Ewaso Lions

Category: Lions | Date: Aug 20 2008 | By: ewasolions

I spent a few days in Samburu and Buffalo Springs between the 7th and 10th of August monitoring the resident lions and checking up on Nashipai, Nabo, her cubs and the others. It was a good few days and I also found some new lions near Ngare Mara.

I returned to Echo Lima camp in the evening of the 10th and received a message from the manager of the nearby lodge that their driver guide had seen 4 lions that evening in the Conservation Area! But the lions were nervous and kept hiding so he did not get a good look at them. I was excited by this sighting and decided to leave early the following morning to see if I could find them; hoping they hadn’t moved away.

I left camp at 5 30 am and entered the Conservation Area. I followed the main road all the way along the river but did not see anything. We saw the previous nights tracks of where the lions had been sighted. I continued to the end of the Conservation Area and turned back thinking these lions had left the area.

As I came round a corner, I bumped into a lion! He was sitting on the road and at the same time another lion who had been sitting there with him stood up and disappeared. Gypsy is a very quiet car and I think I surprised the lions as much as they surprised me. This male was huge and almost looked like a female as he had no mane. He watched me keenly and we didn’t move a muscle as I really did not want him to run away.

Eventually he stood up, walked off and joined the other lion who I noticed was sitting and hiding in some bushes. They sat together as I tried to take some photos. I tried drawing their whisker spots but the second male was nervous and wary of my movements. They got up and walked off and I then realized that about 20 metres away, another male had been watching me. This was a coalition of 3 males! The big one who seemed a bit more relaxed then the other 2 sat down on the road again however the other 2 kept their distance and watched me through the bushes. The males then wandered off and disappeared in the thick Salvadora.

The big male

The two nervous lions keeping a watchful eye

This was amazing. I had finally had my first proper sighting of these community area lions. I then realized that I had actually seen 2 of them before on the elephant carcass and was sure that it was the same 2; the big male and the smaller male who was beginning to grow a mane. I saw female tracks on the 12th and 13th of August and this lioness may have been the 4th lion that the lodge driver had seen. I also saw a lot of livestock across the river and also some on this side. We went to speak to the herders to inform them of the lions presence and they were grateful for the information and advice and quickly moved off away from the thick bushes.

A bit of information on male coalitions; they are formed after males from the same litter stay together after leaving their pride. They operate as a team whilst they are competing for a territory. Male coalitions also have a reproductive advantage with pride females and this often forces unrelated males to join together.

So I hope there will be many more Real Lions blogs because that would mean I have seen many more lions out here in West Gate!

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Category: Lions | Date: Aug 19 2008 | By: ewasolions

After spending one night in the reserve monitoring the resident lions, I returned to Echo Lima camp on the 24th of July. Jeneria and Joseph greeted me and immediately told me that 4 lions had killed a young elephant in the Conservation Area that morning. The calf had been lost or abandoned and was roaming the area alone until the lions came across it. I decided to quickly head for the area knowing that since this was a large kill, there were greater chances that the lions would still be there.

I was fortunate to have the GPS location of the carcass as some community scouts had been there that morning. I realized later that if it hadn’t been for that GPS I would never have found the carcass because of the thick impenetrable bush.

I drove quickly to the Conservation Area with the guys. When we got close to the location where the carcass was, I slowed down and headed for some thick Salvadora bushes. The GPS stated that we were 60 metres away however I could get no closer. I turned off the engine and waited and listened. We sat there for about 20 minutes and then heard a sound. It was the crunching of a bone. The lions were there!

Thick Salvadora persica bushes in the Conservation Area

I decided to try another route to get to the carcass. I went round the area towards the river and then back in again through the thick bush. Again, we waited and listened. The GPS now stated that we were 30 metres away from the carcass. We were in a small clearing where I hoped the lions would eventually emerge through as they headed down to the river. However, it was getting dark and we didn’t see or hear anything.

