Half way through my adventure in Kenya

Well I have now been in Kenya for three months and this marks the halfway point in my adventure with Colobus Conservation. Month one was all about new discoveries & experiences and month two gave me my first experience of African elephants. If I had to give the third month a specific theme it would be the endless power cuts and rainstorms.

Shalom to the half way point

For reasons not fully known to me we seem to be going through a period where the power says “I can’t be bothered with all this rain I am off”. After endless amounts of frustrating days not being able to use my laptop for work, (and in the evening) candle burning (was great for monopoly even if we did nearly set the game on fire), knocking into chairs/tables and heating up food by blowing on it I think we are seeing the light at the end of the tunnel; literally. Here is a great way to sum up what Kenya Power, and to a larger extent life in Kenya, is like. We had scheduled to have our power turned off between 9am – 12pm to do some tree trimming work around the power lines the other day. Well the power was cut at 10.30am and didn’t come back on till 5.45pm, typical, but you just have to say Hakuna Matata (No Worries) and move on.

Not sure this Sykes monkey is enjoying the rain either

In other news this month I bought a pair of tailored, hand made shorts in tradition African colours (black & green), and I am very happy with them; they have pockets and everything. I watched the most stunning sunset over Shimba Hills National Reserve with some Lion King re-enactment; while seeing a herd of elephants in the far far far distance. The highlight (or more accurately brown trouser moment) was when being driven back in the dark on dirt roads and the driver would accidentally turn the lights out when switching from low to high beams; he wasn't exactly going slowly either. I also helped to stop a Colobridge collapsing into the road, a Colobridge is built above the main road to allow monkeys to cross safely.

It's the circle of life!

The sun setting on another glorious day in Africa

Yep, I have found the problem guys, it's falling over

I got to know a lot more about the yellow baboons, and that if you meet a large male half way up a ladder you suddenly get the power to scale down quicker than previously thought possible. I also learnt more about the Vervet monkeys and watched some of the re-released ex-pets get their radio collars removed; amazing what you can achieve with peanuts and sunflower seeds. You have also been introduced to one of the colobus troops I am following and now know a bit more about them. No injuries to speak of yet although I was nipped on the ankle by a damn Chiwawa that waited till I turned around before pouncing.

Large male baboon that run up ladder as I was going down

A Vervet now with his radio collar removed

Without doubt the highlight of the month was having the opportunity to walk for elephants beside Jim Nyamu for his campaign “Ivory belongs to elephants”. You can read about my full day out with him and see more pictures, just click here.

Walking no matter what the weather

Drying off with Jim Nyamu

I am now fully settled in my life here and am wondering how I will react when I see the prices of avocados and mango's back in London. Also, I have been enjoying roasted corn on the cob done on the side of the road here for roughly 25p for a whole corn.

Contemplating the beauty before me as the sun sets

Watching the sun raise as I begin to follow a colobus troop

You can see all my photos of my time in Kenya on my Flickr page here -http://bit.ly/1dpb3gd

Or on my facebook page here - www.facebook.com/diaryofaprimatologist

Disclaimer:

"The views and opinions expressed in the Diary of a Primatologist blog (except guest posts) are purely my own and are not in any way linked to any organisations I may represent or work with unless otherwise stated. All photos are my own unless otherwise stated and a source will be provided where other photos are used. If they are your photos and you would like them removed please just ask. The author retains full copyright for all content and photos and written permission is required before their use. The owner of the site is not liable for any content accessed through links posted."

Have you heard about the green monkey living in Africa?

The Vervet or ‘African green monkey’ (Cercopithecus aethiops), Tumbili in Swahili is next up in my series of primates living in Diani. A very common sight in Diani, like the Sykes and Baboons they come into daily human conflict, and can be considered pests over their opportunistic stealing of human food.

A Vervet monkey

Distribution:

The Vervet is a very versatile monkey able to adapt and survive in a wide range of habitats including savannah, woodland, riverine, lake-shore and coastal forests; although they normally don’t inhabit heavily forested areas or very open grasslands. They are widely distributed through Africa south of the Sahara desert and across Kenya; even in Nairobi. Vervets are equally at home on the ground and in the trees, which obviously aids their ability to adapt to different environments. 

Vervets in an open grassland environment

Anatomy: 

They are mainly a grey-brown colour with white under parts and a white fringed black face, long whitish cheek whiskers, white brow, black feet (like they walked in paint) and a black tip to their tail. Interestingly males have a light blue scrotum, red penis and red peri-anus and weigh around 4 to 6kg, measuring 40 to 60cm when adult. Where as the females weigh around 2 to 5kg and measure 30 to 50cm. The female breast can often have a bluish tinge to them. Infants have similar, but lighter colouration than adults, the most obvious difference being their lighter, pinkish faces. 

A female Vervet monkey

A baby Vervet showing the slight pinkness still in his face

The blue scrotum of a Vervet male

Diet: 

Vervets are omnivorous and like the Sykes are opportunistic feeders (like with human food). Their main diet is made up of flowers, fruits, seeds, roots, bark, gum, eggs, insects and small invertebrates. They will take human food and can be dangerous when tourists feed them. 

Social Structure: 

The group size is usually between 20-30 individuals with a linear dominance hierarchy among males and a kinship relationship among females. The Vervets have been documented to some complex communications that can be different for certain situations and getting different responses in return. For example, alarm calls for aerial predators differ from alarm calls from snakes (on the ground) – requiring the Vervets to look in different places for danger. 

A group of Vervets investigating someones garden

Grooming is an essential part of bonding and cleaning

Monkeys as pests: 

With the exception of the colobus the other monkeys in Diani, are opportunistic feeders, taking what food they can when they can, and will raid crops or steal food from kitchens in homes or hotels. Some local residents have appalling methods to deter these individuals: from throwing paint over them to stoning them or using bows and arrows. 

Although small in size they are not short on aggresion

This human-wildlife conflict is made worse when well meaning individuals giving monkeys food – as the monkeys come to associate humans with food. Men can generally rebuff monkeys who may approach them, but women and children are at risk of being bitten when they refuse to give monkeys food. 

Dogs do sometimes come into conflict with monkeys

To combat this, CC has developed a detailed guide on managing the pest problem and provides workshops and training sessions for hotels and private houses. We also hope that you can help us by explaining to others why monkeys must not be fed. 

Here is some Vervet yoga

As always the pictures are owned by the author and under their copyright. They are uploaded at a lower quality as my internet in Kenya is slow.

You can see all my photos of my time in Kenya on my Flickr page here -http://bit.ly/1dpb3gd

Or on my Facebook page here - www.facebook.com/diaryofaprimatologist

References: www.colobusconservation.org

Disclaimer: "The views and opinions expressed in the Diary of a Primatologist blog are purely my own and are not in any way linked to any organisations I may represent or work with unless otherwise stated. All photos are my own unless otherwise stated and a source will be provided where other photos are used; if they are yours and you would like them taken down then please just ask. The author retains full copyright for all content and photos and written permission is required before their use. The owner of the site is not liable for any content accessed through links posted."