Across Tsavo, wildlife are feeling the effects of the dry season. The surge of visitors to Ithumba is a reminder of this: While we always have a steady stream of visitors, there have been far more than usual.
A wild elephant and buffalo arrived at dawn and found that all the water in the troughs was finished. They took a nap nearby until the ever-busy water bowser arrived and replenished the troughs. The elephants and buffalo were happy to drink their fill.
The dependent orphans were let out of their night stockades soon after finishing their morning milk bottles. Nabulu walked down to the water trough and stretched her trunk to sniff at the buffalo. She prudently didn't want to run into trouble with the buffalo, however, so she walked back to enjoy her lucerne.
Ex orphans Rapsu and Galla were the guests of honour at lucerne feeding time. Kauro and Mundusi decided to have a warmup strength-testing exercise, in which Kauro emerged the winner.
Later, when the orphans were busy browsing, Enkikwe decided to take a break and engage Mundusi in a pushing game. Roi took this opportunity to replace Suguta and Sities as Dololo’s caretaker. It was quiet when the orphans made their way to the mud bath, as only six wild bulls showed up. The orphans enjoyed themselves in the water before going to dust themselves and dry off at the pile of loose soil. Just as the dependent orphans were preparing to leave, Yatta and her herd arrived at the mud bath accompanied by a wild herd. This didn’t change anything for the younger orphans, however, and they proceeded with their plan to go browse. Esampu was in a playful mood and kept trying to chase a bird that persistently hovered above her.
Mutara and her herd joined the orphans for lucerne in the morning. Shortly thereafter, two buffaloes showed up for water. Kibo and Sana Sana walked down to the water trough and tried to charge at the buffaloes, but they stood their ground and refused to budge until they had finished drinking enough water.
The dependent orphans, led by Nabulu, settled to browse in the Kanziku area. Later, when they made their way to the mud bath for their milk bottles, Tomboi showed up in the company of several wild bulls. All the orphans decided to go into the water for a mud bath today, but Sattao, Mteto, Malkia, Wanjala, Rapa and Mundusi enjoyed it the most and had a prolonged wallowing session.
After wallowing, Mapia led the team in a soil dusting exercise. He was also the last leave. On the way back out to browse, Karisa ran into trouble with Rapa when he tried to overtake him. Rapa couldn’t allow this to happen and grabbed Karisa’s tail to bite it. Karisa managed to free himself and fell back in line behind Rapa, so as to avoid further conflict with him. Rapa was happy that Karisa decided to respect him and walked forward, swinging his trunk from side to side. The orphans settled to browse in the upper Kalovoto area again. Jotto teamed up with Dololo to browse, while Ambo settled with Malima and Nabulu. The rest of the day was quiet. In the evening, as usual, Nabulu led Malima and Musiara in the first group back to the stockades.
The dependent orphans left their stockades early. Orwa, Bomani, Kilaguni, Mutara, Sities, Turkwel, Suguta, Kainuk, Kithaka, Lemoyian, Kalama and Garzi joined them soon thereafter. Challa emerged from the east as well and joined the orphans to feed on lucerne. Three wild dogs arrived in search of water. Orwa spotted them and tried to charge at them. Sattao, Dololo, Kilaguni and Rapa backed him up, but the wild dogs would hear none of it. They stood their ground and made sure that they had their fill of water, which is what they had come for. The ex-orphans parted ways with the orphans soon after finishing all the lucerne the Keepers had put out for them.
Out in the bush, Jotto settled to browse with Dololo while Mteto decided to have her own soil dusting game. Pare paired up with Rapa and browsed a short distance away from their friends. Kamok isolated herself from the rest of the group and browsed calmly on her own. When it was time to go for their noon milk feed at the mud bath, Kamok lagged and reported much later, when the others were finishing all their mud bath activities. Musiara tried to entice Dololo into a pushing game, but Dololo didn't feel like playing. Sana Sana played with Jotto while Kauro had a pushing game with Enkikwe.
In the evening, Barsilinga, Tusuja, Siangiki, Olsekki, Oltaiyoni, Naseku and Roi — all of whom don’t usually spend that much time with the rest of the dependent orphans these days — decided to join the dependent herd on their way back to the stockades and walk in with them for the night.
Mutara and her herd joined the orphans early in the morning for the lucerne feeding. This meant Dololo was the happiest little orphan, of course, because his adopted big sisters were around. An hour later, the ex-orphans in Mutara’s herd parted ways with the dependent orphans. Pare engaged Rapa in a pushing game that ended when Pare surrendered. Kauro rolled on the ground while Ambo settled to browse with Malima. Enkikwe, Galla and Sapalan walked away from the others where they settled to browse together for their own little ‘boy’ chat. At one point, Sapalan had a disagreement with Enkikwe and was pushed away. The talks broke up and the boys went their separate ways. Esampu and Mteto led the way out to browse for the day.
The weather was chilly today and when the orphans went to the mud bath at noon, only five wild bulls showed up. The orphans decided to skip the wallowing session due to the weather, and instead just drank some water before going back to browsing. Mutara’s herd, along with ex-orphan Taita, Oltaiyoni, Tusuja, Roi, Olsekki and Siangiki, showed up to the mud bath just as the dependent orphans were leaving. These Class Five members love to spend time with the ex-orphans and rarely come to the mud bath, as they have been weaned off their milk. However, it appears that Mutara’s group convinced them to come today. Sities, Malkia and Roi escorted Dololo out to browse, which made him a very happy little elephant.
The clouds cleared in the afternoon, giving way to sunshine. Nabulu, Maramoja, Musiara and Malkia decided to take a break from browsing to relax under a tree. At five o'clock in the evening, Nabulu led the way back to the stockades. The Class Five members reported back later at night.
