01 February 2015

It was a quiet day as the orphans concentrated only on browsing. Ishanga, who has not been seen since last year, joined the juniors in the Kone area where they had settled to browse. Ishanga was with Makireti, Kasigau and Kilabasi and they spent the entire day with the juniors. It was lovely to see her doing so well, in great condition. We wonder where she had gone and who with, but celebrated her safe return. Late in the evening, Yatta and Mulika’s groups reported at the stockade. Naserian and Zurura engaged each other in a strength testing exercise as Mulika picked up a piece of stick that she used to scratch her chest with. A wild herd led by a one tusked female showed up at the stockade. This same female was treated by the Vet team last year when they removed an arrow from the side of her belly. Trustingly this female had a baby born that day with her who was struggling to reach for her milk. Sidai tried to go close to the baby but she was pushed hard by the mother. The mother and the rest of the herd left with the baby struggling along as it hasn't yet learnt to walk steadily. She knows we saved her and is totally healed and comfortable around the ex orphans and the Keepers, so much so that she feels safe enough to share her newborn with us all.

02 February 2015

After drinking at the stockade water trough, Kainuk, Orwa and Turkwel walked down to heap of red soil and started their day by soil dusting. This is a very popular in the hot seasons, soothing, cooling and keeping biting insects at bay. At the browsing field Narok lay down to play but Bongo, who was browsing close by, walked towards her and started pushing her to stand up. Narok was annoyed by Bongo's action and once she was on her feet she abruptly pushed him away. Later, Bongo played with Orwa and then Shukuru and lastly with Sities. Shukuru who was very dull early in the year prompting Angela's great concern has improved enormously since Angela sent down the necessary medication and vitamin boosters. She is now a different elephant with energy, swimming everyday in the mudbath, all things she did not do for many months. Mutara spent some time having a strength testing game with Orwa today as well. Mutara has really grown, it is hard to imagine she came into our care as a tiny infant still with her umbilical cord attached from Mutara Ranch Laikipia. Bomani was feeding close to Kanjoro and from time to time Kanjoro put his trunk into Bomani’s mouth while Turkwel constantly scratched her year, obviously something was really disturbing her. After drinking water at 11am, Shukuru and Sities sucked their trunks which is their usual idiosyncrasy. They love to just stand in the shade content spending much time sucking there trunks completely relaxed. Though the sun was hot none of the orphans wallowed today which was unusual. As the orphans were soil bathing, a troop of chattering baboons ran past scaring the orphans who fled in different directed. This stopped the soil bathing session abruptly and they chose to walk towards their keepers and stay close to us. Garzi and Vuria kept raising their trunks up trying to get some scent to determine whether all was ok. The afternoon was quiet as the orphans browsed calmly in the close company of their Keeper. In the evening six wild bulls came to drink water at the stockade water trough and stood close and content relaxing having taken their water communicating with their orphan friends.

03 February 2015

The sky was clear as the orphans left to browse. Clearly it was going to be another hot day. Orwa spent some time feeding with Garzi before moving to where Mutara was feeding and then browsed close to her, sometimes reaching for the branch in her moth. They shared leaves from the same shrub before parting ways. At 9.30am the orphans settled to browse near the Kone dam. Laragai, Bongo, Narok, Kanjoro and Garzi went down to the dam to drink water. Laragai and Bongo tried to block Garzi from the water but Kanjoro intervened by pushing Laragai and Bongo aside so Garzi could drink. Kanjoro then moved over to a heap of soil where he rolled and soil dusted relishing the soft cool powder earth. On the way to the mud bath Orwa tried to take a piece of stick from Bomani’s mouth but Bomani complained by rumbling loudly so Orwa stopped being so cheeky before it escalated. After the 11am milk Shukuru and Laragai had their trunks in their mouths as they walked towards the water hole. Despite a bright morning the weather turned cloudy and none of the orphans wallowed. Mutara led the way back to the browsing field and in the afternoon the clouds cleared giving way to bright sun shine once more. The orphans stopped browsing to shelter from the scorching sun. Later the orphans resumed browsing as they walked towards the mud bath and joined five wild bulls who were drinking water there. The orphans walked past them and headed for a cool off in the waterhole before heading back to their night stockades. Yatta, Mulika and Lualeni’s groups reported to the stockade this evening. Ishanga, who ordinarily belongs to the partially independent group, appears to be trying to join the totally independent orphan group as she was with them this evening. The orphans are all friends and group changing is common place.

