Up until the middle of the month we were blessed to see the ex-orphans a few times, including Mulika and her new little baby boy Mkuu. They visited the stockades and the main waterhole a few times to check in on the dependent-orphans and the Keepers, and show off all the delightful little wild born babies in their midst. Yatta these days is with her baby Yoyo, Loijuk, and baby Lili, Wendi and her baby Wema, Mwende, Vuria, Chyulu, Nasalot, baby Nusu, Kinna, baby Kama, Makireti, Kilabasi, Challa and Kasigau, and occasionally Mulika with baby Mkuu and Galana with her baby Gawa too, but it seems for the time being Mulika and Galana spend the most time together. Dependent orphans Roi and Naseku love to assign themselves they role of playing nanny to baby Lili, while Yoyo is a typical young bull and likes to keep himself busy by challenging Tusuja, Mundusi and Naseku.
The orphans went straight out to browse soon after leaving their stockades. A short while later, the ex-orphans and wild elephants passed by close to the stockade compound heading west, with little baby boy Mkuu tramping around their feet in that sweet way only baby elephants do. The ex-orphans returned back to the stockade compound later in the afternoon but this time without Galana, who arrived later in the evening with ex-orphan bull Challa. Just before dark, all the ex-orphans wandered off into the Park with their new little baby.
During the day the dependent orphans really enjoyed a mud bath after their 11am milk bottles. A few meters away stood a wild bull. Tusuja volunteered to go and find out more about the wild bull; he didn’t get too close and kept a safe distance, just holding his trunk in the air and sniffing. After appearing to find out all he wanted to know, brave Tusuja walked back to his friends. After mud bath, the orphans headed west of Ithumba Hill where they settled to browse until evening and it was time to return home.
It was wet in the morning following unexpected rain that poured over night. The orphans walked out carefully as they left the stockades lest they should slip and fall. Sapalan, who appeared dry and not wet like the others, came across a rock that he used to scratch his backside. Wanjala teamed up with Pare and Mteto to browse while Tusuja settled to browse with Siangiki. Kauro took some time off from browsing to have a game of rolling on the ground.
At mud bath time the sun was hot but the orphans didn’t bother to get into the water to have a bath. Only Sana Sana volunteered to wallow as the rest of the group walked off back into the bushes to browse. Namalok settled to browse with Ukame while Mteto teamed up with Rapa. The ex-orphans didn’t show up today, and the dependent orphans returned back safely in the evening for another night.
Soon after leaving the stockades, Barsilinga, Olsekki and Siangiki passed by the water trough and had some water before proceeding to walk out to browse. Karisa settled to feed with Wanjala while Sapalan and Esampu started their day by playing on an anthill. At around ten o’clock in the morning, the orphans came across a small pool of water that they used to have a mud bath. In the afternoon, the orphans settled to browse east of Ithumba Hill and had a quiet time until five o’clock in the evening when they returned home.
The sky was clear in the morning when the orphans left for browsing. Mteto teamed up with Namalok to browse while Olsekki settled to feed with Oltaiyoni. Later on, Wanjala engaged Tusuja in a pushing game while Naseku and Kamok had a game of rolling on the ground. On the way to the mud bath, the orphans had a small mud bath in a water hole that they came across.
At the main water hole, the dependent Ithumba orphans were joined by ex-orphans Yatta, baby Yoyo, Loijuk, baby Lili, Wendi and her baby Wema, Mwende, Vuria, Chyulu, Nasalot, baby Nusu, Kinna, baby Kama, Makireti, Kilabasi, Challa, Kasigau and three wild bulls. Roi and Naseku assigned themselves they role of playing nanny to Lili while Yoyo kept himself by challenging Tusuja, Mundusi and later Naseku. Wendi kept on chasing one of wild bulls away and baby Wema found comfort in walking close to Lili and sticking to Loijuk. Loijuk had to accept taking care of two babies since Wendi was busy chasing the wild bulls. Wendi’s older baby Wiva was missing from the group and it was a shame as she always helps to look after her younger sister. She must have been with Mulika and Galana who failed to turn up with the rest of group with the new baby Mkuu. The ex-orphans parted ways with orphans and headed north while the dependent orphans headed south after their mud bath.
