Sponsor An Elephant

         In partnership with Tsavo Trust

The Sponsor-An-Elephant program has been championing the Iconic Female Tuskers and we are proud to add the boys, both Big Tuskers and Emerging Tuskers (those younger males whose tusks aren’t quite large enough to be Big Tuskers, yet), into the program! Together they represent a vision of what African elephants were before widespread poaching and what could be possible again if we are victorious against poaching.

Big Tuskers
The classic African elephant of picture books,
these male elephants have giant tusks of over 100 pounds per side.

Estimated Age: 35 – 40 years

Status: Alive

Temperament: Not approached on the ground to date. All sightings have been made from air.

Security Threats: We have little information to where IR2 wanders. However, the area he has been located is close to the Mombasa Nairobi road.

Special features:

  • Symmetrical ivory
  • Chip off his left Tusk
  • Cuts down his left ear – leading edge
  • Small hole in right ear

Irma – Big Tusker Sponsorship

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Donation Total: $50 One Time

Estimated Age: 45 – 45 years

Status: Alive

Temperament: Relatively calm when approached.

Security Threats: Ranges in areas that border community land where farming is practiced. Potential trophy poaching threat and retaliatory killing due to Human Elephant Conflict.

Home range: Frequents areas in the Northern boundary of Tsavo West National Park and is a real creature of habit.

Other notes: Sighted several times before being named and added to the Big Tusker Database.

Special features:

  • Thick and heavy ivory
  • Right tusk longer than the left with the later curving inwards.
  • Distinctive tear in lower right ear.
  • Small hole in central right ear and another in lower left ear.
IEF Tusker Sponsorship_Kisimeka
IEF Tusker Sponsorship_Kisimeka
IEF Tusker Sponsorship_Kisimeka

Kisimeka – Big Tusker Sponsorship

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Donation Total: $50 One Time

Estimated Age: 45 – 50 years

Status: Alive

Temperament: Very relaxed and gentle, easily approachable. Our ground teams spend a lot of time with him, and he has come to know TT vehicles and staff well over the years.

Special features:

  • Clean right ear
  • Tear in left ear
  • Scars on lower right flank

Konu Moja 2

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Donation Total: $50

Estimated Age: 35 + years

Status: Alive

Temperament: Calm when approached in a vehicle. Aggressive when in musth.

Security Threats: Moves to areas outside park boundary at times into unsafe areas where elephants have been poached using poison arrows in the past.

Home range: Core range area include Satao, Mukwaju and Voi river dam. Moves to areas outside park boundary at times.

Other notes: Sighted several times before being named and added to the Big Tusker Database.

Special features:

  • Long but thin symmetrical ivory that thins out towards the end.
  • Left tusk slightly longer than the right.
  • Distinctive scar on left flank close to the hind leg.

Voi – Big Tusker Sponsorship

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Donation Total: $50 One Time

Emerging Tuskers
Emerging tuskers are next in line to inherit the “Big Tusker” mantle.
They have large ivory and are just on the cusp of being considered Big Tuskers.

Estimated Age: 40 + years

Status: Alive

Temperament: He has been approached on the ground a few times, but his temper is determined by the area he is located. Most sightings of BU1 have been made from the air because his normal home range is largely roadless and very expansive. He is not easy to find.

Home Range: Sighted mostly in the Emusaya area, TENP.

Security Threats: Wanders large areas, some of which are known as hot spot poaching zones.

Special features:

  • Very thick Ivory
  • Scar on left abdomen
  • Shorter right Tusk
  • No cuts on his Ears
  • Triangle like Tusks

Bachuma – Emerging Tusker Sponsorship

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Donation Total: $50 One Time

Estimated Age: 35 – 40  years

Status: Alive

Temperament: Generally calm when approached by vehicle, but can become frustrated easily, especially when he is in musth

Special features:

  • Both tusks slightly curved inward with the tip of the left tusk broken
  • Full tail hair
  • Left ear has two small notches at lower end
  • Right ear has small hole near the middle of the ear and small tear at top and bottom of ear

Mukwaju 2

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Donation Total: $50 One Time

Estimated Age: 40 + years

Status: Alive

Temperament: Approachable on ground from a vehicle. Wary of the vehicle when approached near or outside park boundaries.

