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The month began with a wonderful surprise — a visit from Rorogoi! She ambled up the path at dawn on her own and stood under the tree outside her old home waiting for her still-dependent friends. We have not seen the ex-orphan for two months. Mbegu welcomed her back with many rumbles and trunk hugs as Ndotto and the other orphans gathered around the visitor. 

After eating lots of lucerne, Rorogoi hung out with her old friends, sparring on the terraces with Ndotto and then Tamiyoi and finally Hildana! Ashanti and Baraka posed on the famous rock while Ushindi massaged her backside on the scratching rock. When the herd headed out to browse, Rorogoi stayed back for a rub against the rock and then caught up with the herd. 

The orphans settled all over Msinga Hill, browsing on acacia branches and dry ipomea plants. Making the most of his height, Lasayen stretched up his trunk to pull down soft branches. Later in the afternoon, the orphans padded down the hill for another milk feed and a visit to the baobab tree mud wallow. As most of the herd cooled down in the muddy water, Manda and Itinyi enjoyed a wrestling match around the tree, trumpeting in excitement as they pushed against each other.

The orphans emerged from their shared stockades at first light as usual to find Rorogoi waiting for them again. They browsed calmly on range cubes and lucerne together. Kilulu and Kenderi played the pushing game on the mound of red soil while Thamana tried (unsuccessfully) to take Seri’s place at the feeding trough. Ngilai, Pika Pika, Lemeki and Epiya gathered around the pile of supplementary lucerne. A few minutes later, Losoito joined the group, pushing her way in so she could stand next to nanny Lemeki. 

After a morning spent browsing around Msinga Hill, the herd headed down in groups for a milk feed. This afternoon, many chose to roll around while dust bathing on the mound of dry soil. Ex-orphan Rorogoi used her trunk to make splashes in the drinking water trough and Lasayen lay on his side relaxing next to the wallow while Kilulu and Lemeki showed off some impressive poses. Thamana enjoyed a nap on the mound of soil while Ndotto scratched his bottom on the rock and Lemeki sparred with Itinyi. When the orphans wandered back out to browse, Ngilai was left behind scratching himself against the baobab tree.

On a cool morning with drizzles of rain, the orphans were in subdued moods. They stood quietly under the canopies of trees outside the stockades. Led by Tagwa, they headed out to the bush with Rorogoi wandering along in their wake. Spreading out over Msinga Hill, they browsed in the direction of the baobab tree water hole. As Lemeki and Ngilai ambled along together, cheeky Pika Pika — with little Losoito in tow — tried to sneak away to join a wild herd browsing in the distance. Mbegu reacted immediately, rushing down the hill trumpeting to round up Losoito. Pika Pika, however, ignored the matriarch, sped up, and disappeared into a patch of thick shrubs.

On a chilly afternoon, the orphans had their usual milk feed and padded on to the mud wallow. No one went swimming – instead the elephants drank from the water trough or rolled on the mound of dry soil or massaged themselves against tree trunks. Busara and Rokka were so busy trunk hugging each other that they were left behind and had to jog to catch up with the herd when they returned to the bush. Pika Pika returned to the stockades in the afternoon.

It was a wonderful morning at the Voi stockades. The dependent orphans — and ex-orphan Rorogoi, who spent the night again outside the stockades — lined up at the feeding trough and around the pile of lucerne after enjoying another milk feed. When Rorogoi gave Tagwa a shove at the trough, she walked away, followed by Thamana and Hildana. The three elephants joined Ngilai and Itinyi in the corner of the compound next to the lucerne. Losoito rolled around on the dry soil but was not on her own for long — Lemeki and Tamiyoi soon joined her for an early morning dust bath.

The orphans headed out for their daily adventures, spreading out over the open grasslands to browse. A wild elephant family spent the whole morning with the herd. They mingled peacefully although Mbegu kept a close eye on the babies just in case one of the wild elephants was either rough or in the mood for kidnapping!  In the afternoon, the herd visited the mud wallow where they clustered around the water trough before walking back out to browse.

