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RCP Report January 2017
Wishing you all a happy 2017!
We take the opportunity to wish all our supporters a wonderful 2017! You should expect
lots of exciting and relevant conservation news from us in the upcoming months.
Photo: A 'huddle' of lions photographed on a recent trip to Ruaha by the world renowned
wildlife photographer, Billy Dodson.
Photo credit: Billy Dodson, African Wildlife Foundation
Trying times for villagers and RCP as lions attack
The start of the new year proved to be a very tense time in the village of Kitisi and its
neighbouring settlements. For six days in a row, lions attacked cattle, pigs, donkeys and
dogs every night, causing intense stress to local householders. In one particularly
upsetting incident for the whole team, Jasiri, one of our Anatolian Shepherds, was killed
by one of the lions, who attacked numerous dogs. This has always been a concern for the
placement of Anatolians in Ruaha, but we have previously seen the dogs (even the
females) successfully chase lions away from livestock enclosures, so it is possible – but
these lions were extremely problematic.
Photo: Jasiri - one of the plucky dogs working with the RCP Lion Defender team, sadly
she was a casualty. RIP Jasiri…
Photo credit: Yuseph
RCP’s Lion Defenders were deployed immediately to several of the problem areas and
they valiantly kept all-night vigils with the owners. They made fires and noise to scare
the lions away, drove lions off from the households using the car, and calmed down the
local community with their presence and actions. The households concerned were mainly
Maasai ones, while many of our Lion Defenders are from the Barabaig tribe. Historically,
the Maasai and Barabaig have been fierce enemies – the Maa word for a Barabaig person
is mang’ati, meaning “enemy”. Despite these old differences, our Barabaig Lion
Defenders, Darem Philipo, Mandela Dudiyeka, Lanjo Anno, Jack Kilongo and Bahati
Masha, guarded livestock alongside their fellow pastoralists night after night. They
ensured fires were lit at all households, angry morani (Maasai warriors) were calmed and
that livestock and lions remained untouched – truly living up to their Kiswahili
name Walinzi wa simba na mifguo (Defenders of lions and livestock). Special
acknowledgement goes to our Lion Defender, Mandela Dudiyeka, who wasted no time
chasing - on foot - a lion from a livestock enclosure in the dark of the night!
Photo: Tired Lion Defenders see in the New Year! Darem Philipo, Mandela Dudiyeka and
Lanjo Anno with Mzee Matei, standing before the livestock they successfully protected
from lion attack.
Photo credit: Penelope Rogers
Nevertheless, the lions remained persistent, coming back to raid different enclosures
every evening. They seemed particularly focused and hard to scare off, even with the
use of noise makers and gunshots in the air. After more than 4 nights of successfully
averting retaliatory killings, the villagers eventually received permission from local
authorities to kill the lions, as it seemed clear that they were problem animals, which
had attacked over 20 domestic animals in those few nights. Therefore, there was nothing
we could do to prevent two lionesses being speared to death by a group of villagers, who
were unsurprisingly very upset by all the damage the animals had caused. The spearings
were carried out by a group of angry young men, and during the incident, one of our Lion
Defenders suffered a swipe from a lioness and another villager was injured as well.
Photo: One of the lionesses speared after the repeated attacks.
Photo credit: Penelope Rogers
While it is always hard to accept defeat and realise that we cannot stop all killings, we
took comfort from the fact that the Lion Defenders and wider RCP team had done all
they could, had certainly prevented many more attacks from occurring, and had stopped
widespread killing by preventing people from poisoning carcasses or killing many lions
indiscriminately. We therefore continued with our work, which included taking vital
samples and measurements from these lionesses. It was interesting to see that one of
the females (both of whom appeared to be fairly young) had badly broken teeth – animals
with injuries like that often ending up being problem animals, so it could have explained
some of their focus on livestock rather than wild prey.
Photo: One of the lionesses had several broken teeth, a trait commonly associated with
problem animals.
Photo credit: Penelope Rogers
Transformation – and realistic goals
According to Tanur Shah, who is currently advising the Ruaha Carnivore Project on how
to build its capacity, 'if you want to help wildlife, you need to begin by helping people.
