Mzinga and Nyambeni have been instrumental in Tali’s healing journey. Both girls, but especially Mzinga, are completely devoted to their little charge. Tali has much larger tusks than them, but he is at least a full year their junior. He was likely on his own for several months before his rescue and, on top of all his health issues, was suffering from deep loneliness. From the outset, Mzinga and Nyambeni seemed to recognise that Tali needed their care and support. They put their normal daily routines on hold in order to spend every waking minute with their adopted baby. 

As is common with orphans who were on their own for a long time, Tali remains wary of his Keepers and also the other elephants. He approaches us only at feeding times, when he sometimes demands an extra bottle, but otherwise he keeps his distance. We have been careful not to surprise the traumatised elephant, instead giving him the time and space he needs to feel safe. By month’s end, we saw a marked improvement in Tali’s skittishness and body condition — he is healing, mentally and physically. 

Towards the end of the month, we decided Tali was ready to join the midday milk feed and mud bath with the rest of the Nursery herd. He took the new activity in stride and seemed relaxed with the other orphans, although he stayed out of their argy bargy antics. Interestingly, Kamili — a fellow loner who was rescued in very poor condition — has gone out of her way to welcome Tali. We believe that she senses a kindred spirit and understands how to support him.

While young Mzinga takes the lead with Tali and the new rescues, Sileita is the maritach of our wider Nursery herd. She is an excellent leader — even-keeled, fair, and nurturing. She has a soft spot for young Wamata, but diligently looks after every orphan.

Mushuru is making a name for herself as our resident monkey. She stands out among (and above!) the Nursery herd for her gravity-defying gymnastics, all in pursuit of the perfect branch. She is very talented at climbing up trees, with both her front legs suspended high up the trunk, as she searches for a delicious bite of greenery.

Talek is a naughty-yet-polite girl. She rarely causes trouble, but she is very headstrong. One rainy morning, the cheeky girl snuck back home soon after the orphans spread out to browse in the forest. Realising she was missing, two Keepers found her contentedly finishing off leftover range cubes and lucerne in her stable. A dry room had won out over a wet forest!

Pardamat remains our lovable rogue. He is the root of most mischief, but we can’t help but laugh at all his antics. One afternoon, Pardamat, Shujaa, Taroha, Talek and Weka had fun chasing a group of wild warthogs who were trying to graze alongside the orphans. When one of the small pigs ran towards Pardamat — rather than away from him, as he expected — the stout elephant sprinted for his nannies at full speed, trumpeting in alarm!

Little Wamata is starting to find her voice. After finishing her milk one afternoon, she trumpeted for an extra bottle. Hearing her call, her team of over-zealous nannies sprinted in her direction. Wamata is loved by everyone, but especially Latika, Kerrio, Sileita, and Weka.

We know that Latika is utterly devoted to precious Wamata — she is rarely seen apart from the little girl — but recently, another nanny has entered the fray! Our resident tomboy, Muridjo, has started to show a marked interest in Wamata. Fortunately, Latika is willing to share. The coddled little girl enjoys the attention of both nannies, along with all the other Nursery girls who dote upon her.

Olomunyak may be one of the smallest members of our Nursery herd, but he is determined to become an expert wrestler. He loves being tutored by older brothers Shujaa, Pardamat, and Taroha. Olomunyak may be small and stout, but he gives every game his all and holds his own very well!

Taroha is such a special bull. He is a calm, quiet, and caring boy who has time for everyone. We often find him standing close to Wamata, whom he has adopted as a little sister — much as he did with Mokogodo. One morning, Pardamat shoved Wamata at the mud bath and Taroha rushed over to give her a trunk check. 

By contrast, Mageno and Kitich are fully focused on demonstrating their strength — which is a normal priority for growing bulls! The best friends have a standing wrestling match, in which they clink tusks, clash heads, and try to prove that one is stronger than the other. Thus far, neither has won the role of dominant bull.

Shujaa is by no means the oldest or strongest orphan at the Nursery, but he is determined to find his place among the dominant bulls. After lots of tutelage from Kerrio — a wonderful matriarch who also adores pushing games — he has stepped up to contests with Mageno, Kitich, and tomboy Muwingu. They outpace him in terms of size and strength, but he does his determined best.

One afternoon, an over-confident Shujaa intercepted Kitich, hoping that the older bull would play with him. This was a misstep. Fired up from his earlier face-off with Mageno, Kitich shoved Shujaa and sent the younger boy toppling over, trumpeting in alarm. Mushuru and Muwingu were the first to respond, while Sileita, Kerrio, and Weka also charged over to his rescue. The older girls gathered around Shujaa protectively, trunk touching him while he humbly climbed back onto his feet.

Muwingu is proving to be quite a prankster. She especially delights in playing practical jokes on her Keepers. It started a few months ago, when she started taking a small detour en route to milk feed in order to coat her trunk in thick, goopy mud. Then, she would innocently amble up to a Keeper… and wipe her muddy trunk all over his spotless dust coat. Recently, Muwingu has taken her pranking to the next level, sucking up a trunkful of mud and squirting it on unsuspecting bystanders. More economical and more effective! 

Weka always keeps things interesting. She loves to trumpet at the top of her lungs as she approaches the milk feed, just in case we were not expecting her and did not have her milk ready. (To be clear, we are always prepared!) While she is very feisty, she does have a genuine nurturing side — a true study in contrasts.

Sholumai used to be a most reluctant nanny, but recently she has gotten in touch with her nurturing side. One morning, she was trumpeting loudly as she did her best to push aside the other girls in order to get close to a new rescue. Another day, she stood vigil next to a small mud wallow created for Tali. With assistance from Mushuru and Olomunyak, Sholumai chased off any warthog or baboon that tried to drink from the small puddle.

A new rescue this month led to a room shake-up for Nyambeni. The caring-but-rotund girl — who was fast outgrowing her stable anyway — was moved to an open-air stockade. She was restless during the early evening, trumpeting in protest at the unexpected move, just as Shujaa did when we moved him a couple of months ago. Kamili, who sleeps in the neighbouring stockade, did her best to calm Nyambeni, stretching her trunk through the partition. To everyone’s relief, Nyambeni relaxed after the late night milk feed, lying down on her bed of hay and going to sleep. 

The orphaned rhinos

Little Raha had a good month. Weather was favourable, which put her in an excellent mood. When the sun is shining she wakes up in a happy and playful mood, squeaking and doing little jumps in the sunshine.

But if the weather is inclement, Raha cannot be persuaded to start her day a minute before she is ready. We know better than to push a black rhino and adjust things to her schedule. She usually skirts along the sunny patches of the forest, stopping occasionally for a nap before waddling back to her stable for the night. This month, her injured rear end didn’t give her any issues.

Maxwell also had a good month. He enjoyed having a lie-in on cool mornings, plodding out of his sheltered area and resting in the sun-dappled mud. Black rhinos have a reputation for being solitary, but Max welcomes a coterie of baboons and warthogs into his midst. One afternoon, a baby warthog scratched herself against Max’s belly while the unperturbed rhino continued crunching mouthfuls of pellets.