Jeneria noticed a small gap in the bushes and indicated that we should try go through there. I creeped slowly through the bushes and then we saw him. There was a huge male lion, maneless, standing on what appeared to be a mound (which was actually the elephant) staring at us. I couldn’t believe it. With the sound and sight of the car and us, he did not run away. He stood his ground and just looked at us. It was pretty dark by now and all we could make out was the faint outline of his head which was covered with blood.

I was thrilled to see him but did not want to disturb him on the carcass. I turned around in a very small space and we then saw another male. He was smaller and appeared to be growing a small mane. He also just stared at us.

I left the scene, very excited by what we had just seen. Jeneria was also thrilled. This was the first time he had seen lions properly and so close. These lions were definitely bolder and not as nervous as the female I had seen a few weeks before. I really hoped I would see them again…

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Category: Lions | Date: Aug 18 2008 | By: ewasolions

Towards the end of June, everyone was hearing lions at night; the nearby lodge staff to our South, the community headquarters staff to our North and the Sasaab village people a few kilometers away. However, for some reason all of us at the Echo Lima camp were not hearing anything! Every morning, people would walk by the camp and ask us “Did you guys hear the lions last night?” and our answer every morning was “No!” I think we are all very deep sleepers and we would sleep through anything.

Finally on the 2nd of July, at 5 am, Joseph heard lions calling out and came rushing out of his tent and woke us all up. We jumped in the car and headed into the Conservation Area. However just as I came to the Ewaso Nyiro River Gypsy got a flat tyre on a very steep rocky hill. It took a while to change the tyre and it was getting light by the time we proceeded.

I continued to the interior of the Conservation Area in West Gate. Lekuraiyo who was standing out of the roof hatch said “Ninaona nyayo” meaning “I can see tracks”. I slowed down and he began to track what turned out to be tracks of 3 lions. They had clearly walked on the road a few hours ago but had now wandered into the thick Salvadora bushes. Lekuraiyo told me which way to go and we managed to find an opening heading to the river. He told me the lions were definitely within a 50 metres radius of us in some very very thick bush. We sat at the river for a while and then decided to leave that spot and try going around the area.

As I was turning Gypsy, I suddenly heard Lekuraiyo say “Shivani! Simba!”. I turned off the engine quickly and froze as Lekuraiyo came down from the hatch slowly. And then I saw her. A female popped her head out of the Salvadora bushes and was in a narrow opening. She saw us and froze. No one moved – neither us nor the lioness. I knew that any movement on our part would make her disappear. She stared at us for about 10 seconds…frozen. And then she was gone. She vanished so quickly that I barely knew what had happened.

She was a young female and still had spots on her. She was clearly very nervous and Gypsy may have been the first car she had ever seen. I drove to where she had stood and measured and took a photo of her tracks (see below). She had disappeared into the thick bushes along the river and I knew it would be impossible to see her again. Most likely she had joined the other 2 lions we had been tracking.

Tracks of the first “Real Lion”

Lions in community areas are very nervous of people, vehicles, sound and generally spend most of their time hiding in thick bushy areas. West Gate Community Conservancy is such a place where wildlife, people and their livestock live together in the same area. Within this conservancy, there is a Conservation Area which is situated about 1km away from the Echo Lima camp. There are no villages here and livestock is excluded from the Conservation Area. I spend most mornings driving here along the main road near the river. The bush is very thick and it is hard to see much however wildlife is increasing here which is great to see. The main habitat is Salvadora which is a thick evergreen bush, also known as the “toothbrush tree”.

A view of the Conservation Area in West Gate Community Conservancy

Anyway, back to “Real Lions”. Less than a month in West Gate and I had seen my first lion outside of a protected area. I really couldn’t and still cannot believe it. The first words that came out of my mouth a few moments after seeing the female, were “Now this is a real lion”. I couldn’t wait to find more and hoped that I would see either this young female again or others.

And the good news is that I have! Stay tuned to this week’s blog for part 2 of “Real Lions”.

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Category: Donors | Date: Aug 15 2008 | By: ewasolions

Sauwah, thank you for your donation to Ewaso Lions!

