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On a wonderful morning, ex-orphans Ndotto and Godoma visited the Voi stockades. After greeting our current orphans, Ndotto accepted a sparring challenge from Thamana and Godoma hung out with our herd, spending time especially with Baraka who was her favourite baby. After breakfast, the dependent orphans left the stockades and spent the morning browsing on leaves and branches from acacia trees on the slopes of Msinga Hill.

In the early afternoon, Busara and Juni padded down the hill to wander over the grasslands. Since Godoma began living wild, Juni has taken on little Busara. A few metres away, Itinyi and Kilulu played the pushing game, and best friends Lemeki and Thamana browsed side by side, trunk touching each other regularly. Losoito and Ashanti walked along behind their big sister and brother.

The milk van arrived, the elephants emptied their bottles and then gathered around the mud wallow. After a quick splash in the mud, Kilulu rubbed her bottoms against the baobab tree while Epiya, Hildana and Juni struck poses on the edge of the wallow. Baraka submerged her body in the water, climbed out and massaged herself against Dabida who was rolling on the ground. The elephants later resumed browsing.

We had many visitors this morning. Mweya’s herd of ex-orphans, including Naipoki and baby Nsimba, Mbirikani and baby Mica, Mbegu, Ndotto, Lasayen, Godoma, Tagwa, Rorogoi, Arruba, and of course Mweya’s wild-born babies Mwitu and Mwangaza, padded up the path at first light. The ex-orphans browsed on lucerne with the dependent orphans.

Dabida and Ushindi were first to greet the babies, running to them with trunks outstretched. Juni was allowed to trunk hug little Mica under the watchful eyes of mother Mbirikani and nanny Arruba. Gathering her courage, Seri joined Juni to interact with the baby. Then Mica and Nsimba played together – they pushed against each other and Nsimba rubbed her tiny trunk along Mica’s back.

The two herds fed and mingled peacefully until it was time to head out to the browsing fields. Rokka led our herd out in a long line while the ex-orphans stayed back to drink from the trough.

In the afternoon, Juni and Kilulu took a break from browsing for a sparring game. The two elephants pushed one way and then another with trunks clinking and lots of trumpeting. Lemeki was looking after a mini herd comprising Akina, Ashanti, Losoito and Rokka.

Today was a wonderful day – as we had so many visitors! To our surprise, Edie visited us for the first time in many months with her babies Eden, Ella, Eco and Enzo and a large herd of former orphans. She arrived with long-lost Panda and Kihari who came to introduce their newborn babies, Panya and Kiki. Having joined Mweya’s herd a week or so ago, Sagala, Kenia, Arruba, Tahri, Ndoria and Araba also padded up to the stockades. Close behind came Mweya, babies Mwitu and Mwangaza, Mbirikani and baby Mica, Naipoki and baby Nsimba, Ndii, Suswa, Aruba, Mbegu, Ndotto, Pika Pika, Ngilai, Tagwa, Tamiyoi, Murit and Godoma!

This huge herd of 32 ex-orphans joined our herd of 22 dependent elephants making the area in front of the stockades crowded with a total of 54 orphans. All the elephants, with the exceptions of the wild-born babies, were raised at the Voi Reintegration Unit.

Our orphans spent the morning interacting with the visitors, meeting some of them for the first time. Godoma and Tahri played a sparring game while Losoito did her best to babysit Kiki. Juni and Dabida kept trying to interact with Mica but Mwitu was being very protective. Playful Kiki rolled around on the pile of lucerne under Arruba’s feet with Kihari watching on and then the baby lay down for a nap.

After the afternoon milk feed which took place outside the stockades, Tundani - another long-lost ex-orphan - arrived to join the herd. He even went into his old stockade and met Chapeyu. The two bulls stood next to each other for a short time before Tundani walked away to catch up with the other ex-orphans. 

On a cool morning, the dependent orphans finished their breakfast and left the stockades early. The ex-orphans had not visited and our elephants were hoping to find them along their browsing routes. Orphans like Dabida and Epiya were restless – they were trumpeting and throwing tantrums to send signals and attract attention.

