Lions – Page 7 – Ewaso Lions

Treating a Lion Injured by an Oryx

We received reports from rangers in Buffalo Springs that there was an injured male lion in Shaba National Reserve that was unable to move and appeared to have a severe injury on his leg in the form of two deep holes.

We were concerned that this may be a gunshot wound and got in touch with the vets at the Kenya Wildlife Service. Dr Rono responded quickly and investigated the injury. He treated the lion’s wounds, which he believes were inflicted by another animal – possibly an oryx. Oryx are large antelopes with long sharp horns, which can stab a predator like a spear.

Jeneria followed up after the treatment and found that the young male lion had moved off and appeared to have recovered quickly. The lion was new in our study area and unknown to us. We will continue monitoring him.

We thank the Kenya Wildlife Service for their quick response, the rangers fro the County Council of Isiolo and special thanks to Sasaab Lodge for their assistance. Photos credit: Dr Rono, Kenya Wildlife Service.

Nanai’s New Cubs Are Healthy and Playful – Photos

We were treated to a great sighting of Nanai and her new cubs in Samburu National Reserve (SNR). Nanai, a nearly 4-year-old lioness, gave birth to the lion cubs in early September.

On November 3rd we saw Nanai on top of a rocky hill in SNR. We drove close and she kept calling and calling. Then, two little cubs appeared, including this brave male.

The 8-week-old cubs are healthy and playful. Nanai is also in good condition and appears to be hunting successfully to feed her little ones.

Our Lion Watch guides and the SNR rangers did a great job keeping an eye on the cubs while we were out of the field.

She continued to call – we were wondering why… And then suddenly Nabulo (Nanai’s cousin) turned up.

And we think Nabulo looks pregnant! Nabulo had a very confused expression when she saw the cubs (above) – maybe this was her first time to meet them?

She ran off quickly and Nanai and the cubs soon followed.

New Lion Cubs!

Finally some good news…

Nanai has given birth to three little lion cubs. The cubs are just over a week old — we will post photos as soon as we can safely take some [UPDATE: Click here for photos]. She has given birth in bushes that are close to the main road running through Samburu National Reserve, so we’ve requested the rangers to help keep an eye on things and make sure tourist vehicles don’t get too close.

This is Nanai’s first time to have cubs. Nanai belongs to the Koitogor Pride and is the daughter of Nashipai.

It was Jelly, one of the Lion Watch Guides, who had the first sighting of the cubs and share the news with us.

UPDATE: Click here to see photos of the 8-week-old cubs.

A photo of a very pregnant Nanai from a few weeks before giving birth to 3 cubs.

Loirish the Lion Killed by Gunshot

Warning: Graphic Photos Below

On Friday the 5th, a male lion was killed by gunshot within our study area in Samburu county. This marks the first time a lion in our study area has been killed by people since 2010. The lion was an 8-year-old male named Loirish, which we had been monitoring since 2008. It appears that a group of warriors happened to come across Loirish as he rested with his brother, and they shot him. Tracks indicate the brother, Lguret, is alive and unharmed. The Ewaso Lions team is still investigating the reasons for the unprovoked killing. We have experienced human-wildlife conflict in this area before, following incidents when lions attacked people’s livestock. In this situation, there seems to have been no livestock killed. An additional misfortune is that Loirish was one of our GPS collared lions that was providing important location data which we could use to help warn herders. The collar was found along with the lion’s severed head and remains in the remnants of a fire. Without the location data recorded by the collar we may never have learned of Loirish’s fate. We are extremely saddened by the loss of Loirish, a lion we came to know well over the past five years, especially as he is only one of 40 resident lions within the Samburu region of our study area. We are still actively working with the community and local officials to determine what course of action will take place. By working with the community to understand this event, and the motivations behind it, Ewaso Lions can help to ensure that losses like this are minimized. We will provide updates as soon as we are able.

The severed head of Loirish was burned by whomever shot him.

The lion’s paws were cut off and taken.

Please Help Us Run for Lions

This Saturday, May 4th, Ewaso Lions is holding our 4th annual Running for Lions half marathon in Samburu. We are so excited to see the community come together under the banner of lion conservation.