We really are grateful for this donation and for your continued support.

Thank you again,

Best wishes from the Ewaso Lions team

The photo below shows a new female I found in Buffalo Springs last week

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Category: Other news | Date: Aug 15 2008 | By: ewasolions

So here is a little about myself!

I was born and brought up in Nairobi the capital city of Kenya. I attended primary and secondary school in Nairobi, and it was whilst in secondary school that I developed a passion for wildlife conservation. Occasional school camping trips and safaris organised by my parents confirmed my passion in wildlife. I remember spotting my first cheetah in Samburu when I was 9 years old and that memory has always remained with me!

I left Kenya for Lancaster University, England, in 1996 to undertake a Bachelor of Science Honours degree in Environmental Science, that included a year’s exchange to the State University of New York at Stony Brook, USA.

Upon successful completion of my studies, I returned to Kenya where I worked with the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS), which included a strong involvement in the CITES conference in Nairobi in 2000 where I campaigned for the continued ban on the ivory trade. The more I immersed myself in wildlife conservation, the more passionate I have become working towards saving Africa’s fauna.

My work within KWS subsequently enabled me to gain employment as a wildlife biologist and education officer with Save the Elephants (STE) in 2000. However, I soon developed a greater interest in lions, especially in 2002, when a lioness named Kamunyak adopted a baby oryx antelope in Samburu.

In December 2002, I moved to Samburu National Reserve, Northern Kenya, where I still reside. I worked with students and schools in the area as part of my position with STE, including liaising with the local communities on the establishment and maintenance of environmental and wildlife conservation programmes.

During my time here in Samburu, I have completed a Master of Science degree in Wildlife Biology and Conservation by Distance Learning with Napier University, Scotland. The focus of my Masters research was on the population size, structure and movements of lions within the reserves in the area. I have since commenced my PhD with the University of Oxford in 2007, where the focus of my research is a continuation of the lion study I initiated in 2003. And this is how Ewaso Lions started!

Below are a few photos in the field - collecting lion scat, identifying lions, measuring manyattas and working in the mess tent at the Echo Lima camp

I often spend time under Gypsy trying to fix something or placing the jack to change a tyre… but more often am sitting on the top of the hatch!

I have had many memorable moments during my years in Samburu. One being in 2003, when I witnessed the death of an elephant matriarch and watched how other elephants reacted to her death and also saw a pride of lions feed on her for a week. I have also participated in many elephant radio-collaring operations as well as assisted with the treatment of 2 cheetahs with mange in 2004. I also took part in 2 district wide cheetah censuses in 2006 which was a fantastic experience.

However, the highlight of all my years in Samburu has definitely been this year as I have worked on my own project with a fantastic team (see previous blogs) and also a great group of volunteers; Paul Thomson from the African Wildlife Foundation, Shane Dallas a public servant from Australia, Nilanga Jayasinghe from Defenders of Wildlife in the US and Shalini Bhalla from SB-Management in the UK.

I have had great support from various organizations who have funded my project to date and from readers of WildlifeDirect. It is thanks to you all that my project is able to continue and I am able to work in this region doing what I can do to conserve the Ewaso ecosystem’s lions. I have enjoyed every minute of working in the Samburu region and I look forward to many more years to come working in this beautiful area.

And now I think I have given you the full picture of the Ewaso Lions team. For more information and photos, please click here: www.ewasolions.org/aboutus

If you have any questions on the project, the Ewaso Lions team or anything, please feel free to ask!

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Category: Other news | Date: Aug 11 2008 | By: ewasolions

The Ewaso Lion Scouts have been working in the West Gate Community Conservancy since March. The 3 scouts cover daily routes where they record information on lion sightings and tracks, wild prey and livestock locations and also collect any predator scat that they see along the way. They monitor the lion population within the conservancy and keep the local communities informed on predator locations so as to prevent them from grazing their livestock in these areas. They also provide information to the local people about how to improve ways in which to protect their livestock. The scouts work closely with Raphael on all these aspects.