To make conservation successful, the focus must be laid on the communities which will
inherit and live with the wildlife.'
This is the very core of the Ruaha Carnivore Project’s ethos, which applies a multidisciplinary and community-led approach to predator conservation. One example of that
work is our Lion Defenders Programme, which is a partnership with Panthera and Lion
Guardians in Kenya, is a dynamic model of applied conservation based on the traditional
cultural roles of young Maasai and Barabaig warriors. These young warrior-class men are
traditional enemies of lions, as well as each other as they are rival tribes.
However, as Lion Defenders, the role of these men has been reversed. Instead of hunting
lions, they are employed by the Ruaha Carnivore Project to conserve the big cats, by
monitoring their presence on village land and helping other villagers protect their stock
from attack. They also work as a team and are now convincing other members of their
community to value and conserve lions, and to recognise the benefits that they generate
to the local community, such as through our community camera-trapping programme.
The Lion Defenders’ top strength is in convincing other men in their warrior age-set not
to hunt lions, and they are often successful in this as they have considerable social
standing.
Photo: Lion Defenders examining spoor (footprints) as they track lions in the Ruaha
landscape.
Photo: Billy Dodson, African Wildlife Foundation
New cheetah paper published shows grave decline
Dr Amy Dickman, the Director of the Ruaha Carnivore Project, is one of the authors of a
recently released paper on cheetahs, which calls for an urgent re-categorisation of the
species from vulnerable to endangered. The paper confirms that the global cheetah
population is estimated at a mere ∼7,100 individuals, confined to only 9% of their
historical distributional range.
The Ruaha Carnivore Project works actively to protect the cheetah population in the
Ruaha landscape and runs a community camera trapping programme to encourage coexistence with wildlife, including cheetahs, on communal land, in exchange for
community benefits. With support from our partners - which include the Cheetah SSP we have also conducted the first assessment of cheetah populations around Ruaha and
built the first predictive cheetah distribution map for this vital landscape.
http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-38415906
Photo: The iconic cheetah which is in steep decline. Ruaha is one of the last strongholds
for cheetahs in East Africa, so our work on these cats is crucially important.
Photo credit: Lorenzo Rossi
Renowned wildlife photographer visits RCP
Billy Dodson is a long-term friend to the Ruaha Carnivore Project, and we have benefitted
from his talent for some years. During his recent visit to the camp he captured some
once-in-a-lifetime images which we'll be sharing with you over the next couple of months.
Billy says: "I visited RCP in November (2016) to take photographs at the request of the
African Wildlife Foundation. It was exhilarating to see this extraordinary team at their
work. I was warmly welcomed from the moment I stepped from the Land Cruiser, and
the staff and researchers went above and beyond to make me feel like family. I was so
impressed by their professionalism, their willingness to adopt innovative approaches to
conservation and by the way they've become part of, and in many ways, central to the
local community. Those who dedicate their lives to their preservation and protection of
wildlife rate a special level of admiration and respect in my book. Within this context,
I have no greater heroes than my hardworking friends at RCP.”
Photo: 'Not a great photo,’ says Billy, ‘and in no way, is it artistic. But this is one of
those instances when I was literally blown away by the tenacity of an animal in the wild.
This is a pride male feeding on a buffalo carcass... with a small cub eating right
alongside. Males don't generally tolerate this level of intrusion, but this little girl ate
right alongside big daddy and never gave an inch, even when he roared his displeasure.
I was so thrilled to watch her stand her ground.’
Photo credit: Billy Dodson, African Wildlife Foundation
Billy was overwhelmed by Ruaha's landscapes and wildlife, particularly the great cats.
"Sometimes, says Billy, 'I'll go an entire trip without laying eyes on a single leopard. At
Ruaha I saw nine different ones including a tiny baby. I was also blessed with fantastic
lion sightings daily and had the best hour with wild dogs in all my professional
experience.'
Photo: An intimate moment captured - not unlike domestic cats, lions lick their young
and their mates. Here a lioness gives her cub a sound 'stand-up' licking.
