In Voi, July began with Losoito, Lemeki, Thamana, and Kilulu standing belly to belly at the feeding trough. While they scooped up range cubes, burgeoning friends Lumo and Sileita picked up pieces of lucerne in the far corner of the stockades.
Later in the week, ex-orphans Ndotto and Murit strolled in to join the herd around the large pile of lucerne. Friendly Ashanti spent time with Ndotto while Murit interacted with Lemeki, perhaps encouraging her to come along with him and experiment a wild life. Lemeki was not tempted by his invitation — at least not yet.
Lemeki may not be ready to join her wild friends, but she is certainly growing up. Of our dependent orphans, only she and Thamana no longer get milk bottles. Sometimes, Lemeki will swan in to try to pinch a bottle, but usually, she and Thamana just wait with trunks entwined while the others have their bottles. Only once everyone is finished do they amble down the hill to join the rest of the herd.
It's really starting to dry up in southern Tsavo, as is typical of this time of year. Most days featured energetic wallowing sessions in the big baobab mud bath, with reliable showboaters like Kilulu, Itinyi, Hildana, Epiya, and Losoito stealing the spotlight. Very often, the orphans found zebras, antelopes, and buffaloes drinking from the water trough as they approached — in these dry times, all manner of creatures appreciate safe and reliable places to drink.
We're happy to support our wild neighbours, but the orphans didn't always welcome their presence. One afternoon, Ushindi was upset to find two buffaloes at 'their' water trough. She confronted the visitors, flaring her ears and trumpeting until Lemeki rushed over to help. Together, the girls drove away the buffalo so the orphans could enjoy the mud wallow in peace.
Our Nursery girls — Sileita, Sholumai, and Mushuru — remain best friends and can usually be found together. They're a quiet trio and tend to steer clear of the rough-and-tumble boys. In the mornings, they often balance stashes of lucerne on their head, carrying it a short distance away so they can enjoy it in peace.
Ndotto was our most reliable visitor this month. He usually joined the dependent herd for breakfast, before drifting off — presumably to join the ex-orphans. Some days, however, he remained with the dependent herd. On one thrilling day, he engaged Itinyi in a pushing match. After several rounds, Itinyi surrendered and walked over to Kenderi. Feeling emboldened by his older mentor, he challenged his agemate to a particularly vigorous sparring session.
Midway through July, we were delighted to welcome Mbegu, Ngilai, Murit, Godoma, Tamiyoi, and Tagwa back into the fold. The group arrived with a wild bull who was slightly older and joined the dependent elephants for breakfast. They visited several more times throughout the month, usually as a complete unit.
A few days later, we welcomed two very auspicious visitors: Naipoki and Nsimba! Our herd were very excited and gathered around the mama and her wild-born baby. Naipoki enjoyed a leisurely breakfast while the orphans clustered around her — wherever she and her daughter moved, her little gang followed along. To her delight, Dabida succeeded in feeding on lucerne while standing between Naipoki and Nsimba!
Some things never change — namely, Losoito is still an insatiably greedy girl. By contrast, other orphans seem to be maturing. One afternoon, Rokka and Sileita led the youngsters down for the milk feed. Serenget, who still only drinks from her trunk, was slowly finishing her bottle, as usual. When Losoito tried to snatch her bottle, Busara, who had finished her milk and was standing guard, pushed her away from Serenget. Not so long ago, spoiled Busara was jealous of Serenget and would never have dreamed of defending her!
In fact, Busara seems to have a soft spot for Serenget. Another morning, the girls were enjoying pellets on the lower terrace. Sweet Busara was waiting for Serenget, who is also a very slow eater, to finish rather than moving on to the lucerne with the others. Eventually, she grew tired of waiting and rumbled for reinforcements. Ushindi came running back, the two girls swapped places, and Busara, satisfied that Serenget had a protector, walked off to enjoy her lucerne.
The Voi Kids and their neverending antics keep us thoroughly entertained. One morning, Hildana picked up a Keeper's water bottle and began kicking it around like a football! When we realised what he was doing, the cheeky bull was happy to return the bottle and continue browsing.
Harea, who was rescued at the end of May, is still resting and recovering in his stockade. His spear wound is healing well and he will soon join the herd and be strong enough to walk out for browsing. Lumo, who was rescued in February, is thriving. He's making friends, gaining confidence, and even emerging as a bit of a showboat.