Understanding The Elephant Orphans' Project

The most important thing in the world to a baby elephant is its mother and its extended family. Female elephants are particularly vulnerable to psychological despair having lost their natural family. Young bulls are more resilient, mainly because female family members will be bonded together for life by emotional attachments that are lasting and strong. Young bulls leave their natal family at puberty, preferring the company of other young bulls, and emulating the example of high ranking dominant males within the elephant society. It is very normal for young bulls to develop a "hero-worship" on the dominant males within their society, emulating their example and learning from them what elephants need to know to limit conflict, for elephants fight seriously only when evenly matched in age, rank and tusk size, such encounters usually ending fatally for one or both parties. It is important therefore for a bull elephant to know his place within the male hierarchy.

In infancy, the family lost to the orphaned elephants must be replaced by a human equivalent. When rearing the orphaned elephants, it is imperative to take care of the mind as well as the physical aspect of their development, so that they grow up psychologically stable, for if they are psychotic or neurotic, they will not be welcomed into the wild herds. The psychological aspect of hand-rearing elephants is as crucial as everything else. Human Elephant Keepers replace the lost family and are with the babies 24 hours a day, travelling with them as a group during the day, and sleeping alongside them within their night stable at night, in physical contact at all times, a different Keeper sleeping with a different elephant each night to avoid any strong attachment to just one person, which can prove counter-productive should that person be absent for any reason. Elephants are tactile and highly social animals, so the human "family" is encouraged to fondle the babies gently, demonstrating heartfelt affection, as would their elephant family. Elephants can read a person's heart, so it is important that such love is sincere.

Elephants have a rapid metabolism, and need regular feeding 24 hours a day, initially on demand, but after the age of 5 months, gradually encouraged to slot into a 3 hourly routine during their first fully milk dependent year of life. The second year is also milk dependent, but is a gradual weaning off milk stage as the calf's intake of vegetation increases. Baby elephants can be weaned off milk after their second birthday, but will need supplementation of coconut, which contains the correct fat, for another three years, and even beyond during extremely dry periods.

If the orphaned Nursery Elephants are doing well when they reach the age of l year, they are transferred to Tsavo National Park, to be absorbed into the older echelon of orphans and begin their long and gradual period of re-integration back into the wild community. It must be understood that at any age an elephant duplicates its human counterpart in terms of age progression and development. For two years an elephant can be classified as an infant; as a child until the age of 10; a teenager between l0 and 20 years, a young adult in its twenties; mature in its thirties and forties, and becoming elderly by the age of fifty. Longevity duplicates us humans as well, influenced one way or the other by factors such as stress, diet, clean air and water etc., but given protection and favourable circumstances, an elephant should normally live into its seventies and even eighties, as do humans.

Elephants communicate with a spoken language that they need to learn from other elephants, and a body language that is instinctive at birth. The younger the orphans can be exposed to older elephants, the easier the learning and transition back into the wild system will be. Furthermore, acceptable behaviour must be taught, initially by the human family during the Nursery period, then by the older orphans still dependent in Tsavo and ultimately by the wild community. Elephants are born with knowledge important to survival as well as a genetic memory, both of which can only be honed by exposure to a wild situation. All these factors are reasons to return the infant elephants to Tsavo as young as feasibly possible, and to complete the second milk dependent weaning year amongst older elephants, with exposure to the wild community.

The Re-integration Process

Elephants are highly social animals, and all elephants are automatically fond of the young. Consequently they are one of the easiest species to return to the wild, providing the wild herds have not been severely harassed and traumatized by humans, when human scent on an orphan might trigger antagonism. The older orphans in Tsavo always welcome any newcomers, and escort the youngsters into wild herds already known to them in their daily wanderings.

The length of time it will take for an orphaned elephant to become a "wild" elephant, comfortable amongst, and a member of, the wild community is, however, influenced by various factors.

1. At what age the elephant was orphaned, and how well it can recollect its elephant family and other elephants.
2. The personality of each individual, which, just like us humans, differs. Some elephants are outgoing, independent and adventurous; others timid, shy, and retiring - more dependent on their human family.
3. Friends, i.e. an orphan's other elephant orphan friends. Just like human children, the elephants are more comfortable when they can count on the backing of their friends during exposure to the unknown. Those that have been raised alone in the Nursery without the company of other orphans feel more vulnerable and insecure than those who are bonded by friendship and can travel as a group.

Each orphan decides when to leave the human family and become a "wild" elephant again. The choice of when rests with each and every individual. They are never tipped out, as such - just introduced gradually through access and exposure. Once "wild" many still keep in touch, returning when and if they choose to do so to visit their human and orphaned "family", or when in need of assistance. An elephant never forgets, and each orphan will remember and love those particular individuals who comprised its human family during infancy and adolescence. This love does not extend to all humans - it encompasses only specific individuals who represented the family, and who will be recognized instantly years later. An instant is when "Eleanor" aged 42 instantly recognised the Keeper who cared for her when she was five and whom she knew after an absence of 37 years.

