At the beginning of August the area had become quite dry and many of the water sources no longer had any water for wildlife. Because of this, Human-Elephant-Conflict has also been on the rise as wildlife, livestock and people compete for natural resources on the same land. Our team were delighted to see a number of familiar elephants, including Mbatiany [pictured] a bull we have known for many years. The rangers had several sightings of him at the beginning of August and as he was not in musth, his personality was much calmer! Based on past observations of Mbatiany, we expect him to go back into musth in around late October which seems to be his pattern.
Busy elephant movements keep our team busy as well as the rangers must keep up with various groups of elephants on a daily basis to ensure that they do not go too close to human settlements or encounter any problems with people, an increasing challenge in 2018 where species like elephants are having to live in closer proximity to humans than ever before in many of their traditional habitats.
Above is a photo of a long fence line on a privately owned plot of land in the middle of unprotected wild habitat. Sadly this is an issue which is occurring across the country due to a lack of spatial planning and land use changes over the last few years. There are ongoing efforts to encourage better spatial planning and protection of wildlife corridors, which Elephant Aware is pleased to be involved in, and this will hopefully lead to a more wildlife and environment friendly approach to land utilization within these areas.
On the 12th of August our team and many around the world celebrated World Elephant Day to highlight the plight as well as the importance of elephants to our global community. The underlying message on #WorldElephantDay is this: Elephants face enormous challenges, from the anthropogenic demand for their tusks to the ever shrinking habitat they depend on, and they must be protected through a widespread concerted conservation effort if we are to secure a future for this important and iconic species.
Later in the month on the 20th of August Oloropilé, a beautiful bull elephant in his prime who we have known for many years, was treated for a spear wound by Dr. Limo, Felix and their brilliant team from the Mara Mobile Vet Unit. Oloropilé is well known to us, and to the vet team, as he has been treated for various injuries in the past that were each inflicted by people. Because he is both named and registered on the Mara elephant database, it proves to be very helpful in such cases as it instantly provides everyone present, especially the veterinary team, with “background” information on the particular elephant in need of assistance. The rangers of Elephant Aware found Oloropilé on the previous morning on the 18th in thick bush and it was not until the evening of the next day that Oloropilé finally emerged out of the thicket and walked up to our vehicle – practically showing us the wound on the inside of his front right leg! It was clear that the leg was largely swollen as well and Oloropilé was walking with a noticeable limping gait. We immediately informed the vet team and the operation was successfully carried out the following morning. Once Oloropilé had been anaesthetized, which was a task in itself, Dr. Limo cleaned out the wound thoroughly and administered the necessary antibiotics which will help in the healing process as well as to alleviate any pain associated with such a nasty injury. It is suspected that Oloropilé was injured as the result of Human-Elephant-Conflict, a rampant threat to elephants across the country, and indeed, the continent. At almost 50 years old, Oloropilé is placed within an age bracket which makes him a crucial member of his species and sadly elephants of his ranking are becoming fewer everyday, a fact which is devastating for African elephant populations. This being the case means that protecting bulls like Oloropilé, true walking treasures of the ecosystem, is of utmost importance and all of us who were involved in the efforts to help Oloropilé are profoundly grateful for the outcome and for the positive prognosis of Oloropilé’s recuperation. Huge thanks must once again go to the Mara Vet Team for their rapid response and fantastic work.
Our team have consistently monitored Oloropilé in the months since his treatment, which is an enormous task, or rather a labour of love as we view it and we have been updating the Mara Mobile Vet Unit on his progress as well. It pleases us tremendously to say that so far so good and he appears to be healing at a steady pace with the help of ‘his group’ of bull elephants who have been equally committed to watching over their friend.
Ranger Siranka of Elephant Aware completed an in depth three week training course for senior rangers and wardens from conservancies across the Mara ecosystem on the 24th of August. He was awarded a certificate for completing this supervisory training/NCO course. This will enhance his capacity to lead ranger patrols and serves as a promotion for him in his career as a wildlife ranger. Well done to Siranka and all other Rangers and Wardens who completed the training! All of us at Elephant Aware are very proud of Ranger Siranka’s dedication and hard work.
August was another eventful month as we worked around the clock to try and reduce HEC in our area of operation and ensure that elephants and community members coexist more safely and thereby ultimately protect elephants. The Elephant Aware rangers helped prevent a multitude of conflict incidents thanks to the dedication, experience and swift response from our entire team. We collaborate closely with our neighbouring community in all of our conservation efforts and this is vitally important for the long-term security of any wildlife species. We are also thankful to our numerous partners both near and far for their conitnuous support which is enormously helpful in keeping our rangers boots on the ground and our team working in the field everyday to secure a future for elephants and other wildlife.