After breakfast, the orphans left the stockades and settled over the open savannah, ambling in different directions. Busara browsed side by side with matriarch Mbegu while Ndotto spent the morning with Losoito and Epiya browsed quietly on her own nearby. Thamana challenged Manda to a sparring match but Manda turned his back and continued twisting up shoots and shrubs. 

After the milk feed in the afternoon, the orphans visited the baobab tree mud wallow. Soon after they arrived, a large family of wild elephants walked out of the bush heading for the water trough. Alarmed by the size of the herd, the dependent orphans scattered in every direction, moving away from the trough and the wallow. The wild elephants drank some water, paddled in the pool and left — taking several orphans with them! They kidnapped Hildana, Ushindi, Epiya, Akina and Kenderi. We gave chase and eventually succeeded in separating our orphans from the wild herd and shepherding them back to join the others. The dependent herd settled to browse at the foot of Msinga Hill before returning to the safety of the stockades for the night. 

On another happy morning at the Voi stockades, the orphans padded down the path for breakfast. Most of the herd gathered around the pile of lucerne – in a lazy mood, Emoli lay down to eat his share of lucerne and then enjoyed a quick nap as the others continued picking up pieces of grass. 

Tagwa and Murit led the herd out for their daily bush adventures. They spread out over Msinga Hill to browse for the morning. Tamiyoi, Ndotto and Ngilai climbed all the way to the top with Pika Pika following in their wake while the others walked towards the open fields. 

After another milk feed, the orphans jogged down the slope to the mud wallow on a cool and cloudy afternoon. No one was keen on swimming — instead, they stood quietly around the pool or paddled along the edges. Lasayen lay on his side relaxing on the edge while Ndotto massaged his bottom against the boulders in the wallow. When we whistled, the herd gathered together and we led them back out to the bush. Once again, Rorogoi was with the dependent orphans. Tonight, we allowed her to spend the night inside a stockade.

Early in the morning, the orphans left the stockades and started their browsing adventures on Msinga Hill. Epiya, Kilulu, Seri and Thamana wandered in the direction of the milk feeding area while Pika Pika and the older orphans clambered up the hill in search of fresh foliage. 

In the afternoon after another milk feed, the herd visited the mud wallow. As several gathered under the baobab tree, Emoli balanced his foot on the edge of the water trough while drinking next to Godoma and Lemeki. Seri and Kilulu stood with trunks entwined on the side of the wallow while Hildana and Thamana had a heated wrestling match. Akina submerged her body in the middle of the pool while Itinyi kicked big splashes on the edge. Manda massaged his bottom on the rock inside the wallow while Ngilai and Lasayen scratched themselves against the baobab tree. Later in the day, the orphans browsed deep into the woods to the south towards the plains.

In the early morning, the orphans emerged from their shared rooms and gathered in front of the stockades. Some lined up at the feeding trough filled with range cubes but Ashanti, Mbegu, Epiya, Ushindi, ex-orphan Rorogoi, Dabida and Godoma opted instead for the pile of lucerne. 

The dependent herd headed out to spend several hours browsing around Msinga Hill. Today, Ndotto ambled away in a different direction, choosing to browse on his own. (Ndotto, Ngilai and Lasayen are all showing signs of independence and are sometimes trying to sneak away when the herd heads home in the evening.) 

On a peaceful afternoon, the orphans hung around the baobab tree water hole and wandered back to Msinga Hill. Rorogoi is continuing to spend her days and nights with the dependent herd — we know that she will return to the wild when she is ready.

The Voi kids were full of beans this morning! Ashanti darted between the feeding trough and the lucerne, shaking her head in excitement. Then she played several rounds of the pushing game with Ushindi. Naughty Kilulu was doing his best to mount Busara but the little girl was having none of this behaviour. She turned around, pushed him hard and challenged him to a wrestling match! Dabida squatted on her backside, posing and waving her trunk, and Lasayen scratched his bottom on the terrace wall. Seri was the first to walk over to the mound of red soil – she lay down for a roll around and was soon joined by Murit, Thamana, and Hildana who stood hosing themselves with dry earth. After a good scratch against the terrace wall, Kilulu began a sparring game with Thamana. On the upper terrace, Lemeki was bonding with Busara, showing her some simple sparring tricks in between trunk hugs.

