Lion Guardians

Category: life in camp | Date: May 31 2008 | By: lionguardians

After the training with the NRT scouts, where we all learnt a lot about lions three Lion Guardians; Mokoi, Olubi and Lenkina slaughtered a goat for our guests. We had to give them a chance to slaughter the goat in their traditional Samburu way so that they could take the goat blood while it was still warm, before it clots. After that, we skinned the goat and roasted it in our Ilkisongo way (Ilkisongo is our section of Maasai). They were amazed at how we stick the meat on thin sticks and stand them up in holes next to a big fire, waiting for charcoal to get hot.

They were served the delicious roast meat while it was hot and were left licking their fingers! It was a totally different experience for them, as where they come from they just place the meat on the flames and it ends up burning. So they learnt more than just about lions on their tour down to the Chyulus - also about how to not burn their meat!

Tags: Kenya, lion conservation, Lion Guardians, lions, Maasai, masai

One response so far

Category: life in camp | Date: May 29 2008 | By: lionguardians

Today was the end of our two days of lectures with the Northern Rangeland Trust. They had come all the way down from the North of Kenya to learn all about lions, and wanted to visit the Lion Guardians to find out how we deal with the conflicts between people and carnivores. This made us proud because we are being read about far and wide. We were also very glad they came because we too got to learn a lot about lions, that we didn’t already know. The lectures tackled lion biology and ecology, how to tell a lion’s age and how to identify a particular lion incase one is causing trouble to the local community.

They also dealt with carnivore conflict, and we visited a livestock owner who’s goat had been killed by a cheetah the night before. We went out to find tracks and learnt how to recognize those of different animals.

We also found out all about a particular problem they have in the North - man eating lions. We have never had such a case here in the Chyulus and the Guardians were surprised. On our side we learned a great deal about lions and their status in Samburu and Laikipia districts. All our staff at camp attended the lectures and we were amazed that we had lived with lions for such a long time, and would not have been able to tell their age even after killing them! Now we are all concerned with conserving lions, and are glad we know much more about them. A big thanks to Seamus who took his time to take us through the training.

You can now ask me any questions regarding lions and I will try to answer you! After the lectures were finished, we handed out Maasai shukas (blankets) to our guests, as it is a Maasai tradition. We also had a goat party, and stayed up late discussing the origins of the Maasai; but more on that tomorrow.

Tags: , Kenya, lion conservation, Lion Guardians, lions, Maasai, masai

3 responses so far

Category: Community work, Meet the Lion Guardians | Date: May 28 2008 | By: lionguardians

Last week we had the pleasure to host Jessica Craig at camp, who was representing the UK division of the Panthera Foundation. She came to find about the Lion Guardians program, and how we conserve lions by employing murrans who have hunted lions in the past to work with their communities to conserve them. And we made sure she got to visit some of the Guardians, to find out how they do it from the horse’s mouth! Here she is chatting about the program with Lion Guardians Koikai, Melubo and Lenkina and Antony, as well as Melubo’s father.

We were very glad to introduce Jessica to Melubo’s father, Mepukori Ole Nakenyu, who used to hate carnivores with a passion! The local community could not believe it when the son of this man who loved to kill carnivores became involved in lion conservation. But Melubo’s father himself was proud to tell us that he hadn’t killed a carnivore for years, and we chatted to him about conservation over tea at his boma. Here is a short video of our day.

In exchange for tea, we agreed to give a ride to one of Melubo’s father’s wives who had a young baby that wasn’t well and needed to go to the clinic. This turned into a ride for many more people, who all seemed to need to go to the clinic too, and we left the boma with about 17 people squashed into the car! These women and their babies sat on the back seat. Everyone else was in the back with the spare tyre and tools!