We had to be extra careful to avoid a repeat of the kidnapping that happened two months ago. We pushed the orphans up Msinga Hill where they spent the morning browsing and did not allow any to wander away.

In the afternoon, Rokka led Sileita, Mushuru, Busara and Losoito down for another milk feed in the first group. Stout Losoito was last again – she ran in trumpeting for her feeding spot. After drinking their milk, the elephants padded on to the baobab tree mud wallow.

A wild bull arrived at the wallow where he drank from the trough with some of our orphans and then walked off. It was a quiet afternoon – our herd stood around the wallow and wandered away to continue browsing.

On a sunny morning at the Voi stockades, Losoito enjoyed an early dust bath, rolling on the red soil as the rest of the orphans browsed on lucerne. Rokka was trunk hugging Sileita, pushing her to lead the way out to the browsing fields. Sileita was resisting the pushes because she could not see close friends Mushuru and Sholumai who were still feeding on lucerne. Losoito was draping her trunk over Ushindi next to the water trough.

At last, the herd ambled out in the direction of Msinga Hill. Losoito was scratching herself on the famous rock and so was left behind. She ran fast to catch up with the others. An hour later, Keeper Geoffrey walked out with the orphaned zebra rescued last month to browse on the slopes of the hill.

In the afternoon after the milk feed, the herd gathered around the mud wallow. After wallowing and showboating in the mini mud hole, Kilulu joined Hildana, Itinyi, Kenderi and Thamana in the main pool. The elephants splashed along the edges and then submerged their bodies in the muddy water.

As the orphans walked back out to the bush, Rokka, who does not like to swim in crowded pools, seized her chance to cool off in an empty mini mud wallow. Big sister Lemeki came over to scoop her up and shepherd her out to join the herd. 

Today was a big day for Chapeyu. Since being rescued several months ago, he has left his stockade just once. On every other day, he has refused to walk out of his room. This morning, we succeeded in persuading him out to join the other elephants.

Our herd was browsing on range cubes and lucerne with ex-orphans Tagwa, Ndotto and Lasayen. Chapeyu walked out and the others chased each other around to welcome a new friend. Hildana and Kilulu - the dominant big males after Thamana – were not comfortable with his presence because he is older and has larger tusks.

As we did our best to separate the bulls, Lemeki stood by Chapeyu’s side and also tried to stop any fighting. Then Ndotto approached him. The older bull greeted the younger one and began play mounting him. In contrast, Tagwa was being aggressive and did not allow Chapeyu to come close to her.

Chapeyu then took control of the situation. He walked away from the stockades and strode up to the top of Msinga Hill. He browsed there on his own and did not allow us to approach him. Later in the day, Ndotto and Lasayen joined him on the hill and the three bulls stood quietly together.

We were very pleased that Ndotto and Lasayen were being friendly to Chapeyu, rather than fighting him. To avoid the risk of conflict with Tagwa, we brought her into the stockades for the night.

In the morning, the elephants padded out of their shared stockades as usual and down the path to drink milk and feed on range cubes and lucerne. Ex-orphans Ndotto, Ngilai and Lasayen were the only visitors this morning, arriving without Chapeyu. After filling their bellies, Ndotto and Lasayen played a friendly sparring up game which lasted for a time. Kilulu lay down and invited Mushuru to play - before coming up and catching up with the herd as they left the stockades at the beginning of a busy browsing day.

When the dependent herd headed out to browse, the three ex-orphans walked away towards the Msinga Hill water hole and then on towards the Voi River where the other ex-orphans were probably browsing.

In the afternoon at the mud bath, Lemeki splashed in the mud with adopted babies Losoito and Rokka while Thamana and Kilulu squatted on the edge, massaging their bottoms, and Akina stood next to the pool, slapping water on her body.

Serenget is well but is still in her stockade rather than walking out with the herd. Despite her young age, she will not drink milk. When she kept refusing the bottle, we tried offering her a bucket of milk but this tactic also did not work.

