2007 December | Samburu Monkeys

Presenting my team

Category: Samburu Survey | Date: Dec 28 2007 | By: admin

The Samburu primates study that I lead is made up of research assistants, guides, scouts and secuirity escorts who are mostly drawn from the local Samburu community. I am glad to share with you photos of some of the peope that have made the fieldwork part of this study a success.

The Team at Ngare Narok in september 2007 where we were making preliminary observations of the ecology of the newly discovered population of de Brazza’s monkey in Mathews range.

The Ang’ata Nanyuki team in Leroghi where our search for sykes monkey were fruitless in June 2007.

The Uaso Ngi’ro rivers near Lodung’okwe. The team which I led was searching for sykes monkeys believed to have been in this area in the 1980s

The team at Lagat valley in Baragoi searching for Patas monkey

Another team at Angata Nayuki in Leroghi that was looking for Patas and sykes monkeys

A guide and an escort in last year’s de Brazza’s monkey survey in Mathews range.

The list is not exshaustive as not all of them are currently available in my photo library. As you read my posts, please remember that this people played a crucial role in the study and they deserve credit for their contribution. I am personally very grateful to my team for serving with deligence and dedications despite the numerous difficulties and hardships, especailly lack of adequate resources during feildwork.

Iregi Mwenja

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Climbing Mt Nyiro

Category: Samburu Survey | Date: Dec 26 2007 | By: admin

Climbing Mt Nyiro was the most physically challenging moment of my primates survey fieldwork in Samburu this year. The photos say it all…

Climbing from South Horr

My local Guide, Ljejian

Taking a break

Another Break

It took us ten hours to get to Kurante where we picthed our tents before heading to Kosi Kosi (which is 2600 m above sea level) the next morning.

Finally the view

South Horr trading center and the Ndonyo Mara on the background

Iregi Mwenja

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Dr Iain Douglas-Hamilton reports Patas monkey sighting in Samburu

Category: Endangered Wildlife | Date: Dec 18 2007 | By: admin

Last month I received reports from Chege of the Steve Chege blog that Dr Iain of Save the Elephants had mentioned to him that he had seen a Patas monkey while flying over the western parts of Samburu National Reserve. I also received the same information from Bridget McGraw - Guest Editor of the ‘Swara’ Magazine of the East African Wildife Society. I later talked to Dr Iain and he gave me the information below confirming that it was indeed Patas they found;

“In October 2007 during the course of an elephant collaring operation, I sighted along with Daniel Lentipo a Patas Monkey in the western part of Samburu National Reserve. The animal was running through open bush and we got a good view for a few seconds. Both Daniel and I independently recognised it as a Patas Monkey. I don’t know if this constitutes a rare sighting but I have never come across one in Buffalo, Shaba, and Samburu National Reserves. The nearest ones are those in Laikipia. Dr. Iain Douglas-Hamilton Founder, Save the Elephants”

Photos: Manzolillo Nightgale

Patas monkey are highly dependent on Whistling Thorn (Acacia drepanolobium) for both food and sleeping sites.

I shared this information with Primatologists Dr Butynski and Yvonne de Jong and this is what Dr Butysnki had to say; “….Looks to be a very nice record…..very likely this is a ‘wandering adult male’….they do this sort of think…apparently….go off long distances from the range in which groups live….in search, I suppose, of new, distant groups and opportunities”

However, this remians the first confirmed report of the species sighting in Samburu district, though as Dr Butynski suggests, it could just be a wandering male from the Laikipia and not a resident group. Meanwhile, I am still working on the unconfirmed reports that there is a troop in northern Samburu, near Parsaloi which I will be able to verify early next year - see the previous blog for more details.

Iregi Mwenja

Project leader, Samburu Primates

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Delayed field trip

Category: Samburu Survey | Date: Dec 13 2007 | By: admin

I have been forced to postpone my last field trip of the year following continued rains in Mathews range whose river drains to the Milgis river on the western side. I have been planning to survey the Ndoto by going round the mountain using the Milgis lagga (dry River bed) as it is the only way to cross over from the west. Until the River bed is dry, most parts on the south are inaccessible. If I go now, I will only be able to access the mountain from Ilaut side via Baragoi-South Horr road and leave out the crucial southern parts. The General elections are also due in two weeks and it would not be advisable to conduct the study during the last days of campaigns and voting day. The is also the festive season and christmas is around the corner and it will be difficult to convince people to join me, like it happened last years during my last fields trip of the Mathews range de Brazza’s survey.

Ndoto mountains, a view of the northern side’s from the top of Mt Nyiro, 30 km away

Seiya river and a patas monkey

I have been able to get this regular updates courtesy to my partner on the ground - Milgis Trust. The Manager, Moses Lesoloiya have also been assisting with leads into unconfirmed reports of patas sightings at Suiyan and trip logistics, including transport and scouts. We have agreed to make it early January.