Zongoloni is constantly trying to recruit younger orphans to join the semi-independent orphans, the ‘nightclubbers,’ and it seems that Maktao is her latest recruit. The month began with her trying to wheedle him away from the dependent herd. Lima Lima was not happy about this; Zongoloni stole Kiasa from her, and now she was trying to steal Maktao’s attention. Enkesha, who is Maktao’s best friend, also joined Lima Lima’s campaign to thwart Zongoloni. In the end, Maktao realised he is not ready to be a nightclubber and decided to remain with Enkesha.
Zongoloni was clearly trying to recruit Maktao to be her newest ‘nightclubber,’ leaving the dependent herd and joining her out in the forest. Lima Lima, following behind them, obviously understood Zongoloni’s plans to take Maktao away. Lima Lima was not happy about this, because she didn’t want to lose her little friend. Zongoloni had tried to steal Kiasa from her and now she was trying to steal Maktao’s attention as well. Lima Lima decided to fight to keep Maktao. Enkesha then joined in, not wanting to lose her best friend. Enkesha tried to separate Maktao from Zongoloni, but she was not strong enough. She chose to walk away and leave Maktao to make his own decision. Realising that he is not ready to be a nightclubber after all, Maktao decided to stay with Enkesha. He knows that he still wants and needs the security of the stockades at night and his milk bottles.
Jasiri and Ziwa arrived outside the stockades, where the Keepers have been putting out lucerne. Ziwa brought along his friends and family to enjoy the supplementary food. Ziwa and Jasiri seem aware of how important the lucerne was at such a dry time of year. The wild elephants enjoyed eating lucerne together with them.
This morning, the Keepers let the orphans out of the stockades. Murera who went around drinking from all the water troughs in the stockade compound, before joining the others outside the gates where they were all eating pellets together with the nightclubbers.
As usual, “the bully” Ngasha started pushing Sonje. Murera saw this and knew she had to move away before Ngasha started pushing her around, especially because of her weakness. Murera rumbled for Mwashoti to join her, which Mwashoti did. Then Jasiri arrived with Lima Lima and Zongoloni. Things looked bad for Ngasha; he knew he was in trouble and decided to leave before Jasiri caught him pushing Sonje. This made Sonje and Murera very happy.
Some antelope families came down to the waterhole, and the baboons followed to get some water. As the baboons were drinking, Alamaya and Makao rushed over, trying to scare the baboons away. One big baboon was brave though, he stood his ground and didn’t run away, but Alamaya became angered by this and charged the baboon even more aggressively. He wants to be respected by the smaller animals. The baboon eventually ran away and hid in the bushes. Alamya’s friends joined him, and the orphan herd ran around trumpeting and charging at the trees.
All nightclubbers reported back to the stockades this morning at around 6am. They waited outside the stockades until the orphan herd were let out. Enkesha and her friend Maktao walked straight over to where Zongoloni and Lima Lima were scratching their bottoms on a special rock. Enkesha and Maktao waited patiently for their turn on the scratching rock, but Lima Lima took her time. As soon as Lima Lima moved, Enkesha rushed in to occupy the rock. The Keepers watched in amusement, because Enkesha looked like she was dancing and showing off her best moves. Then Sonje rumbled, giving her 5-minute warning to get ready to move off. Kiombo walked over to where Sonje was standing and then the whole herd started to follow suit. Murera came up behind, walking at her own slow pace.
Some warthogs arrived looking for water to drink, but Kiasa chased them away. Kiasa called over to Zongoloni, informing her of the warthogs. Zongoloni ran over to help Kiasa, blocking the warthogs from getting to the water. Then Sonje trumpeted loudly scaring the warthogs away. The warthogs ran to hide in the bushes with their tails up in the air.
Faraja came back to join the orphan herd, after being away for a couple of days. Everyone was happy to see him, but he was in a bad mood and seemed ready to chase Ngasha away if he tried to bother him. The Keepers called over to Faraja then he rumbled back to them in greeting. Jasiri moved to catch up with Faraja, they talked and eventually agreed on something, but neither the Keepers nor the orphans knew what they had decided. Unfortunately, Ngasha had not picked up on Faraja’s mood and walked towards where Faraja and Jasiri were having a conversation. In no time at all, Faraja turned on Ngasha. He pushed him very hard on his bottom, which sent Ngasha running off. Ngasha has always bothered Faraja, but today Faraja seemed to get rid of all his pent-up anger and frustration. When Sonje and the other girls saw that Faraja had taught Ngasha a lesson they crowded round him, praising him.