The Females:-

All female elephants long to nurture and love those younger and smaller. Female elephants are naturally "maternal", a feature that manifests itself in the Nursery, with older female babies caring and protective of those younger. Female elephants all long for a family, and orphans who have lost their natural family and who grow up as self appointed "Matriarchs" often resort to trying to snatch young babies from the wild units, something that is not popular with the wild Matriarchs and breeds dissention and resentment within elephant society which, in a perfect world where families are intact for life, should not exist.

For us, the ultimate destiny of the large group of orphaned female elephants that are still with us, remains an unknown learning curve, because never before has anyone had to cope with so many young elephants under the care of older self appointed "Matriarchs" with juniors taking on the role of "Nannies". Matriarchs and Nannies are responsible for the well-being and safety of the herd. They keep the peace, instil discipline to the unruly, and opt to care for any young newcomers. Previously, the orphaned females that survived during the fifties, sixties and early seventies were all orphaned much older than 2 years of age, and remembering their elephant families clearly, became absorbed into wild units when still young. The current situation in Tsavo is unique, comprised as it is of elephants orphaned as newborns or in early infancy, so the attachment to the human family is stronger and very different to earlier times. We will simply have to wait and see, but I suspect that the female orphans will remain together as a herd into adulthood, always caring for the youngsters who are transferred from the Nursery. I suspect that they will therefore retain contact with their human family for as long as there are youngsters that need Stockade protection at night from lions. For those humans who are viewed as "family" it is, indeed, a great privilege to have earned the love and respect of an elephant.

Just as human boys and girls are different, so are the bull and cow elephants. The little bulls are more independent, more competitive within their peer group, always eager to dominate and become "top dog"; a position that others constantly and continually challenge. Young bulls wrestle a lot and tend to be much "rougher" in play than their girl counterparts. They tend also to be more "unruly", more mischievous and adventurous, often enjoying "testing the boundaries" and in so doing, deriving pride out of generating admiration from their peers for exploits that are considered "brave". It is also not unusual for young bulls to suffer from a feeling of inferiority if they happen to be of a more submissive nature and cannot dominate their age mates. This will also become evident if they have had a rough time from wild age-mates as well. During this phase, they tend to "throw their weight around" those that they are able to dominate which gives them a feeling of power and makes them feel "good", but at this stage, amongst our orphans, it is the wild Matriarchs and the older females who keep them in line.

The orphaned elephants raised in Kenya are not trained to do anything they would not normally and naturally do, except during their initial Nursery year when they are taught not to knock down human onlookers, through tone of voice by their Keepers and the waggling of a finger or if deliberately disobedient, once they understand the spoken word and love their Keepers sufficiently to want to please them, a determined "shove" is usually all that is needed. However, having disciplined an orphan, it is essential to make amends later, so that the elephant understands that it has been disciplined for a misdemeanour, and not because it is not loved. This is very important, because elephants harbour grudges.

When a young bull becomes a teenager, he must be respected as would a wild elephant bull. There must be no attempt made by human Attendants to dominate him in any way, and prevent him from going wherever he wishes. This will only result in resentment and exacerbate the situation. He must be ignored completely by both the Keepers, and all human onlookers, who must, at all times, keep a safe limited distance, as they would were he a totally wild elephant. If he charges a moving vehicle, the vehicle must get out of the way, as it would were the elephant wild. In a National Park, animals have right of way and humans are mere visitors and onlookers. All Tour Drivers should understand this, because elephants can be dangerous, and must be given space. It is never a good idea to place oneself in a compromising position where escape is impossible.

Our Aim:- The aim of our Orphans' Project, is to rear the orphaned elephants in such a way that they grow up psychologically sound so that in the fullness of time they can be returned where they rightly belong, amongst the wild elephant community of Tsavo National Park, there to enjoy the quality of life as wild elephants that is their birthright.

The Trust now has two Elephant Rehabilitation facilities in Tsavo East National Park to accommodate the orphans who have successfully completed their fragile fully milk dependent first year in the Nairobi Nursery. One Rehabilitation Centre is near the Tsavo East Headquarters at Voi in the Southern Section of the Park, and the other near the Park’s Northern Area Headquarters at Ithumba. As of February 2006 there were 9 infant elephants still in the Nairobi Nursery, 23 growing up at Voi, and another 17 doing the same in the North at Ithumba. As of February 2006, the Trust has successfully hand-reared over 75 orphaned elephants, 49 of which were still Keeper dependent and the rest now fully rehabilitated and living wild amongst the wild herds of Tsavo. Many of these keep in touch as and when they happen to be near the still dependent group.