Photo credit: Billy Dodson; African Wildlife Foundation
From all of us here at RCP - THANK YOU BILLY for capturing the wildlife in Ruaha so
poetically and for your kind words and vote of confidence for the work we do. Thank you
to your sponsor and our partner, African Wildlife Foundation, for making this trip
possible!
Champion the Spotted Hyaena with RCP: Vote in the
Wildscreen's #LoveSpecies Valentine's campaign
This year RCP is championing the misunderstood spotted hyaena in
Wildscreen's 2017 #LoveSpecies Valentine’s campaign.
To read our blog and to cast your vote please visit
http://www.arkive.org/vote-valentines2017
We at RCP love spotted hyaenas, also known as laughing hyaenas!! Sadly, they're pretty
much at the bottom of most people’s lists of favourite creatures, along with cockroaches
and flies. Ask anyone and they’ll usually tell you that hyaenas are cowardly, ugly,
opportunistic and sinister – being linked to witchcraft hasn’t helped their case either.
We want to change your mind and turn your views around. Did you know that spotted
hyaenas are fantastic mothers, fiercely loyal, wonderfully social and are skilled hunters
– in fact they hunt more and scavenge less than lions! They are highly social and
intelligent animals – amazingly, studies have shown that they are better at problem
solving and social cooperation than chimpanzees, and even more impressively, managed
to solve the problems they were faced with in silence, using non-verbal communication.
They can and do communicate over long distances though – the hyaena’s whooping call
is an iconic sound of the African wilderness, although few people realise that the pitch
and tone of the ‘laugh’ actually indicates social status to other hyaenas.
The often vitriolic and unwarranted treatment that hyaenas receive makes it all the more
important to stand up for them – who doesn’t want to champion the underdog! Hyaenas
have long been associated with witchcraft and even in our study area in rural Tanzania
some people still believe that naked, invisible witches ride on hyaenas’ backs. Many
myths surround hyaenas, such as them digging up the dead and morphing into werewolftype beasts to attack people at night. Sadly, this leads to extensive persecution of these
amazing animals, and they are frequently killed in rural areas.
RCP is implementing several programmes to protect hyaenas and other carnivores. We
conduct extensive educational activities to help local people learn more about this muchmaligned predator, and fortify livestock enclosures (bomas) with diamond-mesh wire to
prevent hyaena attacks. These wire bomas, which have been supported by many of our
partners but particularly National Geographic’s Big Cats Initiative, have been extremely
successful, reducing carnivore attacks at that enclosure by over 95%.
It costs approximately $500 to predator-proof a boma, but the result is priceless, in
terms of securing villagers’ economic assets and reducing the killing of imperiled
carnivores.
To vote for the spotted hyaenas as your favourite under-appreciated animal, please go
to http://www.arkive.org/vote-valentines2017
News from the Field: RCP researcher's caterpillar
captures the prize
Congratulations to RCP PhD student Leejiah Dorward on winning the student section of
the 2016 British Ecological Society Photographic Competition
http://www.ox.ac.uk/news/science-blog/stunning-image-spotty-caterpillar-winsphotography-contest-oxford-dphil-student.
Our camp is situated in a patch of bush that is generally lacking in large mammals but
does have quite a lot of other interesting wildlife. One of RCP’s PhD students, Leejiah
Dorward, enjoys wandering around camp at night with a head torch searching for small
mammals, chameleons, geckos, roosting birds and any other interesting creatures that
emerge at night.
According to Leejiah: 'This large caterpillar's pale skin and almost reflective white
spots were impossible to miss when my head torch swept across the bush he was feeding
in. I spent a bit of time taking pictures of him during which he obliged me with some
interesting poses that were very reminiscent of Alice in Wonderland's Absolem’. The
caterpillar turns into a beautiful moth with distinctive eyespots - which are thought to
be a form of mimicry in which a spot on an animal resembles the eye of another species
to deceive potential predators - in this case, possibly Leejiah when he's next out with his
head torch.
Photo: The gorgeous caterpillar transforms into the Gynanisa minetti moth with
prominent eyespots. The species occurs only in Tanzania.
