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The orphans went for some lucerne breakfast soon after leaving the stockades. Several wild bulls were milling around, along with Naisula, Nyx, Mteto, Esampu, Kenze, Kalama, Mutara, Kithaka, Mambo, Suguta, Sities, Nasalot, Nusu, Kainuk, Turkwel and Chaimu. After having enough lucerne, Sagateisa led the way out. Roho, Naboishu, Dololo, Larro and Kinyei passed by the water trough to drink enough water to see them through the entire morning. Olorien lagged behind with the ex-orphans and followed her friends later. After the orphans left two buffaloes showed up and joined the wild elephants drinking water.

Musiara teamed up with Lodo to browse while Olorien settled to browse with Roho. Esoit, as usual, engaged Bondeni in a strength testing match. It was nice to see Zurura when he joined the orphans briefly on his way towards the Ithumba compound for a drink. The orphans raised their trunks to acknowledge Zurura but quickly got back to browsing.

Kindani led the way to the mud bath for the noon milk feed and after their bottles, the orphans joined some wild bulls in the mud bath. When they were done swimming, Ambo led the group to drink some fresh water. Kindani busied herself on the loose soil while her friends drank and only after the group left did she decide to go for a drink herself. By the time she went for a drink the wild bulls had moved back into place and she felt she couldn’t access the water trough. Kindani raised her front foot from time to time and turned to face the Keepers, signalling that she needed help accessing the water. The Keepers understood her message and came forward to request the wild bulls to make way so that little Kindani could have a drink as well. The bulls stepped back as Kindani ran happily to the water trough to quench her thirst.

On the way back out to the bush, Lodo engaged Roho in a pushing game that ended in a draw. The dependent orphans were joined by Mutara’s group for a short while. It was very hot and the orphans took a break from feeding to relax under a tree until it was cooler. Olorien led the way back to the stockades in the evening.

Mutara’s herd spent the night just outside the stockade compound. When the orphans came out Naleku got to play with Mambo for a while. When he was done playing with Naleku Mambo walked back to join his nannies, and Sattao led the way out to the bush.

It was a quiet morning as the orphans browsed calmly. It was still fairly cool when Roho led the way for the mid-day milk feed. Shortly later, Mutara and her group showed up at the mud bath. Mutara walked side by side with her baby as they shared a branch Mutara was feasting on. The impressive wild bull we refer to as ‘Dad’ and his friends arrived at the mud bath for a drink, but they didn’t stay long. The orphans walked to the water trough and drank enough water to see them through for the rest of the day, as they wouldn’t come across any more out in the drying landscape. Dololo and Sattao had a brief strength testing exercise before heading back out to the bush. Sagateisa stayed behind to enjoy cooling off with the wild bulls who were present. She is such an independent young girl!

In the afternoon the orphans settled to browse west of Ithumba Hill where they browsed quietly for the rest of the day.

The sky was partly covered by clouds when the orphans were let out this morning. The compound looked deserted as no wild elephants or ex-orphans were around. It has been so dry recently we couldn’t ever imagine seeing no wild elephants around the water trough, as they have been coming every day. It looked strange to wake up to an empty compound. The orphans were more than happy however to have the whole area to themselves, as they ate their lucerne in peace without any competition. Bondeni took a break from feeding on lucerne to enjoy scratching his belly on a rock, while Dololo and Lodo were busy wrestling. When she decided it was time, Naleku led the way out for the day.

The soil was still damp and Kuishi, Ambo and Naboishu decided to have fun rolling on the ground. The orphans had a quiet morning as they enjoyed the cool weather. They browsed in the Kanziku area right up until it was time to head to the mud bath, and Suguroi led the first group.

When they were done mud bathing and drinking, the dependent orphans walked to browse west of Ithumba Hill and browsed calmly for the rest of the day.

As they came out of their night stockades, the Ithumba orphans went straight to enjoy some lucerne which was being distributed by the Keepers. Five wild bulls were present but didn't join in. They only drank water before walking off back into the bush. Mutara’s little group, who arrived early before dawn, did however join the dependent orphans for some supplemental food. When he was done, Dololo was the first one to start making his way out to the bush, and the rest of the herd followed.