After their morning bottles, the orphans were ready for the new day. The gate had been partially opened, but the orphans were reluctant to walk through and join the nightclubbers at the lucerne corner. They know that the fence is electrified at night and wanted to wait for the Keepers to push the gate open completely. Kiasa, who is very smart, took charge of the situation. She held on to the gate, careful not to touch the wires, and managed to push open the gate herself, letting her friends pass through. The Keepers were very impressed with her. The whole orphan herd enjoyed feeding on the lucerne together before Sonje persuaded them to move away.
Kiombo and his friend Maktao had their usual pushing match. They are very good friends who really enjoy these games, and these matches help make them both stronger. Maktao is always the one who starts the pushing games, then Kiombo defends himself. Today Kiombo pushed Maktao hard causing him to fall on his knees. Enkesha went to help Maktao and separate the two boys. Kiombo felt bad and was scared that Maktao would be angry, so he ran to Sonje, but Maktao remained gentle and stayed browsing with Enkesha.
As Murera and Sonje were leading the babies home, they decided it was a good idea to go for a mud bath on the way. Enkesha and Lima Lima looked for mud and water to splash in, the babies followed and were very happy to wallow and cool off. While the orphan herd was making their way to the mud bath, Sonje spotted a buffalo sitting in the mud. The Keepers initially thought it was stuck in the mud, but the buffalo was just enjoying the mud bath. Sonje and Jasiri took turns charging at the buffalo, trying to get him out of the water so they could have a turn. Mwashoti and Alamaya joined them, thinking they would be stronger as a team. The buffalo was not ready to leave but the orphans overpowered him, forcing him to retreat to the bushes. Once the buffalo was gone, the orphans enjoyed the mud bath. Lima Lima, Jasiri and Sonje decided it was time to go back to the stockades for the night.
The Keepers were putting lucerne out for the nightclubbers when they got a surprise. As soon as the Keepers had finished putting out the lucerne, a wild herd with tiny babies came looking for food. The nightclubbers then came to the lucerne corner but the wild herd were protective over the lucerne and stopped Ngasha, Zongoloni, Alamaya and Jasiri from getting any food. There was one big female who was very aggressive towards the nightclubbers. Lima Lima and Zongoloni went straight towards the tiny babies, which made wild elephant mothers angry. Six females blocked Lima Lima and Zongoloni, ensuring their wild babies got to eat the lucerne pellets in peace.
There was a lot of excitement around the stockades last night. There were elephants rumbling and loud trumpeting from the Umani springs area. When the Keepers came out of their rooms to see what was going on, they saw Zongoloni and Ngasha running away from some huge bulls and big wild mothers. The Keepers believe that Zongoloni and the other nightclubbers were trying to steal the wild babies. The wild bulls didn’t like the nightclubber boys intruding on their party, so they chased them out of the herd, but the orphans did not want to leave this wild family. Despite the strong warning the wild herd gave the orphans, they still stayed, until Jasiri and Faraja found themselves cornered by the wild bulls. Faraja and Jasiri thought they were strong enough to fight back, but they were not. The orphans were not welcome by this wild herd, and they were forced to leave. Lima Lima, who loves the tiny babies, tried to take one of the babies with her when she left but she was unsuccessful.
Murera knew that her nightclubber friends were having a rough time. Mwashoti started rumbling, pleading with Murera to let him into her room. Murera comforted him, telling him to stay out of trouble and away from the wild herd, then she would meet him at the pellet corner in the morning.
Kiombo and his friend Maktao were raising their trunks over each other’s heads. Maktao started it, putting his trunk over Kiombo, asking him if he was ready to start their pushing match. Kiombo turned around and said, ‘bring it on!’ The two boys started their game, pushing each other to see who was the strongest. Enkesha realised that their game was about to turn into a more serious fight. She tried to stop them by standing in between the boys but Kiombo didn’t listen to Enkesha. She was forced to step back and get Sonje’s help, the more respected ‘mother figure’ to persuade the boys to stop. Zongoloni also arrived to broker peace. Kiombo saw Zongoloni coming over to him, looking angry, while Lima Lima also came running in, trumpeting loudly. She was given the respect she wanted and peace was restored. Kiombo and Maktao didn’t want to be in trouble with the older girls, so instead they resumed browsing separately.
