Chamboi the orphaned rhino: 

Chamboi now has four molars! This puts him well into the teething process, although he still has a long way to go. While teething is a fraught time for infant orphaned elephants, rhinos don’t struggle in the same way. Chamboi is just as energetic as ever. One of his favourite jaunts is up by the airstrip, where he runs as fast as his little legs will carry him. Surprised team members have to do a double take, as they see a tiny rhino whirring past.

Now that his teeth are coming in, it won’t be long before he starts eating greens. This, in turn, will cause him to grow in size and strength. He’s mentally preparing for this next frontier: Chamboi is constantly masticating, even though he is still on an all-milk diet. It’s as if he’s imagining what it will be like to chew greens!

The orphaned elephants: 

As per usual, Mwinzi remains the master browser. We often find him quite literally engulfed in vegetation, with just his bottom sticking out of whatever bush or tree he has set his sights on. Inside his nighttime stable, the scene is much the same: The Keepers stock it with so much vegetation that one might think there is barely room for an elephant, too! By morning, every single leaf has been eaten. In other Mwinzi news, he is now the proud bearer of two tiny tusks — a sure sign that our boy is growing up. 

Natibu reminds us more and more of Rokka. Like her, he has a naughty streak and can’t resist an opportunity to cause some mischief. We will be standing at ease and unawares, only to suddenly find a pair of flared ears charging towards us. Natibu is still small and his antics are all in good fun, but they certainly jolt us to attention! He is as bonded as ever with Mayan and makes a beeline for his stockade in the morning.

Mayan is such a good-natured, gentle elephant. With that said, he also cannot resist the opportunity to chase the smaller, non-elephant orphans. His favourite target is Harvey the duiker — and with him, Mayan may have met his match! Harvey is a remarkably cool, self-assured little antelope. When Mayan charges towards him, ears at full mast and trunk swinging, Harvey nonchalantly trots off, as if it was a butterfly chasing him, not a rather large elephant. 

Vaarti has a very similar temperament to Mayan. Much like humans, it is common for elephants to occasionally wake up on the wrong side of the proverbial bed — but not Vaarti! He is always in a great mood and gets along with everyone. He has a very clever skill of untying people’s shoelaces. If you’re standing nearby, it is highly likely that a trunk will snake over to your feet and proceed to dexterously unravel even the most carefully tied bow.

This month, Manda was focused on broadcasting his size and strength. It is as if he suddenly re-realised that he is the biggest bull in the Kaluku herd, even though he is younger than Vaarti and Mayan. All this snowboating kept the Keepers on their toes; it’s not a big deal if he tries to play-mount the bigger bulls, but Manda isn’t very selective. On several occasions, the Keepers caught him trying to clamber atop the little babies — never mind the fact that they can easily pass underneath his belly, no climbing required! 

Last month’s description of Rokka as ‘well-behaved but strong-tempered’ is right on the money. She has no time for nonsense and makes herself scarce when the bigger bulls start to get rowdy. Rokka remains our water baby of note, but several overcast days even deterred her from swimming. One morning, she took an unintentional dip: She slid down the bank of the mud bath to test the water, found it too cold and tried to backtrack, but gravity intervened and she tumbled right in! Always one to make the best of a situation, Rokka proceeded to roll around on the water’s edge, as if that had been her plan all along.

Twiggy the orphaned giraffe:

By now, we are well-versed in Twiggy’s wide circle of friends. She may be the only giraffe at Kaluku — a status that suits her just fine — but she is constantly surrounded by a coterie of small orphaned antelope. Her best friends are Nini the gazelle and Harvey the duiker. Follow the small antelope, and you are sure to find the tall giraffe. This month saw a new addition to Twiggy’s crew: An orphaned black-headed heron who we rescued from Galana as a chick. He recently ‘flew’ wild, although he likes to land in Twiggy’s orbit.Twiggy decided to forgo the orphaned elephant’s mud bath for a spell, but that daily tradition is back in full force. She quietly browses in the nearby bushes and trees while the elephants slip, slide, and splash in the mud. At night, Twiggy comes home on her own accord, ambling slowly and stopping to snack on high-up leaves as she goes. She is delighted with the continued bounty of vegetation around Kaluku — browsing has never been so effortless!

Apollo the orphaned rhino:

If you read this month’s entry from the Nursery, you will know that Raha is starting to embody the most famous of rhino traits, obstinance. She is just over a year old, while Apollo is four years old — which, by our maths, means he is four times more obstinate! He does what he wants, when he wants, and no one can convince him otherwise.

Ever since moving to Rhino Base (which has unofficially been renamed ‘Apollo Base’), Apollo has really embraced his independence. Unless Justus, who has been his Keeper since he was rescued, is present, he flatly refuses to walk into his nighttime stockade. Instead, he continues roaming into the night or even early morning, until he feels like ambling home. Regardless of the hour, we can rest easy as Apollo explores his independence: His browsing grounds are surrounded by a secure fence and he is constantly monitored by KWS rangers.

* Apollo is now at Rhino Base, in Tsavo East National Park