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A wild bull queued up with the orphans this morning as they waited for the Keepers to distribute some lucerne. Just as the orphans were tucking in, Naserian emerged, leading some ex-orphans from the southeast. Bondeni, Kinyei and Kindani were apprehensive of interacting with any of the older elephants, and made sure they were always at the periphery in case there was any pushing and so that they could easily escape. Wiva was being her usual rambunctious self and was strutting around the compound up to all sorts of mischief, including putting a stop to a fun pushing game Dololo was having! Shortly later, the orphans decided to head out to the bush since the ex-orphans were proving to be greedy and wanted a lot of the lucerne for themselves. The dependent orphans didn’t mind and were happy to begin their day of browsing. Larro led the way out.

As the orphans chose to browse in the Kanziku area, before they settled down, Naboishu decided to engage Roho in a pushing game, while Jotto played with Kuishi.

At mud bath time the orphans were joined by Namalok, Kauro, Chaimu, Makireti, Kilabasi, Kofi and Olare. Namalok and Kauro got in the water to wash their feet and Esoit decided to follow them. When they were done Kuishi noticed that Esoit was dawdling and taking his time coming out of the water. She didn’t want to leave him there unsupervised, so she went back in and guided him out. Jotto decided to block Kauro from coming out of the water, perhaps trying to start a pushing game with him, but Kauro proved to be too strong and overpowered Jotto! In the afternoon the orphans settled to browse east of Ithumba Hill where they were joined by Malkia, Sana Sana and Mapia, who spent the rest of the quiet afternoon with the dependent babies.

Mutara and her group arrived early at the compound, followed by the wild elephant known as Queen's family. The orphans were let out soon after finishing their milk bottles. The dependent Ithumba orphans peacefully shared lucerne with all the older elephants there until the rest of the ex-orphans arrived led by Naserian. That was too much competition for the juniors so they decided to withdraw and head out to the bush.

Kuishi chose to browse with her little favourite Esoit. Dololo, Musiara and Sattao split from the main herd and walked off a short distance away to have some private browsing time together. They rejoined the group later just before it was time to head to the mud bath for the 11am milk feed.

At the mud bath the orphans were joined by Sana Sana and Malkia who were in the company of several wild bulls. The weather was chilly and the orphans only had their bottles and some water before Neshashi led the way back out to the browsing field. In the afternoon Kinyei engaged Mukkoka in a light pushing game while Kuishi settled to browse with her favourite little Esoit again. Bondeni chose to feed with Kinyei once she was done playing with Mukkoka. The rest of the day was quiet as the orphans concentrated mostly on browsing.

Tomboi arrived early in the morning in the company of some wild friends. Shortly later, Melia, Milo, Nasalot, Noah, Nusu, Naserian, Njema, Kilabasi, Kofi and Makireti arrived. The quietly shared lucerne with the dependent orphans – all that is except for the little rascal Milo! Milo started a ruckus by walking up to Naleku and trying to bully her, but Naleku wasn’t going to stand for that. She raised her trunk up and pushed him over, which resulted in Milo calling out to his mother for help. Melia turned around and warned Naleku by pointing her trunk at her, telling her not to hurt her baby. Milo took the opportunity to push Naleku in retaliation and then ran quickly to hide under his mother.

Suguroi settled to scratch on a nearby rock but Roho came over and tried to push her away. It seemed he wanted to use the rock himself and Suguroi was in the way. Suguroi turned to defend herself by engaging Roho in a pushing game. The game didn’t last long, however, as Jotto passed by and separated them.

As the dependent orphans made their way out to the bush for the day, Naleku came across some loose soil that she scooped up with her trunk and dusted herself with. Suguroi came over and decided to join her too. After a while Jotto played with Musiara while Mukkoka had a pushing game with Dololo. When he was done playing, Dololo decided to walk off with Naleku to browse, while Larro settled to browse with Esoit.

Just before eleven o'clock in the morning, Larro led the group to the mud bath for their milk feed. After having her milk bottles, Sagateisa, the girl with an independent mind, relaxed under a tree and looked like she was contemplating who to follow – her friends, who were going to the water trough for a drink of water, or the wild bulls who were also present at the mud bath. When she had fully quenched her thirst at the trough, Suguroi led the way back out to the bush and all the orphans followed, including Sagateisa! Kauro, Rapa and Mapia joined the orphans briefly in the afternoon to browse alongside them, before walking away as the dependent orphans started to walk home for the night.