In the afternoon, the orphans visited the mud wallow to drink from the trough and hang out around the baobab tree. None of the orphans got wet as it was a cloudy day. Pika Pika massaged her backside against the tree while Itinyi play-mounted Rokka and Emoli attempted to mount Thamana. Shaking off Emoli, Thamana walked away to trunk hug Epiya next to the trough while Losoito took on Kenderi in a sparring game under the baobab. Since Lemeki appointed herself chief nanny of Losoito, the younger elephant has changed — she is becoming less reserved and playing more with her friends.

Early in the morning as we prepared the milk and the elephants stood in their shared stockades, Manda banged on the door with his head, hoping that his gate would be opened first. Standing patiently next to him, Kenderi gave him a warning shove, telling him that enough was enough! A Keeper opened their door first and they sprinted down the path to the line of four men waiting with bottles held aloft. 

The dependent herd soon set out for their usual adventures, choosing to browse over the open grasslands on the other side of Msinga Hill today. Big boys Ngilai and Lasayen wandered some distance away together but did return to the herd before they headed down to the mud wallow, 

In the afternoon, the orphans had another milk feed and gathered around the wallow. Ushindi posed at the water trough, balancing her front leg on the edge while drinking next to Ndotto and ex-orphan Rorogoi. Tagwa scratched herself against the bark of the baobab while Emoli opted for the rock inside the wallow for his massage. Lemeki, Epiya, Busara and Ashanti rolled around and splashed on the pile of red earth as the rest of the herd made their way back out to browse.

It was a sunny morning and the orphans were in excited moods. Matriarch Mbegu stood at the feeding trough next to her bevy of babies — Busara, Baraka, Juni, Dabida and Ashanti — keeping a careful eye out for boisterous orphans while the little ones scooped up range cubes. Lemeki and adopted baby Losoito joined Ngilai in the lucerne area in the far corner of the stockade compound. A few minutes later Ngilai chased after Lemeki in an attempt to mount her. Lemeki needed our support to see off the older bull. Godoma drank from the water trough next to Epiya, Pika Pika and Busara (her favourite baby). Itinyi and Manda stood close together, entwining trunks and draping them along each other’s backs. Some time later, Kilulu posed on the famous rock while Ngilai and Lemeki entwined trunks and Itinyi pushed little Ashanti as she rolled around on the mound of dry soil. Itinyi challenged Ashanti to a wrestling match — the two clashed tusks on the pile of soil while Juni and Lemeki lay next to them enjoying a dust bath. Ngilai then turned his attention to Godoma, in the hope of mounting her, as Busara and Rokka played a gentle version of the pushing game. 

Finally, after all the games, the orphans set out for their browsing adventures on the northern side of Msinga Hill. Out in the field, best friends Ndotto and Lasayen ignored us when we whistled for the herd to head down for the afternoon milk feed — the two bulls were engrossed in yet another wrestling match.

On a wonderful morning at the Voi stockade, the dependent orphans enjoyed their breakfast. They were full of energy again today. As they wandered from the lucerne area to the feeding trough, Emoli was trunk hugging Godoma and Murit was doing the same to ex-orphan Rorogoi. Epiya was digging into the soil on the lower terrace and squirting the earth over her back while Ngilai posed with one foot on the terrace wall after finishing up all the range cubes in the trough. As Ngilai stood looking impressive, Kilulu challenged him to a sparring match. He turned his back and so Kilulu moved over to Thamana who accepted his invitation and the two bulls pushed enthusiastically against each other. Brave Kenderi did his best to spar with Emoli but he is too short to play with the older bull and succeeded only in pushing against his neck and stomach. Akina was having an early morning dust bath, rolling on the pile of soil, while Rorogoi and Mbegu trunk hugged each other next to the famous rock.

