Stories

A wonderful week for Elephants

On March 3rd a plume of dark smoke curled over Nairobi National Park in Kenya. A funeral pyre of 15 tonnes of elephant tusks had been erected and set alight on a day that was at once tragic and full of hope. Kenya's latest ivory burn comes at the...

The Girls are Back in Town – with Challenges Ahead

Red dusty thermals churning skyward and roasting temperatures have been the mainstays of the last week here in Samburu. As temperatures have climbed steadily throughout much of February, the water that briefly filled the Ewaso just weeks ago has...

A Love Affair with Poop

“We’ve got a pooper! Poop! Matisse is pooping!” “Awww yeah! Excellent! Thanks Matisse!”...resounding cheers all around as we drive over to collect our prize. These days I seldom remember to step back and realize what an odd exchange...

Orphans Leading Orphans: The Virtues

The practice of identifying individual elephants from their unique (if not sometimes extremely subtle) ear patterns is done to perfection by the long term monitoring team at Save The Elephants research camp in Samburu; but do not be fooled – it is...

The Virtues Part 2: Re-collaring Amity

Collaring elephants provides researchers and conservation institutions an invaluable insight into elephant life. One such example being the migration paths that they use and when they use them; allowing for informed decisions to be made about...

Camp Life

I love living in the Kenyan bush. If someone asked me to give a one-word description of what it is like, I would say “life.” Our time in camp is permeated with wildlife. Mealtime, work time, exercise time, sleep time – you name it, friends of...

Eyes in the Sky: A Crash Course in Counting Wildlife from the Air

In my short time here in Kenya, I have learned that wildlife conservation is reliant not only on the many eyes on the ground but also the eyes in the sky. Aerial censuses of wildlife, and especially elephants, are vital tools for assessing...

An Unconventional Upbringing

Many of the elephant families we know have been fractured by poaching. When this happens, orphaned individuals sometimes break off from their families and join other families. The reason they do this is as yet unclear. One family that has been...

The perks of family

I am new to working with Save the Elephants, currently stationed in the Samburu research camp as an intern. I hope to eventually study under Dr. George Wittemyer, the primary scientist of Colorado State University who began the long-term elephant...

The Tech behind Tracking

The science of wildlife monitoring is evolving rapidly and drones, wireless sensors, satellite communications and cloud computing are all becoming common tools in the conservationist/ecologist’s toolbox. Next month, I will be commencing a...