The weather was chilly in the morning and it was drizzling. Out in the bush, Jotto came across a suitable bend in a tree that he used to scratch his belly on. Later Ukame and Mapia also enjoyed a scratching exercise on some nearby rocks. Wanjala settled to browse with Malkia and later had a pushing game with Esampu that was disrupted by Kauro. Enkikwe took a break from feeding to have a game or rolling on the ground while Olsekki decided to play with Tusuja.
At mud bath time the rain had moved on and it was very hot, which prompted the orphans to have a prolonged wallowing session. After mud bath, Rapa decided to scratch on an anthill while Mundusi and Pare had a game of rolling on the ground. At around nine thirty at night, Tumaren, Melia, Naisula, Kalama, Chemi Chemi and Kibo showed up briefly at the stockade compound after being away for several months. Perhaps they had heard the news and came to meet the new baby too!
The orphans left the stockade early in the morning as usual. Sapalan settled to scratch his buttocks on the edge of the water trough outside. The orphans then headed to Kone area close to the dam where they settled to browse. At around ten o’clock in the morning, the temperature skyrocketed prompting the orphans to cool off just a few meters away from the Kone dam. The water hole had red mud which the orphans liked and they decided to stay in the mud there for a very long time.
In the afternoon, the sun was still hot. Sapalan decided to relax under a tree while Pare leaned against a rock that was under some shade, and took a nap there as he waited for the temperature to drop. In the evening on the way back to the stockade, the sun was still hot. Mundusi and Sapalan decided to have an evening cooling-off exercise when they came across a small water hole.
Out in the bush this morning, the orphans were briefly joined by a wild bull. Tusuja was again brave enough to interact with the wild bull as he wanted to find out his name where he came from, and perhaps where he was going too! Shortly later, the wild bull left and walked off into the Park. Kauro developed an itchy ear and found a suitable tree that he used to scratch against.
When it was time for the orphans to have their 11am milk feed and visit the water hole, the sun was really hot, prompting all of them to swim in the main water hole. Shortly later Karisa led the way back out to browse. The afternoon was quiet as the orphans concentrated mostly on browsing without any major distractions.
The orphans headed straight to the browsing field soon after leaving the stockades. Malkia started her day activities by scratching on a rock. Olsekki came across some loose soil that he decided to roll in. His game attracted many of his friends who came to join him. Tusuja took advantage of climbing on those who were rolling on the ground. Later, Tusuja had a strength testing exercise with Namalok but it didn’t last for long. Galla invited Sapalan into a pushing game that went on for quite some time before ending in a draw.
At mud bath time, the temperature was moderate and the orphans had fun in the water. Tusuja, Wanjala and Mundusi were the last ones to quit wallowing as usual, after spending so much time in the water to cool themselves down. In the afternoon, the orphans settled to browse west of Ithumba Hill where Barsilinga dodged the Keepers and his younger friends to avoid going back to the stockades for the night. After a long search, Barsilinga was found and walked back to the stockade although he was complaining and reluctant to go back. Hopefully when his sore foot heals he will be able to move off again and join his friends already in the wild, unless one of these days soon he completely refuses to come back to the stockades, which he might do and we will have to hope his foot is better. He is showing signs that his foot is improving and that he wants to stay out, so that is positive.
Soon after leaving the stockade, Siangiki walked out with her favourite little boy Ambo to browse. On the way Ambo found a suitable rock that he decided to use to scratch his backside on. Siangiki stopped and waited for Ambo to finish before proceeding with their journey. The orphans then settled east of the Ithumba Hill where they browsed calmly up to mud bath time when Kuishi led the first group to the noon bottle feeding. The afternoon was quiet as the orphans concentrated mostly on browsing without any major distraction. In the evening some of the ex-orphans visited the stockade compound briefly before walking off back into the Park.
It was wet in the morning following a heavy downpour received over night. Malkia and Jotto enjoyed playing on the wet soil in the morning. Kauro came across a nice bend in a tree that he used to scratch his belly on. Olsekki teamed up with Karisa to browse while Mapia kept the lead of the orphans as they walked through the bush. At mud bath time it was cool and the orphans only had their milk bottles before returning back to the browsing field without going for a swim. In the afternoon, Mundusi played with Tusuja while Esampu had her own game of rolling on the ground.
It was another wet morning following a heavy down pour at dawn. After having their morning milk, Karisa led the way out and to the browsing field. Malima, Ndiwa and Sapalan decided to enjoy drinking water collected on the rocks before going back to eating. Jotto opted to play on an anthill which was great fun to roll down, but his game didn’t last for long. At around ten o’clock in the morning, the rain started again and this prompted Tusuja, Wanjala and Roi to enjoy playing in some mud.
