Roaring back to camp
Category: life in camp | Date: May 05 2008 | By: admin
Today I am travelling from the Laikipia Predator Project down to Nairobi, and then back to camp. I am happy to say that from my bed last night I was able to hear the amazing (although slightly scary!) sound of lions roaring. It is an incredible sound, which I have not yet experienced from camp in the Chyulu Hills, where the lions are much more elusive. Here is one of the collared lions, Nosero, roaring, for those of you not lucky enough to have heard this before in the wild.
I am not really looking forward to being in Nairobi, now that I am so used to the tranquillity of the bush, and also having just read the awful story of Iregi Mwenja who was robbed at gunpoint there yesterday after giving a talk to KWS.
I’m glad to say that very soon I will be back in camp, looking at views like this..
..and wildlife like this..
At peace..!
Category: life in camp, lion killings | Date: Apr 28 2008 | By: admin
I have made it back to camp safely now, after my journey from Nairobi. Sometimes Nairobi scares me a lot especially when I come across security men - because it can either mean there is lawlessness in that area, or that the police are hunting for criminals, and when a shoot out starts anybody could be a target. I had just boarded a Matatu to camp when two security men arrived on horses.
After talking to members of the public for a while it seemed that they were just on patrol, making sure that everything was in order. When I found that out I was able to relax, knowing that at least the government is trying to provide some security for its citizens. In all the times I have been to Nairobi I have never come across police on horseback before. I am glad they are making an effort to enforce security on the streets of Nairobi.
I am now glad to be safely back at camp after the poisoning meeting, which you can read more about here. At the meeting we also heard more news from Dr Asuka Takita about the poisoned lions in the Mara. You can read about the findings of the investigation on Asuka’s blog and on the Mara Conservancy blog.
Stuck in traffic in Nairobi
Category: Uncategorized | Date: Apr 25 2008 | By: admin
I was heading to a meeting in Nairobi early today and there was so much traffic on the road. The meeting was supposed to start around 9:30am and I had been travelling the whole night to try and make it there on time. But in Nairobi travelling less than 2 kilometres was a nightmare. After driving for 30 minutes we were stopped by a policeman, he ordered us out and asked the driver to go to a police station, I really have no idea what happened! I alighted with the other passengers and went to look for another Matatu.
Here is a photo of the busy traffic in Nairobi.
It was a tiring night for me but I am optimistic about one thing; I hope that my contribution to the meeting will have the impact of reducing the poisoning of carnivores, and also human beings (like a case we had last month of a son who poisoned his father). I will be able to tell you more about the meeting next week.
Kapande back to the hospital
Category: Meet the Lion Guardians | Date: Apr 16 2008 | By: admin
You may remember that Lion Guardian Kapande was very ill with appendicitis a few weeks ago. (http://lionguardians.wildlifedirect.org/2008/03/18/kapandes-surgery/). Last week he went back to the hospital in Nairobi for a final check. I had to get a person to accompany Kapande to Nairobi whom he can trust because I was held up in Camp and couldn’t go with him. He is getting better and we expect him to be back on duty in the next month or so. Kapande is pledging for help from you to help pay his hospital expenses and other cost incurred because of his illness. If he were to clear this bill himself it will cost him all his Lion Guardian wages for more than a year. I am not sure of the actual bill for the hospital. I will visit him on Sunday and get to know the right amount.
Kapande’s life has had a lot of dramatic events because his father disowned him for volunteering to be a Lion Guardian last year. This led his father to send him away without any livestock, which he had been herding almost all his life. When he was a herder his payment for a year was one cow with a market value worth Ksh 10,000. This was supposed to cater for his family needs as well as his savings for the future.
Sadly, his wife too has been admitted to the clinic with birth complications. If the clinic is able to treat her problem, then there will be no cost incurred, I will send updates as soon as i get them.
We all hope that Kapande get well so that he can continue tracking lions and helping his community. Evn though he is sick, he has been reporting lion sighting around his area with the help of herders.
Here is a photo of kapande learning how to write.
By they way, I visited the Mara tirangle blog and they are mourning the death of two lions. Here is the link to the site. http://maratriangle.wildlifedirect.org/2008/04/15/two-lions-dead/.
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