Despite our very best efforts, Mokogodo faded away on 3rd September. After lying peacefully in her stable for the day, the little girl died in the early evening. The vets concluded that she was suffering from an insidious case of milk intolerance and malabsorption. It was a devastating loss, but we take comfort in the knowledge that Mokogodo only knew love and happiness during her time with us. You can read our full tribute to Mokogodo here.

The other orphans knew that their beloved little girl had passed — in the days that followed, they did not wait by her stable, but secretions from their temporal glands showed their unrest. Then, five days after Mokogodo’s death, an interesting vigil took place: That morning, Sileita walked down to the Mokogodo’s old room and stood outside. One by one, Muwingu, Weka, Mzinga, and Nyambeni also took their place. We allowed the girls to stay, respecting their loss, until they were ready to leave. It was as if they were giving their smallest friend a final memorial.

As devastating as these losses are, we must take cues from elephants and focus on the living — for there will always be more orphans in need of our love and support. Sure enough, it wasn’t long before another little elephant entered our midst. On 12th September, our pilot discovered a one-year-old orphan alone in Tsavo. She was weak, forlorn, and had clearly been without her family for some time. The SWT helicopter delivered the youngster to Nairobi, where she was ushered into a stable between Nyambeni and Shujaa. We named her Wamata.

A week after her rescue, Wamata joined the herd for the first time. Kerrio and Keeper Peter coaxed the shy young girl out of her stable with gentle rumbles (Kerrio) and a bottle of milk (Peter). Kerrio, Nyambeni, Mzinga, Olomunyak, and Taroha then escorted the newbie into the forest, where the rest of the orphan herd welcomed her with an outpouring of love. From that day forward, Wamata has been one of the gang. She can usually be found browsing with her adopted nanny, Sileita.

The orphans are so protective of one another. We were reminded of this one morning, when Choka walked into the forest with a pronounced limp, courtesy of an especially energetic wrestling match against Mukutan. It was not long before the herd got wind of Choka’s situation. Mushuru, Muwingu, Sholumai, Kitich, Sileita, and Loldaiga gathered around their friend, trunk touching him with concern. Choka was back to his normal self a few hours later, but we have no doubt that he appreciated the sympathy.

Mageno is becoming quite the explorer. He likes to lead a gang of older orphans, including Kitich, Loldaiga, Mukutan, Choka, Sholumai, and Mushuru, on forest excursions, as they seek fresh brown and undiscovered territory. But at heart, they are still big babies. One afternoon, the independents were browsing happily on their own until an impala dashed out of a bush. Taken by surprise, the big boys and girls turned tail and ran for their Keepers — not quite so big after all!

Shujaa is such a clever elephant. This month, he debuted an impressive new trick: opening his stable door from the inside. First, he would stretch his trunk up to undo the upper latch. With the top half of the stable door unlocked, he then clambered atop the lower door to reach the wooden stay below, which he tried to wiggle loose with his trunk. We couldn't have Shujaa running amok at night, so we added reinforcements to his door to prevent any escape acts!

Speaking of mischief — we had to switch Pardamat’s feeding group… again. A few months ago, we moved the naughty youngster to an older feeding group, in the hopes that his elders would instil some discipline. At long last, we had to admit defeat. Instead of improving Pardamat’s behaviour, it made him worse, as the older girls protected and spoiled him at every opportunity. Much to his annoyance, Pardamat has been sent back to his younger group — and they aren’t so forgiving. When he misbehaves, Nyambeni and Mzinga cold-shoulder him, while Taroha headbutts him every time he tries to bully Olomunyak or Talek. Mission accomplished: Pardamat now has no choice but to mind his manners!

Taroha and Olmunyak have become the best of friends, which is lovely to see. This month, we also saw a burgeoning friendship between Talek and Olomunyak. But much like Talek’s relationship with Pardamat, the lines between love and loathing and are often blurred: Talek and Pardamat bicker from their adjacent stables in the evenings, whereas Talek and Olomunyak squabble over greens or milk or nannies or space or attention — anything, really! But then, just as quickly as they started, all quarrels are forgotten and the babies are affectionate and playful with each other.

Some females are natural nurturers. In our current Nursery herd, Sileita, Kerrio, Latika, and Mushuru are the main nannies. Kamili and Muridjo, by contrast, prefer eating to looking after babies. But every so often, we see glimmers of change. One day, Muridjo and Talek spent the day together, and the older girl happily fussed over her little charge for hours on end. 

