Elephant Aware

INJURED ELEPHANT SUCCESSFULLY TREATED

The Elephant Aware rangers have been carefully monitoring this young bull elephant for the last ten days and today he was successfully treated for a serious spear wound on his right thigh. When we first found him, his wound was a great deal less severe but we nonetheless informed the Mara veterinary team right away. For a number of days he was keeping up with his herd and eating quite normally so we continued to monitor him dilligently, as instructed, all the while hoping he would somehow pull through on his own as elephants sometimes do, however yesterday evening we saw that his condition had deteriorated tremendously and after immediately calling the veterinary team, it was decided that medical intervention had become very necessary. The swelling around his upper leg had doubled in size and he was struggling to walk normally. Because it was almost dark, it was imperative to wait until today and after a great effort from all concerned, this beautiful teenage bull has been helped, his badly infected wound has been cleaned and tended to thoroughly and his prognosis for recovery is very optimistic. The rangers will continue to monitor him and we are very grateful for his successful treatment and that his pain has been relieved. This special young bull’s family were waiting patiently nearby throughout the operation and seemed to understand that we were all there to help him. It was a truly amazing sight to behold and a testament to how loyal, compassionate and intelligent elephants are. A huge thank you must go out to Dr. Limo, Felix and all the Mara veterinary team for a brilliant job well done and equally to the Elephant Aware team for fantastic and consistent work to protect Mara elephants

CELEBRATING WORLD ELEPHANT DAY IN PROUD MAASAI STYLE

For all of us at Elephant Aware it feels like World Elephant Day everyday, but today we marked this important occasion with a number of our friends from the nearby community. The Elephant Aware team spent most of the day taking 15 Maasai ladies from a Women’s Group we support to see elephants and though all of these women live with elephants everyday, they got to see elephants close up for the very first time today! Not only did the ladies get to see elephants, they were surrounded by a large aggregation and everyone was completely thrilled! Thank you to all who helped make this wonderful event possible!!!!! We wish elephants everywhere and all who care about this amazing species a HAPPY WORLD ELEPHANT DAY!

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Ranger Shinka’s Story

My name is Shinka and I have been working as a ranger at the Elephant Aware project for over a year now. Elephant Aware is a project that works to protect elephants and also other wildlife. The reason why I wish to be a ranger is because it is an opportunity to serve our nation in conserving our wildlife. I have gained a lot of experience since I started my job and I have come to realise that wild animals can be very dangerous and especially when you have no experience around them. Since I was born I have lived in a place that has wildlife and growing up I have seen many conflict incidents between domestic and wild animals, as well as Human-Wildlife-Conflict. Now through my work I can see for myself that in order to help avoid these problems, rangers are very important and necessary. I think it is particularly vital that rangers involve local communities in their work and that conservation education is a key element towards reducing conflict. I personally would like to see my own community living with wildlife peacefully and I hope to achieve this through my work and help them see the benefit of sharing our land with wildlife. For the most part, my own experience of living with wildlife has been harmonious in general and I feel that I gain more because of them, especially elephants. From the great deal that I have learned as a ranger, I have found that a lot of conflict which occurs between people and wildlife can be avoided if we are all willing to do our part in preventing it. Of course I realise that the situation is not always so simple and it will take much work, patience and collaboration to achieve this. Many Kenyans, and particularly communities who live alongside wildlife and/or near national parks and reserves seem disconnected from their wildlife heritage and are often taken advantage of by those who abuse wildlife, such as poachers. I believe that these communities need to be exposed to the benefit of having wildlife in Kenya so that they can appreciate, respect and develop a strong connection with wildlife and nature once again, enabling and encouraging more advocates for its protection. As part of my vision and mission, I believe I have to do that myself in my conservation work to try to achieve the goal that one day our children will get to see the benefit of wildlife as well and the glorious natural treasures which exist in our country. Please continue to support our work and share what we do with others, as it is hugely appreciated. Thank you!