In the afternoon, the dependent elephants padded down for their usual milk feed before the mud wallow. Little Losoito clasped her own bottle with her trunk, holding it high so the milk poured down her throat. The sun was shining and the orphans had a good time wallowing in the pool. Ashanti swam around happily until Manda tried to clamber on top of her. She moved over to wallow next to Mbegu so the young bull would not bother her. After the wallow, the elephants hosed themselves down with dust and then meandered back out to browse.

This morning, the dependent herd headed out from the stockades as soon as they had finished eating range cubes and lucerne. Matriarch Mbegu supervised the Voi kids as they browsed over the open grasslands while Pika Pika, Tamiyoi, Ngilai and Ndotto clambered up the hill in search of fresh foliage and Lasayen ambled away in the opposite direction from the herd, keen to spend time on his own. 

After the afternoon milk feed, the orphans visited the mud wallow as usual. Kilulu submerged his face in the water trough as he drank before joining the herd in the muddy pool. Murit, Emoli and Itinyi submerged themselves in the middle as Epiya, Hildana and Manda splashed around on the edge. When Ngilai play mounted Godoma in the water, she pushed him off and stood up. Many followed the dip with a dust bath but Tamiyoi and Dabida preferred to scratch their backsides against the baobab tree. Mbegu joined them under the shade of the tree. Itinyi stayed in the water for ages, waving his trunk in excitement. 

When the herd headed back out to the bush, Ndotto and Lasayen stayed at the wallow. They lay on the edge and then played a wrestling match in the water. Eventually, the increasingly independent bulls ambled away from the pool and caught up with the herd.

On a bright sunny morning, the orphans emerged from their shared stockades, drank their milk and settled down to eat range cubes or lucerne. Playful Thamana persuaded a reluctant Tamiyoi to a wrestling match but the game did not last long and Thamana soon moved on to play with the feistier Kilulu. The well-matched friends pushed each other all over the terraces. Meanwhile, Itinyi was entwining trunks and hugging Losoito beside the pile of red soil. Feeling jealous, Lemeki pranced over to steal Losoito away from Itinyi, possessively escorting her to the other end of the terrace. 

The orphans set off on their browsing adventures. Tamiyoi, Ashanti and Rokka led the way while Baraka strode confidently along side by side with Godoma. Hildana, Kilulu, Ashanti, Dabida, Ngilai, Epiya, Baraka and Busara spread out to browse in the open fields at the foot of Msinga Hill as the others wandered up the hill. 

After the afternoon milk feed, the orphans proceeded on to the baobab tree water trough to quench the thirst. No one got wet as it was a cloudy day. Manda and Thamana sparred next to the trough while Ashanti posed with her leg balancing on the edge and Epiya bonded with Ushindi. Before long, we shepherded the herd back to the safety of the stockades for the night.

On a dull, chilly morning, the orphans gathered outside the stockades. They ate and then stood around quietly in small groups. In contrast to most days, no one felt like playing.

The herd soon headed out to browse around the rocky Msinga Hill. Pika Pika and Tamiyoi climbed all the way to the summit of the hill. Lemeki has become a mountain lover thanks to Losoito! Her adopted baby has always loved exploring the hill but used to do so on her own. Lemeki used to love being close to the Keepers. Having taken on the role of nanny to Losoito, Lemeki now dutifully follows the little girl wherever she goes on the hill — with good friend Thamana in tow today. Not far away, Lasayen browsed in the erosion gulley, Ashanti performed a series of stretches and Epiya lay down to relax under a tree.

In the afternoon, the orphans sprinted down the hill for another milk feed. Today, little Busara was holding her own bottle again – when Dabida tried to steal it, she ran away with her head up and trunk gripping the bottle.  After a brief visit to the mud wallow, the orphans continued browsing. Rokka and Itinyi entwined trunks and hugged for a time and then Itinyi walked away to be with Ashanti. When the naughty boy tried to mount her, Ashanti shoved him away – she is growing in confidence! Later on, the orphans made their way back to the stockades for the night.

The sun was shining this morning when the orphans emerged from their stockades. Thamana scratched his belly on the rock at the far end of the compound while Tamiyoi, Manda, Rokka and Ashanti gathered in the path leading out from the stockades (in preparation for leading the herd out to browse). Returning to work after a few days off, Keeper Bernard was given a wonderful welcome by Ngilai. The large bull greeted him with trunk touches and then raised his trunk in the hope of suckling his hand! Not far away Emoli stretched his trunk up high to pull down branches from the tree next to the water trough and then trunk hugged his friend Thamana. 

