The Ropile River Elephant Corridor
We, at Elephant Aware, are thrilled to share that, through an extraordinary amount of time, effort and dedication, the Ropile River Elephant Corridor has finally become a reality! Our team, together with our conservation partners and the key landowners involved, have been working constantly all year long to get this corridor up and running.
Because of the incredibly positive response from hundreds of Maasai landowners, approximately 13,600 acres has recently been established (so far) as a corridor for elephants and all wildlife to pass through in relative peace, and, while there is still ongoing work happening to build on and grow the corridor everyday, it is fully operational. A number of fences have been dismantled with more still to be done and the landowners are already benefiting.
Though a corridor in itself is a fairly straightforward concept, the set up process is not and without the required commitment, support and collaboration we are very grateful to have received, this corridor would not be possible. This is not to mention the huge amount of groundwork and meticulous planning that goes into it. Over the years our team have carefully monitored and helped protect the area where the corridor is and, together with our colleagues at ElephantVoices, have identified it as a crucial route used heavily by families as well as bull groups of elephants, and other species, to move between Siana and the rest of the ecosystem seasonally thoughout the year.
This is a critical first step prior to securing any corridor. After all, a corridor has a far higher chance of success if it is already familiar to the species in question and if it indeed connects habitat as intended. Years of diligent mapping, observations, patrols, data recording and community liaising have been vital components of this process as well.
The Ropile River Elephant/Wildlife Corridor provides a vital link between five conservancies in the Mara ecosystem and follows along the path of the Ropile river, a seasonal river which flows through Siana and beyond, hence the name of the corridor.
Though the purpose of this corridor is essentially to allow free movement of wildlife, we, together with our partners, have understood from day one that those who own the land must benefit to the full extent from the corridor as well as have a leading role in it’s management and this has been a priority since the idea first emerged.
The Maasai landowners who currently live within and on the periphery of the corridor, have agreed to remove or decrease their fences (if they have one) and in return they are receiving long term benefits for their engagement.
Additionally, all of the landowners will continue to live on their land as normal, except with fewer fences and with an increased tolerance for their wild neighbours. We are extremely thankful for the willingness and collaboration expressed by the landowners, without which this corridor would never exist. The Elephant Aware rangers will be continuing to patrol within the new corridor everyday as usual and they will be working alongside our partners, closely collaborating with the community members there, ready to assist both people and wildlife in any way.
This corridor is designed to where it’s foundation can be expanded upon and grow in the coming weeks, months, and years and possibly be replicated elsewhere. In the past the area where the corridor is now has been a known hotspot for Human-Elephant-Conflict, or HEC, and our team have responded to quite a few of these incidents since 2008. It is our furvent hope that the Ropile River Elephant/Wildlife Corridor will help alleviate the pressures and challenges of sharing space that are so prevalent in today’s world and also help restore an important cornerstone of traditional movement for elephants in this ecosystem.