The Voi orphan herd makes for an eclectic and enchanting bunch at the moment with the two orphan buffalo babies Ivia and Cheza, along with the two zebra babies Diria and Nzuki, all accompanying the elephant orphans with their Keepers out for their daily ambles around the Msinga Hill. Diria and Nzuki keep close to the Keepers and never stray too far, apprehensive of their other charges, the boisterous elephant babies. During this dry season, the buffaloes and elephants have been thoroughly enjoying the mud bath on searing hot days, as the water helps to cool them down. One day Ivia and Cheza were watching the orphan elephants play, when Ivia decided to plunge into the water at the same time. Pika Pika just looked on in astonishment at the daring buffaloes.
It was a wonderful morning with all of Kenia’s herd members joining the stockade-dependent orphan elephants for the Lucerne pellet feeding when they visited the stockades early this morning. After the supplements Ndii went and hugged Tahri while Godoma went to watch the sparring session that Ngilai and Emoli were engaged in.
Tagwa, Sagala, and Tamiyoi stood on the dust hill away from the action of Kenia’s independent group. Lasayen went to scratch his bottom against the favourite rock, where he could watch the goings on around him while Embu scratched her neck by rubbing it against the big rock close to the stockade water trough.
Mbegu took the lead of the orphan herd out to the Park today, with Kenia’s herd going off to browse on the eastern foot of Msinga Hill. When the orphans arrived at the water hole in the afternoon following the noon milk feed, a big wild elephant bull had already had his fill and was leaving the area. After the mud bath Mbegu lay on the dust hill with Emoli and Tahri coming in to take turns to climb on her back. After all the fun and games the orphans returned to their browsing activities for the rest of the afternoon.
The orphan elephants were busy playing around the stockade compound this morning following the milk and supplement feeding. Tagwa went to scratch her belly against a low lying rock while Ndotto stood at the bottom of the stockade terrace in an effort to engage Mbegu in a sparring session, but noticed that she was not really interested in playing and as such he went in search of his new friend Arruba to play with.
Godoma was busy playing with Emoli while Ngilai watched and when the orphans headed out to the Park, Ngilai caught up with Emoli to engage him in a strength-testing game as soon as they arrived out in the browsing fields. The orphan herd spent the morning browsing in single file with Diria and Nzuki the orphan zebras feeding close to the Keepers.
Tamiyoi, Tagwa, Emoli, Murit and Sagala were the first to arrive at the noon milk feeding area near the baobab tree waterhole. Their friends were not far behind and once everyone had downed their share of milk they made their way to the waterhole to have a drink from the water trough. As it was a cold day none of the orphans entered the water hole to swim, choosing instead to return to their browsing activities once they had quenched their thirst.
After the morning feed, the stockade-dependent orphan elephants enjoyed some games around the stockade compound. Pika Pika enjoyed scratching her bottom against one of the stockade terraces while Ngilai came to watch. Pika Pika was wary of Ngilai and unsure of his motives. Thinking he would try to climb on her back, she ended her scratching session and moved away, at which point Ngilai engaged his best friend Emoli in a sparring session while Godoma stood on the terrace watching the game unfold.
The orphan elephants then left for the Park under the leadership of Sagala, Tagwa and Tamiyoi. The orphans had a lovely morning browsing before heading to the baobab tree waterhole at noon for their milk feed and a drink of water. Once the orphans had their fill at the water trough, a wild elephant herd arrived for a drink, with the orphans moving away to allow them to drink in peace. The orphans did not interact with the wild group today as they headed back to the browsing grounds soon after the wild herd arrived.
The orphans were in a happy mood this morning as they enjoyed playing around the stockade compound following the milk and supplement feeding. Ndotto has been trying to engage Mbegu in strength testing games in the past and today he was finally successful and the two enjoyed a sparring session while Tagwa engaged Ngilai in a pushing game. Ndotto enjoyed scratching between the twin trees with Sagala taking a turn after, while Rorogoi carried around a green branch which Tahri tried to steal but was unsuccessful in doing so.