Home Range: Ranges widely. Frequents Balguda, Satao, Shirango, K.M.C ranch and Emusaya areas.

Security Threats: Wanders large areas, some of which are known poaching hot spots. His large ivory makes him a preferred target by trophy poachers.

Special features:

  • Very long and thick ivory.
  • His ivory grows outwards from the lip and curve inwards towards the end.
  • Left tusk longer than right tusk.
  • Smooth ears
  • Tall thin body.

Shirango – Emerging Tusker Sponsorship

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Donation Total: $50 One Time

Iconic Female Tuskers

These females provide one half of the valuable Big Tusker genes for future generations of majestic elephants.

Estimated Age: 35 – 40 years old

Status: Alive

Temperament: Approached on ground once to date. Calm within 30m of the vehicle.

Herd: Matriarch of the cow-calf group.

Name Origin: Named after the area she was first located. Aruba is the name of a location in Tsavo East meaning ‘Elephant’ in Waatha language.

Special features:

  • Relatively long symmetrical ivory splayed outwards towards the end.
  • Matriarch to a herd of 9 elephants.
  • Small in body size.
  • Possibly the mother of twins.

Aruba – Iconic Female Tusker Sponsorship

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Donation Total: $50 One Time

Estimated Age: 40 – 45 years

Status: Alive

Temperament: Not approached on ground to date. All sightings made from the air.

Home range: Sighted mostly around Emusaya. But we are still learning her range area.

Security threats: Wanders in large areas some of which are historic poaching hot spots.

Special features:

  • Long complete left tusk.
  • Right tusk broken off and remains just a stump at the lip.
  • Matriarch to herd of 14 elephant.
  • Only a few hairs remain on her tail suggesting she is old.
  • Small hole midway of left ear near margin.
  • Two notches on the right ear.

Emusaya – Iconic Female Tusker Sponsorship

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Donation Total: $50 One Time

Estimated Age: 40 years old

Status: Alive

Temperament: Approachable and tolerative of our monitoring vehicle.

Herd: Currently has a 2-year-old calf, and matriarch to herd of 7 elephants.

Name Origin: Irima (previously known as: F-IR1) was first named and recorded in the Tusker database in September 2021. She is named after the area she was first located, Irima. Irima is an area near the TENP HQ in Voi. The area is near the park boundary with communities. Infrastructural developments near Irima include, the Mombasa to Nairobi highway, the Standard Guage Railway, the old railway, a water pipeline, an oil pipeline, and an electricity grid.

Special features:

  • Relatively long slender ivory.
  • Left tusk slightly longer than the right.
  • A series of 4 notches and a small hole mid of the left ear.
  • Two tears on the lower section of the right ear.
  • A hole in the mid-section of the right ear.
  • Matriarch to a breeding herd of 10 elephants

No. times observed since recorded as a Tusker: Recently added to Tusker database and sighted seven times since.

Security threats:

  • Ranges into areas historically known to be poaching hot spots.
  • Climate change related – prolonged drought.
  • Human Elephant Conflicts – hangs in the park boundary with communities.
  • Road/Rail kill – being run over by a vehicle or a train.

Irima – Iconic Female Tusker Sponsorship

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Donation Total: $50 One Time

Status: Alive.Recently designated as Tusker

Temperament:

Security Threats:

Mona – Iconic Female Tusker Sponsorship

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Donation Total: $50 One Time

Estimated Age: 40 – 45 years old

Status: Alive

Temperament: Only really observed from the air as her home range has no roads. Difficult to tell her temperament but from the air she seems relaxed.

Herd: The matriarch of a herd of at least 8. 1 sub-adult calf in the herd is Tusk less and she has a calf of about 7 years old.

Special features:

  • The right, tusk is slightly shorter than the left tusk.

Sangayaya

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Donation Total: $50

Estimated Age: 45 – 50 years old

Status: Alive

Temperament: Very protective and likely to charge when approached closer than 25 meters.

Herd: Currently has a 2-year-old calf, and matriarch to herd of 7 elephants.

Name Origin: Received her name due to the shape of her tusks, which cross at the lower ends.

Special features:

  • Left tusk crosses underneath the right tusk forming a distinctive X shape.
  • Right ear has two notches.

X-Tusk – Iconic Female Tusker Sponsorship

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Donation Total: $50 One Time