The highlight of the month was the surprising return of a long-absent friend. One early morning in April, ex-orphans Mbegu, Ngilai, Godoma, and Tagwa wandered into the stockades — with Manda in tow. We had not seen the young bull since he was kidnapped by a wild herd ten months ago.
The dependent orphans surrounded Manda, rumbling and trunk-touching as they welcomed him back. Rokka, his old friend from Kaluku, was especially happy to see him, as was his best friend, Itinyi. Manda looked well and healthy, his tusks very long.
Mbegu, as it turned out, was being savvy as ever. Having accomplished her mission of returning Manda, she made a speedy exit with the other ex-orphans. After a milk feed with his old family, Manda settled down and spent the rest of the day browsing with the herd. In the days that followed, he remained with the dependent herd — with a vigilant guard to make sure he stayed put! Itinyi would not leave Manda alone, putting himself on duty all morning just in case his friend made a move back to the wild. Before long, Manda was a fully fledged member of the herd again, as if he had never left. One memorable dust bath saw him take centre stage with Itinyi, Akina, Ashanti, Baraka, and Epiya.
Playtime among young elephants is usually all in good fun, but sometimes they get carried away and emotions get the best of them. Such was the case with Itinyi and Dabida one afternoon, when a good-natured sparring match turned serious. Itinyi butted Dabida hard on the head; in retaliation, Dabida bit Itinyi's trunk. Things got heated and we had to intervene and separate the feisty pair. They ran off to catch up with the others, the drama already forgotten.
At the Nursery, Sileita was the mini matriarch. Now at Voi, she is one of the junior elephants — but when she's a bit older, we predict she will assume a leadership position once again. In the mornings, she often takes charge and leads the herd from the stockade area into the bush. Mushuru and Sholumai, who graduated from the Nursery with her, still treat her as their leader.
When it comes to milk bottles, greedy Kilulu lives in hope. One afternoon, after drinking his two bottles, he stood next to the milk truck with his trunk lifted, waiting patiently while we continued feeding his friends. He was still standing there after the others had gone down to the mud bath. Eventually, he gave up and joined them.
Losoito remains our stout little alarm clock. Most of the orphans have learned to ignore her histrionics, but Serenget is still not used to it. One morning on the way to the milk feed, Losoito sprinted directly behind Serenget, trumpeting loudly in her ear. Serenget became so overwhelmed that she bypassed the Keeper standing with her bottle and just kept running, deciding that Losoito's drama was not worth two bottles of milk! We walked over to make sure she got her share. We still feed Serenget in her unique and rather laborious way, filling the tip of her trunk with milk, which she then pours into her mouth.
Rokka and Lemeki take such good care of her, ably assisted by Ushindi. One afternoon at the mud bath, Rokka saw that Serenget was a bit overwhelmed by all the splashing action. She encouraged her little sister to join in. Serenget calmly tiptoed into the water, getting her feet and legs wet, while the other elephants kicked, rolled, and lolled around her. Noticing her standing quietly, Lemeki led her to the mini waterhole, where she was much more comfortable.
After several weeks away, we were happy to have a visit from Ndotto. He arrived with Murit and quickly familiarised himself with the changes that had taken place in his absence. He walked over to greet newcomer Lumo, who was still recuperating in his stockade. The big bull touched Lumo briefly with his trunk before scooping up a large clump of greens and jogging away with the stash balanced on his head. Ndotto is friendly and greedy!
Returning the following day, Ndotto had a lovely time giving sparring lessons to Thamana. At seven years old, Thamana is the eldest Voi dependent bull — but he is still four years younger than Ndotto, so he must have felt lucky to have such an impressive tutor.
Tamiyoi, who returned from the wild last month and decided to rejoin her Voi family, spent the beginning of April still very ensconced in the dependent herd — entirely of her own accord, spending the full day with the orphans and returning to her old bedroom at night. By the end of the month, however, she had wafted back into Mbegu's ex-orphan herd. If she decides she wants to revisit her old stockade at any time, it will be ready and waiting for her.
The month ended on a special note. After several weeks of recuperation and trust-building, Lumo was ready to join the herd out in the bush. We gathered all the orphans to welcome him, whereupon mini matriarch Lemeki took charge and introduced him to the herd. Rokka, Busara, Akina, and Ushindi rumbled in greeting and trunk-touched the young bull, while Itinyi stood protectively close, making sure the rougher orphans did not come near. Lemeki kept a close eye on Lumo for the rest of the day, seeing off Ashanti and Losoito when they sauntered up — she knows the girls and their jealous natures. Kilulu and Kenderi, meanwhile, were very friendly and browsed peacefully with the younger boy.
In the days that followed, we introduced Lumo to the routines gradually, so as not to overwhelm him with too many new places and activities. He and Serenget quickly became buddies — she too is a recent addition to the Voi herd, so perhaps she was filling him in on everything he needed to know. The final day of April brought a special occasion indeed: Lumo's very first baobab mud wallow. We sent him down in the first group with Busara, Rokka, and Sileita, and after drinking his milk, he paddled in the muddy pool while his new friends splashed around him.