The past few months were difficult for the wildlife of the Kibwezi Forest and surrounding Chyulu Hills. First, the prolonged drought brought about a scarcity of forage. We also grappled a spate of wildfires, which kept our field teams busy and pushed all manner of creatures towards the safe haven that is Umani Springs.
It has been a tough few months for all the wildlife within the Kibwezi Forest area. The prolonged drought brought about a scarcity of forage and also saw the beginnings of the wildfires, which pushed most of the animals towards the safe haven that is Umani Springs. With the recent rains, however, all this changed. The Kibwezi Forest, the Chyulu Hills and its environs are teeming with plenty of greens and fresh water. The animals, including our very own orphans, now venture far and wide to get their fill, as was evident when the night clubbers visited us this afternoon. Ziwa and Faraja both arrived with their bellies looking very round and full.
Alamaya and Mwashoti have been taking advantage of the recent rains; they have discovered many mud-baths and today were seen by the Keepers, covered in mud from the tips of their tusks to the tips of their tails. The Keepers also saw them running in the bushes, splashing through water puddles, chasing each other. Enkesha and her little friend Maktao also indulged in a gentle friendly game of chase after watching Alamaya and Mwashoti.
Sonje and Kiombo had a wonderful start to their morning. Sonje invited Kiombo to play by allowing him to climb on her back as she lay down. These two orphans were having a great time playing and dusting, but that did not last long. Mwashoti, who is still very jealous of the younger babies, pushed Kiombo off Sonje’s back. The younger bull fell on his side, trumpeting, which drew Murera’s attention. Murera ran towards Mwashoti to chase him off and reprimand him for his naughty behavior. Sonje got to her feet and then both she and Murera pacified little Kiombo.
Ngasha arrived this afternoon to join the orphans, and on seeing Faraja, he tried to engage him in friendly playing fighting game. Faraja did not want to take any chances with Ngasha, so he immediately disappeared into the bushes and later joined Zongoloni and her friends. Faraja sought the company of his friend Jasiri and they enjoyed quite a friendly strength pushing game.
Our orphans look very happy and well fed. The landscape of the forest as well as the Umani Hills and Chyulu Hills is starting to change. Everywhere you look, it is lush and green. The rivers and springs are full of fresh water and gone are the scarecrow trees with their dry limbs.
Just before midday, the Keepers readied the orphans to lead them down to the midday bottle feed. Lima Lima did not listen and instead led the younger babies, Kiombo, Maktao and Enkesha further towards the Hills. Sonje and Alamaya both tried to get this unruly troop to follow them to the feeding point, but no one listened. In the end, Zongoloni sought out the matriarch of the herd, and upon hearing Murera’s very loud trumpet, all the orphans immediately followed her and made their way down to midday bottle feed.
Faraja and Ngasha came across two crane birds as they were browsing and decided to chase them. As the two bulls ran after them, the two crane birds took to the skies, leaving Faraja and Ngasha running and tripping over their own feet.
The Umani orphans decided to visit the springs early this morning before they started their browsing activities. Quanza was leading the herd, with Enkesha and Maktao following her. She held back, as though catching the scent of another wild animal, but Maktao and Enkesha carried on not paying attention to Quanza’s warnings. On the dry bank of the springs lay a crocodile catching the early morning sunshine. Maktao narrowly escaped being bitten by the crocodile. He ran off trumpeting into the forest and Sonje and the Keepers quickly rushed in the direction of the trumpeting and were relieved to see him unharmed. The Keepers decided the turn back and led their wards out of the Spring area back towards the Hills.
It was a cool start to the morning. Enkesha and Maktao engaged in a friendly pushing game as they waited for their friends to arrive. Zongoloni was the first, then Ziwa and Faraja, followed shortly after by Jasiri. Ziwa and Faraja were feeling rather boisterous this morning and as soon as they started their pushing games, the younger babies quickly moved out of their way.