Lemoyian, Kithaka, Kandecha and Sities spent the night outside the stockades. When the dependent orphans emerged, Lemoyian walked straight into the stockades to check if there were any leftovers. Sities stood at the entrance waiting for Dololo. Once Dololo came out, she took him for a scratching exercise then they waited for the lucerne the Keepers were going to distribute. Shortly thereafter, two wild bulls arrived for water before leaving again. Nabulu ran into trouble with Kauro when she tried to pick some lucerne that he had kept for himself. Kauro always feeds on his own, probably because his trunk is missing its tip (or ‘fingers’) and therefore he eats much slower than the others. Nabulu couldn't believe that Kauro had pushed her away instead of sharing the lucerne with her, but she learned that it's important to respect one’s seniors instead of taking them for granted! Barsilinga led the way out to the browsing field. Sities decided to leave with Enkikwe and Galla, only after trying and failing to leave with Dololo because the Keepers were keeping a careful eye on her!
Later in the morning, Malima stopped browsing and decided to roll on the ground. Sana Sana stepped up on a rock to make herself taller, so as to reach some nice leaves high on a tree. Pare took advantage of Malima lying down and came forward to play on her. Malima yelled for help as Pare was too heavy, and this prompted Pare to leave before the Keepers could intervene. Sapalan came across a nice rock that he happily scratched his belly on. Pare settled for a brief soil dusting exercise before resuming browsing again. Jotto engaged Sana Sana in a pushing game that ended in a draw. Later, Jotto tackled Pare but ended up losing the game.
Nabulu led the way to the noon mud bath milk feed. Rapa and Enkikwe lagged behind, arriving half an hour later. Fifteen wild bulls were at the mud bath with the orphans. Challa was the only one present to represent the older ex-orphans. Kauro boycotted the wallowing exercise and opted to relax under a tree instead.
In the afternoon, Enkikwe, Galla, Rapa and Karisa dodged the Keepers and went to look for the ex-orphans. They reported back later in the evening. Yatta, Yoyo, Yetu, Kinna, Kama, Mulika, Mwende, Mkuu, Ithumbah, Makena, Sities, Mutara, Suguta, Turkwel, Bomani, Orwa, Challa, Tomboi, Kainuk, Kanjoro, Garzi, Kithaka and Lemoyian joined the wild bulls at the stockade to drink water. The last to arrive were Loijuk, Lili, Naisula, Kitirua, Ishanga and Kilabasi.
Fifteen wild bulls were drinking water outside the compound when the orphans were let out. Sities and Suguta were patiently waiting outside for Dololo. Ambo tried to take a shortcut to the lucerne store but was told by the Keepers to walk with his friends outside and wait to be served like everyone else.
After having their fill, the orphans walked out to browse in the company of Mutara’s herd. Pare and Sapalan teamed up together to browse. Before long, however they seemed to develop some differences which they decided to resolve through a pushing game. Pare was defeated and decided to walk away. Due to the very dry current climate, Mteto got down on her knees so that she could uproot a tasty root with her teeth. She had her eye on the root for a while and couldn’t pull it out with her trunk. Ambo browsed with Kamok while Rapa teamed up with Kauro.
It was very hot when the orphans went to the mud bath. Thirty-two wild bulls were there, too. Kauro decided to skip the wallowing session again. Mutara arrived with her group as well as the Class Five members and had a spectacular time wallowing. Swimming was followed by a soil dusting exercise and thereafter, the orphans disappeared back out into the bush to continue with their afternoon of browsing. Kauro lagged behind and only decided to follow his friends later.
In the afternoon, the orphans settled to browse in the Kanziku area, where they can still find good vegetation to eat. Mutara’s herd walked off with the Class Five members. Mteto, Karisa, Mundusi and Mapia took a break from feeding to relax under a tree.
In the evening, shortly before going back to the stockades, Esampu became annoyed by some chattering baboons that were passing close by. Esampu charged with her ears raised towards the baboons. She was backed by Wanjala, Rapa, Galla and Ndiwa. The baboons didn’t want to hang around to be trampled on by the orphans, so they ran away and climbed up the nearest trees. 22 wild bulls, including Dad, showed up for water at the stockade water troughs. Later, the wild bulls were joined by Yatta, Yoyo, Yetu, Mulika, Mwende, Mkuu, Ithumbah, Loijuk, Lili and Mutara's herd.
Mutara, Turkwel, Sities, Suguta, Kainuk and Lemoyian spent the night just outside the stockades. In the morning, the girls waited patiently for Dololo to come out. As soon as the orphans were let out, Suguta escorted Dololo to the lucerne feeding area. Lucerne was dished out and the herd shared it happily together, with Kauro taking his share and moving away from his friends to enjoy in peace.
Mutara and her group escorted the orphans out to browse and wandered off into the bush an hour later. It wasn’t long before the members of Class Five, Barsilinga, Roi, Tusuja, Naseku, Olsekki, Siangiki and Oltaiyoni, decided to follow Mutara and the others. It was a quiet morning as the orphans concentrated mostly on browsing.
It was very hot at the mud bath. Kilaguni showed up early and waited for the dependent orphans to arrive. Only Kamok boycotted wallowing today. Pare, Wanjala and Mundusi had a game of riding on the young boys in water, notably Sattao, Musiara and Dololo.
Soon after they had enough wallowing, Karisa led the way over to the soil mound for a dust bath, as Nabulu walked to the water trough to join two wild bulls drinking water. As soon as she had enough, Nabulu walked back to join her friends.