Wild elephant families continue to visit, enjoying lucerne pellets and spending time with the orphans. Today, four wild females took Sonje and Kiombo with them into the bush but after a few hours Sonje came back to the Keepers. The Keepers didn’t know where Sonje had gone and were left wondering what the wild elephants were showing Sonje. When Sonje and Kiombo returned, Sonje walked straight over to Murera, so only Murera knows the story of what Sonje had been doing.
Kiombo walked over to Maktao, and the two boys began their pushing game. Zongoloni intervened because she didn’t want it to escalate into a flight like last time. Kiasa, Zongoloni’s favourite, also placed herself between Maktao and Kiombo, Kiasa wanted Zongoloni to chase the boys away, but Zongoloni stayed calm and stood her ground.
Later when the orphans were starting to walk back to the stockades a big wild family with tiny babies followed the orphan herd home. Murera was not happy about this she didn’t want to be so close to the wild elephants in case they push her around. The orphans were distracted by the tiny wild babies, when the Keepers called the orphans, they didn’t want to follow. The younger orphans Kiombo, Maktao and Enkesha got the chance to play with the tiny wild babies. When the night clubbers went to the lucerne corner the wild friends joined them. Some of the wild elephants became possessive over the lucerne and charged at Zongoloni and Mwashoti. The nightclubbers got scared and ran away from the wild herd.
Enkesha and Kiasa took over the leadership roles this morning and decided where the orphan herd would browse. The Keepers tried to call the orphans over in the opposite direction to where Enkesha and Kiasa wanted to go, but they would not listen. Sonje tried to listen to what the Keepers were asking, but Enkesha and Kiasa were in control today and they made sure she stayed with the rest of the herd as they all moved to Kenzili area. They found lots of food in the Kenzili area; the branches were not very green, but they ate plenty of vegetation.
Jasiri and Ngasha fought each other along the way, which meant they were walking very slowly and kept getting left behind. The Keepers decided to leave them to their own pace and instead walked with Murera at the back of the orphan herd. The two boys eventually arrived at the Kenzili area where the rest of the herd was eating. All the orphans were very happy to have more vegetation to eat.
Lima Lima and Zongoloni didn’t want to leave. When the Keepers tried to get the orphans to return for the midday milk feed, Zongoloni and Lima Lima refused to join. Later, both girls found the rest of the herd, using their smell to track them down. The Keepers were very impressed by how smart Lima Lima and Zongoloni have become since joining the nightclubbers. They have learnedt every corner of the Kibwezi forests and Chyulu hills, making it very easy for them to find their friends.
Sonje is still the real leader of the Umani herd. When she made a short, quiet rumble, the orphans immediately began to assemble. Kiombo and Enkesha were the first to report back to Sonje, Maktao followed shortly after. Once all the babies had arrived, she began to move out with all the orphans in unison. All the orphans trust Sonje and believe she makes the best decisions. Lima Lima, Zongoloni and the other nightclubber boys stayed back until Murera had also moved off, in order to give her space. They know how much she worries about being pushed around.
Jasiri and Ngasha decided to go their own direction today. They were not worried about losing the orphan herd. Jasiri was confused, he did not know why Ngasha wanted to follow him, as they are not very good friends and Jasiri is always trying to chase Ngasha away. Before they could walk deeper into the forest, Lima Lima came and got Jasiri. She persuaded him to follow her back to the others, but Ngasha refused to follow.
Ngasha, who was now by himself, was frightened by some Sykes' monkeys that were shouting loudly from the treetops. He decided he did not want to be alone, so he started looking for a path out of the forest and back to his friends. Putting his trunk to the ground, he followed Lima Lima and Jasiri’s scent until he found them.
This morning, Maktao was the one that initiated the pushing game with his friend Kiombo. They both love these matches, showing off their strength and using their energy. Maktao is very smart during these games and remains very tactical. In time, the Keepers think he will defeat Kiombo and claim the title of best fighter. However, Kiombo cannot be underestimated. He is a very strong boy who is determined to win and doesn’t give away his fighting secrets, remaining calm and focused, waiting for his opportunity. These fighting games are very good at keeping these two boys fit and strong.
A wild herd visited the waterhole at the same time as the orphans. The orphans had just arrived at the mud bath to cool off, when they found the wild herd already drinking water. There was also a brave male bushbuck that walked directly to the waterhole without any fear. He was too thirsty to worry about all the elephants around him. Alamaya and Mwashoti spotted him from behind and promptly chased him away with loud trumpeting. They carried on charging the bushes, just to make sure the bushbuck was gone.