04 February 2015

In morning most of the orphans started the day with scratching exercises. Kanjoro, Bongo, Vuria, Orwa and Shukuru lined up to scratch against the same tree. At the browsing field the orphans were joined by Makena, who was limping slightly due to a sprain. Nothing serious but it was clear she was in some discomfort. Orwa, Teleki and Vuria surrounded her and sniffed and touched her seemingly concerned and very conscious that something had happened to her. After a while, Vuria and Teleki moved back to continue with browsing but Orwa was left with Makena and they communicated through touching, later having a gentle friendly pushing game. Shortly afterwards Lualeni and Tomboi joined the juniors and spent the morning with them and then escorted them to the mud bath. With Lualeni around the Keepers have to be on their toes watching out for baby snatching! Lualeni loves to take the babies into the semi independent groups, but this is not ideal when they are still milk dependent. At 11am the weather was chilly and the orphans just drank and soil dusted. As the orphans were soil dusting, Mulika, Yatta and Lualeni’s groups, in the company of six wild elephants, showed up at the mud bath. Vuria and Bongo entwined their trunks for a few minutes and then the dependent orphans withdrew from the ex orphans and headed off to the slopes of the Ithumba hill where they settled to browse.

05 February 2015

Early, before 6am, Kalama, Chemi Chemi, Kandecha, Kibo, Murka, Naisula, Melia, Tumaren and Suguta reported to the stockade. As soon as the gates opened Suguta, Tumaren and Melia went in and grabbed a few left overs from the stockade. Once they were all out Chemi Chemi challenged Orwa in a pushing game. In order to prove to Orwa that he was dominant Chemi Chemi mounted Orwa and then engaged him in a serious strength testing exercise in which Orwa admitted defeat. Orwa then moved to tackle Kibo but Kibo was also stronger than him and Orwa surrendered. Kalama played with Sities for a while but their game didn't last for long. Kora, Kamboyo and Tomboi also showed up at the stockade with Kamboyo and Tomboi engaging each other in a long pushing game. Shukuru and Kainuk soil bathed before getting into some serious browsing. Suguta and her group left after and hour. Garzi broke a nice green branch from a tree and stood to enjoy eating it but then Sities emerged from nowhere and took the branch away.Garzi was left wondering why Sities would take his food when she is quite capable of breaking her own branch. Later Bongo and his playmate Vuria engaged at their usual game of pushing one another around. At 11am the orphans had their milk, then water, and afterwards went to soil bathe. In the afternoon the sun was hot and Sities, Vuria, Laragai, Turkwel and Bongo relaxed under a tree for a while before resuming browsing. In the evening the temperatures were still high so the orphans passed by the mud bath to cool off. Later they soil dusted for a good hour and then Mutara led the way back to the stockade.

06 February 2015

Narok and Teleki had a great time scratching against fallen trees first thing in the morning. The juniors were joined by Lualeni and Ololoo. Ololoo teamed up with Orwa and Vuria going off to feed far away from the others. An hour after the juniors had left the stockades Makireti, Kasigau and Kilabasi arrived to drink water and later, at about 2.30pm, Olare, Naisula, Murka, Kitirua, Kamboyo and Tomboi came to drink. Olare had been missing for almost two months and now she is back making the entire Suguta group complete. It has been very interesting to see the comings and goings of the orphans as they join up with the wild herds and leave for good chunks of time while the park is so green and all he waterholes full, but interesting too that they absolutely know their way around such a vast area and are able navigate their way back home when ready. At mud bath time the weather was chilly and none of the orphans braved the mud bath. Sities and Shukuru sucked their trunks for a very long time. Later, Kanjoro led the herd into a soil dusting exercise after which Teleki moved to a nearby tree where he spent some time scratching his bottom. The orphans had a quiet afternoon and in the evening as usual they passed by the mud bath for an evening cool off.