All the orphans left the stockades and made their way to the browsing fields. Jasiri had already seen Ngasha, but the two bulls kept their distance. Ngasha decided to disrupt the peaceful morning by pushing Sone and Mwashoti as they were pulling down branches to feast on. Mwashoti fell to the ground and Murera quickly came to the younger bull’s rescue. Jasiri was not pleased with Ngasha’s behavior and chased him away from the Umani herd.
Alamaya’s temperament seems to be settling, he is quite gentle and always happy to join his friends during their morning activities. Today, Lima Lima made the mistake of blocking Alamaya from venturing further from the Umani herd in search of the acacia pods he loves so much. Alamaya was not too happy and proceeded to chase Lima Lima until she ran off, leaving Alamaya to enjoy his acacia pods.
As the Umani herd left the stockades this morning, Lima Lima and Zongoloni took the lead. They settled on browsing at the Umani Hills. Both girls lifted their trunks. They had caught the scent of a small herd of wild bulls.
Lima Lima rushed ahead to greet them, but as soon as the rest of the orphans caught up, the wild bulls showed a keen interest in Sonje and Murera. As always, Murera moved away from the wild bulls, leaving Sonje and Quanza to socialize with them. Kiombo was very curious and watched them from a distance, but when he ventured too close, one of the bulls chased him away. This made Sonje and Quanza move away from the wild bulls and re-joined their friends and the Keepers for the remainder of the day.
Faraja and Ngasha arrived later in the afternoon, and they seem to the know the wild bulls, as there were trumpets of greetings amongst them. As evening approached, both Faraja and Ngasha left with the wild bulls, while the orphans made their way back to the stockades.
The night clubbers arrived this morning at the stockades but did not stay. They waited for Lima Lima to join them and then disappeared into the forest again. The only member of the night clubbers to stay behind was Mwashoti. He waited patiently by the gates, and once his friends were done with their morning routine, they all set out towards the Umani Springs with Murera in the lead. Mwashoti and Enkesha came across a small flock of crane birds and a few butterflies. Both friends took great delight in chasing them and blowing their trumpets at them. Murera joined them too, although she can’t run very fast, but she made up for it by trumpeting loudly. The Keepers found it quite funny, especially when Mwashoti tripped over a big branch, falling into a heap on the ground. The birds and the butterflies took to the skies, putting an end to the orphan’s game.
The mud-bath near the waterhole is now full of water. All the orphans were wallowing when Quanza felt something. Trying to save himself, a baby crocodile had crawling on her back. The sensation must have startled our girl, because she bolted mud-bath, flinging the baby crocodile off her back and sending her friends into a panic. Everyone rushed out of the mud-bath, but when the Keepers realized it was just a baby crocodile, they settled the orphans and they all returned to the mud-bath to wallow.
Since the rains arrived a few weeks ago, the Chyulu Hills and Kibwezi Forest have been restored to their former glory. All the animals look well fed and most of the areas that were damaged by the wildfires look rejuvenated.
Sonje is careful not to stray too far from her little boy, Kiombo. Today she ventured a bit further into the forest and Quanza immediately seized this opportunity to sneak away with Kiombo. As soon as Sonje realized this, she trumpeted at the little boy to return and then the two disappeared towards the Umani Hills. Zongoloni took advantage of finding Kiasa on her own, whisking her away to browse further from the main herd, only returning in the evening when it was time to go home. A baboon made its way to where Enkesha and Maktao were browsing and made quite a racket, jumping from branch to branch. Enkesha tried to send it away, but in the end, it was Jasiri and Ngasha who chased off the annoying baboon. The older two bull did not stay long with the Umani herd today; they left before evening to join their wild friends.
As the orphans made their way back to the stockades, their path was blocked by a lone male buffalo. The Keepers stopped, unsure of which way to go. Then, Ziwa and Faraja, who must have been nearby, emerged from the bushes and chased off the buffalo so that their friends could finally return home.
The orphans woke up to a nice cool morning. It was raining a little, so the Keepers decided against putting out lucerne pellets. Lima Lima was not too happy, so she tried to sneak into the lucerne store, but the Keepers managed to stop her. She waited until the Keepers were busy with their other duties and then she snuck into the the hay store with Quanza, and both girls stole a bale each. They hightailed it out of the stockades and in the end, the Keepers gave up and let the girls enjoy their spoils.
