On the 1st Feb 2012 between 9 & 11am a baby elephant was born. With lions lurking in the distance the 50 strong herd of elephants waited anxiously for the calf to get onto her legs before moving on. Both Mother and baby were moving along just 3 hours after birth. This is the first baby elephant to be born on Nkonka since becoming a conservation farm.
The Elephant populations are thriving on Phinda after successful conservation. Conservationists are now faced with a new challenge: overpopulation. There are three solutions: translocation, culling or contraception. Culling draws strong criticism, translocation is now becoming a limited option as there are few remaining places that can accommodate elephants.
Currently on Phinda all the sexually mature cows are being darted with the contraception. The contraception is monitored and has shown positive results.