More than eight years after her last visit, a female elephant has been recorded again at Mbeli Bai.
Thanks to the female identification logbook established in 2017, researchers were able to formally identify her as Af221. No sightings of this female had been recorded since that date, representing an absence of more than eight years. She returned accompanied by her two young, a juvenile and a calf.
This sighting highlights the essential importance of long-term monitoring of elephants at Mbeli Bai. Individual identification and data collection over several years provide a better understanding of the elephants' loyalty to this site, their movements, reproduction, and survival.