Only a handful of ex-orphans showed up in the morning. The dependent orphans came out of their night stockades and joined them outside in the lucerne feeding area. Tiny 8 month old Nyx was with her mother Naisula and briefly interacted with Naleku, Kindani and Suguroi. Esoit had a morning warm up exercise with Roho to stretch their limbs and wake themselves up for the day, while Bondeni briefly challenged Lodo. Their game didn’t last long as Lodo managed to overpower the inexperienced Bondeni fairly quickly, and Bondeni knew he was probably aiming too high. Kinyei went to scratch on a nearby rock. After having enough lucerne, Mukkoka led the way out for the day and took his friends towards the east of Ithumba Hill. Kuishi teamed up with her favourite Esoit, as Kindani, Bondeni and Kinyei split from the main herd and browsed a short distance away. The three new babies only rejoined their friends on the way to the mud bath.

Three wild bulls showed up while the orphans were at the mud bath for their noon milk feed. The weather was chilly and none of the orphans dared to step into the mud wallow. After everyone had enough water, Olorien led the way back out to browse for the afternoon.

Dololo is trying to establish himself a kingpin among his age-mates and so is often initiating wrestling matches. This afternoon he first engaged Mukkoka in a pushing game. He won that game easily and moved on to Ambo which is where he met some resistance, and their match ended in a draw. In the evening, nearly all the ex-orphans showed up for water at the stockade water troughs.

The ex-orphans in the company of the Queen's family showed up at the stockade compound. The herd joined the orphans for lucerne, but we were most excited to see Kilaguni appear out of the bush and wander up towards the compound — he has been away for quite some time! He arrived and was welcomed by little Lodo first. Lodo had a brief conversation with Kilaguni as he wanted to find out where he had been all this time. Yogi engaged Naleku in a pushing game as Bondeni decided to have a stretching exercise by going down with his knees and raising his trunk up in the air. Suguroi settled on a nearby rock for a scratching session where she was joined by Roho who engaged her in a pushing game. Naboishu ran into trouble with Ambo when he refused to share lucerne with him. Ambo pushed Naboishu from the back as he tried to forcefully take some lucerne from Naboishu's mouth. Naboishu resisted and ran away.

On the way to the browsing field, Bondeni engaged Roho in a pushing game that ended when Mukkoka passed by and pushed the two boys apart. Sattao teamed up with Sagateisa to browse while Olorien settled to browse with Lodo and Esoit.

It was another hot day while the orphans were at the mud bath, but none of the orphans felt like swimming apart from Naleku, who just washed her feet in the shallows. Yatta and Mulikas' family were also at the mud bath. Enkikwe, Nabulu, Ithumbah, baby Iman and Ishanga arrived too.

Eventually the orphans began to wander away to continue with their afternoon of browsing. They chose the Kanziku area to spend the afternoon. Musiara teamed up with Neshashi while Sagateisa settled to browse with Jotto, Kuishi and Dololo.

In the evening we once again saw Motomo in the company of some wild bulls who he left with again. Having been found alone deep in community land, we are happy he now has the guidance and company of these friendly senior bulls.

A wild bull found with an arrow wound was treated by our SWT/KWS Tsavo Mobile Veterinary Unit at the stockades. He had showed up earlier in the week, and this time, he stuck around the compound, clearly seeking help. Ex-orphan Zurura remained close by and observed the whole procedure, as the bull happens to be a friend of his. He stood by until the treatment was over and his friend was safely back on his feet.

The orphans came out of their night stockades and immediately went to enjoy their lucerne breakfast. Kauro, who often reports back in the morning, arrived in good time to join the dependent babies. Later, a lone wild bull joined the orphans too. Naboishu walked over to chat to the bull and they ended up conversing for quite some time. As soon as the bull had enough lucerne, he walked down to the water trough. Neshashi followed him and they were joined by Roho, Sattao, Musiara, Naboishu and Naleku too. Kinyei and Bondeni settled to scratch on a nearby rock. Neshashi, who left with the ex-orphans last night, emerged from the south leading Nabulu, Malima, Malkia, Mapia and Ndiwa. We were happy to see her with the girls who have recently left the stockade life and she seemed very happy in their company! The small group joined the orphans for lucerne too. When everyone was done, Larro led the way out to the bush.

