James Lemoile picks up the thigh bone of the giraffe (left) whose pelvis appears in the above tree. The bones were from a full-grown giraffe that most likely died of natural causes. There are not many predators strong enough to bring adult giraffes down, but there are plenty of scavengers available to scatter the bones after the animals have died. This bone was about 20 meters from the 'pelvis tree.'
Giraffe Pelvis in Acacia Tree, 2006.
Per order of the Kenya Wildlife Service, rhino patrols are sent out three times each day to search for the Reserve's black rhino population. They are charged with the protection and preservation of this endangered species. Being a territorial animal, each individual black rhino has a home range, from which they rarely wander. As a landmark to indicate a specific rhino's range, the patrol has mounted this eerie giraffe pelvic bone in an acacia tree (left). Nearby, a skull was in another tree (above).
James with the Rifle, 2006.
Very often, especially in the dense brush, the patrols would come across other animals, some of them dangerous and unpredictable. Many times the guard had to load a bullet into the chamber of the rifle. In one such incident, just the loud click-click of the bolt-action rifle was enough to scare off an adult bull buffalo that we surprised in a rhino bed. In the photo at left, we've come across a few female buffalo resting under some Euclea bushes.
Encounter with Buffalo, 2006.
(Left) The buffalo stood up and eyed us with a hesitant curiosity. James raised his rifle and put a cartridge into the bullet chamber, but the animals didn't budge (another is to the left, behind the bushes). I finally discovered the purpose of the batons that the other guards carried. A trainee took two steps forward and hurled his baton at them, just missing one by feet. The animals jumped, but still held their ground, not the smartest instinct. The guards then began yelling and waving their arms, and the two buffalo finally took off. But if one were to suddenly charge, the guard could drop it with a single shot. It's happened before: the lives of the guards and project volunteers are more important than the cape buffalo. In the image above(*), the skull of a buffalo that charged a patrol sits atop a post at the guards' camp.
Checking for Ants, 2006.
Walking in the field is the best way to see the game animals of Africa, but it has its price. Here, I'm checking my hat for ants after walking under an acacia tree, brushing my head against a branch as I watched my step on the uneven ground. The aggressive ants live in a symbiotic relationship with the acacia: the tree provides hollow galls that the ants colonize, giving them shelter from marauding ground-dwelling anteaters. Meanwhile, the ants attack anything that touches the acacia tree, biting mightily for their little size. Although I was bitten more than a few times, it was a small price to pay for such an experience as this.
Encounter with Giraffe, 2006.
Not all animal encounters are quite as dangerous as those with unpredictable and aggressive cape buffalo. Here, the rhino patrol comes upon a Reticulated giraffe, a common encounter in the bush. The giraffes are wary, but usually see us approaching from a safe distance as they peer over the low vegetation. They're usually curious about us, and often will just walk off in the other direction. This one was in our path, and as he moved on, we followed it. It soon broke into a lazy trot and loped far enough away to stop and turn and watch us go by.
One of the duties that we performed for the Earthwatch Project was the Rhino ID activity. We would go out walking in the Reserve with an armed patrol to spot, identify, and observe the various black rhinos within the reserve. It was one of the highlights of the experience, and almost as taxing as the game count in terms of kilometers walked. On the two patrols that we accompanied, we encountered the same three rhinos both times.
(Left) 8:00am and we start out on our morning's patrol, walking down a dirt road towards a rhino's known territory. Only one guard on the Rhino Patrol had a rifle; the other four would carry wooden batons with iron clubs on the end (above). I would find out later what these batons were used for.
Lion Prints, 2006.
(Left and above*) The dusty road provided us with more than just easy walking. We were lucky enough to spot a lion's paw prints, appearing pretty fresh to these untrained eyes, likely just hours old from its slow walk to the nearby river for a morning drink. We also saw a rhino's footprints, a bit older and less recognizable to Joanne and I, but very noticeable to the trained eyes of the guards.
By the River (left), and Collecting Wire (above), 2006.
We walked along the river for a short while (left), and noticed a rhino's footprints, as Joanne enters this information into the palm pilot. The prints were not fresh, however, so we moved on in search of more rhino signs. Above, the guards collect some loose wire, dangerous to any animal that might become entangled in it. It was hard to tell where it might have come from: a downed fence most likely.
Spotting Tatizo, 2006.
We found our first rhino, Tatizo, a sub-adult male, browsing on short acacia and herbs among the tall grasses. As you can see, we were fairly close, about 40 meters downwind of him. The rhino has poor eyesight and moderate hearing, but a good sense of smell. It was always important to positively locate an animal before approaching it to identify and observe. If we were upwind, the rhino would have bolted at the first whiff of us, but downwind we were able to quietly and safely approach it.
Tatizo, 2006.
Tatizo continues to browse while we observe and photograph him, until some movement catches his attention. The movement was not from us, we were pretty still and quiet. Instead, some oxpeckers became startled, most likely by our presence, and flew off, alerting the rhino that something else was near. He looked in our direction for what seemed like an eternity, about 10 or 15 seconds, then abruptly ran off in the other direction.
Rhino Patrol, 2006.
Our senses are heightened as we move into the thick bush, and for good reason. Encounters with animals are very likely, and sometimes shots are fired, although I was lucky enough not to witness such an event. Sometimes oxpeckers would alert us to the presence of animals. In a symbiotic relationship, the birds would eat insects that crawled on an animal's hides, while providing the animal with an alarm system, scattering at the approach of other animals. Wnenever the birds were flushed, we knew that their four-legged dinner tables were nearby, most likely buffalo, rhino, or other large hoofed beast. But the animals too would know something was up.
Spotting Waya, 2006.
James Kasana spots Waya, an adult female with a calf, on the rising ground about six or seven hundred meters away. Joanne and I couldn't see a thing at that distance, but these guys could all spot something up ahead, even without the binoculars. But it was important to locate the animals before approaching them: we had to approach from downwind in order not to scare them off.
Waya and Her Calf, 2006.
(Center image) Waya and her calf browse calmly on small acacia. Click on the left image for a closer picture of the mother rhino, the right image for one of her unnamed calf. We approached to about 80 meters of the two, but never got a clearer view than this. The idea here is to observe, and not to disturb.
Rhino Patrol, 2006.
(Left) Francis Ndegwa watches Waya and her calf from a safe distance of about 80 meters. Not wanting to disturb their morning breakfast, we observed the two for about 5 or 6 minutes before slowly backing off and leaving the area. Above, James Kasana reports our GPS position to the Ol Pejeta office, a requirement for every single rhino sighting within the Reserve.
End of the Day, 2006.
We ended our day of tracking rhinos at a water trough on the nothern edge of the Reserve. We had called for our ride, and were just taking it easy after walking for about 4 hours in the sun. The patrol would have to walk back to their camp, and get ready for another patrol that afternoon. At least three patrols per day would go out in search of the black rhinos in the Sweetwaters Reserve, a requirement for any privately-owned reserve that wanted to keep black rhinos. What a job to get up for each day.