Sagala rumbled and signaled that it was time to head out to the Park to begin the days browsing activities and her friends were happy to follow her out. The orphan herd browsed their way to the woods before heading to the waterhole for the noon milk feed and a drink of water. The orphans interacted with a wild herd at the waterhole with Godoma enjoying a sparring session with a wild friend. Mbegu and Rorogoi were lying down on the dust hill playing but quickly got to their feet when a big wild elephant came to join them.
Once all the greetings and games were over the orphans returned to their browsing activities until it was time to return to the safety of the stockades in the evening.
The morning began with the usual milk and Lucerne pellet feeding after which the orphans enjoyed various activities around the stockade compound. Rorogoi went for a buttock scratching session against the orphan’s favourite rock while Pika Pika stood nearby waiting for her turn. Arruba chose the biggest rock near the stockade gate where she scratched her body for a while before letting Embu and Emoli have a go. Tagwa enjoyed a sparring session with Ngilai but moved away when Ngilai attempted to climb on her back.
The orphans spent the morning browsing peacefully before making their way to the baobab tree waterhole at noon where they finished their milk bottles before playing in the mud bath. Arruba lay in a small hole inviting Pika Pika to come and play with her. The two enjoyed a private quiet bathing session after which they joined their friends for the afternoon browsing session.
After the morning milk feed, all the stockade-dependent orphan elephants gathered for their routine Lucerne grass pellet feeding before engaging in the usual socializing games as they enjoyed a game of hide and seek before heading out to the Park for the day.
The stockade-dependent orphan elephants spent the morning browsing in single file before following Pika Pika, Murit, Emoli, Tagwa and Tamiyoi to the milk feeding area. They all came running in for their share of milk, downing the contents of their bottles in a matter of seconds before going to the water trough for a drink of clean water, followed by a mud bath.
Arruba was excited today and was having a lot of fun running in and out of the water, charging around, before joining Pika Pika for a dust bath. Ndotto and Suswa lay on the dust hill and rolled around showcasing the dusting skills which seemed to upset Arruba who came and sat on Ndotto preventing him from continuing with his game. Rorogoi was busy scratching against the baobab tree after which she joined a wild elephant herd that had arrived for a drink from the water trough. After a brief interaction with the wild group the orphans left the waterhole to resume with their browsing activities.
It was a cloudy morning with the sun completely hidden when the orphans exited their stockades this morning, and with a cool breeze blowing it looked as if it was going to be a chilly day. Embu and Godoma enjoyed scratching against the twin trees with each one making sure that the other had ample space. Emoli and Ngilai were engaged in their normal sparring session while Sagala enjoyed some quiet time with Pika Pika until Arruba came in to take the youngster away for a dust bath.
The trip out to the Park began with Tagwa, Sagala and Tamiyoi as the three led the rest of the group out for the day and they all spent the morning browsing peacefully. By the time the orphans arrived at the waterhole, the day had warmed up quite a lot, and they all enjoyed a mud bath.
Nelion and Tundani joined the stockade-dependent group as they made their way back to the safety of the stockades in the evening. The two independent orphans had a drink at the stockade water trough and remained at the compound for a while, only leaving when a wild herd, who had been browsing on top of Msinga Hill, came for a drink from the water trough.
It was a good beginning to the day with Tamiyoi, Emoli, Sagala, Godoma and Tahri running to the front of the herd, as the orphans exited their stockades, to be the first to arrive at the milk feeding area for their morning bottle. When the milk feeding was done the orphans enjoyed feeding on Lucerne pellets before playing around the stockade compound as usual. Ngilai engaged Emoli in a sparring session, with Ngilai kneeling on the ground to give Emoli a bit of an advantage so that he could have a better chance of winning.