Whilst Quanza and Lima Lima were enjoying their hay, Murera, Kiasa and Sonje decided to lay down on the dusting mound, waiting for their friends to leave. They rolled in the dust and Sonje even allowed Kiasa to play on her back. Once out in the browsing fields, Sonje and Murera took the lead and walked the orphans to the Umani Hills. On the way, Sonje met a female elephant with her newborn calf. Overjoyed to see a little baby, Sonje let the others carry on and stayed with her newfound friend.
As the rains continue, we are seeing less and less of our wild friends, although the night clubbers arrive every day at the stockade with new friends. Today, Zongoloni and Lima Lima appeared with a herd of wild bulls. They Keepers saw that these were new friends. As soon as Sonje and Murera left the stockade compound, the wild bulls showed the girls that they were interested in them. Sonje was happy to browse with them, but not Murera: As soon as one the bigger bulls started walking towards her, she quickly turned around and looked for Mwashoti. After a while, the Keepers saw Murera walking away from the Umani herd with Mwashoti, leaving Lima Lima and Sonje to socialize with the new bulls.
After their midday bottles, Enkesha decided to engage Kiombo and Kiasa in a friendly pushing game. Kiombo has not quite learned how to play fight, so he pushed Enkesha quite hard. This annoyed Enkesha and she pushed back just as hard. As a result, a fight broke out between these two babies. Quanaza had to intervene and put a stop to the fight, while Maktao rushed over to check on Enkesha. When Zongoloni arrived later, Kiombo walked over as though to complain about Quanza and Enkesha. The Keepers saw Zongoloni give Kiombo a trunk hug.
The Keepers walked up to the Umani and Kenze Hill areas with the orphans and were very happy to see it teeming with herds of wild buffalo, elephants and antelopes. With the recent rains, there is an abundance of forage everywhere. The landscape looks so different to a few weeks ago, when it was so dry and dusty. Now, looking out to the forest from the top of the hills, all you can see is endless greenery.
The feud between Ngasha and Faraja has forced Faraja to stay away from the Umani herd, especially when Ngasha is with them. Any time Ngasha sees Faraja, he wants to fight Faraja. The only bull who can stand up to Ngasha is our Jasiri, who ensures Ngasha behaves himself. Now, Faraja has teamed up with Ziwa, and they rarely visit the orphans now. The Keepers feel this is to maintain peace within the Umani herd. Lima Lima and Zongoloni, who are the matriarchs of the night clubbers, have also given up trying to call a truce between the two bulls. Ngasha refuses to allow Faraja to re-join the night clubbers.
Mwashoti had a bit of a fright today. He was so busy tugging at the branches of an acacia tree that he did not notice a rock hyrax run across the rocks and past his feet. This caused him to stumble backwards, scaring his Keeper and his friends as well. Mwashoti ran down the hill in fear, but when his Keeper realized it was just a hyrax, he walked back down to pacify Mwashoti and return him to the herd.
The orphans had a very quiet and uneventful morning. Around midday, the Keepers started calling out to the babies for noon bottles, but none of them wanted to leave the lush vegetation of Umani Hills. Lima Lima and Sonje were deep in the forest with the younger babies, and Mwashoti was with Murera and Alamaya at the top of the Umani Hills. In the past, Murera has struggled to walk up the hills, but today she managed very well.
Eventually Kiombo and Maktao were very thirsty and no amount of convincing from Lima Lima and Sonje stopped these boys from walking to the mud-bath area for their bottles, but because they did not come down at midday today, all the babies had their bottles mid-afternoon. With bellies full of greens and milks, none of the orphans wanted to wallow, instead they chose to rest under the shade of the trees near the waterhole.
