10th June, 2023

Misbehaving

Visiting a private game reserve is a much more intimate experience than visiting a national park. First of all, it is much smaller making it easier for the rangers to track and find the animals. Second, those that have lived and worked at Thula Thula know their animals well, especially the elephants. And the elephants of Thula Thula are unique in that, although they are wild, they are still comfortable enough to be around humans.

Each of the twenty-eight elephants is named and each has their own distinct personality and quirks. I was especially pleased to find Nana to be alive and well as she was the very first matriarch of this herd. There she stood, not more than three feet away from me and staring at this newest tourist who had traveled such a long way to see her and her family.

When the original seven elephants arrived, it was Nana who became the new matriarch after witnessing the killing of two of her family members. And it was Nana who led the others to escape Thula Thula, not once but twice. The strength, power and intelligence of this magnificent species was able to knock down trees into the electric fence, allowing them to run free. Only the owner of Thula Thula, Lawrence Anthony, had other ideas.

Once the elephants were back and safely secured in the boma, Lawrence decided to set up camp just outside the fence. For three weeks, he walked and talked and sang to the elephants until one day, Nana stuck her trunk through the fence and touched Lawrence on the shoulder. It was then he knew it was time to let her and the other elephants discover their new home, the many hectares of Thula Thula. It was because of this one relationship between Lawrence and Nana that the others slowly learned to relax around humans.

So, it was with great reverence when I was introduced to this special elephant. Nana is easy to spot in a crowd. She came to Thula Thula with only one tusk on the right side of her face. She has since gone blind in one eye due to a cataract. Nana is smart and sensitive to the emotions of her herd. She is no longer the matriarch as she handed that off to Frankie when she lost her eyesight. Unfortunately, Frankie has since passed. It is now Frankie’s second daughter, Marula who is the current matriarch. But Nana still guides the herd with the wisdom of a grandmother and she is respected by the others as such. Often she will stop and take a nap just like our elderly. But don’t let her fool you, she still is a clever soul and can be quite mischievous at times.

“Nana took our bush coffee!” one of the guests said when she came back from their morning game drive. “She came right up to the back of the truck, used her trunk and knocked over the box, spilling out the contents all over the road. All the elephants came over and all of a sudden there were a dozen trunks checking it out,” another guest added. “Then Andrew climbed up on the roof and hung over the back of the truck trying to get the stuff back. It was so funny,” the first woman continued, laughing. “Here look!” And there it was, all documented on their cell phones.

We had our own run-in with a misbehaving elephant. It was the day after a helicopter was on the premises to dart the buffalo and test for hoof and mouth disease. The elephants don’t like the helicopter noise (as they, too, are darted from time to time) and were agitated.

When we found the elephants that afternoon, they were heading up a long, narrow road with thick bush on either side. Siya stopped the car about forty yards behind them. While we were watching them, we heard elephants trumpeting as they were coming up the hill behind us. It was two very large males, Shaka and Bafana. Siya said they had probably been fighting as Shaka was feisty. He was trumpeting and dancing around, shaking his trunk. Suddenly, he came barreling down the road straight for us. Jay and I were in the back of the land cruiser. “I think it is time to move,” Jay said quietly. Our ranger, Siya, tried to start the car but because it is diesel and needs to warm up, we weren’t going anywhere and Shaka was coming fast. I turned around to face the front and got as small as possible bracing myself. Both Jay and one of the other passengers reported that one of Shaka’s tusks came in between Jay and me. With his big body having all that momentum coming down the hill, he kept moving alongside the vehicle. About ten feet in front of us, he turned around and after a minute or two of dancing around came back at us.

Siya was still trying to start the car. Even if he got it started, there really wasn’t anywhere to go because of the thick bush beside us and elephants in front and behind us. Before we knew it, Shaka was pushing the vehicle and then kicked it. His brute strength pushed the land cruiser up on its side and onto two wheels. Then it dropped just as quickly on all four wheels. The motor started and Siya moved us out of the way.

We all stared at one another as if to say, “Did that really happen?” followed by a bunch of nervous laughter. Even Siya seemed shaken by Shaka’s actions. “He was just riled up and wanted us out of the way. He was playing. He didn’t want to hurt us,” he said. And Shaka was fine after that. He casually walked to meet his family as if nothing had happened.