In the afternoon the weather changed, the clouds cleared and we had some sunshine. Namalok broke a branch to enjoy feeding on it as he walked along. Roi, who was close by, approached Namalok and requested him to share the branch with her. As Namalok was considering sharing the branch or not, Roi impatiently stretched her trunk out and pulled the branch out of Namalok’s mouth. Thereafter a pushing game ensued as Namalok demanded Roi explain why she couldn’t wait for an answer. The pushing game went on for quite some time until Namalok decided that it was a waste of time and quit to look for another branch.
The sky was clear in the morning and the orphans left the stockade soon after taking their breakfast. Out in the bush, Jotto settled to feed with Kuishi while Siangiki teamed up with Sana Sana. The rest of the group scattered far and wide up to mud bath time when Kuishi led the first group to the noon milk feed.
After having their milk, the orphans then headed for wallowing. Minutes later after the orphans were through with swimming, ex-orphan Melia emerged from west of the mud bath. Melia was welcomed by Tusuja and Mundusi. Later, Yatta, baby Yoyo, Kinna, baby Kama, Olare, Nasalot, baby Nusu, Loijuk, baby Lili, Lenana and Makena joined the orphans briefly before disappearing again. The afternoon was quiet as the orphans settled to browse west of Ithumba Hill.
The sky was cloudy in the morning and mist covered half of Ithumba Hill when the orphans left the stockade. Sana Sana, Pare and Malkia teamed up to browse as Mundusi explored the hill behind the stockade. The orphans had a quiet morning as they concentrated on browsing up to mud bath time when Karisa led the way for the noon bottle feeds. Our naughty girl Roi this time picked up an empty bottle thinking that it had milk inside, but was disappointed when she found that it had nothing in it. Roi walked away hoping to plan more wisely the next time the opportunity presented itself for her to steal some more milk!
Ukame and Esampu decided to play on an anthill while Tusuja and Olsekki had a strength testing exercise that didn’t last for long. In the afternoon the orphans settled west of Ithumba Hill where they browsed until evening and it was time to return back to the stockades for the night.
It was a quiet morning today as the elephants walked out of their stockades in a jovial mood after having their milk bottles. Barsilinga had his wound carefully cleaned as usual and later joined the others to walk out to browse for the day. He was still limping however and could not walk very far, so we decided a Keeper would stay with him for the rest of the day. The others carried out walking out to the bush to browse. Kauro browsed next to Kuishi. Jotto sharpened his tusks on a rock and later the dependent babies all walked to the mud bath for their milk.
After having their milk bottles and drinking some water Wanjala, Karisa and Naseku started playing in the smaller mud bath beside the rock, as they found the main mud bath was too cold. After their mud bath, the babies walked back out to the bush. Naseku started playing with some dry elephant feces with her trunk and throwing it in the air. The others were busy browsing and later they all started walking back home in the evening for their milk and to go to bed.
It was a lovely morning with the elephants having their milk and walking straight out to the bush to browse. Enkikwe had his wound washed as usual and joined his friends. He was very close to Roi and they were browsing together. It’s still very green with food everywhere for the elephants. Kamok was browsing together with Ambo, while the rest of the herd browsed on their own little mission. All the dependent orphans walked to the mud bath just before 11am for their next milk feed.
After their milk bottles the orphans decided to walk along the road to play in the mud there, which is warmer than the main mud bath as they are shallower puddles. Malkia enjoyed rolling in those puddles but the other orphans didn’t stay there long before walking off into the bush to browse again.
The Ithumba orphans had a lovely afternoon browsing. Enkikwe stopped for a while to scratch on a rock and later on a tree. The babies later came across a small dam and started playing in it. Namalok was the most playful as he rolled around in the water for quite a long time. The group later walked back home in the evening for their milk bottles and to go to bed.
It was a quiet morning with the Ithumba orphans babies having their milk bottles and walking out for a day of browsing. Barsilinga had his foot checked and washed with hydrogen peroxide before iodine and green clay was applied. Enkikwe had his leg injury washed and applied with green clay too.