07 February 2015

It was a very cold and quiet morning and the orphans were met by Yatta and Mulika’s ex-orphans as soon as they left their stockades. They went straight to the water trough to drink and then departed to the bush. The orphans were busy browsing; Orwa with Bomani and Bongo with Vuria. Buchuma and Tomboi joined them and had some wrestling games which make the orphans very excited. When the orphans were lining up ready for milk some of them started scooping and tossing up chunks of dusty sand into the air. Vuria and Teleki started kissing and pushing each other. Vuria later led the first group to the mudbath but the weather was very cold, with a chill wind blowing, so none of the ellies were very keen to bathe. They lined up around the mud hole, drank a little water and left. Shukuru started off playing with Garzi and Sities whilst Bongo played with Vuria. Then Shukuru rested her trunk on Vuria and started to mount him when he was lying down. As it became hotter they all went back to the mudbath and played in the mud. When the orphans returned to the stockades in the evening there was a big group of about 30 ex-orphans there, including Wendy, Kinna, Challa and two wild bulls who drank water and later returned to the bush. They remained around the stockades communicating to the dependent babies and enjoying the company of the Keepers.

08 February 2015

It was also another cold, quiet morning with the orphan ellies following their usual routine of walking from their respective stockades to the water trough and then off into the bush to browse. Orwa scratched on a tree while Sities and Bomani scratched on a tree stump and on a rock near the stockade before heading off. The ex-orphan group later met the orphans and interacted for a good few hours before they departed leaving Galana and Tomboi behind with the babies. Turkwel was browsing next to Sities and Rapsu, and Tomboi spent a long while mentoring Teleki who was savoring the experience. Tomboi was rescued as a tiny baby from Samburu, after his mother died. Watching him grow into such a handsome bull is extremely satisfying. The orphans later met the Nasalot’s group for few minutes before they went to the mudbath. As it was cold no one wallowed and straight after their milk they set off to browse again. Vuria led the group back to the stockade in the evening where there was a big group of ex-orphans and two wild ellies who had come in for water, so their day was actioned packed with older orphans spending time and giving them attention which the dependent babies simply love.

09 February 2015

Very early in the morning there was a large group of ex-orphans and two wild bulls waiting for more water as the water had been emptied by the elephants the previous evening. After the orphans had finished their breakfast they joined the ex-orphans and shared the water in the trough. Mulika and Yatta were there with their babies along with some of Suguta’s group including Kibo, Naisula, Kitirua, Kalama, Chemi Chemi, Suguta, Tumaren, Olare, Murka and Kandecha. Naisula started a fighting game with Orwa while Bomani and Garzi scratched on the rocks. Then Garzi was playing and lying on the ground and Vuria tried to mount him. Later they all set off to the bush together to browse along with the ex-orphans. After a while Vuria led the orphans to the mudbath where they had their milk but did not bathe as it was cold. Bongo and Laragai splashed some water on their bodies then rolled in the dust to dry off. Bongo and Vuria scooped and tossed dust in the air with and later started comparing their strength by playing and pushing each other.

10 February 2015

It was a bright morning and the ex-orphans appeared very early in the morning to drink at the stockade water trough. Wendy, Yatta and Mulika with their babies, Naisula, Kibo, Kitirua, Melia, Suguta and Tumaren were among them. They drank water and the orphans came out of their stables and joined them. Orwa started playing with Naisula while Kora was playing with Rapsu. Later Rapsu played with a wild bull and Orwa interacted with Naserian. The orphans walked into the bush while the ex-orphans were left behind drinking water until they then headed off in a different direction. In the bush Vuria, Garzi and Bomani browsed together. They passed by a mudbath near the Kone road junction and had an early wallow. Bongo, Vuria, Laragai, Garzi, Teleki and Narok played energetically in the mud bath. When the group returned to the bush they were joined by Tomboi who had some fun with Orwa as they walk towards the main mud hole to have their mid-morning milk. After their milk Laragai, Bongo, Vuria, Garzi and Kanjoro played and had fun in the mud, later running off to spray themselves with dust by tossing it in the air. It was very hot in the bush in the afternoon and Vuria, Garzi and Bomani browsing happily together. Shukuru led the back home in the evening.