To us, it was a moment to remember.

Then there is Thabo. The rhino with an attitude. Thabo came to Thula Thula when he was only two months old as a rescue from a rehab center. He had been found alone with no family around. When Francoise heard about Thabo, she brought him to the reserve.  There he was nursed and raised by humans.

As a baby, everybody thought Thabo was cute and couldn’t help but fall in love with him. It wasn’t long, though, before he became known as the “mischievous toddler.”  He wasn’t allowed at the lodge but that didn’t stop him from running over and “greeting” the guests and getting into all kinds of things he shouldn’t. As a teenager, his antics got worse. This two-ton big boy liked to push the land cruisers around. Literally. He was used to the green land cruisers and left them alone, but any other color or any other vehicle, look out. One afternoon, all guests and visitors were directed to a back entrance to Thula Thula as Thabo was hanging around the front gate and they didn’t want any trouble.

What to do about Thabo? He needed a mate so they brought in Ntombi. Thabo warmed up to her and they became inseparable. However, they acted more like brother and sister than girlfriend and boyfriend. The rangers realized that because Thabo was raised by humans, he didn’t know how to behave like a proper male rhino nor how to mate. In came Rambo. It was hopeful that Rambo would teach Thabo what to do and how to act.

No luck. After their first meeting, Thabo stayed as far away from Rambo as possible. He also wouldn’t let Rambo near Ntombi, dashing the hopes of more baby rhinos. Rhinos are endangered. Lawrence and Franciose wanted to be part of the solution by making Thula Thula a refuge for them. Francoise decided to bring in other females so the crash (rhino herd) could grow. They now have added two more females and it is the hope that a baby will arrive soon. Meanwhile, Thabo and Ntombi continue to roam the bush together keeping their distance from Rambo.

And last of all, the monkeys. I cannot leave a blog entitled, “Misbehaving” without mentioning them. From the first day we arrived in South Africa, we were warned about the monkeys. Not just in the bush but in the city too. “Lock your windows. Don’t leave anything out. They especially like sweet things.” Etc. Etc. Etc. I found it interesting that the rangers at Thula Thula have names for many of their animals, but not for the monkeys. For storytelling purposes, I have decide to call this little tyrant, Moxie.

Everyone was having their lunch around the outside bar that sits under the trees. The monkeys know when mealtime is and always place themselves above or behind us, biding their time for just the right moment. Dessert was served and just as Jay was taking his spoon to delve into his cheesecake, Moxie came swooping over and took it right out from under him. To add insult to injury, he sat at the end of the bar eating Jay’s cheesecake in front of everyone.

Monkey Stealing

I was told the monkeys are much more brazen when it comes to women. They think we will scream and run away. (Which we usually do.) But not me! No. When that little devil came for my food one day at lunch, I screamed at him. Moxie got bigger and screamed back at me. He even looked like he was going to attack. I was scared but I got bigger and screamed again. It was quite the commotion. Everyone came running out of the kitchen and off he went. “I’m sorry,” Nox said. “I’m so sorry.” “No, no,” I said laughing. “It’s not your fault.”

Jay and I were now fully aware of the schemes these mischievous monkeys deployed. But when there wasn’t any food around, we let our guard down. The very last day, we were waiting at the game lodge for our ride to pick us up and take us to the office to check out. I sat down on the couch and put my purse down on the floor next to me. I took out my phone and proceeded to get up to take a picture. I guess I heard something and turned around. That little devil! In what seemed like two seconds, Moxie had gotten into my purse and had thrown my money across the floor and was continuing to take anything out he could find. I screamed while trying to collect the money and my purse. But Moxie wasn’t giving in. He puffed up his body and looked me straight in the eyes and let out another scream. To which I replied with another scream. Everyone came running out of the kitchen and Moxie fled. A few minutes of chaos led to lots of apologies and laughter. All I can think of when I remember the incident is the scene where Gertie finds ET in the film. That is how I imagine it looked from the outside.

You can see then, that when you go to a private game lodge, you find more than just wild animals. You meet an interesting cast of characters.