Tagwa, Sagala and Tamiyoi took the lead of the orphan herd out for the day. Once in the browsing field Ndotto and Suswa enjoyed a private browsing session with Suswa lying on the ground and rolling around in an effort to entice Ndotto for a game, but Ndotto was too busy browsing. Arruba left the orphan herd to join a nearby wild herd, where she enjoyed sparring with a wild friend.
The orphans visited the baobab tree water hole at noon for their milk bottle and a drink from the water trough. None of the orphans entered the wallow today as it was too cold for a mud bath.
The morning began as usual with the orphans enjoying the Lucerne pellets following their morning milk bottles. It was then time for fun and games with Ndotto standing on top of a rock to invite Ngilai for a sparring session. Ngilai had no interest in playing with Ndotto and instead engaged Tagwa in a strength testing game.
The orphans headed out to the Park for the day and spent the morning browsing before making their way to the water hole at noon for their milk feed and a mud bath, after which Sagala enjoyed a scratching session against the baobab tree, while Arruba and Pika Pika were busy playing on the piles of soil there. As the orphans were leaving the waterhole a wild herd arrived, which made Suswa decide to hang back and watch them for a while, before rejoining her friends.
The morning began with the orphan elephants concentrating on their milk and supplement feed after having a peaceful nights rest in the safety of their stockades. Ndotto and Suswa remained in the milk feeding area, after the others had left, trying to collect every last drop of spilled milk before joining their friends for the Lucerne pellets.
The orphans were in a happy mood this morning as Nelion lay on the ground around the soil piles, inviting the younger orphans to come and play with him, which they did with such joy. Godoma led the way as they climbed and lay all over him. Pika Pika enjoyed scratching her bottom against a rock until Ngilai came and engaged her in a wrestling game, which she managed to avoid by making her way up the stockade terrace with Ngilai pursuing her, as he wasn’t going to give up that easily! Godoma and Nelion played a wrestling game after which they followed the rest of the orphan herd out to the Park for the day.
The orphans visited the water hole in the afternoon after their noon milk feed, and moved aside to allow a wild elephant herd to come and quench their thirst at the water trough. Emoli and Sagala enjoyed playing with a small wild calf before following their friends who were ready to begin the afternoon browsing session.
The orphans exited their stockades this morning in a happy mood as they downed their morning milk bottles before enjoying the supplements that had been put out for them by the Keepers. Once the feeding was over they engaged in games around the stockade compound before heading out for the day, with Emoli and Ngilai cutting their pushing game short in order to follow their friends out to the Park.
The morning was spent browsing peacefully on the northern flat lands of Msinga Hill, with Diria and Nzuki joining the elephant orphans but making sure to keep very close to their Keepers.
Tagwa, Tamiyoi, Sagala, Tahri and Ngilai were the first ones to come running to the Keepers for their afternoon milk bottles, and had finished downing the contents by the time the rest of the orphans arrived for their share. They then all enjoyed a mud bathing session before they were joined by several wild elephant herds that came for a drink of water from the baobab tree water trough. A teenage wild friend had fun playing with both Tahri and Godoma before the orphan herd left for the afternoon browsing session, which took place to the west of the waterhole.
This morning the orphans exited their stockades and concentrated on their milk and supplement feeding before playing around the stockade compound. Rorogoi enjoyed scratching against a rock while Arruba was busy browsing on green acacia branches. Emoli and Pika Pika enjoyed a lengthy sparring session which some of their older friends came to watch, while Tagwa and Tamiyoi headed to the twin trees where they each enjoyed scratching.
Once out in the Park, Mbegu and Godoma enjoyed browsing together spending the morning in one another’s company until it was time to head to the noon milk feeding area. When the orphans arrived at the baobab tree waterhole they found many wild elephants streaming in for a drink of water. The orphans kept their distance and stood watching the wild groups. Godoma was particularly brave and went to join the wild herds and she enjoyed a sparring session with a wild friend. The rest of the days browsing activities took place close to the waterhole.