The orphans spent the morning browsing over the open grasslands. Pika Pika and Lasayen walked all over Msinga Hill while Mbegu looked after younger orphans Busara, Dabida and Losoito at the bottom. 

After the milk feed, the orphans went down to the mud wallow for a swim. Mbegu and Lemeki stopped off to drink from the trough while Akina submerged her body in the middle of the pool and Lasayen splashed along the edge.

Mbegu then massaged her bottom against the creamy peacock tree while Kilulu clambered out of the water and joined Murit and Emoli for a dust bath on the mound of soil.

On another wonderful day, the orphans headed out early to spend the morning on Msinga Hill. Many of the older ones ambled up to the top again as matriarchs Mbegu and Godoma remained at the bottom with babies Busara, Baraka, Seri and Akina. 

In the afternoon, the orphans rushed down the hill for another milk feed and a visit to the mud wallow. Older elephants Murit, Ndotto, Mbegu, Godoma, Ngilai and Lasayen – who have been weaned off milk – ambled down in the wake of the rest of her herd, swinging their trunks from side to side. Occasionally one of them tries to pinch a bottle of milk from the truck but not today. 

As a giraffe waited nearby for the elephants to leave, Ndotto stopped off to drink from the trough while the others rushed into the wallow. After cooling off in the water, Lasayen rolled around on the edge and dug holes in the wet ground with his tusks. Godoma joined him and the two friends entwined trunks and playing the pushing game. When Godoma walked away, she left Lasayen squatting on his backside with front feet splayed and trunk waving – his signature pose. After a short rest, Lasayen and Ngilai enjoyed a noisy wrestling match in the water, splashing water in every direction.

On their way back to the stockades, Godoma dashed around while Ndotto – one of the only elephants not to get wet today – challenged best friend Lasayen to another pushing game.

Early in the morning, a troop of baboons arrived at the stockades. After filling the trough with range cubes, we chased them away as baboons love cubes and we did not want to put out more for the orphans! Impatient Manda was banging on his gate — he is always keen to get going. We opened his door and he sprinted down the path followed closely by Ashanti, Kenderi, Losoito and Epiya. They could not wait for their milk feed.

The orphans left the stockades for their usual bush adventures, settling over the open savannah and browsing on the thick shrubs to the south of the baobab tree mud wallow. In the afternoon, they visited the wallow. Murit, Godoma and Pika Pika drank from the water trough while Hildana rolled around on the edge of the pool. After trunk hugging Lasayen, Godoma took on Ngilai in a water wrestling contest. Busara, Baraka, Dabida, Lemeki and Pika Pika enjoyed a group dust bath, rubbing their faces and lying down with trunks twirling on the mound of red soil while Lasayen scratched his bottom against a large boulder.

When Pika Pika returned from her time with a wild herd a couple of months ago, she found stronger bonds between several nannies and their adopted babies: Godoma and Baraka, Lemeki and Losoito, Mbegu and Busara. Today, out in the bush, Pika Pika strode between Mbegu and Busara and refused to move, doing her best to separate Busara from the matriarch. Grasping the situation, Mbegu draped her trunk along Pika Pika’s back to calm her and allowed her to remain close to little Busara. The three orphans spent the morning browsing together. 

Today, the herd browsed in single file before visiting the baobab tree water hole in the afternoon. The weather was cool and cloudy so the orphans were reluctant to get wet. In recent days, Lemeki has been glued to little Losoito – but this afternoon she chose instead to hang out with old friend Thamana. The two leant against each other next to the wallow before rolling around together on the mound of soil. They had to catch up with the other orphans when they ambled back out to browse some more on their way back to the stockades.