Later in the morning Roho decided to sneak up behind Kindani and launch a surprise pushing match on the unsuspecting little girl. Lodo was nearby and decided to separate himself as he didn’t want to get caught up in the frivolities. He walked off and decided to dust himself with a pile of loose soil he found. A wild bull briefly joined the orphans as he was walking west. The boys Naboishu, Bondeni and Esoit raised their trunks up in admiration and to greet the wild bull as he passed. Kuishi walked by and took Naboishu off to browse with her. A lesser kudu, minding his own business, walked close by to where the orphans were browsing, and this set them off in a playful mood, charging about. The usual playful suspects Naleku, Suguroi, Larro and Esoit charged as they ran towards the lesser kudu. The poor antelope didn’t hang around and ran for its dear life, leaving the orphans charging at empty bushes.

Later in the day while at the mud bath, the dependent orphans were joined by Malkia, Neshashi, Nabulu, Kandecha, Malima, and Mutara’s herd. The senior ex-orphans, led by Kinna, arrived later. Little did we know however that they would convince Jotto, Ambo, Sagateisa, Sattao, and Suguroi to leave with them! As the Keepers were gathering the dependent orphans to return to the compound for the night, they found that the five orphans were missing. They started searching immediately and two hours later, the missing five were found safely brought back to the stockades.

The orphans settled for lucerne soon after leaving the stockades. Only Kibo and two wild sub-adults turned up to share lucerne with the dependent babies. Suguroi, Naleku and Olorien walked down to the water trough to have some water. They were soon joined by Larro, Esoit and Mukkoka. Suguroi yelled out to complain when Naleku tried to push her away from the water trough. Mukkoka came to her rescue and warned Naleku not to be so badly behaved. Naleku shook her head and walked away. Sagateisa then led the herd out for the day.

Out in the bush the orphans were joined by Kauro and Kithaka. Bondeni engaged Esoit in a strength testing exercise while Olorien rolled on the ground, enjoying her own little game. Roho challenged Naboishu and their pushing game ended in a draw. Jotto, Dololo, Ambo and Sattao split from the main herd and browsed a short distance away. They later rejoined the group on the way to the mud bath.

The temperature was moderate and actually only Roho decided to have a mud bath, splashing muddy water on his face and back. This all changed in the afternoon, however, and the temperature skyrocketed, prompting the orphans to take cover under some trees to avoid the scorching sun. It seems this shifting weather was all building up to an almighty storm — before long, clouds gathered and within no time, it started raining heavily. This caught everyone unaware, including the orphans! They were already making their way back to the stockades but they quickened their pace to get back to the compound. The rain stopped after about half an hour, giving us 20mm of rain.

Olare, Oltaiyoni, Meibai, Barsilinga, Maramoja, Neshashi and two wild bulls arrived at the compound this morning. Dololo and Bondeni walked down to the water trough to drink water and after, Bondeni challenged Dololo to a pushing game. Bondeni lost the game and moved to try his luck on Ambo, but lost again! Sagateisa interacted with Meibai for a bit, perhaps inquiring where he had been for the last few weeks. Shortly later, Mukkoka led his friends out to browse.

Olorien settled to enjoy some shrubbery with Lodo while Bondeni opted to play his own game rolling on the ground. Sattao and Musiara liked the look of his game and took a break from feeding to have a soil dusting session. Larro and Kuishi browsed close to their favourite little boy, Esoit.

Funnily enough it was actually quite cool for once. After having their noon milk feed the dependent orphans went straight for a drink of water and skipped a mud bath. Only one wild bull showed up and shared water with the orphans. In the afternoon Roho engaged Dololo in a pushing match while Naboishu played with Mukkoka. Jotto and Ambo browsed separately from the others; it seems these days they are contemplating their independence and often seek to separate themselves from the dependent herd and spend more time with the ex-orphans too.

20 wild bulls were present in the morning when the orphans were let out. The bulls concentrated on drinking water while the orphans enjoyed their lucerne. One of the wild bulls decided to join the orphans and Dololo was brave enough to welcome the wild bull into their group. Kindani and Bondeni walked down to the water trough to have water as they waited for their friends to finish. As soon as they had enough, Kuishi rumbled, informing her friends that it was time to start heading out for the day. Esoit was the first one to respond, joining Kuishi at the head of the group. Jotto was reluctant and lagged behind, before deciding to catch up with the herd.

With the two recent showers, the orphans are relishing the new green shoots sprouting everywhere, and preoccupied themselves by looking for the most succulent leaves and shoots all morning.

