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Alamaya, who went out for a very long safari away, returned home early this morning. Sonje and Mwashoti spotted him first, then Kiasa went to welcome him — but for some reason, Alamaya was not very friendly. When Kiasa saw that Alamaya did not appreciate her reception, she walked back to where Enkesha and Amali were playing. Some baboons were also having a meeting atop a big tree and making lots of noise. The orphans left the noisy area to find a more peaceful place with all the little ones.

This morning, the elephants came out from the stockades and found their other friends already waiting for them by the gate. When pellets were spread around for everyone to eat, the more dominant elephants grabbed all the pellets in a hurry, leaving their friends like Amali and Enkesha with nothing to eat. The Keepers ensured the girls got some extras. 

Lima Lima decided to leave with Kapei, Kiasa, and little Amali and Mwana. The youngsters joined her for a short while, before returning to Murera and Sonje. This was led by Mwana, who wanted to breastfeed but was dismayed to discover that her mother was still a far distance away. Amali, who is such a good honorary big sister to Mwana, escorted the baby to Murera.

We heard some noise coming from Kenze Hills. The Keepers thought it was wild elephants enjoying some fresh greens. When they followed the noise to the hills, they were delighted to find Ziwa, Faraja, and Jasiri! The Keepers were very happy to see their beloved elephants who had been gone for quite some time. 

Zongoloni, who had also been away for a long time, joined the reunion. Zongoloni was clearly trying to get Mwana to follow her, but the baby prudently stayed back with the orphan herd. She knew that if she went with Zongoloni, she would be separated from Amali, Kiasa, and Enkesha. The clever baby made a U-turn and returned back into the herd to be safe.

Many wild elephants have returned to the Kibwezi Forest in large numbers now that it is getting dry. This has led to all kinds of wildlife proceeding to Umani, where they know there is always plentiful water. A wild bull arrived and tried to woo Sonje, who was not interested in his company. When Sonje saw him, she changed direction and went to Murera. Then Mwana and Kiasa joined her mother, and Murera moved deeper within the Kibwezi Forest.

On the way to the Chyulu Hills, they encountered klipspringers crossing the lava rock areas. This is a place elephants cannot traverse, because the rocks are too sharp for their feet. Thanks to their little hooves, the klipspringers had no problem navigating the lava. The small antelope watched the orphans go by, which annoyed Amali. She tried to trumpet and scare them away, but then Kapei came and pushed little Amali aside. This upset Enkesha and Quanza, who approached him with discipline on their minds. Kapei prudently made himself scarce. 

This morning, the orphans came out of their stockades, looking to start their new day with pellets, as they always do. Enkesha and her neighbour Maktao didn't look for the pellets at first; instead, they searched for a scratching wall to relieve some itches. A scratching competition ensued. 

This looked like a very fun and productive game to Kiasa, so she left Mwana in the care of Murera and Sonje and joined her scratching friends. Mwana felt left out and started crying for Amali and Enkesha. Everyone gathered at the dust pile, including Mwashoti, Quanza, and Lima Lima. 

A small drama happened when Sonje and Lima Lima found a delicious bounty of yellow acacia trees. Sonje pulled down the branches, leaving Lima Lima with nothing to eat. Lima Lima was clearly upset, but she didn’t do anything, because she respects Sonje and would never challenge her like that.

The mud bath today was full of fun and enjoyment as the orphans met with some of their wild friends. Sonje received Alamaya and Mwashoti with great enthusiasm. In fact, everyone did: Even the orphans who were swimming came out of the water hole to hug and welcome the two boys. Alamaya joined in and started splashing water over his head and under his belly before going deeper into the water.

Amali, Kiasa, and Enkesha stopped swimming and rushed to Murera because they couldn't see Mwana. These nannies were very smart and demanded to know where their little sister was. Their worry was all for nothing; Mwana was simply resting next to Murera.

The day brought about an unexpected guest: a python snake, who was spotted in its hiding place by Kiombo and Maktao. The boys were play-fighting and testing their strength when Kiombo accidentally stepped back and flattened the python. Despite Lima Lima and Quanza's attempts to intervene, the boys continued their fight over the snake’s body. The Keepers wished they could have saved the snake, but it was too late. 

During midday bottle feeding, the orphans picked up their bottles and then headed to the waterhole. Enkesha and Mwashoti, feeling the heat, decided to take Amali with them into the mud bath. Only Kapei was hesitant to cool off.

Quanza today was being followed by a wild bull friend who was trying to court her, but Quanza did not have any interest in courtship and was not happy with the bull's advances. She made a hasty exit — and was supported by her honorary brothers in doing so! Seeing Quanza’s discomfort, Faraja teamed up with Mwashoti and Jasiri to drive the bull away from the orphans. 

Seeing the drama, Murera shepherded Kiasa, Enkesha, and Mwana into the Kibwezi Forest. Meanwhile, the bull and his pursuers came across Alamaya. The bull seemed to be a friend of Alamaya’s, as he made a beeline for him. With the chase over, Jasiri and his team came to Sonje, who was waiting for them under a tree for shade.