Photo credit: http://www.africanmoths.com
Carnivore sightings in the Ruaha landscape
Everyone at RCP is passionate about wildlife and conservation, and it is always thrilling
when we are able to get other people to share in this excitement. One of the most
important programmes we run is the Park visit one, where we take local villagers into
the Park and they can watch and learn about carnivores and other wildlife in a nonthreatening environment. This is often the first time they are able to experience
carnivores in this way, and we have found that it markedly increases interest in, and
tolerance of, these amazing animals. This vivid video (below) of lions in the wild captures
the excitement and awe experienced by villagers when they're taken out by the RCP team
to visit the Park.
Video clip of a pride of lions in the Ruaha Carnivore Park.
Click here to view video
It is always exciting to see a range of species, not only the large carnivores. The smaller
carnivores are usually great fun to watch, and here Billy Dodson shares his experiences
of watching bat-eared foxes, and how he managed to get a wonderful image of an
exceptionally cute cub! Bat-eared foxes are found in the Ruaha landscape and elsewhere
in the African savanna. It's named for its large ears which are used for thermoregulation,
and for detecting their prey (mainly termites) underground. Apparently, this canid first
appeared about 800,000 years ago, and is currently listed as a species of Least Concern
on the IUCN Red List, however disease (especially rabies and canine distemper) and
drought can affect populations of these charming little foxes.
According to Billy this was an incredibly difficult shot to get. They passed the den every
day knowing the cubs were there, but they only emerged once during his time up in Ruaha
at sunset. With the low light, he had to get technically creative in order to capture
anything like a decent photo. The shutter speed was very low and he needed the foxes
to remain very still. With a good dose of luck, he was fortunate to be able to get the
camera stable and capture a couple of really engaging images.
Photo: A bat-eared fox with her young
Photo credit: Billy Dodson/African Wildlife Foundation
It is also fascinating to watch carnivores around their prey, as that is where you get some
of the most interesting interactions between members of the same species, and also
between members of different species competing for the kill. Giraffes are one of the
main prey species for lions in the Ruaha landscape, and Billy Dodson captured this image
of a young lion balancing on the carcass of a giraffe, which had lain in the riverbed for a
day before the lions started to feed on it.
Photo: Young lion navigating a giraffe carcass
Photo credit: Billy Dodson, African Wildlife Foundation
We rely heavily on Ruaha National Park drivers and guides to record sightings in the Park
for us, and they always produce some wonderful images of wildlife in the Park. Here,
Nahumu from Ikuka Safari Camp took an amazing photograph of a male impala, which
had walked away from a fight with another male with quite the souvenir! Only male
impalas have horns, which can grow to 75cm long, Unlike antlers (such as those found on
deer), which are shed each year, the horns of antelope are comprised of a bony core
permanently attached to the skull, which is covered in a sheath of fingernail-type
material. This outer sheath can come off in fights, as seen here – hopefully the impala
can get rid of it soon, as it looks rather uncomfortable!
Photo: Impala with part of a horn sheath stuck in its skin.
Photo credit: Nahumu, Ikuka Safari Camp ikukasafaricamp.com/
Meet the Team: "Hi! I’m Kambona Kanayaa...
The RCP team now comprises over 60 people, from community camera-trap officers to
mechanics and cooks, and we could not do any of our conservation work without the
amazing dedication of every one of them. Each month, we introduce you to one of our
staff, and get them to explain personally their background and what their role means to
them. Here, we introduce Kambona Kanayaa, one of our invaluable research assistants.
“My name Kambona was given to me by my mother. I am named after a revolutionary
‘Oscar Kambona’. Today, I hope to represent the word ‘revolution’ in a different way.
I was born in a village known as Idodi, which is on the border of Ruaha National
Park. When I was young, flooding was a problem and the village often had to migrate to
a hill to avoid the flooding. Idodi was named by the Hehe people in whose language Idodi
means, “a place which is never dry”.