The nightclubbers returned after a long journey; the Keepers didn’t know where they had gone! They came back in two groups. First was Lima Lima, Zongoloni, Mwashoti and Alamaya. Then, a little while later, the second group joined, led by Jasiri with Faraja and Ngasha following. When Sonje and Quanza spotted the nightclubbers they started trumpeting loudly and happily. Sonje and Murera then moved down the hill to greet their friends. Only later did Murera realise that Ngasha was with them. Murera really does not trust Ngasha. She does not like being close to him and even turned around to walk away from the nightclubbers. Jasiri and Faraja then followed Murera, as they wanted to tell her more stories of places they had been.
Sonje and Kiombo went to welcome Jasiri and Faraja. Kiombo was trying to stay close to Sonje, but Jasiri blocked his path, Kiombo moved back, looking scared and disappointed that he was being separated from Sonje. The Keepers guessed that Jasiri had some secrets he wanted to tell Sonje or maybe he was jealous and wanted Sonje all to himself. Sonje still remains a protective mother figure for Kiombo, but Jasiri just wanted a few minutes of Sonje’s time, without Kiombo present.
Today was a big day for everyone at Umani. In the afternoon, the Keepers received a call that a newly rescued orphan was being brought to Umani Springs. He is called Kapei.
Almost as if on cue, Lima Lima, who had been spending lots of time away, suddenly materialised. When she arrived, the new elephant was still in his stockade, while the Keepers stood outside, trying to calm him down in order to give him the necessary medications and sustenance. Lima Lima stood by the fence, admiring Kapei. It wasn’t long before she insisted that the Keepers let her inside his stockade.
Kapei was very happy to have Lima Lima’s companionship. She spent more than three hours inside his stockade, giving him hugs and patting his head.
When the orphans all came back to the stockades in the evening, Quanza walked right over to Kapei’s stockade and spent a few minutes chatting with him. Maktao, who is in the room next door, was very gentle with his new friend. The orphans and Keepers are all very happy to have such a small addition to the herd.
Early this morning, a wild herd came to get water from the water trough. There were three mothers with tiny babies. Quanza saw the babies and really wanted to get close to them. She pleaded with Sonje for permission, but Sonje first consulted with Murera before agreeing. The orphan herd moved over to greet the family, except for Murera, who didn’t want to mingle with the wild elephants. Instead, Murera moved to where her friend Mwashoti was browsing peacefully with Alamaya. Murera does not trust that wild elephants will not push or chase her, which is why she avoids them.
On the way home that evening, Maktao and Enkesha started to go separate routes. Maktao stopped to tell Enkesha she was going the wrong way, but before he could tell her, Kiombo came to start their daily pushing match. Lima Lima saw Maktao push Kiombo very strongly and decided she needed to separate the two boys to stop them fighting. Lima Lima does not enjoy watching them fighting, even if it is just a game. She thinks that family and friends should not fight.
Today, led by Enkesha and little Kiasa, the orphans arrived at the mud bath for their midday bottles of milk in a happy and excited throng, running and trumpeting and leaving the Keepers far behind them. Somehow, the babies had become aware of the presence of four marabou storks on their dust pile playground. Enkesha and her friend, with Sonje and the rest of the herd in close pursuit, were determined to chase them away. The crafty birds flew away over the trees before taking refuge in one nearby tree. Immediately, Enkesha began trying to push the tree down; soon, she had the support of Sonje as the other orphans watched on from the side-lines. When the marabou storks finally flew away from the dust bath, the two orphans sauntered back full of pride in their achievement of clearing the space! Once Sonje was certain of the birds’ departure, she led the herd to the water trough where everyone drank deeply.
In the afternoon, the orphans wandered and browsed in the Kenzili area before returning to the stockades for the night. On their arrival at the lucerne pellet feeding place, they were greeted by a wild herd. The wild elephants prevented Ngasha and other nightclubbers from getting close to the lucerne, protecting their own tiny babies who were grazing with a collection of antelopes.
This morning, the orphans came across a herd of buffaloes eating the hay and lucerne spread out by the Keepers in response to the ongoing drought. Many animals are gathering in the Umani area, looking for food and water from the springs. Murera rumbled to Quanza to help her chase away the buffaloes and soon had the support of Sonje, Kiasa and Kiombo. The buffaloes did not want to leave, possibly because of the wildfires on the Chyulu Hills.