We need your help to raise $500 for the event. It’s a small bit of money for a huge positive community event.

Runners take off in the 2011 Running For Lions race. (Photo by Tony Allport)

This year there will be two races: a 21km half marathon for elders and warriors, and a 7km race for women (the community requested to separate races for men and women). The races take place in the stunning Westgate Community Conservancy just west of Samburu National Reserve, here in northern Kenya. We are sponsoring the race this year with Sasaab Lodge, Westgate Conservancy, and Carter Safaris.

As usual, the prizes consist of goats!

Life in Samburu is hard — security issues, human-wildlife conflict, drought — so Running for Lions offers people a day to come together, have fun, and raise awareness about the positive benefits of lions and wildlife. Please help us make this year’s race the best yet.

Please support the race by making a donation through the link below. We only need $500 for the event. Any amount will help!

Click here to donate

Lion Lights: A Young Kenyan’s Invention May Save Lions

Sometimes solutions to human-lion conflict can be found in unlikely places. You may have heard of Richard Turere: the 13 year-old Kenyan boy who invented an ingenious system for safely keeping lions from attacking livestock. Knowing that lions were scared of people carrying torches (flashlights) at night, he rigged a series of automated flashing LED light bulbs around his livestock pen. The blinking lights trick lions and other predators into thinking a herdsman is present, so they don’t attack livestock.

These “Lion Lights” have been fine-tuned and scaled up, and are being used in various parts of Kenya. Ewaso Lions currently uses five Lion Lights in two different areas, and so far they have been 100% successful in keeping livestock safe from lions. And by preventing lions from attacking livestock in the first place, this eliminates the incentive for people to kill lions in retaliation.

Richard Turere was 11 years old when he developed Lion Lights to keep lions away from livestock. Photo by Paula Kahumbu via CNN.

We began using Lion Lights after a streak of lion attacks on livestock prompted us to take urgent action. In December, lion attacks on livestock were escalating south of Buffalo Springs National Reserve in an area called Ngare Mara. With the long wet season, prey had dispersed out of the Reserve, so the resident lion pride turned to easier prey: livestock in Ngare Mara.

Lions were actually entering bomas (homesteads) and killing goats almost every night. We started getting calls from the local people who were extremely upset, having lost a lot of livestock, which serves as the main livelihood for many. We responded by working with management from the Nakuprat Conservancy to hold community meetings.

When people were threatening to retaliate and kill lions, we decided this would be a good place to trial the Lion Lights. We worked with Michael Mbithi from Green Rural African Development (GRAD), who quickly came to the area and installed three units. Since the installation of the lights, there have been no more attacks in the Ngare Mara area. “Finally I can sleep at night,” one elder told us.

Ewaso Lions helps herdsmen set up the Lion Lights in our study area.

Richard Turere’s invention is the best kind; it’s simple, practical, affordable, solar powered, and doesn’t harm wildlife.

We love Richard’s story because it shows that innovation can happen anywhere – it’s not only happening in Silicon Valley. It’s happening in young minds in rural parts of Kenya, too. “I did it myself, no one taught me, I just came up with it,” says Richard. “I had to look after my dad’s cows and make sure that they were safe.” Also, it shows how critical conservation education and capacity building are for young Kenyans. Budding conservationists like Richard need to be identified and supported so they can flourish.

We are so happy to see Richard getting recognition for his invention. He has been featured by many news outlets, including CNN, National Geographic, and NPR. Just last week he even gave a TED talk in California. In our eyes, young Richard is a true wildlife hero!

Want to help?
Because we employed the Lion Lights as a rapid response measure during an urgent time, we did not have planned funds to purchase the units. If you are interested in supporting our work and helping cover the costs of Lion Lights, please make a donation. We need your support!

Learn More

> Watch Richard Turere’s TED Talent Search talk

> Read the CNN article

Kofafeth is Still Alive After Her Close Call

The other day we located Kofafeth, the lioness with serious injuries that we treated a couple weeks ago following a close call with some people. (Click here for that story).

