BIRD IN DANGER
The Taita Apalis is a small songbird found only in Kenya: only in the forests of the Taita Hills.
And it can become Kenya’s first bird to become extinct if nothing is done to save its habitat.
Today fewer than 200 remain. It is therefore CRITICALLY ENDANGERED – threatened with extinction. If nothing is done, Kenya might lose this bird species forever.
What can we do to save the Taita Apalis? Continue reading “Taita Apalis”
Marathon runners of the sky
Dr Darcy Ogada
Rüppell’s Vultures are the marathon runners of the sky. They soar over huge distances to find their favourite meal of carrion. When they arrive at a carcass, often together with White-backed vultures, they can strip a carcass bare in a matter of minutes. They are such highly-evolved scavengers that no other animal can match their efficient removal of flesh from a carcass. This means that without Rüppell’s and other vultures, carcasses can lie uneaten for days, and there is a much greater chance of the spread of disease.
Over the last 30 years Rüppell’s Vultures have disappeared from the skies of East Africa. Although they can still be seen in most game parks, their numbers have declined dramatically due to poisoning. Poisons are often used by pastoralists to kill predators, such as lions and hyenas that have attacked livestock. Rüppell’s and other vulture species are the unintentional victims of such poisonings because they often arrive first at carcasses and in large numbers.
By Mary Wykstra founder of Action for Cheetahs in Kenya
Can you explain briefly why we need to save cheetah
Kenya holds one of the last remaining cheetah strongholds. Not only are cheetahs a valuable part of the ecosystem, but also cheetahs are one of the most beautiful animals to see. Tourists come to Kenya to see unique sightings and parents in Kenya tell stories to their children about cheetahs. If cheetahs go extinct neither local people nor tourists will be able to see them. When a cheetah hunts, like most predators they seek out the weak or injured in the herd, thus contributing to the health of the herd. A cheetah makes a kill every 2-4 days, but loses about 50% of its kills to other scavengers. Thus, the cheetah plays a role in herd and other predator populations.
When did the big crash in numbers happen?
Two big crashes have already happened in history; cheetah numbers have dropped to near extinction during the ice age when many other animals became extinct and again in the time of the Czars and Moghuls when cheetahs were taken from the wild in mass numbers as pets.
Today the major threat to cheetahs is land use change. As the human footprint expands and develops land in ways that do not permit animals to move between parks, the wildlife numbers decline or become pocketed into small areas.
There is a new wave in wild pet trade making the illegal removal of live cubs a fast growing cause of cheetah decline. Right now, through all of Africa the cheetah numbers are dropping at a rate of 2.1% annually (IUCN). This means that the cheetah could go extinct in our lifetime.
What NOT to do when one sees or hears cheetah
In all of Africa, there is not case of a cheetah killing a person.
When someone is on foot and sees a cheetah it is highly likely that the cheetah is already running away. If someone sees cubs, they should NEVER pick up the cubs. A mother cheetah can leave its young for several hours while she goes away to hunt. If someone thinks that cubs are abandoned they should call authorities immediately, but they should leave the cubs where they are.
If you are visiting one of Kenya’s parks or sanctuaries, you should never drive off road and you should not allow cheetah to climb on your vehicle. Cheetahs on vehicles can be injured, drivers can run over cubs if they are too close. A mother cheetah often runs away from her cubs, often trying to lure the threat, this also means that she can easily be separated from her cubs if tourists block her or scare her away.
How can readers help research?
People can contribute to research through reporting cheetah sightings.
Action for Cheetahs in Kenya is organizing a range-wide cheetah database, so if you see cheetahs in remote areas, please send details and photographs to info@actionforcheetahs.org or download the iNaturalist application and submit your photo to http://www.inaturalist.org/projects/cheetah-and-wild-dog-spotting.
You can also support the research through volunteering or donating funds to assist in our work.
If you are interested in a cheetah talk please contact one of the researchers who will be more than happy to visit your school or function to talk about cheetahs and their fight for survival.
February 2016
Samburu’s Reticulated giraffes charm all
A trio of giraffe browses on the thorn trees on a plain of sun-burnished grass in the dry season. The sand-bottom luggas run dry except for the Ewaso Nyiro flowing its way through the reserve, providing the only water for the animals.
