of the group headed for water where they were joined by Orok and a wild bull. The wild bull threatened to push the juniors if they didn't give him way. The juniors stood aside and gave the right of way to the older wild elephant. After the orphans returned back to the browsing field, the Ex Orphans in the company of wild bulls reported for mud bath and left when they had enough wallowing. The orphans settled to feed on the western side of Ithumba Hill and in the evening they passed by mud bath where they enjoyed an evening wallowing.
 | | Arranging greens for Kauro |
 | | Lemoyian with trunk up in the air |
 | | Orok with a wild bull |
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5/27/2017 |
Bomani, Narok and Vuria joined the juniors in the morning after spending the night just outside the stockade. Kamok left the stockade with a branch in her mouth which she continued to enjoy up until she reached the bushes out in the Park. Bomani engaged Garzi in a pushing game while Narok tackled Barsilinga. At Roi settled to feed with Kauro as Olsekki, Siangiki and Enkikwe teamed up together to browse. At eleven o'clock in the morning, the orphans were taken to mud bath where they had their milk and after went back to browsing on the shrubs. Later all of the Ex Orphans and partially independent orphans reported for mud bath apart from Mutara’s group and Chaimu and Kilaguni. In the afternoon the orphans settled to browse in the Kanziku area and in the evening were escorted back to the stockade by Narok, Vuria and Bomani. For the first time ever since it rained, a wild herd consisting of two adults and three calves visited the stockade for some salt. The herd was joined briefly by Narok, Bomani and Vuria. Vuria spend some time in a strength testing exercise with one of the wild juniors that was his size. Shortly before dark the wild herd left.
 | | Chemi Chemi plays with Kitirua |
 | | Rapsu and Ololoo enjoy the water |
 | | Wild junior elephant plays with Vuria |
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