In the afternoon, Kauro settled to feed with Wanjala while Mteto had a lone game of rolling on the ground. Sapalan, Rapa, Karisa and Kauro dodged the Keepers and sneaked off into the bush on their own. When it was time to return to the stockades just before 5pm, the four boys were nowhere to be seen. This isn’t the first time the boys have decided to sneak off, but half an hour after the others returned to the stockades, the four boys brought themselves back. Barsilinga and his group had reported much earlier with Mutara’s group.In an effort to try and steal pellets in the stockades, Lemoyian kept climbing up the terrace wall in order to sneak under the barrier to get into the inner compound. The Keepers kept blocking him, but he eventually managed to climb the wall and sneak in. However, he was soon ushered back out to his friends!
Ex-orphans Kinna, baby Kama, Mulika, little Mkuu, Makena, Loijuk, baby Lili, Yatta, baby Yoyo, Yetu, Ithumbah, Naisula, Kitirua, Suguta, Mutara, Sities, Kainuk and a group of bachelor herds were at the stockade compound in the morning. When the dependent orphans tried to come out of their night stockades, the ex-orphans all came closer and created a jam as they tried to get into the compound. The Keepers intervened and cleared the way by shepherding everyone out! The ex-orphans then followed the dependent orphans down to wait for the lucerne. Dololo decided to challenge Rapa, all the while keeping in mind that if the going got too tough, he would simply call for help from his adopted older sisters in Mutara’s herd. Rapa, probably wise to his methods, handled him lightly. As soon as the lucerne distribution started, the two boys stopped their pushing game and ran to have their share.
Malima lay down to play and Jotto came over to climb on her. He made a run for it as soon as he saw Kainuk approaching, because he knew very well that Kainuk would push him away. Malima was happy that Kainuk showed up!
When it was time to leave for the bush to browse, Ambo seemed in a very jovial spirit and ran down the hill trumpeting. Despite his excitement, the rest of the herd headed east. Realizing that no one was following him and he was on his own, Ambo quickly changed direction and he ran after his friends. He hasn’t quite managed to establish himself with a leading role yet!
Malima teamed up with Malkia to browse, but they had a disagreement, so Malima moved off feed with Maramoja. Thirty-one wild elephant bulls were at the mud bath when the orphans arrived there for their noon milk feed. Challa and Taita represented the big ex-orphan boys as they came lolloping over the ridge and down the side of the mud bath into the cool water. Fourteen wild dogs, including some younger pups, were also at the mud bath. Some remained in the shade of the trees, while others relished the cool muddy waters in the shallows. They loped off once all the orphans started to arrive and the venue became a little busier.
In the afternoon, the orphans settled to browse in the Kanziku area. Jotto teamed up with Kamok as Sapalan settled to browse with Kauro and Wanjala. In the evening, Sattao led the way back to the stockades for the night.
Ithumbah, Yatta, Yoyo, Yetu, Tomboi, Loijuk, Lili and Kitirua were there to greet the orphans in the morning. When Roi came out of her stockade, she had a brief chat with young Yoyo. Their conversation didn’t seem to go well, however, as it soon led to a disagreement which developed into a pushing fight. Yoyo's elder sister, Yetu — who is never far from the young boy — quickly separated the quarreling pair and warned them not to misbehave. Roi and Yoyo went their separate ways.
Mulika, Mwende, Mkuu, Naisula, Kilabasi and Kilaguni arrived just as the dependent orphans were making their way out. Karisa spotted a buffalo and caused a stand-off by not allowing the buffalo to pass. Eventually, the buffalo ran off and Karisa looked pleased with the outcome. He didn't make the point of pursuing the buffalo and followed his friends instead.
Malkia teamed up with Musiara and Dololo to browse. A short while later, Dololo moved off to play with Mapia. Pare took a break from feeding to have a solo game, digging at a bank of soil with his tusks and dusting himself. Jotto then joined him and before long he initiated a sparring contest. It didn't last long, as the orphans moved off in the direction of the mud bath for their noon milk feed.
Only Dololo, Karisa, Musiara, Enkikwe, Esampu and Ambo decided to wallow in the mud bath today. Taita, Tomboi and Challa soon showed up in the company of a few wild bulls. Given that it was quite cool, the orphans didn't stay for long at the mud bath. Ndiwa led the way back out to browse. The afternoon was quiet as the orphans concentrated on browsing without any major distractions. At five o'clock in the evening, Nabulu led the way back to the stockades for the night.
It was a beautiful morning today, as the babies woke early and enjoyed their first milk bottle of the day. They later walked down to the lucerne area, where they joined ex-orphans from Mutara's herd. Some wild elephants were also present as they came for some fresh water to drink. As usual some buffalo tried to get close for a drink as well, but they had to wait for the elephants to finish and move off. Nabulu started scratching her belly on a rock and later led the whole group out to browse.
Out in the bush, all the elephants were very active and busy looking for the best vegetation to eat. It is still very dry and we are eagerly awaiting the rain. Enkikwe started playfighting with Mundusi while Jotto played with Malima. Mundusi later walked over to playfight Kauro and finally with Wanjala. As a young boy, he is fixated on testing the strength of his elder friends, thereby gauging his own! Nabulu led the herd to the mud bath for their milk bottles.
It was another chilly day and no one could be bothered to play in the water at the mud bath. No ex-orphans or wild elephants showed up to wallow. After the dependent orphans had their milk bottles, some walked off to have some water while others simply continued browsing in the bush.
All the orphans continued busily feeding in the afternoon, until they followed the Keepers back home in the evening. We saw very few wild elephants or ex-orphans today.
It was a cold morning. After enjoying the lucerne supplement feed, quite a few of the babies paused to scratch their necks on the stockade terrace. Maramoja thoroughly enjoyed her morning scratch while Sattao was spotted kneeling on the ground for a morning stretching exercise. Malima rolled on the ground with her trunk in the air, while Mapia and Rapa were busy playfighting. A buffalo visited to drink some water, but Kithaka and some of the wild bulls tried to block him. Jotto was on the other side of the compound, scooping and tossing soil in the air, while Mapia, Dololo and Rapa pushed each other. Rapa and Wanjala later started playfighting, but it didn’t last long, as all the dependent babies filed out to begin their day.
