NEWS - The rehabilitation centre at Shamwari has taken an orphan under their wing; a baby elephant called Themba!

The baby elephant, named Themba, was taken over from Sanbona Wildlife Reserve after his mother tragically fell off the side of a cliff and died. After the rest of the herd refused to look after him, he was transported to Shamwari and is being looked after by the conservation team.

The students are having a wonderful time going to visit and helping to feed him, and he even has his own facebook group! Philippa has been lucky enough to meet Themba when she went out to Shamwari- bumping into him whilst he was on his 10 hour a day walk! He is definitely full of character and whilst being head butted by the cheeky baby, Philippa also got to meet the almost as famous Albert the Sheep. Albert keeps Themba company whilst his human handlers are busy elsewhere, as being very social creatures, baby elephants need constant care and attention. Looking after him is hard-work, but the volunteers love meeting him and it is all definitely worth it!

You may also remember we spoke previously about a baby giraffe called Melvin. After being rejected by his mother, Melvin was bought to the centre and hand-reared. There is a happy ending to this tale though, as Melvin has now been re-released into the wild.

ANNOUNCEMENT: The 2010 Shamwari Game Auction date has been set

Date: Saturday, 08 May 2010 Venue: The Wildlife Centre, Shamwari Game Reserve Game to be auctioned includes: Buffalo; Hippo; White Rhino; Black Rhino General game in breeding herds as well as individual adult bulls including: Nyala; Eland; Waterbuck To volunteer with Worldwide Experience at Shamwari Game Reserve and get involved in the game captures and auction please email info@worldwideexperience.com or enquire here.