Naserian's dawn birth announcement was actually a ray of light on what was otherwise shaping up to be a very stressful day: The afternoon prior, flighty Muwingu bolted — taking Choka, Shujaa, Weka, Kitich, and Mageno with her. Night fell with no sign of the six adventurers, who seemed determined to prove they could cleverly outwit us.

At dawn on the 5th, the search party set out. As they headed away from the stockades, Naserian arrived, bearing good news: She had given birth to a little girl! We named her Nyika, which means bush or wilderness in Swahili. It was a favourite word of Daphne’s and thus felt like an auspicious name for our newest grandkid.

Naserian arrived in the company of her firstborn, Njema, along with Kinna, Kama, Kaia, Kito, Tumaren, Tembo, Esampu, Oltaiyoni, Sana Sana, and the ‘Crazy One,’ who also had a newborn to show off. Crazy One is a wild elephant and a special friend. She arrived on the scene several years ago, a young adult who didn’t seem to have a herd of her own. She was initially very aggressive, but the ex-orphans adopted her into their family. Now, she is just as comfortable in our presence as any of the others! It is very special that she and Naserian will raise their new babies side by side.

It ended up being a happy day in every which way. At 10:30 that morning, the six missing orphans finally presented themselves at the mud bath, after stressing everyone for twenty-five hours. Muwingu, who had led the group astray, was still leading the way. She marched the team right up to the feeding point, where they waited expectantly for their milk bottles — as if we were the tardy ones, not them!

In the days that followed, Naserian has continued to visit us regularly. Nyika is an enchanting little baby — although not everyone is under her spell. One morning, the rascal Weka strolled over to say hello to the baby. Instead of handling her gently, however, she started pulling her trunk. Nyika cried, alerting her mother that someone was hurting her. Naserian turned quickly but Weka had already dashed away, knowing that she had committed a grave offense.

We rescued Naserian in May 2004. Save the Elephants reported a young orphaned elephant who was desperately trying and failing to latch onto passing herds. In a last-ditch effort, she tried to follow a group across the Uaso Nyiro River, but one particular elephant continuously thwarted her efforts and even pushed her underwater. The fate of Naserian’s mother remains a mystery, but she had been on her own for at least a week before she was rescued.

We have been part of Naserian’s life for two decades and counting. We helped her grow strong and confident, first at the Nursery and then at our Ithumba Reintegration Unit, and then watched as she started to forge her own path in the wilds of Tsavo. When she gave birth to her first baby, Njema, in October 2021, she made the pilgrimage home to share her new joy with us.

Almost exactly four years later, when she gave birth to her second daughter, we were again Naserian’s first stop. We are so excited about her next chapter, with her beautiful girls by her side.