In very exciting news, today was Mwana’s first birthday! It is hard to believe that our ‘Princess of Umani’ has been with us for an entire year. She is growing into a remarkable young elephant — big and advanced for her age, and adored by all.

Zongoloni and her wild friends arrived with Alamaya and Mwashoti, who was lagging behind everyone else. Mwashoti was walking slowly and playing with butterflies, trying to catch the beautiful insects. However, butterflies are very tricky, and whenever he tried to chase them, he ended up losing his balance and falling down. Zongoloni tried to help him up, but she found him too heavy, so she could only touch his body with her trunk to express her apology.

Meanwhile, Amali, Enkesha, and Kiasa moved to the side where Zongoloni was pulling a heavy branch. Every elephant wanted to taste the branch, but pulling it down proved to be a challenge. The older elephants came to help the younger ones, who were struggling with the heavy treat. Eventually, Murera and Quanza arrived and pulled the branches down for everyone to eat together.

However, Maktao became greedy. He had very obvious plans to pick up all the branches and run away with them, so he could have them all to himself. Murera stopped him and denied him everything he was trying to take. Maktao reluctantly left the branches he had already pulled down.

Today, the waterhole was full of business as some wild elephants joined the orphans for a mud bath session, coming together as friends. It was a very interesting moment to see Kapei and Kiombo trying to become friends with the much larger wild elephants. Kiombo is bigger than Kapei, but standing next to the wild bulls, he looked like a very tiny object. Despite the size difference, the boys were courageous enough to go and play with the visitors. One of the wild bulls tried to stop Kapei from joining them, but he persisted.

Sonje, with Enkesha and Mwashoti, stopped Kiombo and Kapei from going further with the wild friends, reminding them that they might miss their evening bottles. Kiombo and Kapei heeded their advice and followed Sonje back to the herd. Murera then led her team back to the stockade, starting their journey back early today.

Some elephants visited the herd along the Umani Hills while the orphans were still enjoying the forage on the hills. When Quanza realised that there were wild friends close by, she notified the others to be aware and keep off the area. This was to ensure that some of them wouldn't go by the wild herd, especially because the herd had little babies. Amali and Enkesha, who love babies, could have been encouraged to follow them. This was why Quanza was very concerned about keeping the entire herd safe and away from the wild group.

Amali was very alert and aware of the notice given by Quanza. She quickly rushed over to Mwana, and the girls were joined by Kiasa and Lima Lima, just to be safe. They all wanted to keep their distance from the wild herd, which kept browsing closer and closer to the orphans. The head girls did an excellent job of defending the babies, as did Amali with Mwana. With her quick thinking, courage, and loyalty, Amali is reminding us more and more of Lima Lima. 

We were happy to hear that the Ithumba Keepers finally reunited with our old friend, Ngasha, who moved to Tsavo in August. He has been absent for the past seven months, but it turns out that he was just busy enjoying and exploring his new home.

Murera and her team took a very different route today, leading the orphans to an area they usually aren’t interested in. The Keepers wondered why Murera, Lima Lima, and Quanza chose this path on this particular day. Despite their attempts to call the orphans back, they all followed the head girls. The Keepers watched them disappear behind the stockades, still curious about what they had in mind.

Later in the day, Ziwa and his team, including two old wild females, arrived. Kapei and Kiombo joined them. Ziwa met Mwashoti, and they greeted each other with fanfare and hugs. Kiasa and Enkesha wisely decided to take little Mwana out of sight, just in case the wild group was tempted to kidnap her. They led the baby back to where the other nannies were enjoying a mud bath at the water hole. The wild group didn't follow the orphans to the water hole, and Ziwa eventually led his family back to Kenze hills, leaving the orphans alone.

Some butterflies flew over to where Amali and Enkesha were having a good time playing. When the white butterflies appeared in front of Amali, she asked Enkesha to help chase them away. They began chasing the butterflies, but it was challenging as they kept flying above the shrubs. Amali and Enkesha charged at them again and again, but they couldn't catch a single butterfly. Amali ended up falling down and knocking her knees. She quickly got up, but then Kiasa came over and perhaps told them that it was time to end such a hopeless mission. 

Meanwhile, Mwashoti and Kiombo found a nice dust pile. Maktao joined them and playfully pulled Mwashoti's tail. This made Mwashoti very angry; he hates when the other orphans touch his tail. He defended his freedom and privacy by giving Maktao a very firm push.

Zongoloni is looking much larger than her agemate Lima Lima, despite the fact that Lima Lima is pregnant. Zongoloni has a huge body, which makes Lima Lima look medium-bodied by comparison. She used to be a loyal and loving elephant, but her behaviour has changed as of late. Recently, Zongoloni has become moody, keeping her distance from the Keepers and only allowing a select few orphans to approach her. 