Later on in the morning, when all the orphans were busy browsing, Malima got a fright from a warthog who ran past her at high speed. Her fright gave all the orphans a shock and they started running in different directions. After a short while the Keepers managed to calm them down and the orphans settled down to browse once more. Kamok browsed with Esampu and looked very sleepy.
After the orphans had their 11am milk bottle next to the main water hole they decided not to go for a swim as they felt it was a bit chilly. They had their milk and walked back out to the bush to browse. A few of them played in the small mud pool beside the road which is a lot warmer than the main mud bath.
When the orphans were browsing in the afternoon it appeared Jotto and Pare were having their own conversation which wasn’t privy to anyone else. Sana Sana and Malima were browsing together quite happily. It started to rain as the elephants were on their way back to the stockades for the night. All the orphans and Keepers walked back to the stockades at once, rather than in groups, and it was all hands on deck to make sure all the orphans got their milk bottles. Barsilinga’s walking has improved and he is not limping as much as yesterday which is great. We recorded 35mm of rainfall today.
It was a cold and quiet morning today with Ithumba babies having their bottles and walking out to the bush for their day of browsing. Enkikwe had his leg cleaned and join the group. All the orphans were very active with Galla browsing together with Kamok, while Roi scratched on a tree. Wanjala was busy playing in some mud with Kuishi and Siangiki. Pare walked to the same water pool after the three had left and started playing there too. Barsilinga is still limping but he's much better than yesterday and he's browsing well. Malina and Malkia scratched their bottoms on the same rock separately and later the herd walked to the mud bath for their milk.
After having their milk at the mud bath area, all the orphans enjoyed wallowing. Roi patted Olsekki while they swam in the water. Olsekki was the most playful and was trying to push his friends back inside the mudhole as they tried to get out.
Back out in the bush all the orphans looked active and were browsing well. Kauro scratched his trunk on a tree. It’s still very green everywhere and the orphans looked happy to have enough food. Later the Ithumba dependent herd walked back home in the evening for their milk bottles and to go to bed for the night. There was no rain today and we didn’t see any ex-orphans or wild elephants today.
It was a lovely morning today with the Ithumba orphans having their milk bottles and walking out to the bush to browse. Barsilinga and Enkikwe had their wounds cleaned before they joined the rest of the group. The herd was busy browsing on fresh grass while Mundusi, Karisa and Sana Sana were drinking rainwater from some rocks where it had collected. Barsilinga looks to be improving with his foot and is walking a bit better today. The babies later walked to the mud bath for their milk.
After their milk bottles all the orphans enjoyed wallowing in the main water hole. Tusuja climbed on Wanjala while he swam in the water. Olsekki and Tusuja then started play fighting inside the water too. When they walked out Tusuja started playing and rolling along the road as the others walked back out to the bush to browse. As Tusuja played on the ground a mother baboon sat in the tree above watching him as her baby suckled. She seemed to be in awe of Tusuja’s game and watched him for a while.
The orphans were in big groups of eight or more as they browsed around the water hole area. Later Kamok jumped in the water and started wallowing, but because it was early evening most of the others didn't follow her as they felt the water was quite cold. Later, Sana Sana led the herd back home in the evening for their milk.
The orphans were led by Kamok this morning as they walked out of their stockades and out into the Park to browse for the day. Barsilinga and Enkikwe had their wounds cleaned before they were allowed to join their friends in the bush. Kamok started playing by rolling on the ground in the mud, while Mapia scratched his bottom. Malkia was scratching her belly as Roi bent down to scratch her neck. Enkikwe and Barsilinga were busy browsing in the bush and later the herd walked to the mud bath for their milk just before 11am.
After their milk bottles the orphans all played in the water again. They loved swimming today and played vigorously, with Olsekki and Tusuja being the most active again.
Back out in the bush all the orphans were all actively browsing but then Barsilinga disappeared and distanced himself from the babies. He hid as the Keepers looked everywhere for him for over two hours. As evening drew closer the Keepers took the rest of the group back home and then walked back out to the bush to search for Barsilinga. We met him as he made his own way back to the stockades, walking slowly along. We escorted him back home and locked him into the stockade. No ex-orphans visited with any wild elephants again today.
All the orphans had their milk bottles as usual today and walked out of their stockades to the bush to browse. Barsilinga and Enkikwe had their wounds cleaned as usual before joining the others. Ambo scratched his bottom while the others browsed. Barsilinga stayed with the babies the whole day until evening today.