We were happy to see that she is still alive and looks like some of her wounds are healing, although she does not yet look 100%.

We will continue to monitor her and we hope she regains her strength fully.

We found Kofafeth drinking from the Ewaso Nyiro River on February 18.

Kofafeth has survived the operation where we treated her injuries with the help of a KWS vet on Feb. 7.

Kofafeth along the river in Samburu National Reserve. Hopefully she will continue to recover. We still do not know the source of her injuries.

Stopping the Killing of a Lioness

This is an incredible story about an injured lion that killed a young cow and how we stopped a group of men from killing her in retaliation.

We received a report on January 24th that a lion was seen in Buffalo Springs National Reserve with severe injuries. We responded quickly by spending two days in the Reserve looking for the lion, which turned out to be Kofafeth, an 11 year-old female who is part of the Ngare Mara Pride. We notified both the Reserve management and Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS), and coordinated with the KWS veterinarian, Dr. Mutinda, who recommended the lion be assessed and treated.

This photo, taken the day of her vet treatment, shows her weakened condition and many injuries.

This photo of Kofafeth from October shows her in healthy condition.

Then, on the afternoon of the 26th, we got a call that a lioness had killed a cow right outside Archer’s Post Gate. We raced over and picked up a Samburu National Reserve Ranger, then found Kofafeth near the cow carcass. She was clearly struggling to move through the saltbush plains. As we were watching her, she suddenly stood up, crouched low and started moving off nervously. We turned around to see what had made her react in this way and noticed a group of men holding knives and heading towards us and the lioness – clearly with the intent to kill her. We drove quickly between the lioness and the elders and spoke to them, urging them not to take action. They agreed to return to their village, where we spoke to them in depth about why the importance of lions in this area. Fortunately, they agreed to leave her alone.

The next morning, we had two vehicles out to locate the lioness. We found her resting in an open area – she had survived the night. As the KWS vet travelled up to Samburu, we carefully followed Kofafeth as she climbed a small hill, eventually finding some shade to rest in – a good spot for treating her.

Locating Kofafeth for treatment by KWS.

Dr. Mutinda arrived and prepared a dart to anesthetize her. He made a great shot; Kofafeth stood up, looked behind as if something had snuck up and bit her, then settled back down in the shade. Once she was safely unconscious, the team approached and covered her head with a towel and kept her cool with water.

The Ewaso Lions team measuring the sedated Kofafeth.

She was in very poor condition. From head to toe she was covered in old scars, recent scabs, and fresh wounds, including a few deep punctures which were septic. We are not certain what caused her wounds. We do not believe they were from gunshots; it is possible the wounds are from a fight with another lion or other predator such as hyena, or from an encounter with barbed-wire fence.

For the next hour we treated her wounds, took measurements, and collected blood and hair samples. The vet then administered the antidote and we left her to wake up and recover.

Examining her teeth.

We believe that her wounds had seriously weakened her, and this is the most likely reason why she attacked livestock, which are generally easier to get than natural prey. Our hope is that the veterinary treatment will help Kofafeth recover and therefore go back to preying on antelope rather than livestock, and that she will live to produce another litter of cubs.

Jeneria pours water on the sleeping lion to keep her cool during the treatment.

The Ewaso Lions team and Kofafeth. From left: Lpuresi, Shivani, Jeneria, and Paul.

KWS veterinarian Matthew Mutinda.

Rise in Attacks on Lions in Northern Kenya

In just one week in northern Kenya, one lion has been shot and killed and one nearly killed by men with knives – all as a result of human-wildlife conflict. An adult female was reportedly shot and killed on January 22nd in an area called Nagum, near Buffalo Springs National Reserve in Isiolo District. It appears that she was killed in retaliation after a group of lions killed eight goats inside a small village.

A group of men tried to kill Kofafeth after she killed a cow in Archer’s Post.

A second lion was nearly killed for eating a young cow in Archer’s Post town on January 26th, but we managed to prevent the men from succeeding, and she left the town to return to Samburu National Reserve. Shivani, Jeneria and a member of Reserve staff literally drove between the lion and the approaching men to stop them from killing her. This was Kofafeth, an 11 year-old female from the Ngare Mare Pride in Buffalo Springs National Reserve.