Kamili, who resolutely marches to the beat of her own drum, remains consistent in her disinterest in babies — perhaps because she still thinks of herself as one! One afternoon, Kerrio flopped onto the ground, inviting the youngsters to climb on her. Taroha and Pardamat were atop her in a trice. But then Kamili trundled over, pushed the babies off, and rested her forelegs over Kerrio — never mind that she’s even older than Kerrio. Returning for a second round, Taroha and Pardamat clambered on top of Kamili while she was on Kerrio, creating a stack of happy elephants.

Muwingu also shows little interest in nannying. But one day, she took up residence next to Olomunyak and Pardamat, trunk touching the boys and being uncharacteristically affectionate. Mushuru, who dotes on Pardamat, objected to the interloping nanny. To ward her off, she enlisted the help of Choka, one of the strongest bulls in the herd. The pair pushed poor Muwingu to the ground and pinned her down — not once, but twice. Muwingu’s trumpeting alerted Sileita, Latika, Kerrio, Muridjo, Mzinga, Weka, and even little Olomunyak, who rushed over to reestablish peace. Sileita remained by Muwingu’s side, just in case Mushuru and Choka dared to return for a third time.

We can always count on Weka to bring an element of drama to any proceedings. She is known for her penchant for yelling at the top of her lungs as she runs to her milk feed, but any occasion will do. One day, she and Shujaa enjoyed an ear splitting game, trumpeting theatrically as they pushed each other back and forth.

Latika — who is normally so nurturing — isn’t herself at the moment. She has been unusually short-tempered with the babies, except Olomunyak. When the Keepers chastise her for her behaviour, she flares her ears obstinately and flips her tail. We believe Latika is still mourning Mokogodo’s death. With time, she will open her heart to another youngster.

On 23rd September, the second rescue of the month arrived at the Nursery. This was a very serious case: a very young male, grievously wounded in a lion attack. The Keepers offloaded him from the SWT helicopter and brought him into a quiet stable, where we immediately set about treating his injuries. Later that afternoon, we brought Olomunyak back to welcome the newcomer. The gentle boy stretched his trunk in greeting, calming the newbie, before padding back into the forest.

We named the little calf Askari, in honour of the valour he has shown. His healing journey will be an uphill battle, but we will give it our all and are heartened by his progress thus far. Mzinga and Nyambeni are Askari’s most conscientious nannies. They walk at his pace — which is extremely slow — and stubbornly remain by his side throughout the day. They behave as if Askari is their own baby, with Mzinga playing the role of security escort and Nyambeni acting as his surrogate mother. 

The rhinos:

Maxwell had a lovely moment with Taroha this month. Emerging from his stable, Taroha marched straight to the rhino’s stockade. It was as if it was a prearranged date; Max had been patiently waiting before Taroha arrived. The elephant and the rhino played a pushing-and-pulling-and-headbutting game, before Taroha used his trunk to stroke Max’s head and back. It was a lovely start to the day for both of them.

When Maxwell is in a grumpy mood, he chases the wild warthogs out of his enclosure. But usually, the blind rhino is happy to share his space and his lucerne pellets with the pigs. After feasting together, the warthogs nip back to the forest, using the tunnel they have dug in the top corner of the enclosure. Max then naps in the shade or patrols around the border of his spacious stockade.

This month marked Raha’s second rescueversary. The fragile, wounded baby we rescued two years ago has blossomed into a confident, obstinate young lady. One thing is certain: Raha knows her own mind! Now, she determinedly stomps into the forest ahead of the Keepers, picking where she wants to go and when. We are very pleased to see Raha growing in size and strength but continue to give her milk feeds on demand, rather than every three hours like the elephants.

Raha loves her cosy blanket — but being a rhino who knows her own mind, she is quick to let us know when she doesn’t need it. When she feels warm, she trundles over to the nearest tree and rubs her blanketed side against it, communicating her wishes loud and clear to the Keepers.

Like Maxwell, Raha is becoming good friends with the Nursery’s resident wild warthogs. She can often be found in the company of a handful of pigs. Raha browses and naps, browses and naps, browses and naps, while her warthog security detail fan around her.