The orphans enjoyed the slightly cooler and cloudy morning, which meant they could concentrate on browsing without feeling too hot. Mapia paused every now and then to raise his trunk up in the air, just for fun.
Later on, the orphans walked to the mud bath for their milk bottles. It was still overcast and chilly, and very few wild elephants visited the mud bath. A few of our babies wallowed, but the majority didn't feel like it today. Jotto and Dololo started patting each other affectionately, while Maramoja and Malkia were busy playfighting. Ambo went on to have dust bath with Jotto. The orphans then left to continue browsing, leaving the wild elephants behind.
Out in the bush, all the orphans looked active due to the favourable weather. None of them had to seek shade, like other days. Dololo was busy rolling around on the ground and playing. Later in the afternoon, Nabulu led the herd home for their milk and to go to bed. As usual, Rapa, in the company of Sapalan, Kauro and Karisa, stayed behind in the bush and came in a half an hour later. We had also a group of wild elephants in the stockade, together with Mutara's herd of ex-orphans. They came for water and some company and then left.
The orphans were very jovial this morning as they waited for their milk bottles. Some, like Malima, were doing morning press-ups and pushing their heads down on the ground. After all the orphans had their milk, they went to the lucerne feeding area. A few ex-orphans from Mutara's herd and some wild elephants arrived to have water. Malima started scratching her bottom before the orphans walked out to the bush for their day of browsing.
Mapia started a playfight with Jotto. He went on to begin a game of rolling on the ground, playing, while the rest of the herd busily browsed. Later, they all walked to the mud bath for their milk.
It wasn’t very busy at the mud bath; there were only a few wild bulls drinking water and some were wallowing. Several our babies walked into the water and started wallowing, too. Malima was the most playful and stayed in the water for the longest. Enkikwe, Ambo and Malkia went to roll and play in the dust after wallowing.
It was quite warm this afternoon, but all the orphans were active and busy browsing, despite the heat. Nabulu, as usual, led the herd back home in the evening.
A big herd of wild elephants visited the stockades, together with some ex-orphans. One wild female was joined them with her newborn calf, a little boy, around two days old. This was obviously why our ex-orphans were with them, as they love tiny babies. Ishanga loved the baby the most and wanted to get close, but the mum kept pushing her away.
It was a wonderful morning at the stockades, which was full of elephants from all different corners of Ithumba. The dependent orphans had their milk bottles before walking down to feed on lucerne. The wild female with the newborn baby was also there. Loijuk and Lili were among the ex-orphans. Lili was enjoying playing with Mteto, and later played with Ambo. The dependent orphans then left the busy stockades and walked out to the bush to browse.
Out in the bush, all the orphans were very busy browsing, trying to find enough to eat. Pare took a break and started a game rolling on the ground in some loose soil, while Mundusi watched over him. Ndiwa stretched her trunk as high as she could up into the trees, where all the best leaves could still be found.
At the mud bath, a herd of wild elephants were wallowing and drinking water. Most of the dependent orphans went to wallow, as it was a very hot afternoon. Malima thoroughly enjoyed the mud bath again. Challa was the only ex-orphan who was present, in the company of wild bulls. Mundusi and Rapa played vigorously in the water, while Ambo and Mapia played together. When they were done messing about and cooling off, the orphans wandered out to browse for the rest of the afternoon.
We had a big buffalo who came to the stockade compound this evening for water, along with some wild elephants and Mutara's herd too.
It was a cold morning today. While the orphans had their bottles and lucerne, a big herd of wild elephants arrived to feed on lucerne, along with the ex-orphans in Mutara's and Yatta's herds. The wild female and her newborn baby arrived with her herd to join in on the lucerne feed. There were so many elephants enjoying the supplement food today, as it is so dry. Because it was so busy, the dependent orphans decided to leave early and begin their day of browsing.
Ambo started playfighting with Rapa, while Mundusi played with Ndiwa. The other orphans were concentrating on browsing and later they all walked to the mud bath for their milk bottles again.
It wasn’t that busy at the mud bath, but we had some wild bulls enjoying the fresh water from the trough and some enjoying a swim in the waterhole. The babies had their milk bottles, walked to the mud wallow, and started swimming. Mapia, Jotto and Sapalan were the most playful today. Kauro was having fun, too, trying to climb on Jotto in the water.
The wind picked up this afternoon and it was quite overcast. The orphans concentrated on browsing, so as to fill their tummies. Later, Nabulu led the herd back home for the night.
Mutara's herd was in the stockade compound, waiting for the young orphans to come out after their milk bottles. There weren’t any other elephants or ex-orphans who visited the stockades this morning. When the orphans were done, they leisurely walked out to the bush to browse.
The orphans looked very active this morning. Pare was playfighting with Barsilinga and Mundusi with Rapa. Mapia was busy patting Jotto, while the rest of the elephants browsed. Led by Dololo, the babies made their way to the mud bath for their milk bottles.
It was very hot and most of our babies walked into the mud wallow to cool down. A big group of wild bulls were wallowing and drinking water. Jotto started playing on the pile of loose soil, before heading back out to the bush for the second browsing session of the day. Some of the orphans had to take a break from browsing, as it was a hot afternoon and they had to seek shade. Others continued browsing, despite the heat and dry weather. Nabulu led the orphans home in the evening again.
There was some excitement at Ithumba this evening, after a wild elephant baby fell into one of the water troughs. The Keepers were able to retrieve the baby out of the trough and reunite it with its mother.
