GVI Kenya

Category: Kisite Mpunguti MPA, Turtles, mpunguti island | Date: Oct 21 2009 | By: gvikenya

Around 2000 years ago, trade in sea turtle products was observed in the Red Sea and East Africa region and although trade in ambergris and ivory occurred, tortoise and turtle shell was the most commonly mentioned product.  (Jack Frazier, Proceedings of the Western Indian Ocean Marine Turtle Conservation Workshop, Mombasa, 2005). All five species of Indian Ocean sea turtles are considered to be endangered and can be found in Kenya. Green turtles (Chelonia mydas) are reported to nest throughout the coastline but although there are some green turtle nests confirmed in the nearby area of Funzi Island, sea turtles haven’t laid their eggs in the KMMPA (Kisite-Mpunguti Marine Protected Area) for at least seven years.

So it was with great joy that last week GVI Kenya heard the good news about a green turtle visiting the white sandy beach located in the Lower Mpunguti Island. Lily, from Coral Spirit Restaurant, located in Wasini village, shared with us the pictures she took while she was visiting the island.

Green turtle arriving in Lower Mpunguti Island in September 2009 (photo by Lili Angel).
This is an amazing happening in this Marine Protected Area, and will hopefully contribute to the conservation efforts GVI and its major local partner KWS (Kenya Wildlife Service) are putting in place in the area. The islands of Mpunguti are known to support an important population of coconut crabs, nesting sites to African fish eagles, and its surrounding waters are frequently visited by Bottlenose and Humpback dolphins, as well as Hawksbill and Green turtles that feed on sea grass and algae. Both local fishermen and KWS rangers still recall the days when the turtles came to lay eggs on the Lower Mpunguti Island, the only sandy beach available for setting up the nest.  It has been almost seven or eight years since the last turtle arrived on the Lower Mpunguti Island.

 Female Green Turtle preparing the nesting site, throwing sand with her flippers (photo by Lili Angel).

Green turtle leaving the beach, returning to the sea (photo by Lili Angel). 
Green turtles typically live about 45 to 59 years. Given that a female nests in six or seven of those years and lays about 330 eggs each nesting season, she will produce 1900-2300 eggs in her lifetime. Factoring in natural predation, fungus infection of nests, and other embryo failure rates, one can expect each healthy female to produce 1000-1900 hatchlings (Spotila, James R. Sea Turtles, 2004). This information emphasises the importance of a single nest in this region. Although this turtle did not lay its eggs, she might go back to the nesting place or other turtles might look for this place as an option to nest. The next crucial step in this process is to take management actions in order to protect the nesting area and recognize it as a non-disturbance place.

Nesting site attempt (photo by Lili Angel)
The historic decline of green turtles is one of the most cited and best documented conservation issues. Its population has declined 50-70% since the 1900’s and they are recognized internationally as endangered by the World Conservation Union (IUCN) and are protected in the Appendix I of the Conventional on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) and in Appendix I and II of the Convention Migratory Species (CMS).

The Kenya Sea Turtle Conservation Committee (KESCOM) was established to complement government commitment to addressing global concerns for marine turtle population decline. GVI works closely with KESCOM in sea turtle conservation efforts, through research, education and capacity building activities such as training in biology and ecology of sea turtles. The data and the pictures collected in our study area (KMMPA) are shared with this organization in order to recognize and protect important foraging, mating and nesting areas for sea turtles. The ultimate goal is to restore green turtles to population levels at which they can fulfil the ecological roles they performed in the past.

 Ines Gomez

Tags: , African Fish Eagle, algae, ambergris, biology, bottlenose dolphin, capacity building, coconut crab, conservation issues, Convention Migratory Species, Conventional on International Trade in Endangered Speci, Coral Spirit Restaurant, East Africa, ecology, education, embryo failure rates, endangered, fishermen, fungus infection, Funzi Island, global conscerns, hawksbill turtle, humpback dolphin, indian ocean, ivory, Kenya, Kenya Sea Turtle Conservation Committee, Kenya Wildlife Service, kisite mpunguti marine protected area, KWS rangers, Lower Mpunguti Island, management actions, natural predation, Red Sea, research, sea grass, sea turtles, tortoise shell, turtle shell, Wasini Village, World Conservation Union

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Category: African Fish Eagle, Birds, Cetacean research, Community Conservation, Dolphins, Mangroves, bottlenose dolphins | Date: Aug 03 2009 | By: gvikenya

As part of GVI’s marine research programme here in Mkwiro, we conduct interviews with the local fishermen on the island.  The people here have been fishing for generations, and spend more time out on the water than anyone.  They can provide invaluable information about sightings (of dolphins, whales, turtles, dugongs etc), catches, pollution and illegal activities. A GVI volunteer Hooi Ling, tells us about her day conducting interviews.