Sonje and Kiombo decided to play on the dust mound as soon as they were done with their lucerne pellets. Kiombo stretched out and rolled around in the dust whilst Sonje kept a vigilant eye on her little boy. She could see Quanza and Mwashoti eyeing Kiombo’s spot, and knew that if she moved away, they would chase Kombo away. Kiasa and Enkesha had the same idea as Kiombo but could see that the dust mound was bit crowded, so they chose to go to the loading bay and scratch their bottoms instead. Jasiri seemed to be eyeing the dust mound this morning too, but because Murera was nearby, he didn’t date chase away the little ones.
Lima Lima and Zongoloni got a head start because they wanted to get to the Springs before Ngasha arrived. Alamaya had also followed the two girls and was very excited to find a big branch on the ground filled with acacia pods. Alamaya decided to drag it far away from the others so that he could enjoy it by himself. Unfortunately for Alamaya, the branch was too big and he struggled to drag it. Ziwa arrived and effortlessly dragged it away from Alamaya, leaving the poor bull watching as Ziwa took his juicy branch to share with Faraja.
With so much lush vegetation readily available, there is a competition between the matriarchs to see who can find the best browsing spot and which orphan can eat the most. Once they find a spot, the orphans stay there until late afternoon, stopping only for their midday bottle.
The younger boys Maktao and Kiombo decided to follow Lima Lima and Zongoloni instead of the Umani herd. They did not understand that both these older girls were only interested in resting and browsing. However, Lima Lima and Zongoloni always look out for their little charges, so they led the two boys up to the midday bottle feeding area and went to rest under the trees.
Afterwards, Murera and the Keepers started to make their way towards the Chyulus, but a sudden downpour brought a stop to this plan. Whilst Enkesha and Maktao waited under the trees with the Keepers, Ngasha and Alamaya found a mud mound and decided to roll around in it. Sonje and Kiombo kept their distance from these two boisterous boys. As soon as the rain dissipated, everyone headed towards the Chyulus.
Our boys Ngasha and Jasiri have renewed their rivalry. Ngasha decided to oust Jasiri from the Umani heard, just as he did with Faraja — but Ngasha was not prepared for the fight Jasiri put up. Jasiri has grown stronger than before, and his long tusks have become an effective fighting tool. Ngasha was taken aback when Jasiri fought well and stood his ground. Eventually Ngasha had to concede defeat to his one-upon-a-time friend, Jasiri. All the Umani orphans do not enjoy Ngasha’s company. He is rough with the little babies and often during mud-baths he squashes the little ones. Murera also keeps her distance from the unpredictable Ngasha.
Zongoloni still hasn’t given up on Kiasa joining her night clubbers herd, but the Keepers know that Kiasa is not ready yet. She is far too young and still milk-dependent. She still needs the protection of the Umani herd and the Keepers. The Keepers keep a watchful eye on Zongoloni any time she sneaks off with the little girl.
The Chyulu Hills is bursting with life. There are many herds with newborn babies and the because of the plentiful vegetation and water, new herds of animals flock every day to the Kibwezi and Umani area.
Today, Zongoloni and Alamaya decided to take a very long walk to see the edge of the forests, to see where the best browse might be. Kiasa, who adores Zongoloni, decided to go along with her. She remained under Zongoloni’s belly at all times, but the Keepers also kept an eye on this duo. After a while, Zongoloni started walking away very fast. That’s when the Keepers realized she was trying to sneak off with Kiasa again. The Keepers called out to Kiasa and Zongoloni to stop, eventually they did and Kiasa walked back to the Keepers. It would not be safe for Kiasa to be out in the forest at night, as she is not equipped to fend for herself just yet. So, whilst the Keepers do not want Kaisa following Zongoloni at night, they are happy for these two girls to be together during the daytime.
Ngasha joined the Umani herd today, but was back to his intimidating tactics. He would not allow Murera to take the lead and instead decided he would lead the orphans to their browsing spot. He was walking rather fast, and the babies were struggling to keep up with him, as was Murera. If any of the other orphans got too close to him, he shook his head and trumpeted at them. The orphans were not very happy, especially when he tried to push Murera and one of the younger babies. The Keepers stepped in and told Ngasha off, while the orphans took a different route to Kenze Hill. Ngasha did return, but he kept his distance and did not disturb the orphans for the rest of the day.
