Otters and Science News: RESCUED ORPHAN ELEPHANTS BECOME INSEPARABLE FRIENDS

Just the two of us! Baby elephants orphaned in the wild become inseparable after being rescued by rangers at wildlife trust

Ashaka and Kamok were discovered separately in Nairobi wild after being abandoned by their herds

The baby female elephants were rescued by rangers at wildlife trust and have become inseparable

Duo are fed special milk formula and play in herds of other animals their age at park in Tsavo East

Now, the boisterous duo spend their days rolling around in mud, chasing warthogs and bashing bushes.

They will be re-released into the wild when they are older to replenish dwindling population of African elephants

(Released only to be slaughtered by poachers? - blogger)

Read more and see additional pictures

Two orphaned baby elephants have become best friends after being rescued by a wildlife trust.

Ashaka and Kamok were discovered in the wild separately after being abandoned by their mothers a year ago.

The African elephants - both named after parts of Kenya - were taken in by the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust on the outskirts of Nairobi, and have since become inseparable.

Kamok was just one day old when she was abandoned by her mother and herd. Her limbs were weak and she was unable to walk properly. She wandered alone and scared into a camp in the Ol Pejeta conservancy, where rangers began bottle feeding her.

Two months later, three-week old Ashaka was found at the bottom of a deep waterhole after waking rangers at the Kenyan Wildlife Service in Tsavo East with her distressed screams.

Once rescued, both animals were flown to the Trust’s nursery in Nairobi National Park and are now part of its foster programme.

Rob Brandford, UK director of the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, said: ‘The bonds between elephants are extremely close and important.

'For the orphans we rescue, the other elephants become their lost herd and family,with many choosing their own best friends.

'These bonds will last a lifetime.

‘Kamok and Ashaka were rescued within months of one another and as both are girls in the original infant group, they have settled into nursery life in the knowledge that in each other they have a playmate and friend.’

The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust cares for endangered elephants and black rhinos. It is also caring for a baby giraffe called Zili. Founded in 1977 by Dame Daphne Sheldrick D.B.E in memory of her late husband, it focuses on the rescue and rehabilitation of orphaned elephants.

The Trust has cared for more than 150 elephants in almost 40 years, reintegrating animals back into the wild when they are ready.