11 February 2015

Bongo and his playmate Vuria started the day by engaging in a strength testing exercise. Orwa and Teleki saw them playing and were inspired to have their own game of strength testing. Narok took some time to scratch her buttocks on a rock. Whilst out in the field Kainuk, who was feeding close to Orwa, took a break from feeding and lay down to play. At the mud bath the sun was really hot and five lesser kudus were drinking at the water hole. They fled as soon as the orphans arrived. Shukuru, as is her habit, walked to the water hole with her trunk in her mouth after having her milk. Kanjoro, Laragai, Shukuru, Vuria, Teleki, Garzi, Bomani, Narok and Bongo wallowed happily. After the mud bath Kanjoro walked to a nearby tree to scratch his buttocks. Shukuru walked towards him, also wanting to scratch so Kanjoro moved off to continue soil bathing before being pushed away. Teleki also wanted to scratch on the tree and stood close to Shukuru waiting his turn. In the afternoon the sun was still hot and Bomani, Bongo and Turkwel relaxed under different trees waiting for it to cool down. Later in the evening it was still very warm and the orphans went to the mud bath for a second wallow. Bongo and Mutara passed washed their heads and ears at the mud bath water trough before walking down to the water hole for a complete wallow. After wallowing the orphans dusted themselves with red soil then Shukuru led them back to the stockade.

12 February 2015

Teleki left the stockade with a branch in his mouth. Narok scratched on a rock on the way to the browsing field where Turkwel and Orwa fed together. Bongo and Kanjoro showed off their climbing skills by scaling a steep rock to get some green grass they had spotted. At 7am Makireti, Kasigau and Kilabasi joined the juniors. Bomani and Narok welcomed Makireti by inserting their trunks in Makireti’s mouth. Garzi welcomed Kasigau and soon after snatched some grass that he was holding in his trunk. Kasigau cautioned Garzi by pointing his trunk towards him. Kanjoro also tried the same trick but this time Kilabasi pushed him away. Bomani tried a strength testing exercise with Kilabasi but Kilabasi was too strong for him. At 8am the ex-orphans, with four wild boys, came to drink at the stockade. Soon afterwards the partially independent group of orphans, in the company of Lualeni and Kamboyo, joined the ex-orphans at the stockade. Ithumbah and Ololoo engaged each other in a strength testing exercise that ended in a draw. As the ex-orphans were returning to the browsing field Tomboi picked up a piece of stick with his trunk and used it to scratch under his belly very creatively. At 11am the sun was hot and all the orphans wallowed. Afterwards Laragai led the group to go and soil dust. Orwa opted to retire under a tree that had a good shade and scratched instead. After soil dusting, Shukuru, Bomani and Bongo went to some nearby acacia trees and used them to scratch against. In the evening, the ex-orphans passed by the stockade with a new wild bull in their company, and shortly before dark two other wild bulls came to drink.

13 February 2015

In the morning, Teleki had small wound on his back after being pushed by Orwa in the night. Green clay was applied to the affected area before Teleki left the stockade. Sities, who had woken up in a bad mood, kept charging at everything that stood on her way. At the browsing field Vuria’s leg became trapped by a dry branch he had stepped on. Carefully using his trunk Vuria removed the branch from his leg. At around 9am Lualeni, Ololoo, Rapsu and Tomboi joined the juniors. Ololoo engaged Orwa in a strength testing exercise until they became tired and resumed browsing. At mud bath time the guests of honor were two wild bulls. The bulls stood in the water and splashed water behind their ears whilst the orphans had their milk. Lualeni caused a commotion when she went past the basin containing the milk bottles and tried to help herself. The keepers shouted at her and she only managed to get a bottle top which she ran off with. After mud bathing Rapsu soil dusted and Tomboi tried to join the two bulls drinking water at the mud bath water trough. Later, the juniors settled to browse near the western side of Ithumba hill. In the evening, the juniors met with the ex-orphans and wild elephants at the mud bath where they all wallowed together. Shortly before 6pm Makireti, Kasigau, Kilabasi and Tomboi reported to the stockade.

14 February 2015

Lualeni, Taita, Ololoo and Makena joined the juniors in the morning. Bomani welcomed Makena and Taita by stretching his trunk towards them. Bomani and Garzi were respectful to Taita, stepping aside to let him pass. Ololoo had a brief strength testing exercise with Orwa before Taita intervened and pushed the two boys away. Shukuru, Bomani and Turkwel had scratched on rocks before leaving to browse. An hour later, Ololoo, Lualeni and Taita departed, leaving Makena to lead the juniors to the mud bath where Kanjoro, Shukuru, Laragai, Bongo, Teleki, Vuria and Narok had along wallow. The rest opted for soil dusting. After soil dusting, Orwa went to scratch against a nearby tree but Makena then wanted to scratch on use the same tree so Orwa had no option but to give way to her. After Makena, Teleki stepped in and also scratched for some time. The afternoon was hot and all the orphans converged under a tree to hide from the scorching sun. In the evening, the orphans went past the mud bath for an evening wallow.