The elephants stood quietly in their shared stockades at first light, rumbling to each other while we prepared their milk bottles. As soon as we opened the doors, they sprinted down the path, gulped down their milk and lined up next to the older (weaned) orphans at the feeding trough. Lemeki was in close contact with Losoito as was Godoma with Baraka. They fed together and the elder elephants walked behind the younger ones when the herd headed out to the bush. 

Today, the whole herd climbed either all the way or part of the way up Msinga Hill, hoping to find better browse than on the plains below. In the afternoon, the orphans padded down for more milk and a wallow in the muddy pool outside the stockades. After cooling down in the water, some played pushing games as others massaged their bodies. Seri, Thamana and Emoli scratched their backsides against the wall of the lower terrace while Tamiyoi used the big rock next to the water trough and Ashanti the famous boulder behind the wallow. After another massage against the twin trees, Emoli caught up with the herd as they meandered out for a final browse of the day.

After drinking their milk and eating range cubes and lucerne grass, the orphans spent time on the terraces. Thamana, Seri, Dabida, Juni and Tagwa enjoyed an early morning massage against the terrace wall, standing in a line as they swayed from side to side. Confident Kilulu dared to challenge Lasayen to a wrestling match. The older bull looked calmly at the younger one for a few moments before turning his back and walking away – one of the dominant bulls in the herd was not prepared to spar with a much smaller male. 

Led by Tagwa and Tamiyoi, the herd headed out to browse in the field. Itinyi tried to play a sparring game with Rokka — when Rokka turned away, Itinyi walked over to Losoito who was (as usual) close to nanny Lemeki. When Itinyi trunk-hugged the little girl, draping her trunk over her head, a jealous Lemeki also stretched her trunk around Losoito’s head and pulled her away from Itinyi! The two walked away and poor Itinyi headed off to find someone who would play with him. His third attempt was successful — when he challenged Akina to a sparring match, she took him on and they played several rounds. Meanwhile, Ushindi and Kilulu were looking out for Ashanti as she walked a few steps, knelt to browse (because of her damaged trunk), stood up and walked on. 

After a brief mud bath in the afternoon, the orphaned elephants left the water hole, and a wild elephant herd soon took their place.

The orphans were full of energy in the morning. They set out earlier than usual to browse and explore the surrounding bush. Along the way, Mbegu and Tagwa paused to stretch their trunks over the fence wire and twist off delicious branches from the acacia trees. The herd spread out around Msinga Hill, searching for tasty browse over the dry landscape.

In the afternoon, we gathered the elephants into groups of three or four and sent them down for another milk feed.  Losoito trumpeted loudly as she raced down the hill, determined to reach the line of Keepers before her friends. At the wallow, Thamana climbed out of the water and approached Lemeki and Losoito as they stood close together. He strode up to Lemeki and trunk hugged his friend many times. Losoito stood back patiently behind her nanny, allowing Thamana and Lemeki to be together. On the other side of the pool, little Baraka was rubbing his backside against Mbegu’s leg. Feeling left out, Juni walked backwards towards Baraka, doing her best to push the little boy away. Mbegu moved quickly to protect Baraka, standing between them and blocking Juni’s bottom from achieving its objective! The remaining half of the browsing day was peaceful.

On a wonderful morning at the Voi stockades, some orphans scooped up range cubes as others picked up branches of lucerne. Ngilai was doing his party trick again: wandering between the two areas with a stash of lucerne balanced on his body. When he arrived back at the feeding trough, little Ashanti snuck under his head and tried to dislodge the lucerne from its store! Sadly, her trunk was not long enough to reach the lucerne but we were happy to see another of the Voi kids growing in confidence! 

Lemeki, with adopted baby Losoito in tow, began leading the herd out to browse. As they dawdled around the gate of the stockades, Tamiyoi and Thamana took charge – overtaking them and sauntering off to Msinga Hill with Lemeki, Losoito and the others following along in a trunk to tail line.

The orphans spent the morning browsing over the open fields overlooking the baobab tree mud wallow. Kenderi and Itinyi were playing a sparing game, clashing heads, twisting around and pushing against each other again. Kilulu soon joined the game and was immediately challenged by feisty Kenderi. Not far away, Ndotto, Lasayen, Ngilai and Murit were browsing in the opposite direction to the herd, trying (unsuccessfully) to wander away from the others. The four bulls — and also Pika Pika — are showing signs of independence and of becoming ready to live wild lives.

