Malima

Now living wild, though she continues to visit us regularly

About Malima

  • Current age

    9 years old

  • Gender

    Female

  • Rescued date

    30 October 2016

  • Rescue location

    Tsavo Ecosystem, Tsavo East NP

  • Date of birth (estimate)

    18 May 2016

  • Reason orphaned

    Drought related

  • Age at rescue

    5 months old (approx)

  • Current location

    Ithumba Reintegration Unit

Adopt Malima for yourself, or as a gift

Malima's rescue

On the 30th October 2016, the SWT Works Manager, Trevor Jennings, received a phone call from the Tsavo East National Park Assistant Warden at 6:30 am about a baby elephant found in a collapsed state in front of the Aruba Lodge. Immediately, the SWT team travelled to the scene and found a young female elephant calf lying on her side on a mound of earth that had been dug out of a water pan.

She looked in a desperate state, totally unresponsive and seemingly just moments away from dying. Given the parched drought-stricken landscape resulting in a lack of food anywhere close to water, the elephant herds were left with painful heartbreaking decisions - having to leave weakened loved ones who were unable to keep up so that the rest of the herd could travel far enough to find life sustaining browse, This calf was simply too weak to continue, and was one such candidate.

Once our teams arrived on the scene, she was cooled down and shaded from the unforgiving sun whilst a lifesaving IV drip was prepared for her after which she was loaded into the waiting Landcruiser and driven to the stockades where more treatment could be administered while the team awaited the arrival at the Voi Park airstrip of the Rescue Plane from Nairobi. To begin with the calf hardly stirred, but slowly she came to life and then hope was restored. She was immediately fed water by mouth which cooled her down. In the meantime Angela Sheldrick had prepared everything at the Nursery for her arrival, and a team of Keepers was dispatched to board the plane. Everyone worked rapidly at the other end to ensure a speedy turn around while she was again placed on IV fluids for the duration of the flight to Nairobi, which would involve approximately 1 1/2 hours.

It is thought that her mother must have left her the night before, or early that morning as she was too weak to keep up with the herd. She was incredibly fortunate that help, arrived before a pride of lions killed her instead of the unfortunate Oryx on which they were feeding when the rescue team arrived. By the time the five month old calf arrived at the Nairobi Nursery, she had regained sufficient strength to be able to get to her feet.
Initially she was incredibly restless and fearful, but with patience and a hanging blanket in her stable for comfort, she began to take both milk and rehydration salts. However, notwithstanding she collapsed again a few hours later from both exhaustion and weakness, her body spent of all reserves. Again we placed her on more lifesaving IV fluids which restored her life.
We have called her Malima (a Swahili word meaning mound), aptly named since it was on a mound of where she lay when found. Saving such emaciated drought victims is always a very difficult challenge, especially in the case of Malima who was already far gone when discovered. Her life hung in the balance for a week, but slowly her strength returned, and she is now thriving - a bouncy member of the Nursery herd, fully recovered and happily integrated into our Nursery Elephant family.

She looked in a desperate state, totally unresponsive and seemingly just moments away from dying. Given the parched drought-stricken landscape resulting in a lack of food anywhere close to water, the elephant herds were left with painful heartbreaking decisions - having to leave weakened loved ones who were unable to keep up so that the rest of the herd could travel far enough to find life sustaining browse, This calf was simply too weak to continue, and was one such candidate.

Latest updates featuring Malima

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Keepers Diaries

View diary updates from across all our orphan units as written by the Keepers

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Naisula Gives Birth to Nyx

A new little nymph just flitted into northern Tsavo. First-time mum Naisula — an orphan we rescued, raised, and reintegrated back into the wild — has given birth to a beautiful baby girl!

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Malima's Latest Photos

Access the most recent photos featuring Malima

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What's included in your adoption?

By adopting, you play a vital role in the life of an orphaned elephant, rhino, or giraffe — helping us provide the round-the-clock, loving attention each one needs and deserves over many years, so they can ultimately reclaim their place in the wild.

Your adoption supports the 100+ orphans in our care at any given time, covering the cost of milk and food supplies, Keepers' salaries, veterinary treatment, and other essentials.

Personalised adoption certificate

Celebrate your adoption with a personalised certificate, ready for you or your lucky gift recipient to print and display!

Monthly updates

Each month, we send a detailed update about our Orphans’ Project direct to your email inbox, featuring photos, stories, and special highlights.

Exclusive content

From the latest Keepers’ Diaries to a downloadable image gallery and more, adopters have exclusive access to our content library.

Do you have any questions?

Please refer to our FAQs for more information on the Adoption Program. However, if there is any specific question that is not on the FAQs page, feel free to contact us and we will do our best to assist you.
FAQs

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