Tags: fundraising, Kenya, lion conservation, Lion Guardians, Maasai, masai, panthera

3 responses so far

Category: Community work | Date: May 27 2008 | By: lionguardians

In traditional Maasai culture, a boma (kraal) is used to keep livestock away from raiders, and to an extent to provide a safe place for livestock away from predators. A boma is an enclosure made of thorn branches. We especially like to use branches from Acacia mellifera because it is very strong, and has hooked spikes that hold on to animals tightly. Livestock owners keep their shoats (sheep and goats) and cows in bomas at night time, and then let out to graze during the day.

 

In the past people did not think that carnivores were a big deal because if a carnivore broke into a boma, the owner would follow it and kill it. But since the introduction of conservation to this area people have seen the need to protect their livestock away from carnivores since they do not want to kill them due to the incentives they are getting to have wildlife around.

Since the introduction of Lion Guardians, they have been educating the community on the importance of having a good boma; not just a boma. Although cases of carnivores breaking into bomas is not that high compared to lost livestock, it is still a persistent problem in some areas, like Oldoinyo Wuas where a hyena has killed more than six shoats from inside a boma. The hyena apparently has taken livestock from two different enclosed bomas striking at several times of the night two to three times a week. Here is a goat left by one of the attacks, and behind it you can see the boma, which is very weak.

Yesterday the fencing team which includes Ernest, myself, the local community and Lion Guardians Lenkina and Mokoi, and the volunteer Lion Guardian for that area, Solonka, started work on the first of the two bomas to make it predator-proof. Solonka has been volunteering for more than a month just to earn the prestigious position of a Guardian in his community. The work involves cutting down big thorny Acacia branches, dragging them to the boma, and then piling them on the fence of the boma to make it taller and wider. It is really hard work! Here is Lenkina building up a wall of the boma.

And here is part of the finished wall of the first boma.

Today we are going to the second boma to reinforce it. I would like to thank Dana for her donation. We feel very encouraged for our second day of work, knowing we have the support of the Lion Guardians blog readers. Thanks once more - the guys are really happy.

Tags: boma, Kenya, lion conservation, Lion Guardians, Livestock, Maasai, masai

One response so far

Category: Community work, lion research fieldwork | Date: May 26 2008 | By: amy howard

Antony, Ernest and our new Lion Guardian volunteer Solonka, along with Lion Guardians Mokoi and Lenkina have been out all day helping to reinforce a boma that has been repeatedly attacked by a hyena over the last few days. The livestock owner, whose animals have been attacked was threatening to kill the hyena. I hope they manage to make it predator-proof, and will bring back some photos of their achievements!

In the meantime, here are some photos of Nempakai’s pride, which we located yesterday on the boundary of Amboseli National Park.

We only saw 9 of the lions, but the grass makes a perfect hiding place for them, so its likely that lion number 10 was just hiding somewhere nearby.

One of the cubs managed to squeeze into this group below, which didn’t look very comfortable for the others! The one it was squashing promptly got up and moved away..

Tags: Kenya, lion conservation, Lion Guardians, Maasai, masai

4 responses so far

Category: lion research fieldwork | Date: May 24 2008 | By: lionguardians

A few days ago we went out to track lions with two of the Lion Guardians Olubi and Mokoi. We drove for hours, regularly stopping to try and pick up radio signals from the roof of the car. We were trying to find the large pride of 10 lions (with collared lion Nempakai) that we had seen last week. But despite our best efforts, we couldn’t locate them.

We even went all the way to this high point, Loosikitok, where you can look out over the group ranch, and all the way across to Amboseli National Park, and still couldn’t pick up a signal. This is maybe where the pride has headed back to for the moment.

Tags: Kenya, lion conservation, Lion Guardians, Maasai, masai, tracking

No responses yet

Category: life in camp | Date: May 23 2008 | By: lionguardians

Here in camp we have a very interesting friend who occasionally comes to visit us; a strange old man who lives in a cave in the Chyulu Hills. His name is Mambo, and although we don’t know his exact age we are sure he is over 78 years old. When he was a young murran he decided to go and live in the bush, and has been there ever since.