– Ranger Shinka

ELEPHANT POACHERS ARRESTED 8th December 2016

Ranger Siranka (of Elephant Aware) was on his way to a nearby settlement with a friend while off duty on Tuesday morning when they came across a motorbike in the middle of nowhere. Seeing no people around, they decided to investigate and as they got closer they saw two men crouched down on the other side of the motorbike, appearing to be working on it. As soon as he saw their faces, Ranger Siranka instantly recognized one of them as being a notorious local elephant poacher whom many in the community know of. This particular individual has also been arrested multiple times in the past for killing elephants by the Kenya Wildlife Service together with Elephant Aware.

The two men became nervous and uncomfortable when Ranger Siranka started asking them questions about their motorbike, why they were in the middle of the bush and what they were doing.

“I said to the man I knew to be a poacher that I knew who he was and that I was going to report him to the authorities. After I said that both the men jumped on the motorbike and sped off. Because we were on foot we could not catch them, however we quickly alerted the local authorities, as well as the Elephant Aware team, who immediately responded.”

Both the poacher and his accomplice were apprehended by Kenya Wildlife Service and Narok County officials in an ambush an hour later.

“I am relieved he was caught because his presence is a danger to our beloved elephants who we work to keep safe.” – Ranger Siranka

Thanks to the courageous actions of Ranger Siranka, and the rapid response of the Kenya Wildlife Service and Narok County officials, these two individuals were prevented from killing more elephants that day and are in custody as we speak. Well done to all who made this arrest possible!

Tuskless Bull Elephant in Siana

We recently encountered this Tuskless Bull with a big herd and our team have not seen him in Siana before. True to their tuskless reputation he was initialy aggressive and charged us but soon settled down and allowed us to observe him. We have seen a few tuskless females and recorded them but this is our first tuskless bull to be recorded on Siana as it is especially rare in males.

Predator Aware, Sau and Wah last night

Last night on patrol we saw Sau and Wah again, two Lions we have known all of their lives. We first met them when they were about 3 months old. They have been in and around Siana these last few years. They will soon be 4 years old and they have done well and it is good to find them so healthy.

LENANA’S TERRIBLE MURDER

Lenana was brutally shot dead and his tusks hacked out by poachers on the 24th November on Siana. It left us all in terrible shock and sadness to lose our beloved friend. Rest In Peace Gentle Lenana.

LENANA THE INJURED BULL- FROM HIS ATTACK TO HIS TREATMENT

It all started with a malicious poacher spearing an innocent elephant who was harmlessly browsing in the bush. In this case, like many others, the elephant suffered horrendously for days before being discovered by any ‘friendly’parties. The young bull called Lenana of 24 years was finally seen by Elephant Aware rangers whilst on a foot patrol on Tuseday the 5th of March 2012 and at the time his wounds were invisible underneath the heavy coat of mud that covered his whole body. The only hint of injury Lenana had that day was an old abscess on his left flank, everyone agreed the abscess looked at least several weeks old and was not dangerous. However Lenana disappeared the next day and went up into the hill where the dense ‘nyika’ bush prevented the rangers access to see Lenana both on foot or in a vehicle. The same happened on Thursday and Lenana was not seen. On Friday the rangers finally got a closer glimpse of him and saw the pus filled wound near his RIGHT hip. Since even more days had gone by since Lenana was attacked his condition and general apperance worsened and the Elephant Aware team called for a vet to treat Lenana as soon as possible.

Lenana’s treatment went very well and the vet’s prognosis was positive.

This gastly 16 inch spear head was removed from Lenana and it was lodged in between his pelvic bone and stomach. Luckily it did not pierce any vital organs and was taken out safely.

A Young Elephant In The Periscope-sniff Posture

This gesture is often used to ‘test the air’ when there is an unfamiliar scent around, especially at suspicion of any danger.

Wildlife Vet Saves an Elephants Life

Elephant Aware rangers found this injured bull and stayed with him throughout his suffering until he was treated. Dr. Dominic Mijele a Kenya Wildlife Service vet did a fantastic job saving this Elephant’s life. It had a severe spear wound in its leg. The vet darted the Elephant, a young bull , operated on the Elephant and brought it round . That is only a part of the story as the Elephant Aware Rangers spent nine days ensuring the Elephant recovered and was not killed by poachers.