Large Tuskers Of Kruger National Park

Masthulele, meaning ‘the quiet one’ has the honor of sharing his name with Dr Ian Whyte, who was given this name by the staff he worked with.
Range: Mooiplaas/Giriyondo, this bull has however been recorded as far south as Letaba and more recently in Cleveland Private Nature Reserve to the south of Phalaborwa.
Special Features: Small v-shaped notch in the left ear towards the centre of the lobe. Masthulele has a thickened skin growth on the trunk, towards the narrowing section of the trunk. His tusks are fairly symmetrical with the left tusk curving slightly higher then the right.
General: This bulls name is very appropriate he lives up to the ‘quiet one’ reputation by being seldom seen, and had only been photographed twice at the time of naming. The first two series of photographs of this bull were both taken from the helicopter during the elephant censuses of 2003 and 2004. Both series were taken in the Tihongonyene Windmill area.
This elephant is named after the ethnic name of Dr Ian Whyte after motivation by Dr Johan Marais, Ms Kirsty Redman and Regional Ranger Louis Olivier, in July 2005.

Ngonyama. Named for Uys de Villiers (Tol) Pienaar who served in conservation for South African National Park for 36 years. (Ngonyama is the Tsonga word for ‘Lion’. This nickname derives itself from an incident on the 21st July 1956 when Tol was bitten by a lioness along the Timbavati spruit (where present day Roodewal camp is). Tol was also known for his green eyes that could flash like a lion’s when angry.
Range: This bull has an average sized home range. He is known in the area between Phalaborwa and Mopani (Mayumbeni and Xilawuri Koppies) and stretches to Letaba Rest Camp.
Special Features: This elephant has very widely splayed ivory, with the right tusk appearing to be slightly longer then the left due to the curve of the left tusk but from side profile they would appear even in length. There is a conspicuous lump (or lumps) on his left backside as well as a tiny hole at the base of the left ear lobe. Some thickening on the upper truck can also be observed.
General: This elephant was first sighted by Kobie Naude on the 5th October 2008 on the tar road towards Mopani from Phalaborwa. At the time with only one submission it was decided not to name him, he was noted as an impressive bull and monitored to see if he appeared again. This was the last heard of him until December 2009 where a sighting from Christiaan Janse van Rensburg, found him in the Letaba region of the Kruger National Park. Two subsequent sightings by GVI volunteer Jasmine Brown in February and March 2010 again in the immediate vicinity of Letaba help cement his status as a large tusker and the decision was made to name him. He appears docile and does not seem to mind the presence of guests providing good sightings.

N’wendlamuhari is Shangaan for the Sand River which means ‘the river that is fierce when in flood’ the name links to the bulls preferred location to a spruit which is known for its dramatic flooding in heavy rains.
Range: Northern KNP.
Special Features: Most notable on this bull is his ivory, his left tusk suffered a dramatic break many years back and while there has been substantial growth of the tusk since then, there is a marked difference in length between the two tusks. The left tusk break has smoothed over time and has developed quiet a prominent point to it. There are very few notable ear markings on this bull and aside from a small v-shaped nick visible in the left lobe towards the top and small u-shaped marks towards the top of the right ear lobe which are only visible in high resolution aside from this he has fairly clean ears. Visible from a left side profile are a cluster of small growths on the front of the left foreleg fairly high up the leg. These are often obscured by the ear lobe in frontal images.
General: This bull was first noted by retired Mooiplaas Section Ranger Johann Oelofse (see Mabarule) in 2010, shortly after the death of the similar looking Mandhevhu. As these images did not identify any defining characteristics it was decided to monitor him, a second submission by Johan Marais in 2011 confirmed this bull’s status but it was decided to continue to monitor him to determine if there would be any continued growth.
Submissions of this bull increased dramatically at the end of 2013 and throughout 2014 - 2016, all submissions showing considerable growth in the broken tusk therefore the decision was made to name the bull confirming his status as a large tusker.

https://www.sanparks.org/parks/kruger/elephants/tuskers/emerging.php

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