Rokka and Manda have now spent the better part of a year in Voi, after graduating here in February. Both have found their place among the herd, although the old friends remain very close to one another.
When she was at our Kaluku Unit, Rokka was known for her competitive spirit (how else does one become the reigning champion of ‘hose wars’?). As she gets older, her desire to win only grows stronger! One day, Losoito, Lemeki, Tamiyoi, Thamana, and Rokka led the herd out into the bush. Rokka was trying her hardest to be in front, even going round the rocks on Msinga Hill rather than walking on the usual elephant track in her attempt to overtake.
Thamana remains Emoli’s best friend and favourite sparring partner, but our outgoing young bull has started branching out. One day, Emoli had a lengthy pushing game with Hildana. The older bull, in the role of teacher, was gentle with his young friend — who was delighted by the attention.
Ndotto is a genteel, easygoing bull, but he is steadfast in his dislike of water. He only gets wet when it is very, very hot. While all the other orphans wallow to their hearts’ content, he stands happily in the shade of a large Commiphora tree. One day, Lasayen splashed around in the water, stretching out his trunk to Ndotto in an (unsuccessful) attempt to persuade his friend to join him in the pool. Ndotto resolutely remained on the edge, flapping his large ears to keep himself cool. But another day, it was hot enough to pass Ndotto’s muster and he slowly slowly sank into the pool. Itinyi was so excited to see the older bull swimming that he did an impromptu show-off session, sliding in and out of the water on his haunches.
Lemeki, who was once a clinging vine to her Keepers, has found new purpose thanks to stout young Losoito. The girls are inseparable. One day, Losoito became concerned when she saw her adopted mother sparring with Itinyi. She padded over to see if Lemeki was in trouble and Itinyi, taking advantage of the situation, climbed onto her back. Trumpeting, Lemeki chased him away — no one messes with her ‘daughter’!
But with that said, Thamana is Lemeki’s original love. We had a sweet reminder of this one afternoon, when Lemeki was sandwiched between Thamana and Losoito. Standing contentedly between her old friend and new baby, Lemeki trunk hugged Thamana first and then little Losoito.
Our older orphans — Murit, Lasayen, Ndotto, Ngilai, Mbegu, Tamiyoi, Tagwa, and Godoma — remain dependent on our care, but they are starting to fraternise with wild friends. One afternoon, when the orphans visited the mud wallow, they found a teenage wild bull in the water. Rather than stay away from the visitor, as they once might have done, Mbegu, Ndotto, and Lasayen played with him for quite some time.
Some orphans are ready to take even bigger steps in their reintegration journey. One evening, Ndotto and Rorogoi sprinted away to join a herd of wild elephants browsing on the northern side of Msinga Hill. The older bull and former ex-orphan spent the night out. No doubt Rorogoi, who had been living wild for quite some time before re-joining the dependent herd last month, gave Ndotto the confidence to experiment with his independence.
Early the following morning, after spending the night out with Rorogoi, Ndotto returned home. When the orphans emerged from their rooms soon after dawn, they found the big bull waiting for them under the tree near the entrance. Apparently, one night was enough as he dipped his toes in the wild elephant experience.
Our ‘Voi kids’ — Akina, Ashanti, Baraka, Busara, Dabida, Epiya, Hildana, Itinyi, Juni, Kenderi, Kilulu, Losoito, Seri, and Ushindi — are thriving. They are a feisty bunch, known for their strong personalities and playful spirits. Kilulu, Epiya, Hildana, Kenderi, and Itinyi are particularly feisty. Ashanti is gentle but fiery when challenged, while Baraka and Busara are the spoiled babies under Mbegu’s protection. It is nice to see how everyone has found their place amongst the herd.
Mbegu continues to be an excellent matriarch. One day, she noticed that Ashanti was struggling to bend over to eat cubes with her mouth (Ashanti’s trunk, which was partially severed by a poacher’s snare, is too short to scoop them up as the other orphans do). Gentle Mbegu remained close to the little girl, ensuring that the rest of the herd left her in peace as she slowly ate her lucerne.
On 23rd September, we were called to rescue a baby elephant who had been attacked by lions. Given the severity of his injuries, the calf would not survive in the wild. SWT and KWS personnel carried out the rescue, loading the injured baby onto the chopper which airlifted him to the Nairobi Nursery. His injuries are grave, but he has the best chance of survival there.
During the rescue mission, we were surprised to find a familiar face among the injured-baby’s herd: ex-orphan Naipoki! We were delighted to see Naipoki — once a vulnerable orphan, now a happy, healthy elephant living wild. She and other members of her herd had spent the previous night around the calf, protecting him from another attack. Interestingly, all the elephants remained calm during the calf’s rescue, as if they knew that he was getting help that could save his life. Perhaps Naipoki, who was rescued from a well 14 years ago, communicated that message to the rest of the herd.
September ended on a funny note. As usual, the orphans were squabbling over their breakfast range cubes at the feeding trough. Much to the others’ annoyance, Ndotto had come up with a clever plan. He collected a pile of pellets in a corner of the trough and blocked his friends from getting to them. Soon, the trough was empty except for Ndotto’s little pile — which no one could access! To our surprise, Pika Pika then came up with an even more clever plan. She climbed into the water trough, from where she could reach the pellets! Obviously, Ndotto was not happy about this, but he graciously decided to share his spoils with Pika Pika.
On the last day of the month, ex-orphan Rorogoi returned after 11 days on walkabout. She was waiting for her old herd when the orphans padded out of their shared stockades soon after dawn. There was lots of rumbling as Rorogoi greeted her old friends and lined up at the feeding trough with them. That evening, when we whistled, the herd of dependent orphans — and also Rorogoi — meandered back to the safety and comfort of the stockades.