This string of conflict incidents illustrates the extremely tense situation currently between local communities and lions in the Ewaso Nyiro ecosystem of northern Kenya. In the past few months, conflict has risen in frequency and severity across the area, largely as a result of the heavy rain season, during which natural prey disperses and predators turn to livestock. Most issues are occurring outside our study area, so we have the additional challenge of working in unfamiliar areas with communities who have not had much sensitisation to carnivore conservation.

Our team has been pushed to its limits in meeting with local communities to prevent retaliation, and working to help prevent further lion attacks on livestock. We have are working 14-hour days, covering thousands of kilometers, and coordinating response efforts as best we can.

One intervention we are trying is a new innovative predator deterrent called Lion Lights, which blink around livestock bomas at night to scare away lions. In Ngare Mara village, adjacent to Buffalo Springs National Reserve, a pride of lions has made numerous attacks, killing or injuring livestock. Fortunately, local leaders reported these incidents before taking action against the lions, and in response we installed three Lion Lights. So far, there have been no attacks on livestock where the Lion Lights are installed.

One of the goats killed by lions in Ngare Mara.

Elsewhere, members of our Warrior Watch are helping people strengthen livestock enclosures, calming tensions, and discussing solutions to reduce conflict.

Samburu and Isiolo Districts are home to Kenya’s fourth largest lion population. With less than 2,000 lions remaining the country, human-wildlife conflict poses a serious threat. The approximately 40 individual lions we monitor in the Ewaso Nyiro Ecosystem, such as Kofafeth, are key to the ecosystem and vital to the local economy. We are doing our best to make sure we do not lose them.

Lion, Cheetah, Grevy’s Zebras, Hyenas Killed on New Highway

Earlier this week, Ewaso Lions met with other conservation stakeholders from Samburu and Isiolo districts to discuss the heavy loss of wildlife killed by speeding automobiles on the newly tarmacked (paved) A-2 highway.

In March, a lion cub was killed by a car as it crossed the road with its mother and brother. Then in September a cheetah was killed in the same spot. Just last week, a motorist plowed into two endangered Grevy’s zebras, a mother and her foal. With less than 2,000 lions remaining in all of Kenya, and only about 2,500 Grevy’s zebras left on the planet, can we afford to lose any more as a result of careless drivers?

In the past year we have witnessed a worrying amount of dead animals along the road, including striped and spotted hyenas, many small carnivores — and even an elephant was hit. In response, Ewaso Lions and several others called for a meeting to bring all conservation stakeholders together to discuss the issue and determine a course of action that might stave off this unnecessary loss of biodiversity.

Human loss is also a major concern as many people have been killed or injured along the road.

This striped hyena was killed on October 12, 2012. Unfortunately, it’s not uncommon for us to see such sights when we drive from Nairobi to Samburu.

The A-2 Highway runs north from Isiolo town, cutting between Buffalo Springs National Reserve and Shaba National Reserve, and borders Kalama Conservancy and Samburu National Reserve. It was recently tarmacked, which has enabled motorists to hurtle down the road at high speeds. The road bisects several wildlife corridors, so wildlife passing through risk being hit by cars, especially at night, as they cross the road mainly to access water sources.

The group is compiling road kill data to identify key areas along the roads where speed bumps and signage might help slow down motorists and make them aware of crossing wildlife. We will then advocate in close partnership with the Kenya Wildlife Service to encourage the National Highways Authority to implement measures to prevent further road kill.

This week’s meeting was held at Kalama Conservancy and included a range of conservationists (including a curious Beisa oryx).

Stakeholders present at the meeting:

Ewaso Lions Project
Grevy’s Zebra Trust
Kalama Community Conservancy
Nakuprat Community Conservancy
Reticulated Giraffe Project
Samburu Game Lodge
Samburu National Reserve
Save the Elephants
Sera Community Conservancy
Westgate Community Conservancy
Eseriani Wildlife Association

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