The area in front of the stockades was full again today with our orphans and many visiting ex-orphans. Mweya, babies Mwitu and Mwangaza, Naipoki and baby Nsimba, Arruba, Pika Pika, Ndotto, Lasayen, Murit, Ndii, Tundani, Mbegu, Godoma, Araba, Tamiyoi and Tagwa arrived for breakfast soon after dawn but without Edie, Panda, Kihari and their newborn babies. The herds fed together peacefully, occasionally rumbling or trunk touching each other. Tiny Nsimba lay down on the soft lucerne grass for a nap.

The two herds headed out from the stockades in one large herd but separated on the northern corner of Msinga Hill. Our orphans walked up the hill while the ex-orphans browsed in the direction of the Voi River. Clever Thamana found a perfect place to browse in the shade of some large boulders.

After a wonderful afternoon mud bath, Mushuru scratched her body against the baobab tree and Lemeki squatted on top of the mound of dry soil. After covering herself in dust, Lemeki led the herd back out to the bush.

Ex-orphans from Mweya’s, Mbegu’s and Naipoki’s herds were streaming into the stockades soon after dawn this morning while we were preparing the orphans’ milk.

Hearing the visitors, Losoito began trumpeting - just in case anyone dared to drink her bottles of milk. Reacting to Losoito’s shouting, Sileita, Mushuru and Busara butted the gate with their heads, calling on the Keepers to let them out. We opened the doors and our elephants sprinted down the path in groups.

The elephants emptied their bottles and spread out at the range cubes trough and around the pile of lucerne. Baraka stuck close to Tundani at the trough, sensing that she was safe with the older elephant as security.

The herds of current and former orphans headed out from the stockades in different directions. After browsing for the morning, our herd visited the baobab tree water hole in the afternoon. Many plunged into the muddy water to cool off and play. Mushuru kept dipping her head into the water while Hildana rested his weight on a submerged Kilulu. Sholumai paddled on the edge, kicking water in every direction.

After climbing out of the wallow, Busara massaged her body against the peacock tree until Sholumai pushed her away and took her place. Baraka squeezed her round body into a small hole for an all-over soil bath.

Later in the day, we rescued an orphaned female baby zebra from Mwatate and brought her to the stockades to be with the little zebra rescued last month on Mgeno Ranch. In the evening a third zebra was brought to the stockades – sadly, his injuries were severe and he did not survive the night.

Many ex-orphans arrived at the stockades again this morning for supplementary feeding. The rains have been disappointing so far this month. Edie, Mbirikani, Panda, Kihari, their babies, Araba and Ndoria did not visit today.

After feeding, our orphans gathered around the pile of red earth. Ashanti was rolling around with legs aloft in her own special way until cheeky Kilulu climbed onto her stomach and lay there with trunk waving. Protective Lemeki walked over to stand guard over Rokka who was lying close by. Rokka happily hid her face under Lemeki’s stomach, pretending to be a small baby.

In the afternoon at the mud bath, some paddled as others wallowed or stood on the edge slapping water with their trunks. Feisty Kilulu squatted on the edge and scratched his bottoms from side by side. Sholumai wallowed in the mud with several friends. She has settled in quickly to her new family.

The morning was bright and the sun rose in a clear sky indicating a hot day ahead. Ex-orphans Naipoki, baby Nsimba, Mbegu, Tagwa, Tamiyoi, Ngilai, Ndotto, Tundani, Mudanda and Araba arrived early in the morning - with Chapeyu who has been sleeping out for the past few nights. Looking well, Chapeyu ambled up to the stockades for breakfast. Kilulu spread his ears in a warning gesture to the older bull. Mweya’s herd did not visit today.

The ex-orphans - including Chapeyu - headed out first with our orphans following along behind. The two groups walked off in different directions, browsing as they wandered through the bush. We were happy to see Chapeyu with the ex-orphans.

In the afternoon, many elephants cooled off in the mud bath. They splashed around in the mud and clambered on and off each other. Itinyi was played rough today. First, he play-mounted Ushindi, disrupting her wonderful water games, and then he lay on Thamana who was squatting on the edge. Ushindi climbed out of the main mud hole and lay down in a smaller puddle, inviting Baraka and Busara to play.