Alamaya walked over to Zongoloni, but she quickly warned him to not get any closer. She only allows Amali, Kiasa, Enkesha, and Mwana to come to her, and has little tolerance for the boys. She was being quite harsh to the boys today, blocking them from playing with the girls and pushing them with her tusks. After a spell, she led Amali, Kiasa, Enkesha, and Mwana over to Murera and Sonje. Lima Lima also joined them, dividing the orphans into a boys’ group and a girls’ group.

However, there was a reason for Zongoloni’s behaviour: Faraja and Ziwa were being very unruly today and trying to mount little Enkesha. Zongoloni was the first to spot their antics and it made her very angry. The head girls came together, blocking the boys from bothering the young girls.

The waterhole was full of activity today. As usual, it was Mwana who led the swimming. She stepped into the water, followed by Amali. When Kiasa and Enkesha joined them, the fun began. It quickly turned into a swimming competition between the older babies and the young stars. Kapei, Amali, and Mwana swam really well. Amali and Mwana gave the best show ever, rolling and jumping and splashing. Both were enjoying themselves and had many fans cheering them on.

But then, someone unwittingly stepped on Mwana’s feet, causing her to scream in alarm. All swimming and fun halted until Mwana's problem was sorted out and her injury known. Murera and all the nannies rushed to the baby, who was standing with Kiasa. Unfortunately, Kiasa found herself in big trouble with Murera, who demanded answers as to why Mwana was upset. Kiasa’s explanation did not satisfy Murera, and she had to pay in a hard way: Murera pulled her tail, bit it, and then pushed her away. Poor Kiasa ran over to Zongoloni and Lima Lima, who sympathetically embraced her. Being a nanny is hard work!

Some of the familiar buffalos arrived early at the mud bath, as they know the orphans prefer the nearby swimming pool at this time. But today, things went differently. Instead, the orphans took over the mud bath. After they had their bottles, Amali and Kapei, assisted by little Mwana, dispersed the buffalos away from the orphans' territory. Amali took it terribly seriously, and when she was running after the buffalo, she looked behind to see if other babies were supporting her, while she charged ahead. When the buffalos saw that Amali and Mwana were not fearful, they escaped into the bushes. Kapei and Kiombo followed to make sure the young girls were safe. When they came back, all the babies were jovial but very tired. Still, they continued charging at the bushes. Eventually, Kiasa, Enkesha, and Lima Lima managed to calm the girls down.

Mwana was still in an excitable state, and when she tried to breastfeed from Murera, she pulled her too hard and hurt her. As punishment, Murera denied her nursing for a bit. Seeing the baby’s growing frustration, Kiasa escorted her to Lima Lima. Mwana proceeded to faux nurse from her big nanny, although she was clearly upset with her mother. Later, punishment over, Mwana breastfed from Murera as normal.

Mwashoti returned home after several days away. No one knew where he had been. It looked like he had been fighting with wild bulls on his safari. Although he was not seriously wounded, the Keepers tended to his minor scrapes and scratches. 

Meanwhile, Zongoloni and Lima Lima moved over to Mwashoti, as if asking for more details about what happened. After circling him, they rumbled and brought him back to the herd. Mwashoti walked right over to Murera — he is a favourite of hers as she is his long-time friend. Even Mwana gave the pair space and joined Kiasa and Enkesha, so they could catch up in private.

At about 3 PM this afternoon, a buffalo came to the waterhole and slept in the mud bath while the orphans were still trying to wallow. When Kiombo and Faraja saw the slumbering buffalo, they moved towards him and tried to chase him away. The buffalo resisted heavily, protesting that it was too hot and there was space for everyone. But the boys were relentless and eventually managed to push him into the forest. They trumpeted in victory as the buffalo’s tail disappeared into the trees.

Zongoloni arrived early in the morning at the pellets corner, only to find it empty. She had come early and the Keepers had not yet put out the pellets. She waited for the orphans to come out of their stockades so they could celebrate together. Then, Mwashoti, Quanza, and Lima Lima arrived from the forest, one after the other. Mwashoti moved to where Sonje was, but the arrival of Murera made Mwashoti change his allegiance to Murera, his former roommate and closest friend. Mwashoti knows that Murera understands him best. Kiasa, Enkesha, and Amali emerged last. Now that the orphans were ready to eat as one big family, the pellets celebration could begin. However, Quanza and Alamaya were able to scoop more pellets with their big trunks faster. Lima Lima, Sonje, Zongoloni, and Murera tried to push them away, so little Kapei and Amali could also have their share. The older elephants were very fast in eating, leaving the little ones with less to celebrate.

After the pellets celebrations, the head girls led the babies to the Kenzili area. On their way, some old wild males met them. Sonje stopped to greet them. At the same time, she was also distracting them so that the nannies could pass with baby Mwana. Mwana then rumbled strongly, which everyone interpreted as a sign of distress. The nannies and Murera rushed to her to learn what was wrong, but found nothing. Mwana was just getting thirsty to breastfeed, and her rumble was her way of getting her mother’s attention.