September began with visits from old friends. Our gentle junior ex-orphans, 11-year-old Kauro and 9-year-old Ambo, were amongst several wild bulls drinking water early one morning. As soon as the two boys had enough water, Kauro led Ambo to the lucerne feeding venue where they patiently waited for the dependent herd to be let out of their bedrooms. The orphans joined the boys outside and everyone shared lucerne together.
Hot weather in September meant lots of wallowing. Most afternoons, the sun was fierce and the orphans jumped into the water for a cooling off exercise soon after getting their milk. A great group wallow usually ensued — although on one memorable occasion, Mukutan didn't get into the water as he was busy chasing away guinea fowls that were present at the mud bath.
Naleku's independence continues to grow and she is becoming an excellent nanny-in-waiting to the ex-orphans. Most days, she linked up with one family or another soon after being let out of her room. She is not picky about who she nannies and will look after any baby she is permitted to watch — Sid, Subiri, Yara, and Kapuki are some favourites. Some nights, Naleku stayed out with the ex-orphans; others, she returned at nightfall to sleep in the stockades with her colleagues.
Naleku has also become a bit of a dramatist. On many occasions, she would dash off into the thickets, expecting a great, herd-wise reaction. The other orphans, who are now used to her theatrics, usually just ignored her. Once she realised no one was following her, Naleku would slink back.
Bold Muwingu always likes to join wild bulls — something many boys or girls older than her would be shy to do! When she sees wild visitors at the water trough, she strolls down and joins them in drinking without any hesitation.
Bondeni remains our slowest drinker. One morning, he left with his bottle and headed towards the lucerne feeding venue. Shujaa, Muwingu, and Choka — who know that he takes his time — surrounded him with their trunks raised, begging for a bit of milk. Bondeni finished his bottle and, as usual, threw it away. The Keepers quickly collected it before Muwingu could make off with it.
Roho is growing into quite a little bully. One afternoon, Lodo accidentally stepped on some lucerne Roho was trying to eat. Roho got upset, grabbed Lodo's tail, and pulled it. Lodo turned to defend himself, and the two boys locked in a fight. After the Keepers intervened and separated the pair, Roho tried to pour his anger onto wild baby Lulu. This was a misstep — Lualeni, Lulu’s statuesque mother, turned and pointed her trunk at Roho, cautioning him to stop troubling her daughter. Roho wisely heeded the warning and made himself scarce.
Later in the month, we saw Roho taking on competitors twice his age! The stout six-year-old challenged 13-year-old Barsilinga. When the game became too tough, he climbed onto a rock to make himself a little taller. This didn't help, as he was up against an experienced Barsilinga. Down but not defeated, Roho later tried to take on Ukame. This was a misstep: The no-nonsense older girl was not interested in entertaining Roho and swiftly delivered a knockout. Roho had no option but to flee as fast as his legs could carry him.
Tricky Kindani found a clever way to mobilise the group. As the dependent herd was lingering around the lucerne, Kindani was getting antsy to leave. A wise idea came to her: She pretended to have heard or seen something approaching, then suddenly ran very fast towards the herd. The group panicked and all abandoned the lucerne as they scattered. After Kindani had scared the entire herd, she stopped running and walked slowly behind everyone. The Keepers gathered the orphans and steered everyone northwards. Kindani’s plan had worked.
Laki, Lenana's youngest baby, learned the hard way that Weka is not to be messed with! One morning, Lenana, Lapa, Laki, Makireti, Wendi, Wiva, Wema, Wimbi, Maramoja, and a wild family joined the orphans in feeding on lucerne. 10-month-old Laki challenged Roho in a pushing game but lost, and suffered similar defeats with Naleku and Esoit. Shortly before the orphans left, Laki tried to push Weka. The fiery girl grabbed Laki's trunk and pulled it as hard as she could, much to Laki’s dismay. Warning delivered, Weka finally released Laki and let him go on his way.
Clever Mayan showed excellent problem-solving skills this month. He came across a green tree that he wished to feed on. He stretched his trunk as high as he could, but he couldn’t quite reach the leaves. The Keepers watched him go round and round the tree as he formulated a plan. After a few turns, Mayan stepped on a rock beneath the tree, giving himself an extra boost of height — and sure enough, he was able to reach the tasty leaves.
The month ended with 35 wild bulls in attendance when the orphans were let out in the morning, gathering to drink water at the stockade troughs. It's a sure sign that the dry season is setting in. Over the course of September, nearly all the ex-orphan families made an appearance, with the exception of Nasalot's family, which has been away for some time.