When it was time, Naleku led the way for the noon milk feed. Teleki, Wanjala, Ishanga, Naserian, Njema, Yatta, Makena, Tumaren, Namalok and fifteen wild bulls showed up at the mud bath while the dependent orphans were there. Naboishu had a brief interaction with Teleki as Sagateisa, Musiara and Ambo joined the ex-orphans in the mud bath.

Kindani didn’t want to join the orphans drinking water, even after the Keepers had moved the wild bulls aside. When her friends had finished and walked away, Kindani remained behind. The bulls moved back to the water trough after the orphans left, but Kindani made it known to the Keepers that she would not leave until the bulls were moved away again so that she could enjoy drinking water all by herself. The Keepers realised they had no option other than to respect the spoilt little baby’s wishes, so they once again stepped forward and asked the wild bulls to move back, whereby Kindani slowly and majestically walked up to the water trough. Kindani drank the water slowly until she had enough, but then started playing with the water instead of following her friends. The bulls were still patiently waiting for their turn to drink. The Keepers didn’t wish to tolerate her behaviour any longer and stepped back, which was a signal to the bulls that they could once again come forward to drink. Kindani didn’t hang around as she didn’t want to be surrounded by the huge bulls all by herself, and she ran quickly to catch up with the rest of the herd.

In the afternoon Kuishi, Bondeni, Kinyei, Esoit and Suguroi took a break from feeding to have fun rolling on the ground. Olorien led the way back home in the evening. 

A wild herd with young babies joined the orphans to feed on lucerne in the morning. One of the wild babies came over to play with Naleku and then with Roho. Roho restrained himself and wasn’t his usual boisterous self, for fear of hurting the baby and suffering the consequences should his mother retaliate! When the baby became a little more rough, Roho decided to walk away to avoid any temptation of dealing firmly with the youngster. The wild baby then met with Sagateisa, but Sagateisa didn't have time for any games, and simply pushed the baby out of her way. When the orphans had enough lucerne, Olorien led her friends out to browse.

The orphans settled to browse north of the compound where they spent a quiet morning browsing until they headed towards the mud bath. Kindani engaged Mukkoka in a light pushing game while Roho played with Naboishu. Kuishi came across a nice rock that she used to scratch her belly on. On the way to the mud bath, the orphans encountered a herd of buffaloes. Roho, Naleku, Larro, Bondeni and Suguroi charged and trumpeted trying to scare the buffaloes away, but they were unperturbed, forcing the orphans to change course and use a different path to the mud bath.

Under the hot sun the orphans indulged in a refreshing mud wallow after having their noon milk feed. After they congregated around the water trough for a drink. Naleku and Naboishu enjoyed a soil dusting exercise. In the afternoon the orphans browsed west of the Ithumba Hill, briefly joined by Mutara’s herd. Seeking refuge from the scorching sun, the orphans took a break from feeding to relax under a tree. Later, they decided to visit the roadside mud bath before returning to the stockade compound.

The day took an unexpected and most joyful turn around four o'clock, when Mwende, last seen four days ago, reappeared with a one day old baby girl! She was accompanied by Makireti and Gawa, before the rest of the ex-orphans arrived as well. We were surprised as the last time we saw Mwende we didn’t think she was due to give birth very soon! We thought Makena and Olare might have their babies before her, but Mwende proved our ‘guestimations’ wrong! Mwende’s arrival added a delightful twist to the day with Kama, Ukame and Wiva taking on the nurturing role of nannies to the new baby. Later Mwende led her new baby to the mud bath, followed by all the ex-orphans.

In all the excitement, Jotto, Ambo, Dololo, Olorien and Bondeni managed to evade the Keepers and walk off far away from the rest of the group. It was when the Keepers were gathering the orphans together to walk back to the compound that they realised the five orphans were missing. A search was mounted and eventually the Keepers managed to locate the missing elephants and escort them back to the stockades for the night.  

After leaving their stockades the orphans were joined by Kilaguni and two wild bulls to share lucerne. Before she could enjoy any breakfast, Larro went to relieve an itch on a nearby rock. Suguroi challenged Lodo to a pushing game. Their game ended prematurely, however, when Jotto passed by and pushed them both out of the way. Independent Sagateisa walked down to the water trough and joined a wild bull drinking water. After the orphans had enough lucerne, Naleku led the way out to the bush. 