All the waterholes are now overflowing with water, which is an absolute delight for the orphans, as they love to wade and splash in the water. The downside of the full waterholes is not knowing where the crocodiles might be hiding. Today, Kiasa and Maktao were playing in the water when a baby crocodile jumped out of the water and scampered to safety. Kiasa and Maktao did not see what it was, so they ran to Sonje and the Keepers, who pacified them. The Keepers decided it would be better if none of the orphans when into the waterhole today.
Today, there was jubilation amongst the orphans and the Keepers. With Ngasha being chased away, it was safe for Ziwa and Faraja to return. When Zongoloni spotted her two boys walking towards them, she alerted Lima Lima, who immediately alerted the Keepers. The Keepers were overjoyed to see both their boys. Ziwa looked much older, with torn ears, and for a moment the Keepers were not sure it was him. But when they called out to him, he responded. Faraja was also welcomed with trunk hugs and trumpets from all his friends. One of the Keepers was taking photos of Ziwa and Alamaya knocked the camera out of the his hand, as if he was jealous of all the attention Ziwa and Faraja were getting.
The orphans decided against wallowing today. The weather was wet and cold, and the area around the mud bath was a bit slippery. After brief consultations, the Umani herd decided to make their way towards the Kibwezi Forest. Mwashoti and Murera did not want to join them, so they went in a different direction, making sure to avoid the area they know Ngasha likes to frequent.
It was a very wet and cold day today. It had rained all night, and the rain continued as the orphans left the Umani stockades. The ground was very slippery, so the Keepers and the orphans walked slowly to the Kenze Hills. The Keepers had their raincoats and umbrellas with them, and stood under the trees keeping an eye on their wards. Kiombo and Maktao were very curious about the umbrellas and wanted to stand with the Keepers to examine them. Maktao wrapped his trunk around the umbrella handle and was tugging at it, just as he would with a branch and wanted to put in his mouth. Kiombo stood patiently with his Keeper, happy to share the umbrella with him.
Enkesha and Maktao did not want to leave the warmth of their stockade this morning. The weather outside was still wet and cold, and it was raining quite a bit. Sonje and the rest of the Umani orphans had already left. The Keepers wanted Enkesha and Maktao to join them, so they lured them out with pellets.
Lima Lima was leading the Umani herd towards the hills, but it was very difficult for them to climb, as the ground was slippery. Alamaya, Mwashoti and Quanza were already trumpeting in protest, so Zongoloni stepped in and decided to lead the orphans to the foot of the Kenze Hills, which was an easier trek. The Keepers followed them and this where they stayed for the rest of the day.
The night clubbers arrived with some older wild bulls — but once the older bulls left, so did Zongoloni. Lima Lima stayed back with Mwashoti. Murera, who still dotes on the little boy, was pleased to have his company. Most days, Mwashoti will browse alongside Murera, as the other girls don’t like Mwashoti, especially when he tries to push Maktao and Kiombo.
Ngasha arrived much later in the afternoon and although he was still unruly, Jasiri made sure to keep him in check. Ngasha obliged, knowing he had to heed Jasiri after his defeat. Faraja also appeared, but as soon as he saw Ngasha with the Umani orphans, he left. Nowadays, he prefers the company of the many wild elephant herds he has made friends with. Lima Lima, the social butterfly of the herd, was interacting with Jasiri and Ngasha. However, Alamaya didn’t want her to be part of the boys’ club, so he chased poor Lima Lima away.
The non-stop rain from the past few days has made the ground very muddy and slippery. Orphans like Alamaya and Murera found it difficult to walk. The Keepers made sure to choose paths that were easy for the orphans to navigate. The rains had also filled up all the waterholes in the Umani area, turning them into a breeding ground for crocodiles. Alamaya and Sonje walked up to the waterhole near Umani to clean their trunks, and just as Sonje was about to step into the waterhole, the Keepers saw the head of a baby crocodile pop up. Shouting a warning at Sonje and Alamaya, they quickly stopped the two orphans from going any further, because there was no way of knowing if a mother crocodile was lurking in the deeper waters. Kiasa and Kiombo, who were nearby, also let out tiny trumpets in an attempt to help the Keepers warn Sonje and Alamaya. This set of panic amongst the orphans, and everyone started running willy nilly, not really knowing why they were running, but the Keepers soon gathered and settled them.
