November was a very special month in Ithumba — highlighted by the birth of two new grandbabies, which arrived within a span of 24 hours.
This all unfolded on the 22nd of November — a day bookended by two new babies and wrapped up with the happy return of two beloved bulls. The celebrations started early in the morning, when Nasalot and her boys arrived with a special delivery: a beautiful baby girl! The proud mum was accompanied by her sons, Nusu and Noah, along with ex-orphan Mundusi, who is Noah's best friend and an honorary member of Nasalot's family. We estimated that her little girl, who we named Nala, was about two weeks old.
That same evening, Musiara and Jotto returned 'home' after a long time away. Earlier in the month, our pilots unexpectedly crossed paths with the pair, far from home and in need of help — Jotto had an injured leg that required treatment. He remembered his human family and accepted an impromptu bush treatment, while Musiara calmly looked on. Although they only visited Ithumba from a distance, we were able to assess Jotto's healing progress. While he still bore a slight limp, his leg was already much-improved and he appeared to be recovering faster than our initial expectations.
The night's joys weren't over yet. Emerging from the west, Mutara arrived with her firstborn, Mambo — and a brand new baby boy! She had given birth hours earlier and immediately made the pilgrimage to Ithumba, to introduce her newborn to the people who raised her. Mambo is a protective big brother and blocked ever-hopeful Suguroi from accessing him. Mango seems to be more active than Mambo was at that age.
The rest of November was lovely and rather subdued. It was a relatively quiet month, but the orphans still managed to create their own drama. One morning at the browsing field, the orphans came across four warthogs. Bondeni, Shujaa, Choka, Loldaiga, and Suguroi charged at the interlopers and trumpeted. The warthogs, tails held high, turned on their hooves and headed east. The five orphans attempted to follow them, but it was an easy evasion for the pigs.
Another day, Mukutan, Shujaa, and Vaarti spotted jackals ahead of them. The three boys charged and trumpeted as they headed towards the jackals. The jackals didn't wait but ran off before the three boys could catch up with them.
All these years later, Kinyei and Kindani still baby their no-longer-so-little brother, Bondeni. We were reminded of this one afternoon, when Bondeni was enjoying a sparring match with Esoit. It was cut short by Kinyei, who passed by and separated the two boys.
We think of boys as the competitive gender of elephants, as they are always testing their strength — but girls enjoy contests, too! One day, the orphans settled to browse in the Kone area. Bondeni, Olorien, and Kinyei competed to see who could reach leaves on the tallest trees by stepping on rocks to make themselves taller. Kinyei won the competition, since she is slightly taller than the other two.
Chilly days throughout the month dictated who would participate in wallowing. One afternoon, only Kinyei, Mayan, Mageno, Lodo, Shujaa, Weka, and Loldaiga fully participated in wallowing. The rest just washed their feet by walking through the water. Another day, Lodo, Naleku, Suguroi, and Mageno emerged as the stars of the day, enjoying a prolonged wallow.
Shujaa and Weka, our two rascals, have each other's backs. One morning, Olare, baby Ola, Sagateisa, Enkikwe, and Nabulu joined the orphans for breakfast. Ola attempted to push Weka, but Shujaa — who was following Weka closely — wasn't about to let that happen on his watch. He pushed the upstart baby with force. Ola ran to report Shujaa to her mother, but by the time she reached her, Shujaa and Weka had already made themselves scarce.
Just like us, elephants occasionally wake up on the wrong side of the proverbial bed. One morning, Lodo was in a towering mood and took it out on the juniors. The Keepers cautioned him not to continue with such behaviour. Roho decided to handle the matter in his own way, tackling Lodo and forcing him into a pushing game. The distraction technique worked, and Lodo focused on defending himself against Roho instead of bullying the juniors.
Last month, Naleku left the dependent herd to be a nanny to the ex-orphans' babies. Since her departure, Suguroi has taken over the role of mini matriarch. She is well-suited to the role: decisive, no nonsense, and protective. Most mornings, she led the orphans out to the browsing field and then generally kept an eye on everyone.
The month ended with some Wendi drama. She turned up at the stockades with daughters Wiva, Wema, and Wimbi. Abandoning any parental duties, Wendi came straight to the parking area and started checking the vehicle, looking for something to eat. After causing sufficient trouble, she strolled off with her daughters, Olsekki, Makena, Namalok, and Mapia in tow.
Unfortunately, rains were very poor this month, although Ithumba received more than other parts of Tsavo. We hope December brings better luck.