Firstly, I must apologize for not having posted a blog in a really long time. Fieldwork has consumed every minute of my time. It has been an amazing month in the field with a lot going on. I will be posting a few blogs over the next few days to inform you of what’s been going on here.

On Monday the 7th of July, I was preparing to leave for Archers Post to pick a student who was coming to assist me with lion scat analysis, when I received a phone call from Abdi Sukuna, the Senior Sergeant of Buffalo Springs. Abdi informed me that a dead cheetah had been sighted in the reserve and requested me to investigate the situation. Accompanied by Paul Thomson from the African Wildlife Foundation, who was visiting for a few days, I left Samburu and headed to the Ngare Mara Gate in Buffalo Springs. I picked up Abdi and Rasheed another ranger and we drove towards the springs. It took us about half an hour before we arrived in an open area and there it was. A huge male cheetah.

Identifying the zebra tracks

I immediately called Daktari Stephen Chege, the Kenya Wildlife Service vet in charge of the area, who asked us to guard the cheetah from hyenas and lions and he would arrive early the next morning to perform a necropsy. He asked me not to touch the cheetah as it was crucial to leave it the way it was. We agreed to guard the cheetah along with the rangers from Buffalo Springs. Luckily we had some food (a cabbage and some rotting carrots) in the car (and crates of lion scat as well!) but unfortunately no tent (I have learnt my lesson here!) so as on many previous occasions, Gypsy came to our rescue and was our home for the night.

Two lionesses approached the cheetah at 10pm but were scared off by the headlights of the ranger’s vehicle. A hyena also came at 4am. The rangers left at 6am and we watched the sun rise over the plains and the dead cheetah. Zebra, oryx and Grants gazelle surrounded us.

Guarding the dead cheetah

Dr Chege arrived at 9 am and immediately began the necropsy. It had probably died 2 days ago and as it was lying out in the sun it had decomposed pretty badly. Dr Chege said that the cheetah appeared to have been healthy before its death. He sliced through the head and within less than a minute stated that the cheetah had died of a brain hemorrhage. There was a fracture down the skull which was very clear. After walking around the site, we noticed many zebra tracks right next to the cheetah ones. It was like putting a jigsaw puzzle together. The cheetah was hunting a zebra and unfortunately in this case lost out as the zebra kicked it straight in the head with its hind leg. Dr Chege said the cheetah must have died instantly.

Performing the necropsy

The necropsy was complete by 10 30 am and we left the area. I am currently comparing all the cheetah identity photos that I have collected this year. I knew of 2 male cheetahs in the area where we found the dead male and will soon know if this was one of them.

Photos by Paul Thomson

Share This

Over the past few weeks I have spent so much time looking for lions and rarely took the opportunity to sit and watch the elephants. It is such a fantastic time to be in Samburu with elephants absolutely everywhere. I had a guest last week and decided to try and show him some of the big bulls who were around. We drove to Wire Bridge in the core area of Samburu and I saw many elephants. As we approached a family, I saw one of the big musth bulls who was also present. We watched for a few minutes and the bull suddenly went close to a female and started to follow her intently. She was in oestrus and with her head held high and tail up, she walked away quickly. He followed her round trees and bushes as we watched. He suddenly mounted her and it was less than 20metres away from us. This is only the third mating that I have seen and quite an incredible sight as you can see from the photo.

Share This