After being called back from their chase by the Keepers, the orphans walked off towards the Kenzili area, browsing as they went. Maktao invited his great friend Enkesha to walk with him and Kiasa. Ngasha wandered along with the herd. Despite being one of the nightclubbers and a big young bull, he does not like walking away independently from the stockades and has not yet left for a whole day, preferring to remain in Umani.
The orphans have not yet spent much time with the recently rescued Kapei, visiting him but not staying close for long, despite Lima Lima’s and Murera’s curiosity and interest in the new baby.
This morning was no different. After a brief visit to Kapei, Murera and Mwashoti walked out, leaving the new baby in the capable hands of his Keepers. All the orphans climbed up the hills along Kenzili, realising that there was more to eat on top of the hills rather than on the slopes where the buffaloes graze.
Lima Lima and Zongoloni wandered away from the herd with Kiasa following them. Once again, Kiasa was nudging her friend Zongoloni from behind as she wanted to head off with her and some wild friends. The Keepers intercepted her, preventing her from moving away and bringing Kiasa back to Sonje and Enkesha, so that when it was time to go home all the babies would return safely.
On the way back to the stockades, Alamaya and Ngasha went off on their own path in the direction of Umani Lodge. Ngasha knew where to find lots of acacia tubers and was keen to show Alamaya the best place to find the tasty roots.
This morning, a large wild herd with four tiny babies arrived at the water trough outside the stockades. The elephants looked as if they had come from afar with their thirsty babies. The Chyulu Hills are so dry; wildfires were reported a few days ago and there is not enough water for elephants and other animals to drink.
Quanza rushed to greet the wild herd followed by Maktao and then Enkesha, with both females attracted to the wild babies as they drank from the trough. Enkesha took the opportunity to play with the babies and Maktao happily touched one of them. Their mothers watched protectively but allowed the interaction with the two orphans. Kind Enkesha and Maktao had shown the wild herd that they were not a threat, meant no harm and only wanted to make friends with the young ones. After this happy interaction was interrupted by Quanza, the orphans lined up behind Sonje who led them towards the Chyulu Hills for a day of browsing.
Today, Faraja and Zongoloni were having a good time browsing together when they were approached by Ngasha. Seeing the young bull walking towards them, Faraja retreated slowly as if trying to escape. Faraja generally prefers to be with Jasiri, Mwashoti or Alamaya, not really trusting Ngasha to be a dependable friend. Zongoloni then also moved away from him, greeting little Kiasa and walking off with her.
After this, Sonje and the other orphans set off for the hills with Ngasha soon following at a distance. On their way, Mwashoti was wandering along after Murera with a stick in his mouth. When Maktao tried to grab the stick from him, he reacted strongly and pushed the elephant to the ground. Enkesha came over to check that her close friend had not been injured – luckily only his pride was hurt – but the Keepers still told Mwashoti off as he took refuge next to Murera. Ngasha watched on from the side lines, possibly considering his own behaviour and its impact upon the herd.
This morning, when Murera and two friends gathered outside little Kapei’s stockade, his Keeper opened the door so they could spend time together. As soon as he did, the three females tried to eat the pellets and pods left inside the baby’s bedroom and then the Keepers, realising the naughty girls’ cunning plan, pushed them away.
As the orphans were heading out the gate into the forest, Mwashoti and Lima Lima tried to sneak back to the stockades, trying out their luck as well and hoping to eat Kapei’s food. They were intercepted by the Keepers, failing in their quest, and being ordered back to the herd! Kapei was left in peace with his Keeper.
Reluctantly, Mwashoti and Lima Lima followed in the footsteps of Sonje and the herd, looking for the paths they had taken to the hills. Helpful Alamaya stayed back to show them the route. Kiasa was walking as closely as she could to Zongoloni, enjoying her company and showing her how much she had missed her. Zongoloni has been away for several days with the other nightclubbers and some wild friends in the Chyulu area. She was given a lovely welcome on her return by Kiasa who hugged her and dragged her trunk over the older orphan’s belly.
When the herd returned to the water hole at noon, none of the orphans wanted to wallow in the mud bath as it was a cold day and so they remained at a distance. Ngasha and Jasiri arrived together but then Jasiri started chasing Ngasha and did not allow him to settle close to the rest of the herd.