The Ewaso Lion Scouts

The scouts are equipped with hand-held radio sets for communication and security, GPSs, binoculars, waist bags, solar panels for charging their radios and uniforms.

Jeneria Lekilele
Jeneria is a warrior scout who’s home is the Sasaab manyatta near the Echo Lima camp. Jeneria works in the middle of the conservancy and covers all areas near Sasaab such as the Conservation Area, and Lesenteti. He lives at the Echo Lima camp and keeps Joseph company, especially when Lekuraiyo and myself are away.

Jeneria taking a GPS point after seeing hyena tracks

Jeneria in full uniform scanning the river

Jeremiah Letoole
Jeremiah comes from West Gate itself and lives there. He covers the areas around West Gate, Lpus Leluai and Kiltamany. The Letoole manyatta in West Gate has become a small base for us and we are often having meetings and drinking chai in his home.

Jeremiah on his wedding day in July

Francis Lendorop
Francis is from the Ngutuk Ongiron area. He used to live in the Sukuroi area of the Conservancy (far West), however due to the drought moved recently to Namunyak Hill. His manyatta is right in the middle of the group ranch and looks out over the Grevy zebra plains. He often hears lions at night and radios to inform us. Lekuraiyo and I often start our day at Francis’s manyatta, drinking chai and discussing the whereabouts of the lions. He keeps tracks of lions in the Ntabas and Loijuk areas of the conservancy. Francis is often seen with Nagut, his little dog, who follows him on all his travels.

Francis with Nagut

Photo below: Francis (right of photo) in his village

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Category: Other news | Date: Aug 08 2008 | By: ewasolions

Joseph is Echo Lima camp cook and general manager! He is a Samburu warrior, originally from the Kipsing area. Joseph learned to cook for the first time on June 6th – our first day in camp. He has since become brilliant at cooking and surprised us all one day when he baked bread! He is first to wake in the morning and immediately begins to make camel milk chai (tea). Joseph looks after camp; including the solar system, our tree project, the kitchen, tents and pretty much everything.

Joseph making tea in the Echo Lima kitchen

Read about the Ewaso Lions Scouts in tomorrow’s blog!

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Category: Other news | Date: Aug 07 2008 | By: ewasolions

Raphael is a young Samburu warrior who started working on the project in September last year. He is the Community Liaison Officer and is my right-hand man. He networks with the community, records conflict, maps manyattas, supervises the scouts and much more. His home is West Gate itself, however he often spends time at the Echo Lima camp.

Raphael getting news from the scouts via a hand-held radio

Raph networking with the community

Read about Joseph, Echo Lima’s camp cook in tomorrow’s blog!

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Category: Other news | Date: Aug 06 2008 | By: ewasolions

Many of you have asked me “who is the Ewaso Lions team”. This is my chance to tell you about the great team of guys that I work with.

The Ewaso Lions team

Ltalesi Lekuraiyo is a warrior from Ngare Ndare. He helps me track and spot lions and is brilliant at doing so. Often Lekuraiyo, as he is known, tracks lions to a small area and says “they are in these bushes”. I have learnt not to argue with this cheerful warrior as he is always right. There is never a dull moment when I am with Lekuraiyo. I have explored all the corners of West Gate with him and we have shared many laughs during our adventures.

Lekuraiyo, in his famous red shirt and with me, looking for lions

Read about Raphael Lekuraiyo on tomorrow’s blog!

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Category: Donors | Date: Aug 05 2008 | By: ewasolions

Jan, thank you so much for your donation towards the solar panel system at the Echo Lima camp! The system is working out really well and we are fortunate to have light in the evenings and I am also able to power my computer. So, again, thank you!

I also just noticed that you sent in some comments - pole, it has taken me ages to reply. Your question relating to the crocodiles in the Ewaso Nyiro and lions - they seem to avoid each other here. I have seen a lioness once play with a crocodile and paw it. However the croc snapped at her and the lioness was quick to retreat!

I will definitely post an update to the tree-planting contest soon.

Shivani

Here’s a photo of one of your favourite Samburu elephants

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