Mambo never got married and so he has no family of his own. He is a specialist in herbal medicines, and he brings plenty of them to us and to others in the local area when he comes to visit. He barters with people for food and water and occasionally for money when he wants to buy some local brew, and in return he gives them his herbal medicines, which he makes from plants, roots, leaves and bark. He has different medicines for all sorts of different conditions: stomach pain, coughs, colds, diarrhoea, back aches…

Mambo never used to eat farm produce; instead he used to hunt or feed on the leftovers of lions when they had made a kill. He has even told us that he once cut a steak from an eland when a lion was feeding from it!

Mambo is almost like an honorary Lion Guardian because whenever he visits us he delivers the latest information about lions he has seen or heard, or tracks he has found. In return we give him some food; he is getting old so he cannot hunt anymore. People have been offering him food and shelter, but he doesn’t want to come and live like other people. He prefers his own lifestyle. Have you ever met such an interesting character!?

Tags: Kenya, lion conservation, Lion Guardians, Maasai, masai

4 responses so far

Category: life in camp | Date: May 22 2008 | By: lionguardians

I woke up this morning feeling full of energy. Yesterday I was wearing my traditional Maasai clothes - brightly colored cloths called shukas, and adorned with beautiful beads.

 

I thought of my important position as Assistant Director of the Lion Guardians program… and that gave me an idea. I put on some smart trousers and a shirt and I borrowed a tie from one of my work mates. After putting on everything I noticed that I was missing one thing; a fat tummy. Most senior people in Kenya have big tummies, so I took a fleece and folded it up and put it inside my shirt. I looked like a proper Kenyan business man!

I took a walk around our neighborhood and everybody was falling about laughing….! I hope I made some peoples’ day!

Tags: Kenya, lion conservation, Lion Guardians, Maasai, masai

3 responses so far

Category: Community work | Date: May 21 2008 | By: lionguardians

Thanks everybody for your prayers and support for Kapande. I met him last week when I went to collect Lion Guardian forms, and I am pleased to report that he is feeling healthy and fit and is now back on duty to provide his service for the lions and his community. He is very glad to be working again.

On my way back to camp, I went through the only place I know which currently has rain water, and I noticed these water birds. I took some photos to see if I could identify them. I think the first two I saw are Sacred Ibis, but can you help me to identify this other bird. It looks like some kind of stork. What do you think?

Tags: Kenya, lion conservation, Lion Guardians, Maasai, masai

3 responses so far

Category: Community work | Date: May 20 2008 | By: lionguardians

I have been away from the blog for a few days as I had to go out to collect weekly forms from the Lion Guardians. I still had three different places to go before evening fell, so I thought I should start by visiting Koikai.

When I arrived at Koikai’s neighbourhood, Olbili, I found there was a big meeting of murrans (warriors) happening. The agenda of the meeting was apparently to discuss murrans not being involved with group ranch affairs. They feel like they are sidelined, and are not given the chance to express their opinions on community matters. The only place where murrans can get jobs and be involved in the community is through the Lion Guardians program.

Here are some of the murrans after the meeting, competing to see who can jump the highest, a tradition of the Maasai murrans. They also compete to see who can throw their spears the furthest.

Koikai asked Lenkina, another Lion Guardian from Ilchalai to come over for the meeting, so that they could both talk about the Lion Guardians program to the murrans. Here are Koikai and Lenkina, with Koikai’s sister.

I was also able to speak to them about lion conservation, and the work of the Guardians. Here I am talking to the murrans.

I was glad that I could talk to them about lion conservation, as it is so important that these murrans, who might otherwise go out to hunt lions, are aware of the benefits of conserving them.

I would like to thank Fiona R, Richard V, Hashi H and Lisa R for their donations. The Lion Guardians are extremely grateful for your contributions towards their program.

Tags: Kenya, lion conservation, Lion Guardians, lions, Maasai, masai, warriors

No responses yet