The villagers on the island are Muslim so we made sure we had our head, shoulders and knees covered before we set off for our excursion. As usual, the children greeted us with loud, enthusiastic “Jambo! What is your name?” as we walked through Mkwiro village. Some of the faces were familiar because we were working with the community last week teaching them English and Creative Arts, and playing sports and singing songs with the children. A few of the children had learnt Mandarin phrases and it warmed my heart to hear them greet me with “Ni hao” (how are you) and “Huan yin” ( welcome).

 A sacred ibis, seen from the mangroves

After about 15 minutes, we reached the mangroves. Felicity explained the importance of mangroves for preventing soil erosion and creating a breeding and feeding ground for fishes and birds. We learnt how mangrove trees survive in salt water by growing roots, which protrude above ground for oxygen and shed leaves to discard excess salt. The trees also grow long, green seed pods which float around at high tide before setting itself in the ground at low tide. She pointed out tiny gastropods (snails and sea slugs).

Fiddler crabs fascinated me!!! The male crabs have one very enlarged chela which they use to wave in a circle to establish territory and to attract females. When lots of fiddler crabs waved together, they looked like they were doing a Mexican wave; quite comical to watch.  And the number of amazing birds you see from the mangroves is just incredible!  We saw herons, african fish eagles, a sacred ibis and a knigfisher! 

When we arrived in Wasini village, we looked for the local fishermen and found a few young men who could speak English and were willing to translate Kiswahili for us. I interviewed a 55 year old fisherman who had been fishing for over 20 years. GVI had a comprehensive interview to find out from local fishermen such things as the types of fish they had caught, fishing equipment, whether their catch had increased/decreased over the years and which fishing grounds they used. We also asked them about the dolphin and turtle population and the level of damage caused to their nets. After the interview, fishermen informed us that the local villagers had set up a committee since 2003 to protect the Wasini reef from fishing and coastal pollution.

Another beautiful sight - a western reef heron 

Annica and I ate some local food (chapatis with a nice cup of hot ginger tea) while the others (Flick, Kirsty and Mila) visited the coral gardens. The coral gardens consisted of dead corals surrounded by mangrove trees and the local women’s group has built boardwalks around the corals. My highlight of the day was when I saw four bottlenose dolphins jumping and travelling with the tourist dhows.

Although I was not out on a boat today, it has been an enjoyable day learning about the mangroves and seeing the dolphins. Asante sana Flick!

Tags: bottlenose dolphin, Dugong, fisherman, humpback whale, interviews, Mangroves, marine research, sacred ibis, turtle, western reef heron

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Category: Cetacean research, Dolphins, Kisite Mpunguti MPA | Date: May 12 2009 | By: gvikenya

Between nauseous stomachs, blazing sun and turbulent waters, Shafii spots our first and only sighting of the day. With the boat bobbing up and down like a yo-yo and Kate calling out “dolphin, dolphin!” everyone rushed to one side of the boat to catch their look at the sighting. The unique nicks on the dorsal fin gave the game up straight away, it was the infamous Chizi, a familiar bottlenose dolphin for our research team, swimming along on a lazy Monday morning in its world under the sea.

‘Chizi’, a bottlenose dolphin is a very distinctive individual with the pattern of nicks on the trailing edge of its dorsal fin

One other tourist dhow full of extended lenses and safari hats nearly capsized their boat trying to photograph the lonesome Chizi. We spotted Chizi just off the east side of Kisite Island travelling along by itself, which was unusual as this individual he is not normally seen solo! The sighting lasted approx 10 minutes and in that time Chizi was not in a playful mood, no peduncle dives or cheeky tail flips in sight. Chizi means ‘crazy’ in Swahili however the dolphin was not living up to its name on this particular sighting.

After Andy captured some good photos and Chizi had been down for a while we decided to end the sighting and return to the rolling waters and samosa time! This has been GVI’s second sighting of Chizi this expedition.

Tags: bottlenose dolphin, dolphin behaviour, dolphin research, kisite mpunguti marine protected area

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Category: Cetacean research, Dolphins, Kisite Mpunguti MPA, Turtles | Date: May 04 2009 | By: gvikenya

Megan is working with GVI over the next few months and describes her experiences on our marine research project so far: 

Growing up in the central California desert, I developed a fascination for water. I followed my affinity to Washington State, where low clouds, mist and the Puget Sound shaped my existence for five years. I have come to know water in many ways. After only one week in Kenya, the unique anthropological and environmental culture of water begins to reveal itself. We experience it in late afternoon salt-water runs, thick humidity, dynamic rain storms, and most notably, the Indian Ocean.

