Report for ‘International office travel bursary scheme’ award granted Jan 2011
This bursary allowed me to take 4 postgraduate students enrolled on the MSc in Forensic &
Conservation Genetics to Kenya on a field trip. We went to the UCLan supported Maasai
Centre for Field Studies situated in the south of Kenya. This is in a fabulous location close to
the awe-inspiring Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. Anyone who has seen the view of ‘Kili’
from the camp is unlikely to ever forget its ever-changing and stunning sight. The main
reason for the incorporation of this field trip on this MSc was to give students the opportunity
to visualise at first-hand some of the world’s most enigmatic and threatened wildlife in their
natural habitat and to talk to local people and wildlife officials/rangers about the conservation
pressures currently facing Kenya. Whilst students learn about such issues in theory, there is
a huge advantage in actually experiencing the habitat the animals live in and appreciating
how local people and wildlife must coexist in close proximity. Experiencing the ‘bush’ gave
students a true perspective of the challenges faced by conservation organisations and also a
feel for field sampling for DNA studies, often the most difficult and time-consuming part of a
conservation genetics project.
The trip was highly successful. The Maasai centre is the perfect place for such a field trip. It
is located within the ‘Kuku’ group ranch* situated in between two of the world’s most famous
national parks (Amboseli and Tsavo). We had a very full itinerary. We visited Kimana wildlife
sanctuary situated next to Kuku group ranch within the Kimana group ranch. This sanctuary
has been a prime example of how wildlife and humans and their livestock can coexist whilst
generating income for local communities. Jointly owned Maasai land in Kimana group ranch
had been leased to an ecotourism company which managed the wildlife sanctuary while
generating revenue from tourism which ultimately fed down to the local people, thus
encouraging them to conserve the wildlife around them. Unfortunately on this trip, we
discovered that the lease had just ended and saw at first hand the devastating effect of
overgrazing by cattle and consequent loss in numbers of wild animals. This was a very
useful learning experience for the students who upon talking to staff in the centre about
these issues, were reassured to learn that a new lease is soon to be drawn up for another
responsible ecotourism company.
We visited the world class Amboseli National park where students visualised abundant
wildlife at close quarters. Here, elephants are so habituated to people thanks to decades of
researchers following them around that they can be almost at arm’s length from the vehicles!
Comments such as “one of the best days of my life”, “my best foreign country experience”
were heard from students. While at the field centre, we also had a number of opportunities
to visit the local bomas (villages) and talk to families living there and to local farmers who
grow annual crops (e.g. tomatoes, onions) along the riverbank. This gave students an insight
into how human-wildlife conflict is being lived out every day by these people. For example, a
small scale farmer has to stay awake all night during harvest time when elephants come to
raid their crops so that he can chase them away using bright lights and drums. We also went
to two local markets where the Maasai sell their livestock, hand-made bead jewellery and
other crafts. Finally, we went on a number of nature walks around camp to look for animal
tracks and poop and discovered that much can be learnt about the local wildlife just from
looking for such signs. We were also fortunate enough to talk at some length to the
Coordinator of the local Game Scouts Association of the Amboseli-Tsavo ecosystem. Game
Scouts who are hired by the local group ranches, play a vital role in wildlife conservation and
education by working alongside local people as well as Kenya Wildlife Service. We heard
how measures were taken to limit livestock numbers in group ranches and how precious
water was shared between local residents, farmers and wildlife. We also heard how recent
efforts in preventing lion attacks on livestock by using lion proof fencing instead of the
traditional thorny bushes had been highly successful.
On our last day heading back to Nairobi, we visited the UNESCO World Heritage site of
Olorgesailie in the Rift valley, where a veritable hoard of hand axes made by ancient
hominids has been found. This region, often described as the ‘Cradle of Mankind’, is of
interest to any student studying biology and ultimately, to any human being.
In my opinion, student learning experiences at the very minimum included the following:
1. Viewing at close quarters the fabulous biodiversity that Kenya has to offer and
appreciate what is at stake with respect to biodiversity conservation.
2. Visiting one of the most famous national parks - Amboseli - which deservedly has a
reputation for some of the best wildlife viewing experiences in the world.
3. Understanding human-wildlife conflict and putting into perspective issues around
wildlife conservation and the needs of the local people.
4. Understanding how field sampling of endangered species can be very difficult and
time consuming.
5. Experiencing the completely different and ‘humbling’ culture of the Maasai people
who continue to live simple pastoralist lives they have lived for centuries.
In conclusion, the travel bursary has been much appreciated because it has allowed an
entire student cohort (albeit small) to benefit from a number of highly valuable (and to some
extent life changing!) learning experiences. Many thanks to the International office travel
bursary fund.
*
Group ranches are areas defined by the Kenyan government across Maasai land. Land within a
group ranch is jointly owned by the local Maasai families and traditional pastoralist lives are practised
by herding and grazing their livestock across their group ranch.
Dr. Arati Iyengar
School of Forensic and Investigative Sciences