Out in the bush the boys, Musiara and Ambo, had a strength testing exercise while Naboishu tackled Roho. Meanwhile the rest of the orphans concentrated on browsing right up until mud bath time when Olorien led the first group for their noon milk feed. The happy and playful Suguroi led the second group. It was a hot day and Dololo, Roho, Naboishu, Naleku, Ambo, Esoit, Larro, Musiara and Jotto all got in the mud bath to cool off after finishing their milk. They came out and went to the dust bath to dry off. While on the loose soil Naboishu enjoyed climbing on Sagateisa, but his game was short-lived as Makena arrived and warned Naboishu to stop misbehaving. The orphans calmly settled to browse in the Kanziku area for the rest of the day.

Several wild bulls were waiting for water in the morning. The orphans left the stockade and settled for lucerne. Mutara and her group joined the orphans in feeding of lucerne. Mambo had the audacity of attacking lodo. Lodo couldn't enact his revenge, due to the presence of the many nannies who were accompanying Mutara’s brazen calf. Lodo just walked away, biding his time for any opportunity to get even. Unfortunately, that opportunity didn't present itself, as Mambo must have read Lodo’s mind and stuck with his nannies.

Suguroi had fun rolling on the ground as Kindani and Esoit settled to scratch on a nearby rock. Then, Naleku led the way to the browsing field, where Esoit had a morning stretch. Kuishi stood close to him and watched over him until he had enough of his exercise. Ambo had a light pushing game with Musiara, while Kinyei settled to browse with Kindani. At mud bath time, the orphans were joined by several ex-orphans and wild elephants. In the afternoon, Naboishu had a misunderstanding with Dololo, which resulted in a pushing match. Dololo being the strongest, managed to defeat Naboishu. Kinyei teamed up with Olorien and Naleku in browsing. The remainder of the day was quiet. In the evening, Suguroi led the way back to the stockade. 

The orphans settled for lucerne soon after leaving the stockade. Kilabasi, Makireti, Olsekki, Bomani, Barsilinga, and Kofi joined the orphans for the lucerne feeding. Kofi engaged several orphans in a pushing game, starting with Naleku and then moving on to play with Sagateisa. On the way to the browsing field, Suguroi came across loose soil that she used for a soil dusting exercise. Kinyei found a fallen tree that she used to scratch her neck.

At the browsing field, Esoit and Bondeni took a break from browsing to engage in a pushing game, while Lodo had a solitary game of rolling on the ground. Kindani, Kinyei, and Roho stood close to Lodo and participated in a soil dusting exercise using their trunks. During mud bath time, as the sun was hot, the orphans had their milk, and then Larro, Roho, Naleku, and Sattao participated in a cooling off exercise. Melia, Milo, Kandecha, Kibo, Nabulu, Enkikwe, and Mutara arrived at the mud bath and briefly joined the orphans. Dad, along with his wild friends, also arrived for the mud bath. The orphans left immediately after drinking water.

In the afternoon, the orphans settled to browse west of Ithumba Hill. Dololo settled to browse with Larro, while Jotto played with Musiara. The orphans browsed calmly throughout the remaining part of the day.

The orphans settled for lucerne soon after leaving the stockade. It was quiet, with no ex-orphans or wild elephants joining the orphans in their lucerne feeding. The orphans enjoyed their time, as there was no competition from any outsiders. Bondeni engaged Esoit in a pushing game and even attempted to ride on him. Esoit resisted and fought hard until he managed to disengage himself from Bondeni. Esoit then walked over to play with Kinyei. Shortly afterward, Kindani led the way to the browsing field.

Olorien chose to browse with Kinyei, while Dololo engaged Mukkoka in a pushing game and later took on Naboishu. The orphans settled to browse in the Kone area. Just before mud bath time, Naboishu took a break from feeding and engaged Roho in a pushing game that ended when they saw their fellow orphans leaving for the mud bath. Only Roho, Esoit, and Sagateisa participated in the mud bath, later joined by Kindani in the soil bath. The rest of the group settled to drink water and were briefly joined by Kanjoro. Kanjoro left immediately after quenching his thirst, leaving the orphans blowing bubbles into the water trough.

In the afternoon, the orphans settled to browse in the Kanziku area. The sun was hot, causing the orphans to take a break from feeding and relax under a tree until the temperatures dropped to a more comfortable level.