Ex-orphans Naipoki, baby Nsimba, Mbegu, Godoma, Tamiyoi, Ngilai, Ndotto and Rorogoi arrived at the stockades before sunrise. Tiny Nsimba was enjoying small pieces of lucerne – first she pulled grass from her mother’s mouth and then from gentle uncle Ndotto. Chapeyu, Lasayen and Murit were missing, as were Mweya’s and Edie’s herds.

Today our herd headed out first. Led by Sileita, Lemeki and Rokka, the orphans walked out in a long line in the direction of Msinga Hill. The visitors finished every piece of lucerne before leaving the stockades for the bush.

In the afternoon, we gathered the herd and sent them down for a milk feed in groups of five. They sprinted down for their milk, drank every drop, and padded on slowly to the mud wallow. Some orphans wallowed in the main baobab tree pool while others opted for the smaller pools close by. Akina and Ashanti lay together in one large puddle while Sholumai and Kenderi stood splashing one another.

We never know who will visit from one day to the next. Today Mweya’s herd of ex-orphans arrived in the early morning for supplementary feeding but Naipoki, baby Nsimba, Rorogoi and Tamiyoi were nowhere to be seen.

Mweya’s baby, Mwangaza, was looking tired. When she lay down to sleep, nanny Mudanda stood close and looked after her, allowing Mweya to browse on lucerne some distance away. When Mwangaza woke up and toddled over to the water trough, Hildana challenged her to a game. The older bull and younger calf played a gentle version of the pushing game watched by Mudanda and Mweya.

There were several sparring matches in front of the stockades this morning. Itinyi and Kilulu teamed up in a wrestling match against Tundani. The two younger bulls did well against the older visitor. When they had had enough, Thamana took their place. Thamana and Tundani pushed heads and clinked tusks in a serious contest of strength. Not far away, Itinyi and Pika Pika were also testing each other’s strength.  

The two herds went their separate browsing ways after leaving the stockades. The visitors walked towards the Voi River while our orphans spread out over Msinga Hill.

Ndotto, Godoma and Ngilai were the only ex-orphans that showed up today, joining the dependent elephants at the range cubes feeding trough and around the pile of lucerne. Ndotto stood quietly behind the row of milk-feeding babies with trunk lifted in a request for a bottle of milk. He is too old for milk and so we pushed him on to the feeding trough.

Ngilai was hugging Juni, laying his trunk along her back. A jealous Mushuru reached out her trunk to Ngilai in greeting. Meanwhile, Baraka walked from the upper terrace down to the lower one to trunk hug her friend Busara.

When the herd wandered out to the browsing fields, Juni walked away from Ngilai and caught up with the others. Ndotto, Godoma and Ngilai meandered along in their wake for a while and then veered off towards Lion Hill.

On another hot afternoon, the orphaned elephants had a lot of fun playing and mud bathing after milk feeding. Akina relaxed in a small pool while Ashanti and Kenderi played tumbling games in another. Recently Ashanti has become more confident and playful.

It was another wonderful morning. As we prepared the milk at dawn, we could hear the clicking of resident horn bills and the deep milk rumbles of the orphaned elephants.

Ndotto arrived before it was light. He was soon joined at the pile of lucerne by ex-orphans Mbegu, Godoma, Tagwa, Ngilai and Tamiyoi. Naipoki, baby Nsimba, Rorogoi and Mweya’s herd did not visit today.

Lemeki was asserting herself as the new mini matriarch of the herd (following Mbegu’s departure). As soon as the orphans had finished breakfast, she led them out to the field. Lemeki was in a hurry to show that she is now the leader. Mbegu and the other ex-orphans remained behind to finish up the lucerne.

Out in the bush, Lemeki confidently led the elephants up the western side of Msinga Hill to the summit. We wondered if she was trying to hide their tracks from Mbegu. In the afternoon, the orphans wandered down for another milk feed and a cool down in the mud wallow.