This morning when the Keepers walked up to the milk mixing area at 6am to prepare the milk bottles, they encountered a pride of about 10 lions crossing near the stockade compound as they headed towards the northern side of Msinga Hill. A short while later Nelion came running to the stockades for help having been attacked by the lions. He had a bad wound around his rear end, another on his hind leg, one on his front leg and several scratches on his face and trunk. As the Keepers were recovering from the shock of seeing Nelion in this condition and were preparing to treat his injuries, the other members of Kenia’s herd arrived at the stockade compound and were all in a heightened state of excitement and seemed rather afraid. They surrounded Nelion, touching him to reassure him that they were there and everything would be ok. The Keepers acted quickly, cleaning his wounds and giving him the necessary antibiotics and treatments. Nelion spent the day at the stockades together with his good friend Tundani while the rest of Kenia’s herd went out with the stockade dependent orphans for the day.
The orphans and Keepers were all very alert when out in the Park today and Kenia’s herd made sure to spend the day with their younger friends and the Keepers, returning to the stockades with them in the evening and spending the night there where they knew they would be safe.
The stockade-dependent orphans and the older independent groups all exited the stockades this morning in a rather subdued mood but were very alert and aware of everything going on around them. The milk dependent orphans downed their milk bottles before joining their older friends at the supplement feeding area where they slowly fed on Lucerne grass pellets. The orphans did not really engage in the usual morning games around the stockade compound. Murit and Godoma were the only ones to play a strength testing game while Pika Pika rubbed her belly against a small rock.
When the orphan elephants headed out for the day they settled to browse on Msinga Hill above Malkia house as they were wary of heading too far afield especially as a big male lion had been seen about three hundred meters away from the stockade compound.
The orphans returned to the stockades at noon for their milk bottle and a drink from the water trough and the juniors enjoyed playing, dust bathing and wallowing while Kenia’s group stood watching, seemingly deep in thought contemplating what had happened to their friend. The orphans then returned to their browsing activities nearby, on Msinga Hill, with the members of Kenia’s herd once again returning to the safety of the stockades for the night together with their younger dependent friends.
The orphans were in a somber mood this morning as they exited their stockades. They were quiet and calm after their milk bottles and did not engage in any games around the stockade compound. Sagala and Emoli broke the silence by engaging in a sparring match before following their friends out to the Park for the day.
The independent orphans, Kenia, Ndii, Ndoria, Ishaq-B, Mashariki, Araba, Tundani and Nelion all of whom are spending the nights in the stockade following Nelion’s attack by lions followed the dependent babies out today. Arruba seems to have lost her adopted baby Pika Pika to Kenia who has come in and taken over the mothering role of Pika Pika, spending most of her time browsing with the youngster.
The orphans browsed their way to the baobab tree waterhole where they had their noon milk feed before drinking clean water from the water trough. As it was a cold day the orphans had a quick bath before playing on the dust piles. Just before the orphans left the waterhole a wild elephant herd came in for a drink of water with Rorogoi remaining behind to watch the wild group before rejoining the orphan herd that was browsing nearby.
The milk-dependent orphan elephants began their day early exiting their stockades for their morning milk bottle before joining their older friends for the Lucerne pellet feeding. There were no games this morning as Ndii and Kenia were already leading the group out for the day.
On the way out Arruba, who has missed being with Pika Pika, approached the youngster but was rudely pushed away from her by Ndii who was protecting Kenia’s interest in Pika Pika. Arruba, being younger than Ndii and Kenia did not want to cause any problems and quickly moved away from them. Emoli stopped on the western foot of Msinga Hill where he sat on a rock and enjoyed a scratching session. Kenia and Ndii led the orphans to the peak of Msinga Hill where they spent the morning browsing before making their way to the baobab tree water hole at noon.
After the milk feed the orphans enjoyed a mud bath where Sagala got to play with Pika Pika while wallowing. When she came out for a scratching session against a tree, Ndii and Kenia went to wallow with Pika Pika. A wild elephant herd came for a drink as the orphans were leaving the waterhole and as such there was not much interaction between the orphans and their wild friends.