Several wild bulls were waiting for water as the orphans were let out. Ambo and Naboishu exchanged morning greetings by entwining their trunks. Mutara and her group emerged from the northern side and joined the orphans. Kindani approached Mambo and had a brief conversation, although Mambo seemed uncomfortable and retreated back to his nannies. The orphans didn't stay for long during the lucerne feeding. Olorien led the way to the browsing field.

At the browsing field, Jotto had a brief conversation with Naboishu and then they settled to browse together. Later, the ever-playful Roho engaged Naboishu in a pushing game. Sagateisa teamed up with Kindani and Kinyei while browsing. Bondeni engaged Esoit in a pushing game that ended in a draw. During mud bath time, the orphans had their milk and then headed for a soil dusting exercise. In the afternoon, the orphans settled to browse in the Kanziku area. Ambo paired up with Dololo and later engaged in a pushing game. Sattao played with Musiara, and Olorien teamed up with Kindani and Kinyei. In the evening, Motomo showed up for water in the company of Dad, who is perhaps the biggest tusker in the northern sector of Tsavo East.

The orphans settled for lucerne soon after leaving the stockade. Kindani, Bondeni, and Kinyei held a brief meeting that lasted for several minutes before joining their colleagues in feeding on lucerne. Four wild bulls settled near the water source, and shortly afterwards, two of them joined the orphans briefly in their lucerne feeding. Ambo chose to share his lucerne with Musiara. Sagateisa, Dololo, Naboishu, and Jotto walked down to the water trough and joined the other two wild bulls in drinking water.

At the browsing field, Esoit and Bondeni had a misunderstanding that resulted in a pushing game. Kuishi, who was feeding nearby and happened to be Esoit's best friend, stepped forward and separated the two boys. Lodo settled to browse with Olorien, while Roho, Naleku, and Suguroi took a break from feeding to engage in a soil dusting exercise. Shortly before mud bath time, Mukkoka engaged Sattao in a strength-testing exercise that lasted quite some time. It ended when the two boys saw Yatta, Yogi, Yoyo, Sunyei, Siku, Saba, Loijuk, and Lili passing close by. The two boys followed the ex-orphans with the intention of playing with the ex-orphans' babies. Unfortunately, the two boys didn't get a chance, as the babies walked ahead of their mothers.

The weather was chilly, and none of the orphans dared to step into the mud bath water. No wild elephants showed up at the mud bath. The orphans didn't even bother to drink water but returned to the browsing field. In the afternoon, the orphans settled to browse in the Imenti area.

Kithaka arrived at the stockade compound early before dawn and relaxed as he waited for the orphans to be let out and gather together. At six o'clock in the morning, the orphans had their milk and then proceeded to enjoy lucerne before heading out to browse. Esoit made several attempts to climb the stockade wall, and he came close to succeeding when Bondeni arrived and began pushing him. Esoit accepted the challenge, and the two boys engaged in a pushing game. Rapa and Kauro joined the orphans in their lucerne feeding. Shortly afterward, Musiara initiated a pushing game with Rapa, while Lodo played with Sattao. Kindani led the way to the browsing field.

On the way, the orphans encountered a wild bull. Ambo, Dololo, Naboishu, and Sagateisa, who were at the forefront, stopped and raised their trunks in greeting. The wild bull responded by stopping and acknowledging their greetings with a raised trunk before continuing its journey. Later, two dik-diks passed by running. Larro spotted them and trumpeted, prompting her to run in the direction taken by the dik-diks. The other orphans joined in trumpeting, filling the air with their trumpeting calls, which even scared off other dik-diks in the vicinity.

After a while, the orphans grew tired of running and trumpeting at empty bushes. They settled to browse as they headed south from the stockade. Musiara took a break from feeding to play with Ambo, while Esoit continued to play with Bondeni. Larro had an unusual but brief conversation with Sagateisa, suggesting the possibility of a new chapter of friendship between them.

On the way to the mud bath, a lesser kudu accidentally bumped into the orphans and had a rough time. As usual, the boys, led by Dololo, chased the lesser kudu away. During mud bath time, the weather was chilly, so the orphans only had their milk and water before heading back to the browsing field. Jotto and Musiara relaxed under a tree for a while before resuming their browsing. The orphans calmly browsed throughout the rest of the day.