On the way the orphans encountered some wild dogs. Mischievous Bondeni, Dololo, Mukkoka and Naboishu charged at the wild dogs and they ran away, heading south. As they browsed north of the stockades, Esoit chose to stick close to his good friend Kuishi, as the rest of the herd scattered out and browsed quietly and contently without any interference.

Only Roho, Larro, Musiara, Lodo, Sagateisa and Mukkoka decided to wallow in the main mud bath after having their milk bottles. These are our water babies and they love swimming usually, not matter the weather! Nabulu, Mapia, Rapa, Galla and Kauro, who only became independent quite recently, decided to pass by and greet the dependent orphans in the afternoon. Jotto had a brief strength testing exercise with his old friend Mapia before settling to browse. Perhaps Mapia is wondering when his friend Jotto might decide to join them and from his behaviour recently, we don’t think it will be too long!

In the evening the dependent orphans returned safely to the stockade compound for the night, but little did we know another surprise was in store for us! Tumaren, who was only here yesterday with her friends, arrived with her own little baby boy at her feet! She didn’t yet have any nannies accompanying her, but we are sure it won’t be long too before she has many applicants for that position and is surrounded by nurturing friends. The baby was still wobbling along and unsteady on his feet, meaning Tumaren had literally only given birth recently. She has given birth only two days after Mwende brought her own baby girl to introduce her to the human family. Now we are just waiting for when Makena and Olare might deliver! It is an exciting time at the Ithumba stockades and for the Keepers!

Tiny Tembo and Tumaren were present in the morning. With the memory still fresh in her mind regarding Tembo’s fall in the water trough, Tumaren gave the trough a wide berth and escorted her baby around as she made her way to the lucerne feeding area. After they were done with their lucerne breakfast, Kuishi led her friends out for the day.

Esoit and Bondeni began their day with their usual wrestling match, but it came to an end when Esoit slipped and fell. He was absolutely fine, but Roho came over and helped defend Esoit by pushing Bondeni away. With his heroic act done, Roho moved to play with Lodo. Jotto was standing close by and as usual he didn’t tolerate these wrestling matches for some reason; he passed by and pushed both boys away.

Browsing in the Kanziku area, Suguroi teamed up with Sagateisa and Naleku and the trio moved off away from their friends to browse on their own. Jotto had a small fight with Musiara which escalated into a fight. The two boys went on pushing each other until the Keepers intervened and warned them to stop fighting and concentrate on browsing.

The day was getting warm and at mud bath time the orphans all wanted to wallow in the water. They were joined briefly by Chyulu, Cheka, Sidai, Silas, Kinna, Kama, Kaia, Kilabasi, Kofi, Yatta, Yogi, Nasalot, Nusu, Noah, Mulika’s family and several wild bulls.

As the day wore on it was still very hot and Kinyei, Roho, Dololo, Larro, Olorien and Suguroi took a break from feeding to relax under some trees, hiding from the scorching sun. On the way home Musiara and Jotto lagged behind as they were so ensconced in a pushing match. They returned to the stockade later after six o'clock, long after their friends were already safely shut in for the night.

While the dependent orphans were feeding on lucerne they were joined by lots of ex-orphans and some wild elephants too. The meeting was brief however as the orphans were in a hurry to begin their day and feast on the many green shoots sprouting in the park after the recent rain. They were soon joined by Kithaka, Neshashi, Malima and Mapia, who quietly browsed alongside their younger friends, before wandering off on their own mission again. Lodo teamed up with Suguroi to browse while Kindani and Naleku decided to have a brief soil dusting exercise. Naleku found a tasty looking shrub and broke some branches that she started playing with, throwing them in the air to land on her head and back. She clearly feels that with the rain, food is plentiful again, and she was excited that she didn’t need to be too concerned with eating it all – some was right for playing! Naboishu had a disagreement with Roho which soon escalated into a pushing game.

Olorien led the first group to the mud bath while Sagateisa led the second one. The increasingly independent Ambo, Kuishi, Dololo and Sattao lagged behind, showing up later when the mud bath was almost over.

It seems different groups of ex-orphans wished to pop in today as later the orphans were briefly joined by Kilaguni, Malkia, Ndiwa and Sana Sana. The afternoon was very hot and the orphans all took cover under some shade until it was cooler. Kuishi, Esoit, Naleku, Kinyei and Mukkoka eventually decided it was worth a trip to the roadside mud bath to cool down. Later Mukkoka engaged Musiara in a strength testing game, in which Musiara emerged as the winner.