An orphan male baby Oryx about a week old who was a fire victim from a bush fire at Rukinga was rescued and brought to the stockade by our de-snaring teams who had been busy fighting the fire. The baby Oryx was then air lifted to Kaluku to be cared for by the team at our Kaluku Field HQ.
Nelion is still stockade-bound and under the care of the Keepers following his attack. He is kept company by his best friend Tundani and the two enjoy the green Grewia branches that the Keepers cut and bring to them and he is now feeding much better. Nelion continues to receive treatment for his injuries and his wounds are cleaned on a daily basis with green clay being applied. The rest of the orphans have seem more relaxed with things returning to normal and more games being played around the stockade compound in the morning. Ngilai continues to enjoy playing sparring games with Emoli with Murit taking a turn to play with Emoli when Ngilai moved away and Tagwa enjoyed a scratching session against a tree stump.
The Keepers took the lead of the orphans out to the Park today with the zebras Diria and Nzuki in the lead, then the orphan elephants were next in line, with the two baby buffalos Cheza and Ivia bringing up the rear.
At the noon wallow the orphans enjoyed a brief mud bath before interacting with a wild elephant herd at the waterhole. Lasayen and Ndotto were the first to approach and welcome the wild herd leading them to the water trough for a drink of water. Sagala tried to steal a tiny wild calf from the wild group and was reprimanded for this action by one of the calf’s older siblings which had Sagala running and screaming away from the wild group. Ishaq-B joined the wild group at the water trough before rejoining the orphan herd as they headed back to their browsing activities.
The morning began as usual with the orphans enjoying their morning milk and supplement feeding after which Kenia stepped onto the stockade water trough in an attempt to reach the green branches hanging over the water trough to feed on the green leaves. Since Kenia and Ndii returned together with the other independent orphans they have taken control of the orphan herd and lead the group out once the milk and supplement feeding is done, without giving the youngsters any time to play around the stockade compound. As the dry and cold season has set in the vegetation in the Park is quickly drying and Kenia and Ndii want to get out and browsing as early as possible so that the orphans can all get their fill of greens.
The orphan elephant, zebras, and buffalos spent the morning browsing close to the Keepers before making their way to the baobab tree waterhole for the noon milk feed. At the waterhole the orphans had a lovely time interacting with some visiting wild herds and spent some time browsing with their wild friends before being called by the Keepers.
In the evening the Vet arrived to treat Nelion who has been having trouble passing stool due to the injuries he received to his rear end from the lion attack. The vet and Keepers had to anesthetize Nelion and remove the stool by hand as he could not pass the stool due to the pain caused by doing so.
Things are returning to normal for the orphans as they enjoyed playing around the stockade compound this morning following the milk and Lucerne pellet feeding. Pika Pika enjoyed playing a strength testing game with Emoli while Ndii kept a close eye watching the two. Tagwa, Tamiyoi and Sagala were busy playing on the soil piles where they were tossing red soil over themselves as they enjoyed a dust bath after which Tagwa climbed one of the stockade terraces and relaxed there for a while.
The orphans headed out to the Park for the days browsing activities and spent the morning browsing peacefully before making their way to the baobab tree waterhole at noon where they had their milk feed before having fun mud bathing. As they were preparing to leave the waterhole a wild herd arrived for a drink from the water trough where they were joined by Pika Pika and Ndotto who were the first to welcome them. Rorogoi and Suswa hid behind a tree from where they watched the wild calves drinking with their older family members. Suswa moved forward to get a better view and tripped over the tree roots falling to the ground, which scared Rorogoi and the wild herd who ran off. Mashariki came to see what had happened and when the wild herd realized that nothing was amiss they returned to the waterhole and continued having a drink.
The day started well with the stockade-dependent orphan elephants leaving the stockade compound for the Park soon after the milk and Lucerne pellet feeding. Today Nelion was brought out of his stockade and together with his best friend Tundani the two left the compound to join their friends out in the Park for the morning browsing session. The Keepers hoped that walking and moving around would help Nelion pass stool and once he passed some stool looked more comfortable as he browsed with the rest of the orphans.
