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Wishing all our friends and supporters a Merry Christmas
and a Happy New Year!
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I know this has been a difficult year for so many. The coronavirus has been and continues to be devastating. The US election was nasty and contentious, bringing out the worst in people, and there is still uncertainty and worry. Climate events have been horrendous with terrifying wildfires and more hurricanes than ever recorded before. I could go on, but it is the holiday season and I want to inject a bright spot into our memories of 2020.
In Amboseli the elephants have been doing exceptionally well. High rainfall in the first part of the year provided a rich habitat for them. The Kenya Wildlife Service, Big Life Foundation and the Olgulului game scouts have secured the ecosystem and as a result there has been no poaching of elephants this year. Life has been good for Amboseli's elephants and for that reason we are thankful and happy.
Just to make 2020 even better for the elephants, there has been the most amazing baby boom. The last baby boom was in 2012 when 201 calves were born. A more typical year we might see 50-100 births. The unusual number of births in 2012 was the result of a terrible drought in 2009. Many calves died and the females stopped breeding. When good rains came again, many of the females were available to become pregnant. We thought we would never see anything quite like it again, but this year proved us wrong. There was a drought in 2017 and once again many of the adult females became available the following year. Twenty-two months later in 2020 there has been a record-breaking baby boom. So far this year 226 calves have been born, and we are expecting at least a few more this month.
We celebrate all these new little elephants in our Christmas issue with a portfolio of photos. Enjoy!
Director
Amboseli Trust for Elephants
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Ways to Support Elephants with our Christmas Gift Suggestions
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Join Elatia. This is part of the EB family EB resting. You could follow this family by joining our Elatia program. We have chosen six Amboseli families for Elatia: the AAs, EBs, FBs, GBs, OAs, and PCs. You can choose one or all of the families to follow. For only $30 per year you will receive regular updates including photos and videos, and news of what is going on in the family. To learn more about Elatia go to
This Link.
If you have any problems or questions please contact us directly on: |
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Buy a book.
Cynthia Moss's latest book is now available to the general public. Impressions of Amboseli is a beautiful, little gem of a book with paintings by Sophie Walbeoffe and a text by Cynthia. It has been published by the Amboseli Trust for Elephants and so all proceeds go in full to supporting ATE's elephant work. In the US the book, which sells for $35 including postage, is a perfect holiday gift! You can buy the book by emailing your name, mailing address, and number of copies to [email protected] and then sending a check to ATE at 10 State Street, Newburyport, MA 01950-or by donating online. We're sorry we can't guarantee arrival by 25th! If ordering internationally the postage will be an extra $10. The book is available in Kenya for 3000/- at the ATE offices, No. 21, at Langata Link. It is best to phone ahead on 0728760090. (There are also a few copies for sale at the Kenya National Museum gift shop.)
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Buy a sculpture of Tim
In our opinion by far the best sculptor of elephants is artist Doug Aja. Somehow, he perfectly captures elephant postures, gestures and the overall proportions of elephants like no other. Much to our delight he has done a bronze sculpture of the inimitable Tim, the famous huge Amboseli male, who sadly passed away of natural causes earlier this year. There is a limited edition of 10 pieces and there is one available right now. This would be a very special Christmas present for someone. Contact Doug Aja on [email protected] and tell him that you are responding to the ATE offer. Doug is generously giving ATE 50% on any referrals. That will also apply to any other sculptures anyone should want to buy. See more photos of Tim and Doug's work on
Medium: bronze
Price: $3,500 ($1,750 will be donated to ATE)
Edition Size: 10
Dimensions: 9" H x 13" W x 6" D
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Name an elephant calf
Every Christmas we offer a reduced price to name a calf. This offer will last until 15 January. There are presently many calves needing names and more coming up to naming time. This is an extraordinary gift to give to someone. Unlike our Elatia program where many people follow the same family, our naming program is a unique experience. The calf becomes yours alone or that of the designated receiver of the gift and the name given forms a part of the Amboseli dataset for all time. For more information, please write to us:
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We are looking forward to a normal year in 2021 on so many levels. We want to see tourists in Kenya again enjoying the wildlife and particularly the amazing Amboseli elephants with all their babies. Happy New Year!
Cynthia Moss
Director
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