Thread by @kwskenya

We are dedicating this afternoon to celebrating Tim, one of Africa’s magnificent Tuskers.

Tim was born into the “T family” – a family consisting of other greats such as Teresia, Trista, Tolstoy, Theodora, Tallulah and Townsend #RememberingTim

Born in 1969 to Trista (TD family), Tim grew up to become an iconic Tusker. Popular among tourists visiting Amboseli National Park, he had no shortage of fans world over. #RememberingTim

As a huge dominant male, Tim had an incredible and spirited personality. Friendly, polite, gentle, intelligent and charismatic; so much so that many younger bulls looked up to him #RememberingTim

Tim also secured many females over the years as they thought him a great choice for mating. We are certain that his great Tusker genes have been passed on many times #RememberingTim

During his years, Tim’s life has not been short of a few incidences here and there:

1. in 2014, our vets treated him for a septic spear wound on his shoulder after he was spotted limping in Amboseli national park #RememberingTim

In 2016, he was fitted with a collar to track his movements, which he eventually got rid of two years later #RememberingTim

Tim's collaring came about as a means of keeping our communities safe while at the same time securing all of our elephants. The collar would keep Tim safe as well as away from farmer's crops. #RememberingTim

The collar would let out a beep once an hour sending details of his location to a satellite. This information would be picked up by rangers on their mobile phones and would thus keep track of his location. #RememberingTim

This especially enabled security teams to ward him off agricultural areas and when he was in trouble especially if he remained still for several hours. #RememberingTim

Tim was 51 at the time of his death. Postmortem results show that he died of a twisted gut – a natural cause of death for elephants. #RememberingTim

He was in good body condition. An autopsy was undertaken on 5th Jan & his intestinal torsion was observed.

The foliage causes increased fermentation & gas production twisting the intestines along their longitudinal span. This results to bowel obstruction, serious colic & death.

That his life had immense impact on both the lives of fellow elephants and human beings is a thing we should not take for granted. Protecting Tim not only sparked his fame but also enhanced collaborations with conservationists and friends of wildlife #RememberingTim

Tim's legacy lives on in the lives of the many calves he fathered, in the younger bulls he inspired, in the friends he made along the way, in our memories and most importantly, for the species for which he was ambassador. #RememberingTim

So long Tim #RememberingTim