At noon the orphan herd made their way to the baobab tree waterhole for their milk bottles before visiting the mud bath where a visiting wild herd moved out of the way to allow the orphans to have a rink and enjoy their time in the wallow. Godoma lay in the water and rolled around while Emoli came to climb over her back. Nelion entered the water and enjoyed a mud bath before scratching his bottom against Kenia.
A female orphan baby eland about two weeks old that was suspected to have been victim of the recent fires in Tsavo was brought to the Voi stockades by the Rukinga ranch scouts at 11am.
The orphan baby eland was then collected by the Burra de-snaring team and taken to Kaluku HQ to join the orphan baby Oryx that was rescued from Rukinga a few days ago.
The morning was good as the orphans exited their stockade and lined up for the milk bottles after which they enjoyed feeding on the supplement Lucerne pellets that were put out for them. Nelion has been showing signs of improvement. Tundani was busy feeding on the green acacia branches near the stockade fence line after which he joined his friends who were getting ready to head to the Park for the day.
At noon the orphans enjoyed a mud bath and were joined at the waterhole by a wild group of elephants that came to quench their thirst at the water trough. Ishaq-B and Rorogoi went to greet the wild group and see the calves that were drinking water. The orphan herd were happy to interact with the wild group with Tamiyoi getting excited when she got a trunk-touch greeting from one of the bigger elephants in the wild herd.
The orphans spent the afternoon browsing peacefully on Msgina Hill before returning to the safety of the stockades in the evening.
The orphan elephants exited their stockades ready to begin the day. The milk-dependent orphans made their way to the milk feeding area. Ngilai, Godoma, Emoli and Tahri came running up to the bottles and downed their contents in a matter of seconds before joining their friends at the Lucerne pellet feeding area, after which it was time for games.
Sagala took up position at the dust piles where she enjoyed a dust bath with Araba and Emoli. Tagwa seemed to be a bit jealous that Sagala was playing with the others and came charging in to chase Emoli and Araba away. Emoli lay on the ground, inviting Araba and Godoma to play. Sagala and Tagwa moved away from the area to enjoy a scratching session on the stockade terrace. Tundani was busy stretching his trunk up to reach the green acacia leaves while Mudanda was busy trying to reach the green grass at the base of the tree, while being careful not to touch the live electric fence wire.
The orphans spent the morning browsing before making their way to the baobab tree waterhole at noon where they joined up with a wild elephant that came for a drink of water. A teenage wild bull came straight up to join the orphans, with Emoli and Mbegu moving to the front of the group to welcome him. The rest of the wild group then came trickling in. Mashariki and Ishaq-B stayed at the water trough with their new wild friends for a short while.
Nelion was busy playing in the water when a wild teenage bull joined him and the two enjoyed a sparring session before Nelion left to join the orphan herd who were returning to their browsing activities for the rest of the afternoon.
The orphans hung around the stockade compound this morning following the milk and supplement feeding. Nelion was not doing as well this morning and looked to be in pain with Mbegu and Godoma staying by his side comforting him.
The orphans then left for the Park where they spent the morning browsing before visiting the baobab tree waterhole at noon. After the milk-dependent orphans had finished their milk bottles they assembled at the water trough for a drink of water.
It was a cold and cloudy day with only Nelion entering the wallow where he lay in the water for a bath. He seemed to be feeling better as he enjoyed a mud bath. The orphans were joined again today by the same wild herd as yesterday with a very friendly wild bull coming to interact with the orphans ahead of the rest of his group. When they were done socializing, the orphans headed back out to browse until it was time to return to the safety of the stockades for the night.
