{"id":1041,"date":"2011-12-20T13:43:39","date_gmt":"2011-12-20T11:43:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/elephantswithoutborders.org\/blog\/?p=1041"},"modified":"2011-12-20T13:44:32","modified_gmt":"2011-12-20T11:44:32","slug":"a-new-calf-shireni-gives-birth-at-abu-camp","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/elephantswithoutborders.org\/blog\/?p=1041","title":{"rendered":"A new calf! Shireni Gives Birth at Abu Camp"},"content":{"rendered":"

Abu Camp, located in Botswana\u2019s pristine Okavango Delta, is proud to announce that Shireni, one of the Camp\u2019s leading elephants, gave birth to her third surviving calf, a healthy female, at 22:05 on the 17th December. Measuring approximately 90cm at the shoulder and weighing about 110kg, the new-born stood on her own feet, wobbling, within 20 minutes. The elephant handlers have named her Warona, the SeTswana name meaning \u2018For Us.\u2019<\/em><\/p>\n

\"Warona<\/a>

Warona stood in minutes after her birth<\/p><\/div>\n

Reaching up to her mother, Warona suckled properly for the first time at 07.00 the next morning, 10 hours after the birth, and now takes short naps of 5-10 minutes. Closely watched over by her doting big brother, Abu Junior, the new-born calf is already showing signs of playfulness. Both Warona and Shireni are doing well, along with the other elephants that form the Abu herd. This new member brings the number of the Abu herd to seven elephants.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Proud<\/a>

Proud mother, Shireni<\/p><\/div>\n

Shireni was brought to Abu Camp as part of the original \u2018Brat Pack Girls\u2019 of young elephants saved from a culling operation in the \u2018Sirheni\u2019 area of Kruger National Park. The father is believed to be a wild bull or Mthondo, one of several elephants successfully reintroduced from the Abu herd into the elephant paradise of the Okavango Delta. Earlier this year, the Camp released Gika and her eight-year-old calf Naya together; being monitored by Elephants Without Borders<\/a>, <\/strong>they are adapting well to their natural home, roaming and mingling with wild elephants and another previously released elephant, Nandipa, who now has two calves of her own. A total of nine elephants have been released from the Abu herd, under the full support of the Botswana Department of Wildlife and National Parks.<\/span><\/p>\n

Abu Camp takes its name from the Arabic word meaning \u2018all things to do with elephants\u2019. The birth of Shireni\u2019s calf ends off a thrilling 2011, which saw the opening of the newly refurbished camp, together with exciting new initiatives within Abu Camp\u2019s elephant programme. The elephant experience is being supervised by San Diego Zoo Post-Doctoral Research Fellow, Dr. Mike Chase, together with the support of Wild Horizons, a company with a strong history in high quality elephant interaction activities.<\/p>\n

The elephant programme is complemented by the reputation of Wilderness Safaris, Africa\u2019s leading ecotourism operator that now manages the camp through its brand, the Wilderness Collection. The cornerstone of this new initiative involves Elephants Without Borders<\/a> establishing a field research station in the Abu Concession. This happy moment overlaps with an ambitious new programme which is devoted to the highest standards in elephant welfare, scientific research and meaningful guest experiences.<\/p>\n

The new calf will provide hours of fascination and enjoyment to visitors of Abu Camp, allowing them the rare opportunity to interact with a family group of elephants in one of Africa\u2019s best wilderness areas: the Okavango Delta.<\/p>\n

Mike Chase is presently at the Camp and will be giving us all an update and new photos to share of Warona, Shireni and the Abu elephant herd soon!<\/p>\n

\n

photos courtesy of Rob Moffett and Wilderness Safaris<\/p>\n\n\t\t