Jotto, Dololo, Ambo, Sattao, and Kuishi headed straight to the water trough and joined the wild elephants in drinking water soon after being let out. Suguroi left the stockade with a branch in her mouth, keeping herself busy while waiting for the distribution of lucerne. Bondeni, in a playful mood, engaged Esoit in a pushing game. Their game attracted Naboishu, who decided to play with Ambo and later Mukkoka. On the way to the browsing field, Olorien, Kinyei, and Kindani came across loose soil that they used for a soil dusting exercise. Later, Mukkoka and Sattao teamed up against Ambo. Unable to withstand the strength of the two boys, Ambo chose to walk away.

Upon reaching the browsing field, Naboishu briefly interacted with Kinyei, who showed no interest in engaging in a pushing game. Kuishi held a brief meeting with Larro, perhaps discussing the future transition when the call to join the wild would prompt her to leave the human family. As the day progressed, Roho took a break from feeding to engage Bondeni in a strength testing exercise, while Dololo played with Mukkoka. Larro led the way to the mud bath.

Despite the shining sun, a cold blowing wind hindered the mud bathing exercise. The orphans had their milk and then headed to the water trough, where they joined several wild bulls in drinking water. After drinking, Bondeni, Naleku, Suguroi, Kindani, and Lodo engaged in a soil dusting exercise. In the afternoon, the orphans settled to browse in the Kanziku area. Kinyei paired up with Kindani while Esoit chose to browse with his two elder sisters, Kuishi and Larro.

Around one o'clock, an elephant carcass, nearly one week old, was discovered between the stockade and Kalovoto borehole. The carcass belonged to a male elephant aged between 8 and 9 years old. Hyenas had consumed the face, trunk, and stomach, making it impossible to determine which group it belonged to. The cause of death couldn't be established, but natural causes were suspected, as there were no signs of struggle where the carcass was found. In the evening, Kama, Kaia, Kina, and Makena showed up at the stockade in the company of wild elephants.

Sunyei, Siku, Saba, Kilabasi, Kofi, and Naserian joined the orphans for the lucerne feeding in the morning. Naleku, Suguroi, and Kindani teamed up against Saba. However, Siku, who happens to be Saba's sister, didn't allow any attacks on her. She quickly came running to rescue her sister, pushing the three girls away and taking Saba to their mother. After having enough of lucerne, the orphans left immediately. Sagateisa led the way to the browsing field.

At the browsing area, Ambo and Sattao kicked off the morning activities with a pushing game. Bondeni tackled Esoit, while Naboishu played with Roho. Mukkoka engaged Lodo in a pushing game, and Musiara, Olorien, Kuishi, Kinyei, and Dololo had their own game of rolling on the ground. Shortly after, Ambo and Musiara split from the main herd and browsed at a distance. Due to the chilly weather, the orphans had their milk during mud bath time and then walked to the water trough, where they were joined by Tusuja. After drinking enough water, the orphans left for browsing, leaving Tusuja still drinking.

In the afternoon, Mukkoka engaged Dololo in a pushing game, while Jotto played with Musiara. The orphans settled to browse in the Kanziku area, and the rest of the day was peaceful. In the evening, Olorien led the way back to the stockade.

Challa and Sana Sana joined the orphans for the lucerne feeding in the morning. Roho and Naboishu chose to settle under the only standing acacia tree at the stockade compound, feasting on fallen acacia pods on the ground. After having enough of the pods, Roho and Naboishu joined their colleagues in the lucerne feeding. Later, Musiara led the way to the browsing field.

At the browsing field, a dramatic scene unfolded when Kindani and Esoit vied for the attention of Kuishi. Esoit didn't want Kindani to be too close to Kuishi. Kuishi intervened and separated the two orphans, not showing favouritism, and then moved a distance away. With Kuishi farther away, Esoit saw an opportunity to push Kindani aside. Meanwhile, Musiara engaged Jotto in a pushing game, while Naboishu played with Roho.

Later, while wandering in the bush, the orphans came across an old buffalo. Jotto, Sattao, Ambo, and Dololo attempted to charge at the buffalo, but the buffalo remained unmoved. The buffalo chased Ambo and then turned to push Sattao. After intimidating the orphans, the buffalo walked away, and the orphans followed it slowly before giving up and resuming their browsing.

During mud bath time, Larro led the way to the mud bath. With the sun shining and the weather hot, only Roho, Ambo, and Kinyei participated in wallowing. Afterward, the orphans had water and then engaged in a soil dusting session before heading back to the browsing field. They settled to browse in the Kone area. Sana Sana joined the orphans and had a brief conversation with Sagateisa. Later, Sana Sana left for an undisclosed location. In the evening, the orphans returned safely to the stockade.