Zigi — our youngest Umani grandkid — is a very spoilt young baby who has his choice of nannies. Kiasa is Zigi's main nanny, but Amali and Enkesha are also very attentive. He loves all the attention and seems to enjoy it when the girls fight over time with him. Zongoloni, as a first-time mother, is lucky to have so much support.
Kapei and Amali are close friends and neighbours, but they sometimes have disagreements. Kapei is not always the best neighbour to Amali, as he shows bad manners by reaching through her stockade and stealing her branches to browse on. Amali, on the other hand, would never dream of doing such a thing; she respects her neighbour's space and food. One evening, when Kapei once again helped himself to Amali's browse, Amali became upset and yelled loudly to express her grievance. The Keepers found that Kapei had indeed taken branches from Amali, so they retrieved the food from his room and returned it to its rightful owner.
We enjoyed visits from Alamaya this month. He is turning into a very impressive, large bull. We have noted that he seems to be quite popular and has many wild friends — but only bulls. He is never found with wild female friends, unless they are the Umani orphans.
One afternoon, Alamaya, Jasiri, and Faraja arrived in style, at a time when the Keepers were not expecting them. The Keepers welcomed them warmly, and whilst Faraja and Alamaya were very friendly and responsive, Jasiri chose not to approach and walked back into the Kibwezi Forest. Still, we enjoyed the brief visit.
Enkesha continues to be our peacekeeper. She is constantly settling disputes and diffusing situations before they turn into fights. We saw her diplomatic skills on full display when Kapei and Maktao began fighting over a stick. Kapei had picked it up, but Maktao adored it, and neither was ready to give it away. Seeing that things were headed to a bad place, Enkesha stepped between the bulls and used her influence to make them go in separate directions, leaving the stick behind in the bushes.
Murera may not be the most able-bodied, but she has utmost confidence in her herd. One afternoon, a buffalo invasion occurred, but our matriarch knew it would be handled. Mwana and Kiasa spotted them first and blew their trunks in alarm, which put Sonje, Zongoloni, Quanza, and Lima Lima on the defensive. Little Zigi and Sulwe were too close to the buffalos, so the mothers went to face them head on. Their trumpeting was enough to send the interlopers into hiding. Throughout the standoff, Murera remained calm — she trusted that Lima Lima and her friends would take care of the situation.
Mwashoti always looks after his girls. One morning, Maktao, Kiasa, and Enkesha walked to the famous scratching rock, but there wasn't enough space for all three. Deciding someone had to leave, Maktao began pushing Kiasa and Enkesha away. Mwashoti came to the girls' aid, saving them from Maktao's mischief and giving them plenty of space to scratch with little Zigi.
On 11th August, Kiombo returned home after a very long absence. This return was likely driven by the dry conditions, as many animals are now coming to Umani to find water from the springs and browse from the forest. Kiombo brought his new wild friends right to the stockades, where the Keepers provided lucerne for everyone to share with the orphan herd. He is looking exceptionally healthy and content; his wild life clearly suits him.
Kiombo continued to visit periodically throughout the month. He is growing huge — in fact, he almost confused his Keepers into thinking that he was not Kiombo! However, when they called his name, he responded warmly. He may be growing up, but he still loves his Umani family.
Stout Sulwe is a brave young girl. She showed her courage when several warthogs emerged from their burrow one afternoon, startling the group. The nannies quickly gathered the babies, and Sulwe bravely blew her little trumpet to help chase the intruders away. Because her trunk is still short and small, the sound was comical, but together they managed to drive the warthogs far off into the Chyulu.
Quanza is in her own phase of life and is not yet receptive to suitors. Wild bulls show great interest in her, but she carefully dodges their advances. Unlike Lima Lima and the others, who associated with bulls and became mothers early in life, Quanza is in no hurry to have a calf. For the time being, she seems to prefer her role as a nanny.
Ziwa's adopted family runs a tight ship. They are all females, and he is the only male — and they don't seem to like the orphans or Keepers fraternising with him too much. During one of their visits, Maktao and Kapei tried to wander off with Ziwa's herd, but the matriarch chased them away. Her message was clear: Ziwa is the only orphan invited into our family; you can go back to your own family.
Lima Lima continues to be our fearless scout. One afternoon, all the orphans stood still with their ears spread and trunks raised — they suspected movements in the bushes which they did not trust. This made Lima Lima, who is always very careful and brave, go and investigate. Sure enough, she found buffalos hiding inside the bushes. She returned and moved everybody, including the Keepers, to a safer location.