15 February 2015

Suguta’s group of Suguta, Melia, Tumaren, Olare, Kandecha, Kitirua, Kibo, Murka, Chemi Chemi, Naisula, Kamboyo and Kalama reported to the stockade early before 6am. They waited for the juniors to come out and shared lucerne with them. Kalama threatened Sities when she tried to take some lucerne Kalama had her eye on. In fear of being reprimanded Sities left it alone. An hour later Suguta and her group departed and at 10am Kilaguni, Chaimu and Ishanga came to drink at the stockade. It appears that Kilaguni Ishanga and Chaimu want to form their own group. Tomboi arrived at the mud bath before the juniors and decided to wait for them. After finishing his second bottle of milk Bomani ran away with the empty bottle. The keepers begged him to bring it back but he just dropped it. Only Tomboi went into the water to wallow and the juniors just watched him from the edge of the mud bath. Sities went to the water trough, put her front legs into the water, and started splashing. Shukuru went to soil dust while Orwa went to scratch against the acacia trees. Tomboi soil bathed after wallowing and picked up a stick that he used to scratch himself with. In the afternoon, the temperatures were moderate and the orphans browsed calmly.

16 February 2015

After leaving the stockade the orphans ate their lucerne. The morning was cool after 3mm of rain received overnight. Laragai fed close to Bongo while Sities fed close Mutara. Orwa, Shukuru and Narok scratched on the rocks. There was a drama at mud bath as Kainuk finished her milk then turned on Orwa who was still drinking. Kainuk begged Orwa to leave some milk for her but Orwa just turned away and stood close to the keepers to prevent his milk being stolen. Kainuk moved away pretending to suck her trunk and plotting her revenge whilst waiting to teach Orwa a lesson. As Orwa walked past Kainuk pounced on him but the keepers were quick to respond to his squeals for help and shouted at Kainuk. It was only slightly warm at mudbath and only Kanjoro and Laragai wallowed. Garzi, Orwa and Vuria scratched against nearby trees then Shukuru led the way back to the browsing field. Soon after the orphans had left eight wild bulls showed up, wallowed, drank then departed. The orphans browsed on the slopes of Ithumba hill for the remaining part of the day.

17 February 2015

Ishanga, who appears to have no permanent group and is enjoying her independence cruising between them all, showed up at the stockade in the morning with Kilabasi, Makireti and Kasigau. The four joined the juniors eating lucerne. Shortly after Mulika and Yatta’s groups, in the company of four wild bulls, also joined the juniors. As soon as the ex-orphans arrived the juniors left so as not to be pushed around by their seniors. In the field Narok tried to pull up grass with her trunk but she was unable to uproot it so she went down on her front knees and used her mouth to sever the grass. At 11am it was still quite cool so the orphans did not wallow but just drank their milk, had some water and returned back to the browsing field. In the afternoon, the temperature rocketed forcing the orphans to seek shelter under a tree. Shortly before 4pm Bongo led the entire orphan herd back to the mud bath for a cool off. Ishanga, Tomboi and Lualeni came for water at the stockade later in the evening.

18 February 2015

In the morning the orphans left the stockade and went to eat lucerne. Vuria had a hard time with Laragai as she wanted the lucerne that Vuria was feeding on. Vuria took his lucerne and ran away from Laragai getting as far as the stockade before the keepers intervened and cautioned Laragai. Turkwel had great time rolling on the ground while Kanjoro developed an itchy ear and used his trunk to scratch it. At mud bath, the juniors were joined by Rapsu, Tomboi and two wild boys. Only Shukuru, Narok, Bongo and Teleki wallowed. After bathing, Shukuru, Garzi and Teleki went to the acacia trees where they had a good scratch. Sities walked to where Tomboi was relaxing and shared the shade since the sun was hot. Bongo saw two warthogs approaching the mud bath and charged at them. They ran away but returned as soon as they saw Bongo leaving. Shortly after the orphans disappeared to the browsing field eight wild bulls turned up to drink. The afternoon was hot, Teleki browsed close to Mutara while Vuria paired up with his friend Garzi. As the temperature rocketed the orphans returned to the mudbath for a second time and spent a long time wallowing. After wallowing Laragai opted to soil dust as the rest browsed, slowly heading back to the stockade.