After the milk feed, the orphans padded down to the water trough but avoided the mud wallow as it was a cloudy afternoon. Emoli was bonding with Losoito at the trough while Busara and Rokka played pushing and chasing games near the wallow. When the herd ambled away to browse, Ngilai was left behind scratching himself against the creamy peacock tree.

The orphan elephants were up at first light, filling their bellies before leaving for a long day of browsing in the field.

This morning, Dabida was not happy about Hildana being in close browsing contact with Godoma. She walked between them, pushed Hildana away and leant against Godoma. As Lasayen stood browsing quietly, twisting up tasty greens and placing them in his mouth, he was approached first by Busara and then Kenderi. Little Busara stretched her trunk into Lasayen’s mouth to taste his greens. Watching on, Kenderi walked over and did exactly the same thing. The older bull stood patiently and allowed the two younger ones to put their trunks in his mouth! The trend caught on as moments later we saw Rokka sampling browse from Mbegu’s mouth. 

On a cloudy afternoon, the orphaned elephants were reluctant to get wet in the wallow. Juni and Baraka squeezed themselves up close to Mbegu for warmth and security. Later in the day, as Godoma and Baraka were browsing, Juni leant against Godoma and then spread her ears over the older female’s face, covering her eyes so she could not see little Baraka as he toddled around next to her.

The dependent orphans (plus Rorogoi) left the stockades soon after finishing their milk, range cubes and lucerne grass and spent the morning browsing all over an increasingly dry Msinga Hill. Older bulls Ndotto and Ngilai played a very tough head-to-head wrestling match. 

In the afternoon, the elephants headed down to the mud wallow in small groups as usual. Murit and Rorogoi (who are no longer milk-dependent) were left behind, but later caught up with their friends at the water hole. Most of the herd went swimming as it was a hot day. After climbing out of the water, matriarch Mbegu nudged Busara into position under her neck, warming her up as if she was her mother. An excited and happy Busara stood completely still in this place for a length of time. 

Back in the pool, Godoma continued splashing around with trunk waving until Lasayen clambered on top of her, pushing her down. She shoved him off and went to join Mbegu on the edge. Itinyi had fun drinking tiny amounts of water while spraying larger amounts in every direction around the trough. 

On their way back to the stockades, Busara moved bumper to bumper with Mbegu, preventing any other orphan from coming close to her nanny!

Mbegu took charge this morning, leading the herd out to areas of Msinga Hill which still had good browse while we were still drinking tea. Our matriarch knew what was best for her herd! They spread out to browse for the morning while she kept her eyes on the youngest orphans. 

During the afternoon mud bath, Hildana played it rough, pinning Kilulu down by lying on top of him and then refusing to move. Kilulu was determined and eventually shook off his annoying friend. Itinyi rubbed his face, lay down and rolled around on the mound of soil – after his dust bath, he squatted on his haunches to scratch his backside against a large rock. Emoli stood between the twin trees, massaging both sides of his body and refused to share the special space with anyone else. 

Later in the afternoon, the herd meandered back to the stockades. Busara was being possessive of ‘her’ Mbegu again today. Noticing that Ashanti has a soft spot for Mbegu, she plonked herself firmly between them and refused to budge.

This morning, the orphans were excited because the rain was drizzling after many dry days. They hung around the stockades playing — we had to persuade them to leave. Lemeki enjoyed an early morning dust bath, rolling around and hosing soil in every direction. She was soon joined by little Losoito and also Dabida. Kilulu was scratching his belly on the famous rock while Epiya posed against the terrace wall. Seri did some elephant stretches before scratching her belly and posing on the wall. 

Eventually, the herd headed out to browse on the slopes of Msinga Hill. Both Thamana and Losoito were showing Lemeki their love along the way, trunk touching and draping at every opportunity. The orphans spent the morning wandering over the grasslands. 

In the afternoon, the orphans visited the mud wallow for a drink but not for a swim on a day of clouds and drizzle. Afterwards, they returned to Msinga Hill for a final browse of the day.