I come from a big family; I have six siblings with whom I loved to play and tease when I
was younger. Once, my sister caught me skipping school and of course, she was very glad
to take me directly to the headmaster. Since then, I was more careful not to let my sister
see me playing truant.
I studied Community Development and Social work at Tumaini University in Mbeya, in the
south of Tanzania. My relationship with the Ruaha Carnivore Project goes back much
before I began to work with them. As a teenager growing up in RCP’s study area, our
village was visited by its representatives and we would watch films on predators and the
findings of the camera traps which were installed on our village land.
Coming from a pastoralist community (I am Maasai), it was fascinating to learn of all
these animals on our land. Today, working with RCP has given me a lot of knowledge. My
understanding of wildlife and ecology has greatly improved. I have the opportunity to
meet people from all over the world, sharing ideas and realising that somewhere we all
have the same stories of life.
Photo: Kambona Kanayaa
Photo credit: Gilles Nicolet
I assist RCP on their Community Camera Traps, talking to community officers and
understanding their thoughts on the wildlife passing through their land and what it is like
to live with wildlife. I also assist the Lion Defenders on a variety of tasks such as data
collection, data entry and also field work such as tracking predators when there has been
a depredation (when a predator kills livestock) or helping stop a lion hunt. What I enjoy
most is the Community Camera Trapping, as it shows us the secret life of animals and
helps us understand who we share our land with.
I still remember the days after the completion of my studies, when my cousin Meritho,
would tell me about the work he was doing as an employee of the Ruaha Carnivore
Project. I was reminded of the DVD nights in our village and how as a young boy, grazing
cattle, I would look at wild animals with fascination, wondering about their lives. I had
a strong desire to work with the Ruaha Carnivore Project but I did have initial fears of
leaving my family behind, living in a new environment and yes... how would I get cow
milk, which I need as a Maasai? Today, it has been more than a year working with the
Ruaha Carnivore Project and while all my fears have been laid to rest, I have also made
lots of new friends and have learned a lot from a diverse set of people.
I have come to understand that co-operation is the key to success. We all need each
other. The community needs the Ruaha Carnivore Project and the project needs the
community. In the end we are all working towards a goal which is going to benefit us all
- the preserving of our environment. While we do this, we should continue doing so
keeping the needs of the community at large on our minds. This way, we can be less
selfish and succeed.”
RCP Programme update: Idodi Secondary School
students visit the Park in January
Every year hundreds of school children and adults from the surrounding villages visit the
Park as part of RCP's outreach programme to bring these children and adults, who live in
close proximity to carnivores and other wildlife, into a safe environment where they can
observe lions and other carnivores up close in a non-threatening environment and get to
know more about them. As the future guardians of wildlife, it’s especially important that
school children who attend schools in the neighbouring villages, visit the Park and learn
not only about wildlife but also the important role that National Parks play in the regional
and national economy.
During these trips, according to the RCP trip leader Fenrick Mgiswa, they often ask
questions about general lion biology and are keen to know more about conservation. This
is a rare opportunity for the students and villagers to learn more about their natural
heritage and enjoy it in the same way as international tourists.
Photo: Zawadiana Daniel, one of RCP's Simba Scholar students, was one of the lucky
students to visit the Park this January with her school friends. Here she is seen writing
up her feedback in the after-visit survey form, where she has the opportunity to capture
her impressions, her views and what she thought about the RCP trip.
Photo credit: Fenrick Mgiswa
Photo: The Ruaha Bridge offers excellent sightings of crocodiles and hippos. Here Form
Four students, who are expecting to finish their schooling this year, record their
sightings during the January trip.
Photo credit: Fenrick Mgiswa
RCP Supporter Spotlight: Cleveland Metroparks Zoo
RCP is extremely lucky to have built long-standing relationships with many partners and
supporters around the world. We could not do any of our conservation work without the
commitment of our supporters, so we are highlighting one of them each month to
recognise their invaluable assistance. This month, we highlight one of our longeststanding partners, Ohio’s Cleveland Metroparks Zoo.