More and more hungry wild animals are gathering in the Umani area to eat the many hay bales left by the Keepers along pathways around the stockades and close to the springs during this dry spell. When the Keepers went out to check the bales this morning, they found that all of them had been eaten by buffaloes, antelopes and wild elephants.
After the orphans had gulped down their midday bottles of milk, they all wandered back to look for hay and grass to eat, rather than hanging out at the mud bath. Sonje led the others to the area where the food had been left, with Kiombo and Kiasa acting as escorts.
Realising that this was a pointless journey, Enkesha whispered to Maktao and then the two elephants broke away and approached Murera. Murera and Quanza decided to lead the babies to higher ground as they were sure food would be found on the top of the hills rather than in the valleys where many buffaloes have been grazing, leaving nothing for the elephants.
As the day became hotter, the orphans made their way back to the mud bath led by Sonje, Quanza and Enkesha for a wallow and a drink and some fun. Mwashoti and Alamaya joined the wallowing babies followed by Lima Lima. All the orphans splashed and played happily in the water together. Next stop was the dusting hill where they dried themselves off with a lovely dust bath.
Today, many of the orphans congregated outside Kapei’s stockade. They wanted the new baby to walk out with them, rather than remain on his own. Quanza and Murera started pulling on the gate in an attempt to open it, as the Keepers did their best to stop them. Ngasha and some of the bigger boys paid little attention to these goings on. Seeing the girls’ determination, the Keepers allowed little Kapei out of this bedroom but guarded him closely so he could not wander off into the bushes.
The time soon came for the herd to move out, with Sonje signalling to Enkesha and Kiombo to get going. As soon as they set off, the Keepers put Kapei back in his stockade, although Quanza and Murera continued to look for him! Kapei settled down calmly, munching on his pods, pellets, and greens. His Keeper made him his own tiny mud bath by pouring out buckets of muddy water so that the hot little elephant could cool down.
When the orphans returned to the mud bath for their midday bottles, Mwashoti did not allow Murera to be in her favourite spot. Finally, hot and bothered Murera lost her patience and gave Mwashoti a good shove, forcing him to cross over to the other side of the water hole. This took him by surprise as he had been hanging out with Alamaya and unaware of the offence he had caused.
Later in the afternoon, Sonje and some friends had a good time with their wild friends in the Kibwezi Forest.
The big girls are vying for Kapei’s attention, with Murera, Sonje and Quanza competing to become his protector. Quanza is determined to look after Kapei and is staving off the efforts of Lima Lima, telling her to stay away with the nightclubbers. The Keepers are hoping that Quanza, rather than Lima Lima, wins over the new baby, as they do not want the wild boy wandering off after the older female.
In the late morning, Alamaya tried to chase Kapei away from the feeding area by back kicking him with his hind leg as the little boy picked up pellets with his tiny trunk. The Keepers and big girls reacted quickly to defend Kapei from the jealous young bull. Murera ran behind Alamaya to discipline him with the support of Mwashoti and then Alamaya ran away to avoid being punished.
A herd of buffaloes settled in to eat some hay and lucerne this morning as the orphans watched from the side lines. The intruders were clearly reluctant to move on, undeterred by the elephants’ presence. Feeling annoyed, Ngasha, Mwashoti and Alamaya teamed up to chase the buffaloes away. They ran but kept stopping and turning around as if to challenge the elephants. Tension mounted as the big boys continued to trumpet and charge after the intruders who eventually gave up and ran far away. Ngasha and his friends returned to the place where Murera and Sonje had gathered the babies and all celebrated by eating the hay left by the buffaloes.
Bushbucks were following the orphans’ trails and paths today, knowing that they might find leftover pods, lucerne or pellets. With the dry weather continuing, grazing animals are struggling to find enough to eat. Looking after little Kapei, Sonje and Quanza spotted two bushbucks behind them and immediately trumpeted loudly and chased them away. Kapei looked bewildered at first but then copied the young matriarch, doing his best to chase away the bushbucks too!
Having heard the loud trumpeting far away on the Umani Hills, Alamaya and Zongoloni then arrived, emerging from their hiding places on the hills to help Sonje and the herd.
Returning to the stockades for their midday milk feed at the mud bath, the orphans found that the bottles had not been spread out for them. Kiasa and then Kapei demanded their milk, surrounding the Keepers and giving them no time to pick up the bottles. Once Kiasa had finished, the clever little elephant tried to line up behind the others, hiding her face and hoping for another bottle! Meanwhile, hungry Kapei continued to gulp down his delicious milk.