We received a little drizzle last night, a total of about 2mm of rain. This managed to settle the dust and is a good sign of rain to come, but of course we need a good deal more! The babies had their morning milk bottles as usual and walked down to the lucerne feeding area. Some wild bulls were at the water troughs and came to share some lucerne with the orphans. When they were done, the orphans walked out into the bush to begin their day of browsing.
All the orphans looked happy and active today due to the cold weather. Enkikwe was playfighting with Mundusi while Mteto chatted with Karisa. At one point, Nabulu stopped browsing to enjoy a good scratch against a tree, while Malima searched for some nice green vegetation as she relaxed under some shade.
At the mud bath, the orphans had their milk bottles and wallowed. Mapia was the most playful elephant today, along with Dololo and Musiara. Karisa and Wanjala playfighted around the waterhole. Ambo tried to join Musiara and Dololo’s game, but they kept ignoring him, so eventually he gave up and went to have a dust bath.
It was a hot afternoon and most of the orphans were busy searching for food. The dependent herd walked back home in the evening, but Ambo, Karisa, Kauro and Rapa decided to sneak away. They hid from the Keepers and didn’t come when they were called. Eventually, as it started to get later and a bit darker, they came returned to the stockades of their own accord. The Keepers, who had walked out to search for them, met them on the way and escorted them home.
At the stockade compound, we had a big herd of wild elephants with Mutara's herd of ex-orphans. They drank some water and left. The naughty boys, Kithaka and Lemoyian, were causing trouble for the Keepers by trying to sneak into the compound for lucerne, but eventually they followed the ex-orphans out into the bush.
It was a beautiful, clear morning as the dependent orphans met up with some of the ex-orphans and wild elephants. They all shared lucerne grass without disturbing one another. Kitirua and Naisula started chasing a buffalo who was trying to have some fresh water. Kauro joined them in chasing him. In the end, the poor buffalo had to wait to quench his thirst until all the officious elephants had gone.
Out in the bush, Mundusi and Sapalan were chatting and greeting one another. Mundusi wandered over to Kauro and started a playfight. It seems the orphans wanted to use the morning more for playing than browsing, as even the sensible girls Maramoja and Malkia started playing together. Mapia tried to climb on Malima, who was one of the only orphans attempting to begin her day of browsing.
After their milk bottles, some of the orphans decided to go for a swim. They met a group of wild bulls who were also wallowing. The orphans dusted themselves dry on the loose soil and then carried on browsing without wasting time with many games.
It was a very hot afternoon, but the orphans concentrated on browsing. Only a few sought shade and respite from the sun. As the day drew to a close, the orphans started their walk back to the stockades.
The biggest news of the day was when Kinna arrived after midday, accompanied by her firstborn, Kama — and a tiny, newborn baby following close behind! We are overjoyed. Kama was seriously protective and hiding her new sister from sun, trying to pull her close and keep her under her belly. Rapsu was also helping to shield the baby. She looks strong and is breastfeeding well. We provided Kinna with some lucerne supplements, which will help the new mother in this dry weather until the rain arrives and replenishes the vegetation. They wandered off into the bush for a while, but when the dependent orphans returned home, they returned. We gave Kinna more lucerne, which will help her keep producing enough milk for the baby. Every newborn baby for our ex-orphans is such wonderful news and we couldn’t be happier for Kinna.
It was a quiet morning today. The dependent orphans enjoyed their milk bottles and lucerne in peace, as no ex-orphans or wild elephants decided to visit. After about an hour of feeding quietly, a wild elephant herd arrived with a newborn baby. They walked straight to the lucerne area and started sharing with the dependent orphans. After the orphans had their fill, they walked out to begin their day of browsing. The wild herd remained, with the tiny newborn suckling from her mother.
The orphans were so playful this morning. We can’t help thinking they might know rain is on the way! Malima was digging the soil with her tusks and rolling around in it. At the mud bath, the milk-dependent babies had their bottles and then walked over to the troughs for a drink of water. It was quite a cold day, so only a few wild elephants were present and wallowing, and the orphans chose to forgo the water today. Malima and Dololo played a pushing game, as did Jotto and Mapia. One big, wild bull came to the water trough to share water with orphan babies. Eventually, another herd of wild elephants arrived to wallow in the waterhole. The orphans decided to leave and go back to browsing.
It started to heat up in the afternoon. Eventually, Malima and Musiara sought shade under some trees. The rest of the herd continued browsing, despite the heat. They just flapped their ears continuously to try and keep cool. Nabulu led the herd back home in the evening.
A wild herd of elephants arrived at the stockades this evening, along with Kinna, her newborn, who we have named Kaia, and Kama. They all shared some lucerne before walking back into the bush. Sities is acting as a very good nanny. Barsilinga arrived later in the evening with the rest of Class Five. They really enjoy spending the day on their own, but they continue to return at night and to sleep in the stockades.
It was a beautiful sunrise this morning, as the orphans came out of their stockades and enjoyed lucerne. Kilaguni was the only ex-orphan present, so everyone enjoyed their supplemental feed in peace and quiet. Siangiki went for a scratch on one of the big rocks before heading out to the bush to browse and her friends followed slowly behind.
It’s still very dry and all the orphans were searching for nice food to eat. Malima started playing her own little game, doing little press ups and then digging at the ground with her tusks. Dololo and Galla kept cool by scooping and tossing soil in the air and onto their backs.
The orphans made their way to the mud bath for their noon milk feed. They found that it wasn’t that busy, as there were only a few wild elephants there. Some of the orphans decided to wallow today. Mundusi, Mapia and Maramoja were the most playful! They were the last to leave the mud bath and came running out of the water to catch up with their friends, who had resumed browsing already.
The orphans were all busy browsing together but Rapa and Sapalan decided to sneak away from the group. They walked back to the stockades on their own, where they sought out the leftover lucerne! It seems they decided this was much easier than searching for ample vegetation out in the bush. Later, Nabulu led the rest of the herd back home for their milk bottles and to go to bed for the night.