Although Alamaya has spent many-a night out with wild elephants, he prefers not to engage in any kind of conflict. Today, when he arrived with his friend Ziwa, they saw that both Ngasha and Faraja were locked in what looked like a very fierce fight. Alamaya immediately backed off, but Mwashoti, who is the newest member of the night clubbers, tried to put a stop to the fight, only to be pushed aside by the two older bulls. Murera and Quanza tried to stand between the warring bulls, but that didn’t help either. In the end, Jasiri intervened and finally put an end to the fight. Both bulls, hot and tired, walked away from each other. Peace was restored the Umani herd again and Murera decided they would move to Umani Hill to carry on with their browsing, where they remained until it was time to return to the stockades. Kiasa and Quanza joined Zongoloni at the head of the herd. Enkesha, as always, was happy to walk slowly with Maktao.
It is Christmas Eve, so the Keepers decided to celebrate with the orphans by given them extra treats. All the babies received an extra helping of lucerne pellets before heading out for the morning activities.
The Umani herd did not venture too far from the mud bath area. When it was time for their midday bottle, all the babies ran towards the feeding point. Today, it was Sonje who took charge and decided they should walk to a waterhole she had found. The Keepers inspected the waterhole and confirmed there were no crocodiles. The orphans we excited and waded right in to enjoy a leisurely afternoon of wallowing and dusting. Ngasha arrived, but none of the orphans welcomed the big bull. He stood on the side, browsing, but did not approach the Keepers or his friends. By evening, as the orphans were getting ready to go home, the Keepers saw Ngasha disappear into the forest by himself.
Mwashoti arrived at the stockade gates very early thing morning, minus his night clubber friends. Yesterday, the Keepers saw Zongoloni and Lima Lima join a herd of wild bulls. Perhaps they and the other night clubber boys ventured too far out for them to return to the stockades this morning. Murera was very happy to see her boy and welcomed him with trunk hugs. A short while later, Alamaya also appeared and joined his friends.
After their midday bottles, all the orphans enjoyed wallowing and dusting whilst the Keepers rested. As it was Christmas Day today, the Keepers celebrated with their babies and enjoyed a wonderful feast. They had hoped they night clubbers would return, but there was no sign of them. The Keepers weren’t the only ones who got a feast. The younger babies received an extra bottle of milk and older orphans enjoyed an extra helping of their favorite lucerne pellets.
Maktao is a very nervous swimmer, but today he finally plucked the courage to wade into the water. However, his courage was very short-lived: A turtle hopped onto his back, sending Maktao screaming and running out of the mud-bath.
Today is Boxing Day, and the Keepers found it quite funny how the babies were so slow today. They all took their time coming out of their quarters and finishing their morning routines. Even Sonje, who is normally one of the first out of the stockade compound, took her time. The Keepers said it reminded them of how humans over-indulge on Christmas Day and then are lethargic the next day.
A duiker decided to join the Umani orphans today. Kiasa had never seen one up close, so she raised her trunk to sniff it. Understandably, it bolted, which made her start trumpeting. The others followed suit, and they made such a racket that a buffalo who was browsing in the nearby bushes emerged to see what the noise was all about. Its sudden appearance panicked the orphans, and Mwashoti bravely charged towards the buffalo to chase it away. The Keepers once again had to settle the orphans, but Kiasa and Kiombo thought it was a game and continued to mock charge the bush, as though the buffalo were still hiding there.