This morning, big boy Ngasha was dawdling behind the herd as they set off towards the hills, acting as if he was their security escort. After catching up with them, he approached Sonje and placed his trunk over her in a way which offended the young matriarch. She moved away, communicating her displeasure to Ngasha and also to Murera, Lima Lima, and Enkesha, who followed her lead and left the big boy on his own.
All the orphans then gathered around Sonje who was standing protectively next to Kapei. They surrounded the new baby, keeping him under and between them. He is bonding so well with Sonje and Quanza although the older female seems determined to prise him away her younger friend who also loves taking care of babies. Sonje has the upper hand at present and is winning his trust and affection.
Murera was keeping her distance today, having been denied the opportunity to look after the babies. She was hanging out with big boy Mwashoti, relinquishing care of the little ones to Sonje, Lima Lima or Quanza. The older females are adept at sharing responsibilities among themselves.
Later in the morning, Ziwa appeared with his wild herd and Faraja strolling along behind them. On catching sight of the orphans, Faraja stepped out to meet the girls, and even Ziwa spent a short time with them before rushing back to the wild elephants, leaving Faraja with the orphans. Faraja was greeted with joyful loud trumpeting and charging at bushes in celebration of his homecoming after such a long time. Quanza, Kiasa and Enkesha, in particular, walked closely beside their friend and kept checking that he was still with them.
After being rescued two weeks ago, little Kapei has settled into his new life and is now leaving his stockade and becoming a proper member of the orphan herd. The older girls are still competing to look after him with Murera, Sonje, Lima Lima and Quanza the leading contenders. Lima Lima is at a disadvantage, as everyone knows the Keepers would not allow her to take him away. Murera has been told by Sonje to step down, leaving Sonje and Quanza in the running.
Today, hearing Kapei shout for help, Quanza turned quickly with her ears raised and rushed over towards him, followed by several other females. She found him with Kiombo, but not enjoying the older orphan’s contact. When Kiombo saw the elephants running towards him, suspecting that he was in trouble, he escaped in a flurry in the direction of his old friend Maktao, who was browsing on branches. Maktao was expecting his usual pushing game with Kiombo, but today was different. Kiombo was not in a mood for playing.
Later in the morning, the orphans arrived at the mud bath, ready for a good wallow. Today, however, the new baby brought their swimming and splashing to an abrupt end. As Murera was spraying herself, some muddy water splashed onto Kapei. He was not happy about this and walked away on his own. Immediately, the rest of the herd set off after him as they could not allow him to disappear. That was the end of the mud bath!
This morning, a large herd of buffaloes arrived to graze on the bales of hay and lucerne left by the Keepers around the stockades to help wild animals survive until the onset of the rainy season. The drought is continuing to hit wildlife hard. The buffaloes settled in, continuing to graze, and were soon joined by many baboons and antelopes who mingled peacefully as they grazed.
Clambering out of the mud bath after their midday milk bottles, Alamaya and Mwashoti charged at the buffaloes and did their best to chase them away – without much success! A few ran away but most did not, being determined to stay around the stockades with the orphans.
Soon after this, Zongoloni did her best to disappear into Kibwezi Forest with little Kiasa. The older orphan loves mothering the younger one and was heading off with her towards the Chyulus when the Keepers shouted her name, ran after them, and brought them back to the herd.
Wild elephants from the Chyulu Hills arrived at the springs today, escaping from the wildfires and smoke on the hills and looking for fresher places with lush greens. Somehow knowing that they were at the springs, Sonje and Quanza responded to the silent communication and then rushed off with the younger girls.
Soon after Sonje arrived followed by Kiombo and Quanza, a tense situation developed with the wild elephants. When Quanza tried to hug one of the wild babies, the mother thought that the orphan wanted to abduct her baby and then the wild herd confronted Quanza. In response, clever Quanza rushed back to get Kapei and introduced him to the wild elephants, making it clear that she had her own baby and was no threat to theirs. Peace was restored!
But not for long! Moments later, Lima Lima became upset about an incident involving Enkesha, Kiasa and a stick. As the younger orphan went to pick up a stick that the older girl also wanted, Enkesha pushed Kiasa hard from behind, knocking her over, and grabbed the stick. Kiasa was deprived of her prize and Enkesha gloated over her victory by using the stick to scratch her chest!