Each day brings hard work, but also terrific amounts of beauty. Typically, we spend eight hours on the water in our research boat a traditional wooden dhow. The day is long and hot. Aided by Shafii the captain, we carry out turtle transects and dolphin surveys. We have spotted rays, reef sharks, hawksbill and green turtles, barracuda, and bottlenose and humpback dolphins. Often, the dhow startles schools of small, flying fish, which travel out ahead of the boat. One of our most interesting sightings this week involved a mother bottlenose dolphin and her calf. Using a dead parrot fish, the mother appeared to teach her calf to feed. The mother would approach, take the fish in her mouth, and then release it. The calf then tried. Significant amounts of time on the water allow us to witness many different dolphin behaviours.

Last night, the rains came. After a week in the hot sun and salty showers, we welcomed the fresh water. I look forward to more time in our small corner of the Kenyan coast. With little electricity, a vast range of native species, our proximity to the friendly Mkwiro villagers, and vast amounts of water on our doorstep, working with GVI provides you with a unique opportunity to push yourself physically, mentally and emotionally.

Tags: bottlenose dolphin, dolphin behaviour, dolphin research, indian ocean, mkwiro, turtle research

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Category: Cetacean research, Dolphins, Kisite Mpunguti MPA, Turtles | Date: May 01 2009 | By: gvikenya

Keziah gives us the news from yesterday’s marine research:

I woke up 6am in Shimoni, waiting to find out when the boat would come to pick me up at the jetty. With the rainy season, start times of marine surveys become a wee bit unpredictable - with one eye on the rain clouds you just have to wait for the opportunity! However, the sun was shining, there was no sign of rain and a phone call later I was jogging through Shimoni village to the boat.

We headed out towards Funzi Bay, across Nyuli Reef and to Upper Mpunguti Island when we had our first sighting of dolphins, something that has also become less predictable with the season. At first we thought there were eleven Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins, but soon realised this was an underestimation. Ten on the port side, ten on the starboard side, we didn’t know quite where to look, excitedly swapping sides with a chorus of gasps and squeals from our team, and splashes and blows from the dolphins.

Several individuals were identified immediately, including one of my favourite pairs; Besty and her calf. I had the pleasure to be on the boat when we spotted Besty and her newborn calf for the first time, adorably small with the foetal folds still showing! Others including Twende and the yet to be named individual ‘063’ were also identified.

The group were at first travelling fast in a southerly direction, then their pace slowed, with a couple of individuals approaching the boat to bow ride. This enabled us to get good shots of the dorsal fins, which will be used for photo-identification in our mark-recapture study. Unfortunately we also noticed an adult and juvenile that appeared skinny compared to the rest, with their ribs visible. We hope this wasn’t a sign of illness in the population or lack of food in the area… After taking enough photos we left them to continue south to the open sea.

The dolphins had done us a service, leading us to the start of the snorkel transect our survey leader had selected for the day, by Kisite Island… and it turned out to be the perfect day to pick this transect! As we climbed out of the water to board the boat post-survey, everyone’s face was an absolute picture: 3 hawksbill turtles, 5 green turtles and 1 moray eel! Ruth and I even had the pleasure of watching one of the green turtles swim slowly to the surface, stop for a few seconds and then continue to raise its head out the water, beak open for a gasp of air. This was closely followed by us both surfacing and giggling hysterically with joy having witnessed a behaviour in full that we had only seen before from above the surface as a turtle’s head appear and disappear in a second!

With the weather being on our side, we decided to return towards Funzi Bay again, but the sea was just a little too rough, so we diverted in to Wasini channel. Within 5 minutes of turning the boat around there was a shout from Katalin at the front, “DOLPHIN”, followed quickly by “HUMPBACK DOLPHIN!”. We had to wait 10 minutes for the individual to reappear, a very large Indo-Pacific humpback dolphin that seemed curiously darker than usual. We put this down to the glare of the sun, and waited for what we thought was a lone individual to resurface.  Then two individuals surfaced riding a wave, both smaller than the first. Several more minutes of waiting and we were shocked to see not only the three individuals from before, but another two adults and calf!

We continued to watch them for 20 minutes as they were feeding, coming up for several breaths before peduncle dives took them under for several minutes.  After surfacing for the third time, in unison, they formed a compact group, changed direction and headed south, crossing the channel towards Wasini Island. We were able to compare the colouration of the first individual and yes, he was distinctly darker, not something we had seen before. The mother of the calf had a deep scar around her neck, possibly from a fishing line. Only 2 weeks ago an individual was spotted with a huge chunk out the back of his dorsal fin, the shape suggestive of a boat propeller injury. Both these wounds emphasize the humpback dolphin’s vulnerability to fishing activities, boat traffic and marine debris around coast lines. But fortunately also an ability to recover from significant injury.