When Chapeyu arrived early in the morning with ex-orphans Ndotto and Godoma, Kilulu immediately confronted him head on. Kilulu’s behaviour indicates that he sees Chapeyu as a threat - Kilulu, Hildana and Thamana are the dominant bulls in our dependent herd and Chapeyu is older than all of them. Kilulu blocked Chapeyu from the water trough and then from the lucerne area, standing tall with ears flared. We intervened to separate the two bulls and allow Chapeyu to browse on lucerne.

An hour later, Mweya’s herd arrived and also Mbegu, Tagwa, Tamiyoi, Ngilai, Ndii and Arruba. The visitors drank from the trough and moved on to the lucerne grass. With the arrival of Mweya and her herd, Kilulu left Chapeyu alone as he is fearful of the much older orphans. The two groups soon headed out in different directions. 

Later in the day, Kilulu challenged Thamana to a contest of strength and the two bulls had a serious sparring match. Kilulu could be pushing for the position of strongest bull. He is unlikely to achieve this as Thamana is older and stronger.

After finishing the range cubes, the dependent orphans browsed on the pile of lucerne before leaving the stockades for their daily bush walk. When Rokka led the herd out, Itinyi and Kenderi were left behind because they were sparring. The two playful friends abandoned their game and jogged to catch up with the herd.

The elephants spent the morning on the southern slopes of Msinga Hill and then returned to the stockades for the afternoon milk feed and mud bath. Many cooled off in the wallow. Afterwards, Baraka and Epiya rubbed their bottoms against the terrace wall while Sileita and Mushuru tumbled around on the mound of soil.

Later in the day, Lemeki took a break from browsing to lie down with trunk twirling. Kilulu and Hildana stood close while she rolled around on the ground. As Mushuru browsed peacefully, Itinyi caused a commotion by ambushing her and climbing on her for mimic mating. She pushed him away and went back to browsing next to Sileita.

Ex-orphans Ndotto and Murit joined their dependent friends for range cubes and lucerne grass in the early morning. The other ex-orphans did not visit today but were content to continue browsing around the Voi River.

After filling his belly, Ndotto chased after Thamana and climbed on top of the younger bull several times. Lemeki was not happy with the older bull’s behaviour but did not dare to intervene. As Lemeki takes on the role of leader of our herd, she is becoming more responsible for other elephants and less affectionate towards human beings. Many of the other orphans also kept their distance from Ndotto. Akina and Ashanti rubbed themselves on the dry ground while Baraka and Busara hosed their bodies with dust.

The two older bulls went their own way when our herd headed out to Msinga Hill. The elephants had a peaceful browsing day and took a break from browsing to play in the early evening. Itinyi play mounted Thamana while he was rolling on the ground and Hildana play mounted Epiya while she was sitting on her bottoms and massaging her body from side to side. Big sister Juni and little sister Baraka watched on quietly from the sidelines.

On another wonderful morning, several ex-orphans arrived early for breakfast and stood under the tree waiting for range cubes and lucerne. Ndotto and Murit were standing in the milk feeding area hoping in vain for a bottle. They are too old for milk and so we whistled at them to move away.

While many gathered around the large pile of lucerne, Losoito continued browsing calmly on cubes while standing on the lower terrace and Ushindi, Hildana, Dabida and Epiya stood belly to belly at the trough, scooping up every last cube.

Leaving the visiting bulls at the stockades, our herd wandered out to browse on the northern slopes of Msinga Hill. In the afternoon they padded down for more milk and a cool down in the smaller water holes. Ushindi and Kenderi lay in the water, splashing mud competitively in every direction.

Later in the day while browsing on the foot of the hill, Lemeki, Rokka and Losoito balanced together on one very large boulder, standing so close that they were rubbing their bodies against each other. In contrast to his behaviour two days ago, Kilulu refused an invitation from Thamana for a sparring match. Today, he kept his head down and carried on browsing.

The herd had the area to themselves this morning as the independent orphans did not visit. Itinyi was being very annoying to best friend Kenderi. He kept trying to climb onto his back, but clever Kenderi is conversant with his tricks and kept sneaking away. Ushindi and Epiya were taking turns to scratch their bottoms on the famous rock. Ashanti reached out to Losoito with her damaged trunk and kissed her friend. Luckily, Lemeki was a distance away from adopted baby Losoito and so Ashanti was not pushed away.