Amid showers of welcome rain, the orphans waited patiently by their doors while we prepared breakfast — except for Kenderi, who kept rumbling and banging on his gate. One of us calmed him down and soon we opened all the gates. Kenderi padded down the path in the lead followed by Kilulu and Juni.

The herd soon headed out to browse on the hill just above the stockades. Juni and Kilulu stood tall to pluck down branches from a tree while Thamana scratched her rump on the bark. Later in the morning, Busara lay down for a nap next to Pika Pika as Juni massaged herself against a nearby rock. Ashanti was browsing with Tamiyoi on the rocky part of the hill while Akina squatted on a boulder to scratch her bottom. Older bulls Ndotto, Murit, Lasayen and Ngilai went walkabout for an hour or so but returned in the early afternoon.

It was drizzling again this morning as the elephants lined up for range cubes at the feeding trough or stood around the pile of lucerne. Losoito rolled around on the mound of red soil. Lemeki and Juni soon joined her for an early morning dust bath while Tamiyoi continued to drink from the water trough. Itinyi and Emoli also enjoyed a dust bath before Itinyi challenged Lasayen to a wrestling match. Itinyi only lasted for one round before pulling out as he could not stand up to Lasayen’s large tusks and strength. Lasayen and Emoli — a well-matched pair — then had a lengthy sparring match. 

The dependent herd spent the rest of the morning browsing in the open grass fields enjoying the rain. Losoito had a lovely time rolling around in the erosion gulley trying to make her own mud bath. 

In the afternoon, the orphans walked down to the baobab mud wallow where they drank from the trough, stood around in groups and hosed themselves with red soil. Mbegu relaxed by the trough with Busara and Emoli. Kenderi and Itinyi chased each other around the baobab. Itinyi thought about challenging Emoli to a game but backed away from the older bull. When we whistled, Godoma led the herd back to the stockades for the night.

The sun returned this morning and the orphans were in playful moods. Manda stood on the mound of red soil, enjoying a dust splash, while Lemeki fussed over Losoito and Itinyi posed on the terrace wall before linking up with Rokka. First Akina scratched herself on the famous rock and then Busara took her place as Kilulu and Hildana enjoyed a wrestling match. 

The orphans soon set off on their browsing adventures. They spent the morning towards the top of the hill. Ngilai and Tagwa stretched up to pluck leaves from tall trees. Thamana and Losoito rolled around together on patches of dry soil and then Thamana played a sparring match with Manda. Rorogoi — who has spent the whole month with her old herd — massaged herself against a large boulder while Emoli and Tamiyoi browsed together. Mbegu and Busara walked side by side behind Juni as she climbed down the hill in the afternoon. 

The orphans had their afternoon milk feed in the stockades. While Kilulu and Ashanti massaged themselves against the terrace wall, Epiya decided to clamber over the wall, resting her forelegs and struggling to heave her belly over the wall. Losoito hosed herself with dry soil while Kilulu dug into the pile and then played sparring games with Kenderi as Mbegu mud splashed on the edge of the wallow.

The morning was calm with light rain sprinkling on the ground. Older bulls Lasayen and Ndotto enjoyed scratching up games against the large boulder, taking it in turns to massage their backsides. The herd headed out early to the browsing grounds, with Busara sticking close to Mbegu, Baraka to Godoma, Losoito to Lemeki, and Juni to Tagwa. 

After the afternoon milk feed, the elephants visited the mud wallow but did not get wet because of the cool weather. Little Seri spent time standing next to big bull Ngilai at the water trough. We then shepherded the herd away to a special pile of supplementary lucerne left out in the bush due to the dry conditions which are especially difficult for Ashanti with her short trunk. 

Later in the day, Ashanti and Itinyi were playing the pushing game. When Kenderi joined them, Ashanti stood to one side while best friends Kenderi and Itinyi tested each other’s strength. Behaving as if he was the dominant bull rather than one of the Voi kids, Itinyi broke off the game to play mount Ashanti (who shoved him off) and then Thamana (who did the same)!