When the Keepers let the orphans out of their stockades this morning they were met with the sight of Nelion in a state of collapse, lying on the ground. It appears that Nelion was not able to pass his stool again and the vet was immediately called to come and treat Nelion. Sadly however, Nelion passed away before the Vet arrived, although we are not sure what he could have done to help. The Keepers were distraught to have lost Nelion who was a lovely polite and playful elephant and he will be terribly missed. A postmortem was conducted and it was found that Nelion had lots of hardened stool that he had been unable to pass due to the injury sustained during the lion attack, despite the attempts of the Keepers to loosen his stool with supplements.
The Keepers gathered the orphans and led them out to the Park for the day. They were all in a rather subdued mood and at noon only Godoma and Lasayen were seen playing in the water, with the rest of the group just standing nearby. The afternoon was spent quietly browsing with the orphans returning to the stockades in the evening.
Mbegu, Godoma, Tagwa, Tamiyoi, Emoli and Pika Pika assembled at the stockade gate this morning and stretched their trunks through the bars to greet the new rescue. They spent some time comforting the baby before heading to the milk feeding area for their morning milk feed. The baby gave the orphans something different to concentrate on this morning, aside from playing games, before they headed out for the day.
At noon the orphans visited the waterhole where they all enjoyed a mud bath. Ndii, Arruba and Emoli lay at the edge of the waterhole while the rest played in the wallow. A wild herd passed the waterhole on their way to the drink from the water trough. Tamiyoi came out of the water to join the wild herd, making her way to the middle of the group as she searched for any wild calves. When she didn’t find any she made her way to the baobab tree where she enjoyed a scratching session. Godoma was busy playing in a hole where he seemed to be having a lot of fun, until Lasayen came to take her place. Mudanda spent some time with the wild herd while the rest of the group returned to their browsing activities, with Mudanda rejoining them a short while later.
The day started like any other with the orphans downing their morning milk bottle before settling down to enjoy the Lucerne grass pellet supplements that had been put out for them. There were a few games played around the stockade compound with Mbegu heading to the favourite rock for a scratching session before joining Lasayen who was busy browsing on green acacia leaves along the stockade fence line.
The orphan elephants, buffalos and zebra headed out to the Park to begin their browsing activities. Ngilai approached the orphan buffalo Ivia and greeted him by touching him gently with his trunk. Mbegu then came in and did the same. The orphans visited the baobab tree waterhole after the noon milk feed and they all had fun playing in the mud bath.
Ndoria seems to have changed her behavior, following the lion attack on Nelion, and has now become much friendlier and the rest of the orphans are much happier to be around her and are not as wary of her as they used to be. Today she went and lay behind Mashariki while she played at the mud bath and Mashariki did not move away. After the orphans returned to their browsing activities several wild elephant herds visited the baobab tree waterhole for a drink from the water trough.
The morning was bright and calm with the stockade-dependent orphan elephants, which Kenia’s herd have also joined, coming out of their night stockades for the morning’s usual milk and supplement feeding. Arruba and Ndotto, who had taken over the stockade as the new bosses, have since stepped back and relinquished control to Kenia and Ndii, with Kenia also having taken Pika Pika under her wing which has left Arruba a little on the outside and missing her adopted baby.
The orphans left the stockade compound for the Park once the morning’s activities were over and they spent their time browsing in the sunshine which became so strong that they had to seek refuge from the heat under some trees. Tagwa, Tamiyoi and Lasayen had a small tree to themselves and they enjoyed browsing in the shade until it was time for the noon milk feed.
At the waterhole the orphans enjoyed a mud bath and were joined by a big wild bull that came to the opposite side of the waterhole for a drink. Ndotto stood nearby watching him for a while before leaving the wallow with the rest of the orphan herd for the afternoon browsing session.
It was a bright and sunny morning as the orphans prepared to exit their stockades with Pika Pika banging on the stockade gate asking for it to be opened so that she could get to her morning milk bottle, which was not yet ready. Once the milk was ready the gates were opened with Pika Pika, Godoma and Emoli running out to the feeding area where they quickly downed their share. Pika Pika and Emoli then made their way to the water trough for a drink of water while Godoma hung around the feeding area asking for more milk. The orphan herd enjoyed playing bonding games with Kenia’s herd before they all headed out to the Park for the day under Kenia and Ndii’s leadership with Ivia and Cheza (the buffaloes), and Diria and Nzuki (the zebras) following the orphan elephants.