For most of the morning, the elephants browsed in single file. In the afternoon they had another milk feed and visited the baobab mud wallow. As it was a cloudy day, many did not get into the muddy water. When Sholumai paddled in and squatted on a raised area in the middle of the wallow, Mushuru, Rokka and Sileita followed along in her wake. Meanwhile, Epiya, Akina, Ashanti, Kenderi and Juni were content to blow clouds of dust all over their bodies.

Later in the afternoon, it drizzled with rain. We were happy that it was raining and the elephants also enjoyed the cooling sprinkles.

Ex-orphans Ndotto and Murit arrived before dawn after spending the night browsing on Msinga Hill. The two bulls settled at the feeding trough full of range cubes while the dependent orphans had their morning milk feed in groups. When cheeky Baraka saw Ndotto and Murit feeding on cubes, she skipped her milk feed and made a beeline for the boys!

After breakfast, the orphans left the stockades. They spent the morning browsing on the northern side of the hill, ambling in the direction of the baobab mud wallow 

In the afternoon, we gathered the herd and sent them down in groups for another milk feed. Ushindi and Dabida were in the second group. Ushindi decided that Dabida’s milk was sweeter than hers and so kept pestering the Keeper feeding Dabida. Eventually, Dabida gave up her bottle to Ushindi and accepted a bottle from another Keeper.

It was a cloudy day and no one cooled off in the wallow. They spent a short time drinking from the trough and dusting their bodies before ambling back out to continue browsing.

Ex-orphans Arruba, Suswa, Pika Pika, Mbegu, Ndotto, Murit, Mweya and wild-born babies Mwitu and Mwangaza visited for a short time this morning. After feeding on range cubes, they left in a hurry, probably to catch up with other ex-orphans.

Our herd had the area to themselves and were in no hurry to head out. They filled their bellies, drank from the trough, covered themselves in dry soil, and ambled out at last to browse on the western slopes of Msinga Hill. The sun was so bright today that Ushindi and Losoito sought shelter behind a large rock.

In the afternoon, the elephants visited the mud wallow as usual. Dabida was babysitting Busara, trunk kissing her many times, while Sholumai and Mushuru watched on. Thamana was scratching his backside against the peacock tree close to the water hole.

When we whistled, the elephants responded and wandered back out to the bush. Later in the afternoon, Hildana approached Epiya and Baraka while they were massaging their bodies against a large boulder. When Hildana tried to play mount Epiya, Baraka sensibly walked away to stand next to big sister Juni.

Mweya, babies Mwitu and Mwangaza, Kenia, Arruba, Ndii, Mudanda, Suswa, Pika Pika, Mbirikani and baby Mica were waiting in the feeding area this morning when our current orphans sprinted out of their shared stockades and down the path for their milk feed.

Mwitu was being protective of her little sister and kept stopping Mwangaza from interacting with our orphans. Lemeki showed little interest in the wild-born babies and instead was very caring and affectionate towards her adopted babies, Losoito and Rokka.

Our herd headed out first and then the visitors. Mudanda and Ndii were quenching their thirst from the stockade water trough when the herd of ex-orphans left the stockades and so they had to catch up with the others.

The remainder of the day was peaceful. The elephants spent most of the cloudy day browsing. They visited the mud wallow briefly to drink from the trough and then walked away to continue browsing.

Mweya, wild-born babies Mwitu and Mwangaza, Arruba, Mudanda, Kenia, Ndii, Murit and Ndotto were today’s visitors, padding up the path soon after dawn and settling at the trough and around the lucerne. Juni, who has a soft spot for Mwangaza, approached the little girl slowly and cautiously from behind. The wannabee nanny was hoping to touch Mwangaza but was not sure of how Mweya and Mwitu would react. Today, Juni was allowed to stand next to the wild-born baby.

This morning the visitors were first to leave and our herd headed out half an hour later. The ex-orphans walked away towards the Voi River and the current orphans settled to browse on the slopes of Msinga Hill. Juni stayed at the bottom with Ashanti, Akina, Sholumai and Kenderi while Lemeki climbed to the summit with Losoito, Rokka, Sileita and Mushuru.