Cleveland Metroparks Zoo has an impressive commitment to field conservation. The Zoo
has been working to protect wildlife across the globe for the past two decades and, in
partnership with the Cleveland Zoological Society, has committed more than 6 million
dollars to global wildlife conservation efforts in more than 100 countries around the
world. Working with conservation partners in more than a dozen countries around the
world, the Zoo is tackling today's most complex and pressing human-wildlife conservation
through unique and collaborative projects that directly address wildlife survival and
benefit local people.
RCP was fortunate enough to receive a grant from Cleveland Metroparks Zoo in 2010,
which helped us employ ‘conflict officers’ in local villagers, who trained other villagers
in the best methods of protecting their livestock, thereby substantially reducing attacks
and carnivore killings. Our relationship has continued since then, and Cleveland
Metroparks is now one of our most important partners, particularly as they help provide
unrestricted support for operational costs, which are vital but extremely hard to raise
money for. RCP is a key partner in the Zoo's Future for Wildlife program and the funds
this program has generated (from the Zoo, Zoo Society and Zoo donors and visitors) has
provided invaluable support for many of our field programmes in Ruaha.
RCP values our long-standing relationship with Cleveland Metroparks Zoo, which actively
promotes the conservation of wild lions and other threatened wildlife, and we were
thrilled when our Cleveland colleagues Kym Gopp, Andi Kornak and Dr. Pam Dennis visited
the project in June 2014 to see our work first-hand.
"We are very happy to have RCP as one of our key Future for Wildlife partners. The work
being done by the RCP in Tanzania perfectly mirrors our conservation goals and
philosophy - protecting wildlife, building conservation capacity and promoting
conservation science through projects that benefit wildlife and local people."
- Kym Gopp, Conservation Curator
Photo: Andi Kornak, Dr Pam Dennis and Kym Gopp from Cleveland Metroparks Zoo in
Ruaha National Park, with a very pregnant Amy Dickman!
THANK YOU ~ ASANTE SANA
As always, we thank all our donors for their generous and committed support.
To dedicate your support click below and fund out more about our programmes:
Ecological research – RCP provides vital data on Ruaha’s little-known
carnivore populations through camera-trapping and recording carnivore
sightings. More than 9,000 carnivore sightings have been recorded to date.
Community camera-trapping – RCP trains and employs local villagers to set
up and manage camera-traps on village land in return for community benefits,
directly linking conservation with development.
Protecting the livelihoods of villagers living in proximity to carnivores reduces
conflict. Fortifying livestock enclosures and placing guarding dogs are proving
successful in minimizing conflict.
The RCP Lion Defenders actively prevent and stop lion hunts. These defenders
are chosen from amongst the bravest and most influential villagers.
Kids 4 Cats is a school-twinning programme where local schools are 'adopted'
by international schools who raise at least US$500 annually for them, to buy
essential education material and equipment.
Simba Scholars receive full scholarships for all four years of their secondary
school. The cost to US$2,000 per student and RCP is keen to expand the
programme to more students.
Porridge Project – No one likes to go to school hungry, so RCP and our
partners make sure that local scholars have full tummies when they're at school
– this increases attendance and attainment, employs local women and is a
major benefit in villages where there is very little food security.
DVD nights and Park trips provide insights into conservation and species in a
fun, non-threatening environment. To date more than 30 000 attendees have
enjoyed DVD nights and more than 700 people have been on Park trips.
Should you wish to know more about individual programmes we will happily send you
more information. Please contact our communications manager, Margaret Roestorf
at [email protected]. Should you wish to speak directly to the Director,
Dr. Amy Dickman, please contact her at [email protected].
To support our work you can use one of the following channels:
Donating via EFT
Bank: Barclays Bank plc
Account Name: University of Oxford Development trust
Account Number: 40155586
Sort Code: 20-65-20
Swift Cofe: BARCGB22
IBAN Number: GB06BAR20652040155586
UK Donors (online)
www.campaign.ox.ac.uk/report/ruaha-carnivore-project
US Donors (online)
http://lions-houstonzoo.org/projects/ruaha-carnivore-project/
To pay via cheque please contact Amy Dickman at [email protected]
Until next month - so long... tutaonana
Photo credit: Andrew Harrington
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