John Doherty of the Reticulated Giraffe Project knows the giraffes by sight. “Their names are written on their skins,” he says. “There’s Tailess, Finger and Mermaid’s Purse.”
We’re not even that close to see the details but Doherty knows almost all the 500 Reticulated giraffes that wander in and out of Samburu National Reserve by sight.
Born with an innate fascination for animals, Doherty started the Reticulated Giraffe Project while studying for his PhD in the reserve a decade ago.
“They are three bulls,” he continues as we drive closer. Looking through our binoculars, it’s easy to identify Tailess – he has no tail – probably bitten off by a big cat. Finger’s white markings on the neck don’t quite go all the way to the mane but look like fingers clasping his neck. It’s easy to see why Doherty says their names are written on their skins.
However these are just nick-names – including names given by the local tribes like the Gabbra and Samburu. “Many name a giraffe in memory of their ancestor,” tells Doherty.
All the Reticulated giraffes of the north-eastern territory that the project covers are identified by using a pattern-recognition software where both sides of the giraffe are photographed.
Once Common
Giraffes once covered the savannah grasslands of Africa. Nobody thought they would go out of fashion.
But in the last decade, some 30% may have been lost due to habitat loss and poaching. Kenya is the only country with the most giraffe species – the Rothschild, Maasai and Reticulated.
Reticulated giraffe numbers have crashed by more than 80% – from about 30,000 a decade ago to fewer than 5,000 today. Their stronghold is north-eastern Kenya and some isolated populations in Somalia.
“This year we plan to put GPS collars on six to understand their movement patterns,” continues Doherty. “It’s important because of the projects like LAPSSET (Lamu Port Sotuth Sudan Ethiopia Transport road). We need to have mitigation measures put in place.”
Already the new tarmac road from Isiolo to Moyale is claiming lives with fast-moving vehicles like the pregnant Reticulated giraffe crossing from Samburu into Shaba National Reserve. A vehicle smashed into her legs killing her instantly and her unborn baby.
Doherty has many tales to tell of the giraffes being monitored. A few weeks ago, a new born calf was splashing around in the Ewaso Nyiro with its mother. Then came the croc and snapped it – and this was happening as Doherty, his assistant and guests watched. For 30 minutes the foal struggled as the pair got washed down stream.
“We thought the foal was gone,” says Doherty. Then two hours later came a call from a Samburu ranger called Lesil who fought off the croc and saved the foal. Check it out on http://www.reticulatedgiraffeproject.net/RGP/TWIGA.html. Understandably, the foal’s been named Lucky.
In the cool of the day, we return to Samburu Intrepids Camp – for regulations demand no night-driving. We miss the leopard with her cub but spot elephants and a sandgrouse, a beautiful bird that soaks itself in water in this arid land and flies back to the chicks with drenched feathers. The chicks then suck on them.
Gerenuks stand on their hind legs to browse on the higher branches – the only antelope that does so. Nicknamed the giraffe-antelope (Swala-twiga in Kiswahili) this russet coloured antelope has a long neck and is found in the northern region.
We’ve had two days searching for the rare Grevy’s zebra and only seen one during the Great Grevy’s Zebra Rally 2016.
It’s Murphy’s law.
Just as we are leaving Samburu National Reserve, a herd of three females with four foals emerge. Females with foals need water every day – and the Ewaso Nyiro provides them with it.
Samburu National Reserve
It’s 350 north – the road is tarmac all the way to Archer’s Post near the gate. Please carry your ID cards. Check with tour agent for current entry rates.
Samburu Intrepids Camp www.heritage-eastafrica.com is on the banks of the Ewaso Nyiro River. It’s got beautiful luxury tents including enormous family tents with lots for children to do.
For more on Grevy’s zebra: www.grevyszebratrust.org
Reticulated giraffe: www.reticulatedgiraffeproject.net
Remember to carry your national ID or passport for proof of identity
February 2016
In Westgate Conservancy bordering Samburu National Reserve
Driving through Samburu National Reserve to get to the community-owned Westgate Conservancy, the first animal to bolt across the road in the mid-afternoon heat – is a Grevy’s zebra.
But we cannot at this point shoot it – that is shoot it with a camera and not a gun (a gun would mean a fine of up to Ksh 20 million or time spent behind bars under the new Wildlife Act 2015).
Moonlion Safaris 