After visiting the mud bath in the afternoon, the herd ambled back to the bush. After three hours of browsing, the orphaned elephants took a break to play. Baraka rolled around on a patch of damp soil until Epiya disturbed her game by lying on her stomach. She pushed her playful friend away, clambered to her feet and joined Juni and Ashanti in an erosion trench. The three girls rubbed bodies while squashed together in the trench.

On Christmas Day, we were blessed with an extra-large number of visitors! Mweya and babies Mwitu and Mwangaza, Panda and baby Panya, Mbirikani and baby Mica, Naipoki and baby Nsimba, Kenia, Ndii, Mudanda, Arruba, Pika Pika, Ndotto, Ngilai, Murit, Mbegu, Tagwa, and Tundani arrived at the stockades to fill their bellies and greet their former family. Only Kihari and baby Kiki, Rorogoi, Tamiyoi, Araba and Godoma did not show up.

The area in front of the stockades was full to the brim with over 40 elephants. Panya was very tired after a night of browsing with the herd. She lay down for a nap on the pile of lucerne between her mother Panda’s front legs. But she was not allowed to sleep for long. Minutes later, little Mica woke her up by climbing onto Panya’s belly. The two herds left the stockades together before branching off in different directions.

In the afternoon, our orphans visited the baobab tree mud wallow. Some paddled along the edge while others wallowed in the middle. Akina is not a playful girl but she does like mud wallowing. She stood on the edge slapping mud along her sides and then climbed in and lay down. Today, we were happy to see our reserved girl rolling around in the wallow! When the pool became crowded, however, Akina was first to clamber out and cover her body in dry dust.  

As our orphans were browsing on lucerne this morning, ex-orphans Mbegu, Tagwa, Ndotto, Murit and Tundani arrived. The five visitors mingled with our orphans around the lucerne, at the trough and on the terraces.

Today, many of the orphaned elephants climbed to the summit of Msinga Hill in search of green browse. Sileita led Mushuru and Sholumai up to the top while Lemeki remained at the bottom with Ashanti, Losoito and Rokka.

In the afternoon, the orphans plunged into the mud bath, either paddling along the edge or submerging their bodies in the middle. Kilulu was really showing off today, wallowing in every part of the pool and making enormous splashes. His antics were brought to an end by feisty Hildana who ambushed him as he lay in the mud.

A special visitor arrived after dark. At around 9.30 PM, Laikipia strolled in to drink from the trough. Our old friend visits very rarely and we were very pleased to see him. So were the elephants, many of whom rumbled greetings to the big bull from their stockades. Their greetings did not delay him, however – he drank deeply and disappeared into the night.

In a rerun of Christmas Day, Mweya and babies Mwitu and Mwangaza, Panda and baby Panya, Mbirikani and baby Mica, Naipoki and baby Nsimba, Kenia, Ndii, Mudanda, Arruba, Pika Pika, Ndotto, Ngilai, Murit, Mbegu, Tagwa, and Tundani arrived at the stockades to fill their bellies and greet their old friends. Only Kihari and baby Kiki, Rorogoi, Tamiyoi, Araba and Godoma did not show up.

After scooping up cubes with their tiny trunks, Panya and Mica lay down on the flat top of the famous rock that is close to the water hole. The two babies were playing and showing off their moves, rolling onto their backs and twirling their trunks in circles. An impressed Mwitu approached them. She stood guard while stroking them softly in congratulation. Feeling left out, Mwangaza head butted big sister Mwitu and then stood quietly next to her watching the tiny babies playing. When Panya clambered to her feet and stood under Mwitu’s stomach, the older girl looked very happy.

The ex-orphans left the stockades for the field first with the dependent elephants leaving half an hour later.

Mbegu, Tagwa, Ndotto and Murit were the only ex-orphans visiting the stockades today. Busara and Baraka were the first to walk up to big sister Mbegu with Juni and Dabida following in their footsteps. Since Mbegu began living wild, Juni and Dabida have taken on the role of protecting younger orphans like Busara and Baraka. Ndotto did his best to initiate a sparring game with Thamana, but Thamana kept his head down and carried on eating lucerne.