When the orphans went for their midday milk bottle it was a bit cold and they didn't want to go for a wallowing session after. Instead they had their milk bottles and walked back out to the bush to continue browsing straight away. All the orphans are looking so wonderful and healthy at the moment. The ex-orphans and wild elephants were nowhere to be seen again today. Just before 5pm, Barsilinga escorted all the Ithumba babies back home in the evening for the night.
Barsilinga and Enkikwe had their wounds cleaned up carefully, Barsilinga's sore foot and Enkikwe his leg where he was attacked by a lion two years ago now, before they followed their friends who had already walked out to begin their day of browsing. They all looks happy in the bush as Ukame and Wanjala browsed together, Enkikwe, Siankigi and Esampu browsed together, and Pare, Sana Sana and Kamok were together too. Mapia and Oltaiyoni walked together until Mapia led the herd for their 11am milk bottle near the main water hole.
In the mud bath Esampu was the most playful today and was fully enjoying wallowing in the water alone even after the others had already left. Ambo was the only one who didn’t get into the water as he has seemingly gone off wallowing for some reason. All the orphans apart from Esampu swam through the water and came out in a line, but she stayed in their awhile longer all by herself.
Once out of the mud bath, Siangiki started rolling around in the mud along the road. Olsekki came to join her. The rest were already in the bush busy browsing. Pare started play fighting with Namalok which was a game that went on for quite some time. Later Kuishi led the herd back home in the evening for their milk and to go to bed. Barsilinga hid from the Keepers again but we went on looking for him and found him one hour later after the others were all safely in their stockades for the night. He followed the Keepers back to the compound and went into one of the stockades too.
The sky was clear in the morning as the orphans strolled nonchalantly out from their stockades this morning. This was an indication of a hot day ahead. Ambo started his day activities by scratching on a rock he came across, while his friends concentrated on browsing. Barsilinga, who feels uncomfortable in the company of the babies these days, once again dodged the Keepers and the others, only to be located again in the evening. He was reluctant to come back to the stockades for the night, which means soon he will leave the Keepers and the other orphans for good, and will perhaps try to find his old friends like Kithaka to join up with.
At mud bath time, the sun was really hot, and this prompted all the orphans to really enjoy swimming in the water hole. After wallowing, Wanjala engaged Tusuja in a pushing game, but ended up losing to Tusuja. Mundusi plucked a considerable amount of vegetation that he walked along holding with his trunk, and enjoyed feeding on it slowly.
Soon after leaving the stockades, the orphans headed straight to the water trough where they drank their fill before heading out to browse. Karisa led the way out while Sapalan, Ndiwa, Malkia and Olsekki spent some time in a scratching exercise. Later, Sapalan engaged Rapa in a pushing game that ended in a draw. Kuishi decided to have her own game of rolling on the ground. Kamok passed nearby and stopped to have a word with Kuishi, shortly before joining her in her game of rolling on the ground.
There was a moment of brief tension when a lesser kudu ran past, prompting the orphans to run towards the Keepers for safety. The Keepers calmed them down by whistling and calling their names. Peace returned and the orphans resumed browsing.
At mud bath time the sun was really hot and soon after having their milk, the orphans headed to the water hole. Naseku finished wallowing in an excitable mood which she transferred to Roi and together they charged and trumpeted around, knocking down small bushes. Once the excitement was over, the two girls resumed browsing.
The sky was clear in the morning and this was an indication of another hot day ahead. The orphans made their way slowly out to the bush. Ukame and Roi had brief scratching exercise before going back to browsing. The orphans settled to browse at in the Kone area up to mud bath time, when Karisa led the first group to the mud bath. After having their bottles and wallowing in the main water hole, the orphans headed straight to the slopes of Ithumba Hill where they settled to browse for the afternoon. As usual Barsilinga browsed some distance away from the others and in the evening he was reluctant to return back with them, but after some persuasion from the Keepers, who didn’t want him to stay out on his own, he finally accepted and walked back with them, although he didn’t seem very happy about it!
Karisa led the way out to browse today. On the way, he made a brief stop to have a scratching exercise when he came across a nice rock. After he finished, Kuishi, who was waiting close by, used the same rock to enjoy a good scratch too. Sana Sana used a tree to relieve her itchy neck. Mapia, Malima and Jotto teamed up to browse as Mteto briefly engaged Mundusi in a private conversation.