A wild herd with a newborn baby visited the stockades today. The baby was very active and playful, and she was also playing with our ex-orphans Naseku and Kitirua. Kinna and her babies Kama and Kaia did not appear today.
The last few days have been rather peaceful, but this morning was a little different. We had a big herd of wild and ex-orphan elephants visit the stockade compound this morning. The babies had their milk bottles and walked down to feed on lucerne provided by the Keepers. It was rather hectic, as a headcount showed there was around 106 elephants in total! Kinna, Kama and Kaia were among all the elephants, as well as another herd with a tiny baby. It seems all the breastfeeding mums with newborns are staying close to the area, where they know they have a supply of water and tasty supplements. Yatta and Mulika were also around with their babies. Baby Mkuu started playing with Malima, while Kaia was very active and playful, scratching her little body on Kinna’s leg. The orphans decided it was too busy for them and didn’t stick around long before making their way out to the bush to begin their day of browsing.
Ambo and Maramoja chose to browse together. Maramoja relieved an itch on her head against a tree while Malima was busy scratching her bottom against a rock. Sana Sana and Jotto started playfighting but their game came to a natural end as their friends started to walk to the milk feeding area at the mud bath.
It wasn’t very hot today, as it was rather overcast, so most of the orphans chose not to wallow. This left the wild bulls present peacefully enjoying their wallow without the babies splashing around. The orphans left to continue browsing, which they did at the base of Ithumba Hill. That evening, Nabulu led the dependent herd home for the night.
It was a quiet morning, as the orphans enjoyed feeding on lucerne alone without any ex-orphans or wild elephants about. Kauro had a scratch while Malima shared a drink with a wild bull. The babies walked out to the bush with Jotto and Mundusi playfighting along the way. Malkia, Musiara and Dololo were being very affectionate towards one another, patting each other with their trunks. Musiara went on to scratch against a tree, while Esampu and Dololo had a playfight.
Loijuk and her baby, Lili, visited the mud bath while the orphans were there. Most of the orphans wallowed in the mud bath after having their milk bottles, as it was quite warm. Later, they came out and walked straight to the pile of loose soil to dry off. As usual, Kauro didn’t play in the water but demanded attention from Malkia. Mapia had a good wallowing session and later really enjoyed the dust bath; he lay at the top of the mound and almost seemed to fall asleep there! There were a lot of wild bulls today who were happily wallowing in the mud bath while the orphans were there.
Back in the bush, Enkikwe browsed with Mundusi while Jotto relaxed against a tree as he browsed at the same time. He later started playing with Ambo, rolling around on the ground. Pare led the orphans home for the evening.
When the orphans arrived at the stockades, they found some wild bulls there, along with a female with a newborn. Ex-orphan Kitirua was with them, acting as a wonderful nanny towards the wild baby.
It was a beautiful sunrise this morning, with a warm light slowly bathing the stockades from the east. The orphans had their breakfast milk bottles before heading over to the lucerne feeding area. They were happy to enjoy the lucerne by themselves this morning, without all the commotion from either wild elephants or ex-orphans.
Out in the bush, the orphans seemed pretty active. Sattao was spotted playing with a log, rolling it around with his front foot. Later, at the noon milk feed, Ndiwa and Mapia came running in to have their milk bottles first. Musiara, Sattao, Ambo and Jotto were not far behind, and everyone ran towards a Keeper for their share. They later walked to the mud bath and started wallowing in the water. Rapa was scratching his trunk against the side of the mud bath while Kuishi scratched her bottom. Mapia and Ndiwa started patting one another affectionately and later all the orphans walked back out to the bush to browse.
It was a very hot afternoon and the orphans rested under some trees for shade. When it was a little cooler, they went back to feeding and later in the afternoon they finally made their way back home for the night. Barsilinga's group came in very late today and didn’t want to be locked into their stockade, but finally they relented.
At the stockades today, we had Kinna with her new baby, Kaia, and her firstborn, Kama. They came to visit together with Mulika, Mwende, Mkuu, Yetu, Yoyo, Ishanga and Kibo. Kaia looks very active and in good health; she is feeding well from Kinna. Some wild bulls also came during the day for some water.
The milk-dependent orphans had their bottles just as dawn broke, before joining their fellow ex-orphans to feed on some lucerne supplement food. Kinna came with her new baby, Kaia, to have some lucerne. Kaia is very playful, and her mum Kinna is very protective of her. It was very funny to watch Kaia learn how to use her trunk. Kama is also very protective of her baby sister. Yatta, Mulika and Loijuk were also present with their babies Yetu, Yoyo, Mwende and Mkuu, as they are all part of the same herd. Eventually, the dependent orphans walked out to the bush to browse, leaving behind the ex-orphans still feeding on lucerne.
Mundusi and Sattao started playfighting, while the other orphans continued browsing. When it was time, the orphans slowly grouped themselves together and made their way towards the mud bath for the next milk feed.
When they arrived, they found Kinna already there with Kaia sleeping on the ground, as the rest of the ex-orphans forming a protective circle around the baby. The orphans came in and had their milk bottles as usual before walking over to the waterhole for a swim. They really enjoyed wallowing today, and splashed and rolled around in the water for some time. Mulika and Mkuu enjoyed swimming with the orphans, too.
Kinna and Kaia accompanied the orphans back out to the bush in the afternoon, with some of Kaia's nannies. It’s very dry at the moment, and the orphans concentrated on finding enough food to eat. Some sought shelter under some trees in the heat of the day. Kinna's herd separated themselves from the junior orphans and walked back to the stockades for some water. The orphans joined them a little later in the afternoon and walked back into the night stockades. Kinna’s herd was served with some lucerne when they arrived back, so that they can keep their energy and milk supply up. We had also two wild babies in the stockade compound today with their families. Both groups made their way back out to the bush much later at night.