19 February 2015

Ishanga, who is yet to find a permanent group to identify herself with, reported at the stockade with Makireti, Kilabasi and Kilabasi. The four joined the juniors for lucerne soon after leaving the stockade. Orwa tried to engage Ishanga in a pushing game but Ishanga, being a no nonsense girl who doesn't entertain such jokes, pushed Orwa away. Orwa was upset by Ishanga's action and to show his discontent he boycotted the lucerne and went to scratch himself against a nearby tree. Later Kilabasi went to comfort Orwa by offering him a chance to play but Orwa was not interested. Kilabasi then proceeded to play with Bomani and Vuria. At the browsing field Teleki and Vuria spend some time together in a strength testing exercise. At mud bath time the weather was chilly and the orphans just drank water then returned to the browsing field. The orphans had a quiet afternoon and in the evening Bongo had an enjoyable time soil dusting and shortly after Shukuru led the way back to the stockade.

20 February 2015

Yatta, Mulika and Lualeni’s groups reported to the stockade early in the morning. Buchuma, Napasha and Madiba were missing. When the orphans left the stockade they mingled with the ex-orphans briefly then headed off to browse leaving the seniors at the stockade. Lualeni accompanied the juniors as they settled down to browse at the Kone area and stayed with them for the remainder of the day but she was not very pleasant to them. At 11am Lualeni escorted the juniors for their noon bottle feeds but caused a commotion when she picked an empty bottle that had been dropped by Vuria. The keepers took the bottle before she put it into her mouth but then she tried to take another bottle of milk, running off only when she saw a keeper approaching. Lualeni wallowed with the juniors standing on the edge of the mud bath watching her and afterwards she led the juniors off to soil bathe. Shukuru went to scratch against a nearby tree where Turkwel joined her and Bongo stood by waiting for his turn but Lualeni interrupted the scratching by forcing her way in and pushing the others away. The orphans were not happy and went back to the browsing field. Only Teleki was bold enough to return and try to squeeze in with Lualeni but she turned and pushed him away so he ran off and followed his colleagues. Lualeni followed the orphans, not wanting to be left behind, but when Sities followed her closely trying to sniff at her, Lualeni threw a back kick that luckily missed. The orphans had a quiet afternoon and in the evening, Chaimu and Kilaguni came for water at the stockade.

21 February 2015

The stockade compound was flooded with ex-orphans when the orphans came out soon after having their morning milk. The orphans didn't stay long due to pushing from the seniors whilst competing for lucerne. Kanjoro played with Yetu but stopped when he saw Yatta, her mother, approaching. Orwa played with Ololoo but their game was interrupted by Kenze who separated them and attempted to mount Ololoo. Rapsu mounted Lualeni but this didn't go down well with a wild bull that was standing close by which then came over and pushed Rapsu down. Soon after the ex-orphans left, Makireti, Kilabasi, Ishanga and Kasigau showed up to drink and then left. Half trunk and three wild friends were at the mud bath. Mutara joined the bulls drinking water at the water trough and then walked over to join the others soil dusting. As the orphans were soil dusting, Kainuk saw two warthogs getting into the mud. Taking offense she raised her ears and charged at the warthogs. This caught Sities and Shukuru’s attention and they joined in the chase. The warthogs ran faster than the orphans and disappeared from view but returned when they saw the orphans leaving. Teleki was pushed away from a tree he was scratching on by a wild bull which then proceeded to scratch there. At noon Suguta, Kibo, Tumaren, Chemi Chemi, Kalama, Melia and Kandecha showed up at the stockade. In the afternoon, the orphans converged under a tree to shelter from the hot sun then resumed browsing when the temperature went down.