It was cool today and the orphans had a quiet morning of browsing until mud bath time when Kuishi led the first group to the mud bath. After having their milk, Kuishi and Ndiwa participated in a brief soil dusting exercise before heading for wallowing. In the afternoon, the orphans settled south of the mud bath where they continued to browse.
In the evening, when it was time to head back to the stockades, Barsilinga as usual dodged the Keepers and disappeared. He was later located and taken back to the stockades.
It was wet and drizzling in the morning following rains received at dawn. Sana Sana led the way out to browse. Karisa and Malima settled for scratching as Tusuja started a game of rolling on the wet ground. Later, Ukame, Roi, Wanjala, Naseku and Oltaiyoni joined in the game. Once the fun was over, the orphans resumed browsing. Due to the rains, it remained a cool day and the orphans decided not to have a mud bath after having their bottles of milk. Instead they settled along the lower side of Kalovoto to browse. In the evening, Rapa engaged Wanjala in a pushing game. Their game ended prematurely when Olsekki came in and separated the two boys.
The sky was clear and bright in the morning. The orphans left the stockade and headed east to enjoy feeding under the warmth of the morning sun. Kauro teamed up with Malima to browse while Mundusi settled to browse with Namalok. Later, Galla engaged Sapalan in a pushing game, a game that ended when Sapalan surrendered.
At eleven o'clock in the morning soon after having their milk, Kuishi, Ndiwa and Mapia kept themselves busy by scratching against nearby trees as they waited for their friends so they could all go and wallow in the main water hole together. Olsekki, Wanjala and Esampu were the last to finish swimming; Esampu is clearly enjoying the water these days. After coming out from the water, Olsekki and Wanjala briefly engaged one another in a pushing game before following their friends, who had by now disappeared out into the bush.
Tusuja came across a small muddy pool of water that he used to change his body colour from grey to red, after smearing himself with mud. In the afternoon, the orphans had a quiet time as they concentrated on browsing throughout the rest of the day.
It was wet in the morning following some rain received over night. Led by Karisa, the orphans walked out of their stockades very carefully to avoid slipping and falling. Ukame settled to feed with Oltaiyoni while Naseku developed an itchy foot and so found a suitable rock that she used to scratch it on. Later on, the orphans came across a heap of soil that they decided to all play on together.
At mud bath time, around 11am, the sun came out and it was actually quite hot, so the elephant orphans decided to have a swim in the main water hole too. Esampu left in an excitable mood, running around charging and trumpeting. Her actions made all her all friends quit wallowing to follow suit. Kauro, Kamok and Wanjala finally settled to play on an ant hill and later Wanjala left to play with Tusuja. Mundusi took an advantage of Tusuja engaging Wanjala while lying down and scratched up against him. When Tusuja stood up to engage Wanjala fully, Mundusi moved off to join Naseku who was enjoying rolling around on the ground. In the afternoon, the orphans settled to browse west of Ithumba Hill until just before 5pm when it was time to return back to the stockades.
Heavy rain fell overnight, the most we have had since the beginning of the year - about 100mm in total. Karisa led the way out to browse while Tusuja, Ukame and Namalok opted to have some water at the stockade water trough before following their friends. Sana Sana settled to browse with Ndiwa and both of them came across a log that they used to scratch themselves on. Oltaiyoni teamed up with Mapia as Namalok decided to lead his friends in a different direction to feed.
The orphans then concentrated on feeding on the many different varieties of vegetation to choose from. Life has been good for all the animals in Tsavo in terms of having more than enough food since the beginning of rains in October last year.
At mud bath time the orphans enjoyed wallowing. The orphans then had a quiet afternoon of browsing until evening when Sapalan and Enkikwe took a break from feeding to have a game of rolling on the ground. The two were joined by Ambo and shortly later, it was time for the journey back to the stockades for the night.
Soon after leaving the stockades, the bulls were in a playful mood. Sapalan engaged Galla in a pushing game while Tusuja played with Wanjala. Malima, Roi, Ndiwa, Rapa, Kauro and Esampu kept themselves busy for some time by scratching against some trees. Ukame and Naseku tried to compete who amongst them could reach the highest leaves in a certain tree. In the end, they found out that they had trunks of equal length thus their competition ended in a draw. At mud bath time, the orphans only had their milk bottles then returned back to browsing. The afternoon was quiet as the orphans mostly concentrated on browsing.