The ex-orphans who chose to spend the night outside the stockades were joined by the dependent orphans in the morning. After sharing some lucerne, the dependent orphans left for browsing, leaving the ex-orphans relaxing in the stockade compound. As usual, the older orphans in Class Five who are the closest to becoming independent parted ways with their friends to spend the day on their own. Despite his age, Enkikwe remains dependent, because the injuries inflicted by lions in 2018 set him back a few years. Today, he decided to team up with Class Five. In that Class, he happens to be great friends with Siangiki and Olsekki.
At around ten o'clock in the morning, the temperature soared, making Karisa, Malkia, Kuishi, Jotto, Musiara, Mteto and Sapalan seek shelter under some trees that had nice shade.
45 wild bulls were at the mud bath when the orphans arrived. Soon after finishing their milk, the orphans headed straight to the mud bath for a swim! Kauro, Maramoja, Karisa and Pare were hesitant to go into the water but later joined their friends after seeing how much they were enjoying the cool water! After having enough of wallowing, Mapia engaged Jotto in a strength testing exercise as the rest of the herd went for a dust bath. Zurura, Challa and Rapsu arrived later and joined the wild bulls drinking and wallowing.
The afternoon was quiet as the orphans settled to browse along the upper Kalovoto seasonal river. In the evening, the wild bull known as ‘Dad’ joined the bachelor herds at the stockade to have some water. Also present was a family unit consisting of a mother whose daughter gave birth a week ago. She seemed very proud to have become a grandmother. Trailing behind was her second son and her last-born daughter, who was acting as a very good nanny to her niece. By the end of the day, given the drought situation, all the elephants in the area had consumed 80,000 litres of drinking water at the stockade compound. Combined with the troughs at the mud bath, it was a total of 140,000 litres of water. We expect this trend will continue until the rains finally arrive; due to climate change these days, no one knows exactly when this might happen.
Kinna, who is doing so well as a mother, joined the orphans for lucerne in the morning. She was in the company of Yatta, Yoyo, Yetu, Mulika, Mwende, Mkuu, Loijuk, Lili, Makena, Ishanga, Ithumbah, Kilabasi, Kitirua and Naisula. Shortly thereafter, Buchuma, who has been missing in action for quite some time now, emerged from the east of the stockades and settled for water. We were so happy to see him! Nabulu, who hasn’t set eyes on Buchuma since coming to Ithumba, looked at him with such admiration. Perhaps she was wondering where he has kept himself all this time. Yatta and her herd also walked down to say hi to Buchuma. After he had had enough water, Buchuma headed off in the same direction he arrived.
On the way out to browse, Sapalan and Sana Sana spotted some guinea fowls ahead of them. The two orphans charged and trumpeted as they chased the birds. This sachieved the desired effect of sending the birds shrieking and flying up into the nearest trees. The orphans can’t resist a good chasing game!
Later in the morning, Ambo was spotted playing with Musiara while Mundusi played with Mapia. Ndiwa came across a suitable tree that she scratched her ear against.
At mud bath time, the orphans were joined by the ex-orphans and some wild bulls. The mud bath session didn't last for long, however. The orphans headed for a soil dusting exercise and returned to browsing. Enkikwe and Karisa managed to dodge the Keepers just as it was time to return to the stockades for the night; the two were nowhere to be found! They later returned by themselves shortly before dark.
Yatta and her herd were outside the stockade compound, waiting for the Keepers to distribute some lucerne this morning. Also in the queue were some wild elephants. Notable among them was a family herd that had a tiny baby with them. Soon after the lucerne feeding was over, the different groups parted ways. The dependent orphans headed east.
Tusuja and Barsilinga found some suitable rocks that they used to scratch against. Ambo had a stretching exercise by stepping on a rock and later engaged Musiara in a pushing game. Their game didn't last long, as Malima disrupted their fun when she passed by to catch up with her friends. Wanjala decided to scratch his itchy ear against a tree as Jotto ran into trouble with Kauro when he tried to block his way. Ex-orphan Kenze appeared and accompanied the orphans out to browse, but he left an hour later. Pare took a break from feeding to play with Karisa while Sapalan scratched on some nearby rocks.
At mud bath time, the orphans were joined by Challa. Later, some more wild bulls arrived at the mud bath. After wallowing, the orphans headed for a soil dusting exercise before returning to the browsing field. As the orphans were browsing, a troop of chattering baboons passed by, disrupting the present tranquility. Wanjala, Mundusi, Rapa, Kauro and Dololo didn't take this lightly and decided to team up to drive the noisy baboons away. Calm was restored and the orphans resumed browsing in peace.
It was another blessed day at Ithumba, as we woke up to yet another gift, this time presented to us by Naserian. Naserian stood outside the stockade compound with her new bundle of joy, a baby girl. Naserian was accompanied by Wendi, Wiva, Wema, Sunyei and Siku — a group that was last seen back in April. Wiva was acting as nanny to Naserian's baby, just as Naserian had looked after her when she was a baby. Malkia and Sana Sana tried to get close to the baby, but were blocked by Wiva. Kauro, as usual, took his own share of lucerne and went to stand on his own, to avoid being disturbed by the others. Pare joined a wild bull to have some water. Ambo, Mapia, Esampu and Karisa took a break on the way out to browse and scratched against some rocks.
Barsilinga, Roi, Naseku, Tusuja, Oltaiyoni, Olsekki and Siangiki followed Naserian and her herd, perhaps in an attempt to spend some time with the new baby. The dependent orphans settled to browse in the Kanziku area. It is still dry, so the orphans concentrated mostly on browsing. Sattao, Musiara and Jotto took a break from browsing to have fun by rolling on the ground.