The first thing Murera does every morning is inspect each orphan and greet them. However, she skipped that ritual today and was very slow. She was the last one to leave the compound, but the Keepers decided to let Murera come at her own pace. The other orphans sensed Murera was not her usual self, so all the babies were particularly well behaved. After a while Mwashoti walked up to where Murera was resting and rumbled at her. The two friends wandered off into the forest and returned after midday — and when they did, Murera was visibly better. The Keepers checked to see if there was anything wrong with her leg, but found nothing.
Zongoloni managed to separate Kiasa and Kiombo from the rest of the herd. After a while, Kiombo decided to turn back and return to Sonje, as they were venturing too far from the main herd. Sonje took Kiombo to her favorite browsing spot and was showing the young boy how to pull branches using his trunk. As the evening drew to a close, Enkesha and Maktao gathered round Sonje, getting ready to go home. Then, they saw little Kiasa running towards them, ears flapping and trumpeting, as though telling her friends not to leave without her.
The orphans concentrated their energies in tacking the Umani Hills. Most made their way to the top, but Kiombo, Enkesha, Murera, Sonje and Mwashoti stayed at the foot of the hills. All the orphans busied themselves browsing on the lush green bushes. After a while, the Keepers noticed Zongoloni and Lima Lima looking intently downhill. The Keepers realised two buffalos were standing behind Kiombo, who was totally unaware. The Keepers called out to him gently and coaxed his to return to where they were. The bushes are so thick right now that it is so difficult to tell if there is danger lurking. Thanks to Lima Lima’s vigilance, we were able to avert any mishap.
Sometime during the night, a herd of wild bulls walked past all the orphans’ rooms. They ran their trunks along the wood posts, catching the scent of the sleeping orphans, and carried on until they got to Sonje’s room. Here, one of the bulls stopped and lingered. This bull was interested in Sonje, but separated by the wooden posts, he had no choice but to carry on. Sonje continued sleeping, undisturbed.
After the midday bottle feed, the Keepers rested under the trees, watching their babies and exchanging stories. Today, Jasiri and Ngasha led the orphans to the mud-bath, where Alamaya and Kiasa were the stars. Murera, Sonje and Quanza stood aside watching their friends, and after a while, joined them too. The mud-bath is quite full, and all the babies were submerged with only their trunks sticking out like snorkels.
Today, Faraja and Zongoloni arrived with a wild, young bull. Usually, Lima Lima likes to welcome newcomers to the herd, but she and Jasiri tried to chase away this visitor. Zongoloni pulled rank and made it clear that the young bull would be staying with them. Faraja was happy to be amongst his friends and took the time to greet his Keepers. The wild bull was watching all of these interactions and started to relax around the Keepers, although he kept his distance. Faraja exchanged many rumbles with his friends Lima Lima and Sonje, perhaps relaying to them stories of his wild adventures. Kiombo and Maktao were somewhat intimidated by the wild bull, so Lima Lima and Sonje gathered them and moved away from the main herd, where the little boys could browse in peace.
The grass is quite tall, and it is easy for a little bull like Kiombo to get lost in the grass. Unbeknownst to him, he ended up near the wild bull, who was not happy to find Kiombo there and pushed him. Kiombo cried out for Sonje, who immediately came to his rescue. The wild bull was far too big for Sonje to reprimand, so they instead walked away quietly, leaving the wild bull with his friend, Faraja.
A wild elephant family, consisting of four females and two calves, joined the Umani herd today. Sonje was overjoyed to have two new babies to look after. Kiombo was very curious, so he walked over to the one of the smaller babies and touched it with his trunk. The baby was not too happy and ran off trumpeting towards its mother. The mother was very upset with Kiombo and gave him a small poke with her tusk as a warning to leave her little one alone.
The Umani orphans met with another wild herd, but this time it was a herd of bulls. They seem to know Murera very well, as greetings were exchanged, and the bulls were very comfortable around the orphans. Murera and Quanza seemed to be introducing the bulls to their friends and it was quite interesting to see how the bulls towered over the Umani babies — even Jasiri, who is the largest of the Umani herd.
As the Keepers bid goodnight to their babies in their stockades, they all gathered round to wish each other a Happy New Year, and a very Happy New Year to all from Umani!