Icholta's Story

Estimated to have been between 2 - 6 weeks old when orphaned, and therefore born in August 1999, this little female elephant, comes from far-off legendary Marsabit Mountain, where a once beautiful mist forest harbouring many endemic plants and birds today struggles to survive the depredation of a burgeoning human population. Icholta was rescued from the mud of a drying waterhole of that name, where she was bogged and abandoned by her herd who were unable to risk venturing in to pull her free. She was minute for her age, with soft fuzz on her head and body, but also with good coordination, so we guessed her to be older than she looked.