Later at the mud bath, the orphans only had their milk bottles and some water before going straight back out to browse without swimming. In the afternoon, Dololo dodged the Keepers and couldn't be found anywhere, right up to when it was time to return home. The Keepers hoped he had run away to be with his older adopted sisters, but to their surprise, Mutara’s herd was waiting at the stockades without the boy. The only hope now remained with the Class Five members, because Roi happens to be a close friend of Dololo’s whenever the big girls are absent. At around 8.30pm, much to our relief, Dololo arrived back at the stockades with the Class Five members. It's not clear how he managed to sneak away and walk miles away to join up with this group, but all the same, we were very happy when Dololo returned to join his stockades-mates Ambo, Jotto and Sattao.
Challa, Sunyei, siku, Wiva, Wendi, Wema, Makena, Yatta, Yetu, Yoyo, Kinna, Kama, Kaia, Naserian, her new little baby Njema, Kilabasi, Kitirua, Ithumbah, Loijuk, Lili and Zurura joined the dependent orphans in the morning for lucerne. Later, the group parted ways with the ex-orphans, heading in the direction of the mud bath, while the dependent orphans turned east. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky; this was a clear indication of a hot day ahead.
The orphans settled to browse in the Kalovoto area and had a quiet morning. Sattao teamed up with Malima and Nabulu, while Jotto settled to browse with Ambo, Dololo and Musiara. Towards mud bath time, Sana Sana, followed by Malkia and Mteto, led the way to the mud bath for the noon milk feed. The ex-orphans had already finished wallowing and dusting, so as the orphans arrived for their mud bath, they were just relaxing under a tree. Only Sunyei, Siku and Wiva joined the orphans to wallow again. 11 wild bulls were present when the orphans arrived, but the number had gone up to about 40 by the time the orphans left to browse. Ndiwa led the way.
Karisa, Ambo, Nabulu, Rapa, Enkikwe and Pare teamed up and walked off away from the others without the knowledge of the keepers. The six orphans showed up later, just as the rest of the herd were preparing to return to the stockades for the night.
The ex-orphans, as it has become their norm, were waiting outside the stockades in the morning. It seems Kinna and Naserian are especially keen to share the supplement food now, as they have young babies and need to keep up their milk supply. Mapia, who appeared to have woken up on the wrong side of the stockade, pushed Jotto out of the way, roughly and without any apparent reason. Jotto just cried out and moved away from Mapia. Later, Jotto gathered the courage to retaliate, but Kamok intervened by separating the two boys. Mteto and Dololo had the opportunity to meet and interact with baby Njema before Naserian took her away. Dololo, Sattao and Ambo lagged behind as the rest of the orphans started to walk out, but caught up with the rest of the group after they were done socializing with the ex-orphans.
At mud bath time, the orphans were joined by the ex-orphans again. As the Keepers were busy eating their lunch, Enkikwe walked behind the milk vehicle that still had its back door open. He pulled one of the crates out of the back of the car to find out if the Keepers were hiding any leftover milk there. The Keepers heard the commotion and wondered what was going on. Upon checking, they were surprised to see Enkikwe going through the bottles, inspecting if there was any milk left in them. Enkikwe ran away as soon as he saw the Keepers coming, because he knew he was being naughty!
The ex-orphans escorted the orphans back out to browse. For once, all the orphans behaved themselves for the entire afternoon and no one snuck off.
A wild herd was waiting outside the stockade compound this morning. Mapia walked to one of the water troughs to help himself to water. Rapa went to the second trough, while Karisa joined a wild bull at the third one.
On the way out to browse this morning, Malima, Nabulu and Sattao settled for scratching as Galla enjoyed a soil dusting exercise. Tusuja teamed up to browse with Mteto, while Sapalan took a break from feeding to dust himself with some cool soil. Pare climbed up a rock to to make himself taller, so he could reach higher leaves. Nabulu ran in trouble with Sattao when she tried to reach for a shrub that he had his eyes on. Nabulu apologised to Sattao, as it wasn't her intention to take from him and she just didn't know he had interests in the same shrub. Nabulu walked away to search for something else nice to eat.
Sana Sana led the way to the mud bath. The temperature was moderate and only a few orphans participated in wallowing. Sana Sana, Pare, Mteto, Karisa, Sapalan and Esampu joined a wild bull relaxing under a tree. In the afternoon, the orphans settled to browse along the Kalovoto seasonal river, which is dry at the moment. Rapa and Wanjala decided to go and look for their friend Galla, who spends most of his time with Barsilinga’s group these days. The two boys didn't return in the evening to join their friends. Roi, Oltaiyoni, Naseku and Kamok returned at 7pm. Barsilinga, Olsekki, Siangiki, Rapa, Wanjala and Tusuja spent the night out and returned in the wee hours of the morning. The gates were closed, so the six orphans relaxed outside, waiting for daybreak to rejoin their friends.
The Class Five members who had spent the night outside waited patiently for their friends to be let out. Rapa and Tusuja kept themselves busy by engaging one another in a pushing game. Lucerne was distributed by the Keepers and the orphans shared it all peacefully before heading out to browse. Kauro engaged Mundusi in a pushing game that ended when Mundusi surrendered. Malima found a small hole, which she dug out to make into a personal dust bath. Dololo played nearby with Musiara.
Barsilinga and his group decided to stick around and browse with the juniors this morning. They all went to the mud bath together, but later parted ways. Barsilinga and his friends didn’t seem to want to spend another night out. They returned to the stockades early, well before 5 o’clock, to make sure that they were shut into the stockades and got to enjoy the extra supplements that the others do.
Kamok and Galla, who left with the ex-orphans in the morning, didn't come back in the evening. It appears that the two orphans are now experimenting with spending nights out with the older ex-orphans, as they prepare for their complete return to the wild.