22 February 2015

Orwa is so fast at drinking milk that he managed to get himself an extra bottle in the morning. Orwa finished his second bottle while the others were still on their first and when the keepers were bending down to pick the second bottles he quickly pushed Bomani out of the way and took his position for the second bottle. When the bottle was put in his mouth he pulled it away from the keeper to avoid it being reclaimed and it was only when Bomani stepped up complaining bitterly that the keepers realized they had been duped by Orwa. Before the keepers could reach him Orwa had already emptied the bottle and dropped it. The keepers had to prepare another bottle for Bomani. Once the orphans got to the browsing field Shukuru, Garzi, Turkwel and Kanjoro had a lovely time scratching themselves against trees while Bomani tested his strength by unsuccessfully trying to push down one of the trees. At 11am sun was hot and all the orphans wallowed. As they were about to get out Suguta’s group of Suguta, Tumaren, Melia, Kibo, Kandecha, Kalama and Chemi Chemi joined them. Shortly afterwards two wild bulls came to drink water at the mud wallow water trough. Orwa and Bongo wanted to join them but they were scared and just stood a few metres away while facing them. Later Mutara rumbled and the others streamed away behind her. In the evening Makireti’s group of Makireti, Kasigau, Kilabasi and Ishanga came for water at the stockade then departed to the bush.

23 February 2015

Shukuru and Narok left the stockade with branches in their mouths. Makireti, Kasigau, Kilabasi and Ishanga were outside the stockade and joined the juniors eating lucerne. Kilabasi played with Kanjoro and later with Orwa. Makireti led the way to the browsing field where Ishanga fed close Laragai and Bongo browsed independently. At 11am a buffalo, standing at the edge of the mud bath, was scared off when the car carrying the milk arrived at the mud bath. Shukuru led the first group for the mid day milk, then the others followed. Shortly after the ex-orphans, the partially independent group and ten wild bulls arrived at the mud bath. A total of 62 elephants participated in wallowing. All hell broke loose when a funny noise came from the mud and all the elephants scampered for safety. The noise came a second time drawing the keepers’ attention. It was a tiny buffalo baby, aged about three to four days, lying in the mud struggling to get up. The baby was pulled out and the mud washed from its body, nose and mouth before a search was mounted for its mother. The keepers moved around with the baby following them until the mother, who was hiding in a bush, made some noise that saw the baby running to join her. It was happy reunion and baby and mother left together. In the afternoon the orphans settled down to browse at Kanziku area. Sities paired up to feed with Turkwel and Kainuk while Shukuru teamed up with Mutara, Garzi and Vuria. In the evening the orphans passed by the mud bath where they wallowed before Garzi, Orwa and Shukuru went to scratch against a nearby tree. Later, Shukuru led the way back to the stockade.

24 February 2015

As the milk dependent group was having their milk in the morning Kanjoro was busy knocking at the gate with a twig hoping someone would open it for him. When it was opened Kanjoro hurriedly left the stockade. Orwa was the last to leave holding a branch in his mouth. When the juniors were eating lucerne a sub-group from Suguta's group arrived and joined them. It appears that Suguta’s group now has four sub groups. One, led by Suguta, consists of Suguta, Melia, Tumaren, Kibo, Kandecha, Chemi Chemi and Kalama; the second group, led by Makireti, has Kilabasi, Kasigau and Ishanga; the third group has only two members, Kilaguni and Chaimu; the fourth group, led by Olare, consists of Olare, Naisula, Kitirua and Murka, all girls. The Olare and Makireti’s groups joined the juniors for lucerne. Ishanga, the no nonsense girl, pushed Sities away when she tried to take her lucerne. Laragai, who does opposite of what is expected, went down on her knees and crawled under the fence to get to where the lucerne is kept. When the keepers spotted her and shouted she turned and went back out the same way she had gone in. Kasigau had a brief strength testing with Kanjoro which soon ended when Kanjoro surrendered. The partially independent group left soon after they all arrived at the browsing field. Lualeni, Ololoo and Rapsu arrived at the mud bath moments before the juniors. Lualeni created a scene when she went past where the milk bottles had been arranged and grabbed one of them. When she saw the keepers running and shouting at her she dropped the bottle and ran away. The three ex-orphans headed off to wallow where they were joined by the juniors. Later Lualeni led the way back to the browsing field. Teleki browsed close to Rapsu and Shukuru continuously flapped her ears. The rest stood under a tree waiting for the temperature to go down. In the evening Lualeni led the juniors in for an evening wallow before parting ways with them.

25 February 2015

Yatta, Mulika and Lualeni’s groups reported at the stockade early in the morning. Napasha, Buchuma and Madiba were missing. The juniors joined the ex-orphans soon after leaving the stockade but as it was crowded with so many elephants Mutara led her group straight to the browsing field. Kanjoro, Bongo and Garzi joined Taita briefly at the stockade water trough. At the browsing field Narok and Laragai knelt on their front legs and uprooting their food using their mouths. Kilaguni and Chaimu arrived at the stockade at around 8am but left soon after drinking water. Teleki developed an itchy neck and used a tree he was feeding on to scratch it. Later Bomani, Turkwel and Orwa separated from the rest of the herd and moved few steps away to feed on grass. The peaceful day was spent browsing.

