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Around 10am this morning the commotion caused by two lions fighting scared the orphans who were browsing nearby in the forest. The sudden and expected noise prompted the orphans to run about in fear with little Maktao, Kiasa, Musiara, Sattao, Emoli, Tamiyoi, Malima, Enkesha and even some of the older ones like Mapia, Sagala, Maisha, Jotto, Esampu trumpeting and yelling out trying to gather around the keepers who were calling them altogether. Some of the orphans like Maisha, Mapia, Sagala and Ndiwa lost their way in all the commotion and ran in the wrong direction, making it hard for the keepers to find them and gather them altogether again. The keepers cautiously looked everywhere and eventually managed to get the group together again. They were found with Ndiwa slowly leading the group back towards home, as Ndiwa knows the forest the best from all her foraging deep into the woods.

In the morning all the orphans seemed very happy and relaxed, browsing in a very calm and peaceful way. Even little Maktao, Jotto, Enkesha and Kiasa who normally like to browse next to their keepers were seen happily browsing alongside the big girls like Mbegu, Godoma, Mteto, Malkia and Shukuru. In that respect even the older ones including Shukuru, Ndiwa, Sagala, Mundusi, Ndotto and Mapia who like to go off and browse stayed with the group this morning and they all moved and browsed together as one herd. During the public visit, after the first group had finished their milk bottles, it was lovely to watch mud bath lovers like Enkesha and Kiasa dive into the mud, accompanied by Tamiyoi, Godoma, Mapia, Emoli, Malima, Sattao and Kuishi. They were very playful in the mud and had a fun time rolling and swimming, even sliding in from the mud bath edges. Kiasa and Enkesha were too funny when they saw Emoli and Sattao trying to slide into the mud pool. They were trying to slide in on their sides and Enkesha and Kiasa were trying to push them out at the same time. It was a very funny scene and the visitors that day really enjoyed watching the orphans having fun.

Whilst some of the elephant orphans are not enjoying the rainy weather, Maxwell is in his element and is having lots of fun in the wet weather. Today he had a lot of fun playing with the warthogs in his pen, before the elephants went out to the forest this morning. He also spent some time playing with Sattao, Enkesha and Malkia. They were running up the outside of his stockade, and he was inside, pushing at the gate to encourage them to play more. Mundusi tried to charge at Kiko when he approached the elephants while they were having their 9am feed. Kiko wasn’t afraid of him at all however. Mundusi tried to drive him away several times but Kiko kept walking up to them. It wasn’t until Mbegu came over to assist Mundusi that made Kiko leave and wander off into the bushes. When Kiasa arrived back to her stockade this afternoon she decided to run out again after finishing her milk. Luckily when she got close to Ndiwa’s pen, she met with Tamiyoi, Enkesha and Maktao who were just arriving from the forest to go into their own rooms. With an empty bottle of milk and in the company of Maktao she was led back into her room and the door was closed immediately behind her. We are wondering if she does not like the sound of rain at night at the moment? And that is why she does not want to be in her room.

Before the rain started last night some lions started roaring close to the stockade area which woke some of the orphans that were already fast asleep. Maisha, Luggard, Enkesha and Sattao were among those that were woken up by the roaring. They started yelling and shouting as Ndotto and Mbegu charged around their rooms, trumpeted and pushed on the gates of their rooms as they desperately wanted to get out and help the little ones who were crying for help. The lions heard the trumpeting and it seems they must have been a little afraid as they disappeared into the forest and didn’t make any more noise. It was a very cold and wet morning when it was time for the orphans to come out. It was such hard rain they couldn’t come out at their normal time. At 7am it was still pouring but only Mteto, Esampu and Sagala were fighting to get out of their rooms, pushing on their gates. They wanted to go out to the forest and have some fun. All the other orphans were quiet and standing under the shade in their stockades, or resting peacefully in the stables. The three who were struggling to leave were eventually let out, but they did not leave the compound; they chose to stay and browse on the bushes surrounding the stockades. It was not until 8am this morning that all the other orphans came out of their rooms to head to the forest.

Tagwa, Sagala, Ndiwa and Malkia had a plan to join the first group at the public visiting time that, unfortunately for them, was nipped in the bud! They were spotted by the keepers at the mud bath while they were still some distance away. Although they had managed to sneak away from the keepers in the forest, they had been spotted early by the ones near the mud bath. It was very hard for the keepers to turn Tagwa and Malkia away as they fought hard to be allowed access to the visiting area. They yelled loudly and complained that they wanted to join Godoma’s group. Ndiwa and Sagala knew immediately they had been naughty and complied immediately; they turned and ran back to the forest as soon as they saw the keepers coming towards them. All the shouting from Tagwa and Malkia made those enjoying the mud bath like Godoma, Kuishi, Malima, Jotto and Mapia also start shouting as they were scared, but they were not entirely sure of what! The little ones Maktao, Musiara, Sattao and Enkesha surrounded their keepers for safety. The keepers had their work cut out to reassure everyone that nothing was wrong and it was just the other two naughty orphans causing all the trouble for no reason; soon all the orphans went back to what they were doing, and Tagwa and Malkia had their milk bottles!