Juni, Lemeki and Dabida later led the herd out to the browsing fields, leaving Mbegu and her herd behind. Juni was looking after adopted baby Busara almost all day and Dabida was with darling Baraka.

After a peaceful milk feed in the afternoon, the orphaned elephant cooled off in the smaller mud wallows. Several lay on their bellies in the thick mud. After covering his body in mud, Thamana scratched his neck against the bark of the peacock tree. As the herd ambled back out, he tagged onto the end of the line.

Mweya with Mwitu and Mwangaza, Panda with Panya, Mbirikani with Mica, and also Kenia, Mbegu, Tundani, Ndotto, Murit, Arruba and Tagwa arrived at dawn. The ex-orphans waited while we prepared milk and opened gates, and then joined our orphans for breakfast. (Naipoki, Kihari, Edie and the others did not visit today.)

The elephants stood either at the feeding trough or around the pile of lucerne. Little Mica was being playful, jumping around between mouthfuls of lucerne. Dabida tried to greet Mica with her trunk but was blocked by Mwitu; when she tried again, Mwitu pushed her roughly away. When Seri also tried to approach the baby, she met with strong resistance from Mwitu. Although her path was blocked, Seri stretched out her trunk to touch Mica briefly.

After feeding the two herds drank water from the stockade trough before wandering out to the browsing fields where, as usual, they went their separate ways.

In the afternoon, the orphans padded down the hill in groups to a line of Keepers waiting next to the vehicle holding bottles of milk. Each group drank their milk and walked on to the mud wallow. Only Lemeki is no longer milk dependent. Today, many wallowed in the muddy water. It was Baraka’s turn to squat on the raised area in the middle of the pool as the others lay submerged around her. Dabida was lying on Thamana while he was busy mud bathing.

After covering themselves in thick mud, the orphans hosed their bodies with dry dust and meandered away from the baobab tree to browse. 

Last night, the little zebra rescued from Mwatate earlier in the month died. We were surprised as she had not been unwell but just suddenly became ill. So now we only have the zebra from Mgeno Ranch.

Mbirikani, baby Mica, Panda, baby Panya, Mbegu, Tagwa, Murit and Ndotto were the only ex-orphans that turned up today. They fed peacefully with the resident herd and drank clean water from the trough.

Dabida and Juni love being with wild-born babies. Today, Mwitu was not present to block them from Panya and Mica and so they spent lots of time with the two tiny babies. The nannies fussed around them while Panya and Mica stood close between their forelegs. Mica even tried to suckle Dabida.

When Mbegu and Tagwa led the herd of ex-orphans back to the bush, Juni and Dabida tried to follow. We called them back as some of the herd were still drinking milk. When it was time to head out, Lemeki led the elephants and they settled to browse over Msinga Hill. Today, we kept vigilant eyes on Juni and Dabida in case they tried to sneak away to be with the wild-born babies.

On the last day of the year, many ex-orphans visited us again. The rains have been disappointing this month and the elephants are visiting for supplementary feeding. Today, as our herd was browsing on lucerne, Mbirikani, baby Mica, Panda, baby Panya, Mbegu, Tagwa, Murit, Ndotto and Tundani padded up the path to the stockades. Chapeyu was not with them – we expect him to be browsing with some of our ex-orphans along the Voi River.

The two groups hung around the stockades playing and bonding. Kilulu and Kenderi were having a wrestling match next to the mound of soil while Hildana was pushing Ushindi at the feeding trough.

Tiny Panya was running the show! First, she ran head on into Epiya, catching her by surprise, and then she began pushing Sileita and Mushuru who both handled her in a soft manner. Panda kept watch but allowed her baby to interact with our orphans.

This morning, another orphaned baby zebra was rescued and brought to the stockades. The little girl was found at Satao Camp, probably after her mother was killed by lions. The zebra is in poor condition, suggesting that she may have been away from her mother for a few days.