26 February 2015

At mud bath time it was cool so the orphans just drank water then returned to the browsing field. In the afternoon the clouds cleared and the sun came out so the orphans converged under a big tree to shelter from the scorching sun. Kainuk didn’t like the crowd under the tree so she moved to another tree where she had the shade all to herself. Shortly after Mutara, Shukuru and Sities went to another tree and relaxed whilst stretching up their trunks up to pluck some leaves. When the temperature dropped to a bearable level the orphans resumed browsing. In the evening the orphans went past the mud bath on their way back to the stockade and had an evening wallow for an hour before heading on their way back home.

27 February 2015

The sky was clear when the orphans left the stockade and Garzi and Teleki started their day by scratching their buttocks on the same rock. When Teleki had had enough and moved away Sities came and stood close to Garzi waiting for him to finish so that they could walk side by side to the browsing field. Makireti’s group of Makireti, Kilabasi, Ishanga and Kasigau arrived at the stockade compound just as the juniors were leaving. Teleki welcomed Kasigau by engaging him in strength testing exercise. Makireti group made an about turn and followed the juniors. The herd settled to browse in an area with big rocks which Kilabasi, Teleki and Bongo took advantage of as scratching posts. Orwa spent some time browsing with Kasigau while Garzi browsed close to Vuria. Narok spotted a nice green tree that she went to feed on but before she could enjoy it Mutara came and pushed her away. Narok left in search of another tree. In the afternoon, the temperatures were high and Bongo and Narok shared shade under the same tree with Shukuru joining them later. Orwa and Sities continued to browse despite the sun being hot. In the evening the ex-orphans passed the orphans at a distance as they headed towards the stockade. Nasalot, the baby lover, could not continue without greeting the babies and she mingled with the juniors for quite a while before finally leaving and saying goodbye to Vuria. Kanjoro and Bongo wanted to follow Nasalot back to the stockades but it was too early and the keepers called them back to join the orphan herd. Nasalot is now 15 years old with unfortunately still no sign of becoming pregnant yet. We hope her time will come soon so that she can shower her baby with love that she has been showing to the young orphans, she has such a strong maternal instinct.

28 February 2015

The orphans left the stockade at 6am and headed straight to the water trough where they fortified themselves with enough water to sustain them for the entire morning. On the way to the browsing field Bongo scratched his ear against a tree and Garzi, Vuria and Bomani scratched their buttocks on rocks along their way. The scratching routine is very much part of everyday as they dislodge unwanted ticks. Orwa pushed Bongo off the tree so he could scratch himself but Sities saw his mean behavior to her roommate and in retaliation pushed him off and used the tree to scratch herself. Shortly afterwards Makireti and Chaimu’s groups joined the juniors. Kanjoro and Kilabasi entwined trunks. Kasigau went to feed close to Vuria and from time to time they communicated through touch by inserting their trunks in each other’s mouths. An hour later Suguta and Olare’s groups with two wild juniors in tow briefly joined the orphans. The wild juniors, the size of Kamboyo, were very nervous when they saw the keepers and withdrew quickly from the orphans, heading off north. The entire partially independent group and Kamboyo followed the wild boys leaving the orphans with their keepers. Before mud bath time the temperature rocketed forcing Turkwel and Shukuru to hide under the same tree. After having their milk the orphans went to play in mud and drink water at the water trough. After drinking, the mischievous Sities got into the water trough and started splashing the water. The keepers shouted at her and she quickly left, charging and trumpeting, into the bush. When Kainuk saw that the water trough was free, and that no one was watching, she put front legs into the water and tried to locate the inlet pipe with her trunk. On hearing the keepers approach she got out and ran away as she knew she was being naughty. Teleki and Vuria scratched their muddy bodies against the nearby acacia trees. In the evening the ex-orphans, along with three wild bulls, passed by the stockade, drank water and then left. Shortly before dark the entire partially independent group plus Kamboyo and his two wild friends came to drink at the stockade compound. The fact that the partially independent group have arrived twice in one day to drink shows that most of the water holes they were depending on in the past few months are now dry.