In the afternoon the orphans visited the baobab tree water hole for their milk and a wallow. Tagwa enjoyed submerging her head in the water while the rest of the orphans played around her. Emoli sat at the edge of the mud bath while Rorogoi enjoyed a dusting session at the dust piles following a swim. Emoli exited the water and enjoyed rolling around dust bathing, while Arruba and Suswa enjoyed scratching against the huge baobab tree and Ngilai, Emoli, Sagala and Tagwa visited the water trough for a refreshing drink of water.
As the orphans made the move to return to their browsing activities, Emoli invited Ngilai for a sparring session which lasted a while. In the evening the orphans browsed along Msinga Hill as they made their way back to the safety of the stockades for the night. A few minutes after the orphans had settled into their stockades a wild elephant family came to the compound for a drink of water after which they returned to the Park.
The orphans were excited as they exited their stockades this morning with Emoli, Godoma and Pika Pika being the first to arrive at the milk feeding area where they gulped down their share. Kenia spent time with Tahri today while Arruba was thrilled to have her adopted baby Pika Pika back.
The orphans left the stockade for the Park and spent the morning browsing until it was time for the noon milk feed at which point Ngilai led the orphan herd to the baobab tree waterhole where they had their afternoon milk bottles before making their way to the water trough for a drink. Embu led the herd to the wallow where she took centre-stage and wallowed with Mbegu and Ndotto coming to join her, while Emoli played at the edge of the mud wallow and Rorogoi scratched against the baobab tree. As the orphans were preparing to leave the waterhole to return to their browsing activities, Suswa had quick splash of water by the water trough and Emoli enjoyed a scratching session before rejoining the rest of their friends who were already busy browsing nearby.
It was a happy morning for the orphan elephants who were having fun playing around the stockade compound following the milk and supplement feeding. Mudanda enjoyed scratching her body against a big rock while Mashariki scratched her bottom against a smaller rock.
On the way to out to the Park, Lasayen stopped to feed on some green browse on the opposite side of the electric fence. He knelt down to browse, managing to avoid touching the live electric fence wire. The orphans spent the morning browsing as they slowly made their way to the baobab tree waterhole arriving in time for their noon milk bottles. They then all had fun playing in the mud bath with Mbegu standing guard over Emoli, who was lying down, in order to prevent any of the others from riding on his back. Embu exited the water and made a beeline for the baobab tree where she enjoyed a scratching session. Soon after the orphans left the waterhole a big wild herd of eland came in for a drink of water, followed a short while later by some wild elephants.
On the way back to the stockades in the evening the Keepers noticed a big leopard lying close to the pathway to the stockades. They acted quickly, diverting the entire group, which consisted of elephants, buffalo and zebra, of which the latter two could easily become the leopards prey.
The morning began as usual with the milk-dependent orphans lining up for their milk bottles before joining their older friends for the supplement feeding at the trough near the stockade terrace. Tagwa then enjoyed a dust bath while the rest prepared to head out to the Park to browse.
Soon after the group arrived out in the bush, Emoli and Ngilai took one another head-on for a sparring session and their friends concentrated on the mornings browsing activities until it was time to head to the baobab tree waterhole for the noon milk feed and a wallow. There was a lot of fun to be had at the mud bath with Ivia and Cheza the buffaloes watching the orphan elephants play, and seeing Emoli enjoying riding on the backs of Godoma and Lasayen. Ivia then plunged into the water while Pika Pika watched the young buffalo enjoying a wallow. Tundani came running into the water, surprising Godoma and Pika Pika, who came running out to join their friends so that they could all head back out to the fields for the afternoon browsing session.