All in all it was quite an epic day for our research team and for me one of complete brilliance!

Tags: bottlenose dolphin, Cetacean research, dolphin research, funzi bay, green turtle, hawksbill turtle, humpback dolphin, Kisite Mpunguti MPA, turtle research, wasini channel

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Category: Cetacean research, Dolphins, Kenya Wildlife Service, Kisite Mpunguti MPA, Turtles | Date: Apr 27 2009 | By: gvikenya

Jon “JR” Olson is a U.S Naval Attache based in Helsinki.  He has come to the south coast of kenya for two weeks to join GVI in its marine research project in the Kisite-Mpunguti Marine Protected Area.  He has kindly written this blog about his first day as part of the research team.

The 0530 alarm went off next to my head and, at first, I forgot where I was.  Then, the heat and humidity of the early Kenyan coastal morning kicked in as I peeled off the sheet from my sweating body.  While some would be put off by this rather uncomfortable fact, I, personally, felt exhilarated as this was to be my first official day working as a member of the dolphin research project in the Kisite Mpunguti Marine Protected Area.

By 0600 I was showered, had organized by personal snorkel gear, camera, sunscreen, some additional clothes, etc, and was in the kitchen eating a quick breakfast.  I was the new guy and had to prove to the GVI veterans I could contribute to this project.  Contribution started with me helping to fix breakfast, cleaning up the kitchen area afterwards, packing the equipment for the day, etc.  By 0630 our group of nine people was hauling the gear down to the water and loading up SQUIRREL, our shuttle boat.  A few minutes later we were motoring our way across the Wasini Channel bound for Shimoni Village and our moored research boat known as BARDAN.  After transferring our gear to BARDAN, we got underway on our search for dolphins and other marine life.

Within minutes of starting out, we spotted our first pod of bottlenose dolphins, right in the middle of the Wasini Channel.  We spent 45 minutes following a pod of seven dolphins as they transited west down the channel.  We took dozens of photographs, logged the entire event, and ended the sighting around 0745.  BARDAN then turned east and we headed out into deeper water destined for Kisite Island by way of Funzi Bay.  We motored slowly under cloudy skies, which, on this particular morning, considering my still pasty white flesh, was OK with me.  The conditions were absolutely perfect for searching the seas for pods of dolphin and other marine species.  And, as luck would have it, while transiting south from Funzi Bay, we spooked a large surfacing turtle which promptly inhaled deeply and rapidly dove back into the deep.

Photograph showing a bottlenose dolphin feeding on a turtle

Some two hours after we departed Shimoni, we arrived in the channel area of the Kisite Mpunguti islands.   It was not long before we spotted a small group of tourist dive boats and we set course for those boats as it was likely they would be accompanied by some type of marine life.  Once again, we were lucky and as we arrived in the vicinity of the tourist boats, we spotted a number of pairs of bottlenose dolphins, all of them engaged in socializing behaviors, and possibly some feeding.  We tracked these pairs of dolphins using cameras, the event and sighting logs, and maintained contact for approximately 30 minutes.  The dolphins then disappeared and we began making our way toward our snorkeling destination near Kisite Island where we would snorkel a defined path, known as a transect, in search of more turtles.
Once in the water, which, to me, feels like bath water because it is so warm, we started our transect and were not disappointed after sighting three turtles, two of which we were able to specifically classify as Green Turtles. 

A bottlenose dolphin with scars that are believed to be the result of a shark attack

Once back in the boat at the end of our snorkel phase, we logged the information on the turtles in the Mega Fauna log and then proceeded back to the northeast, heading back to base for lunch and afternoon of data entry into the computers and some time spent correlating dolphin photos with individual dolphins.  It was amazing to me to see the truly distinctive dorsal fin marks on each of the local, or resident, bottlenose dolphins listed in the photographic data base.  After expert tutelage by GVI intern Karen, I was able to quickly identify a number of dolphins in the data base with photos taken by other research teams, providing much needed data for GVI to inform the Kenya Wildlife Service about key aspects of dolphin behavior.  This information will allow KWS to develop better policies for protecting the Marine Protected Area, which will, in turn, protect the bottlenose dolphins habitat.

As I finish this blog, I realize it is almost 10PM and I have to get up again shortly after 0500 tomorrow morning.  I get to do it all over again!  I can’t wait!

Tags: bottlenose dolphin, Cetacean research, funzi, green turtle, kisite mpunguti marine protected area, marine protected areas, mkwiro, shimoni, turtle

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Category: Cetacean research, Dolphins, Kisite Mpunguti MPA | Date: Apr 27 2009 | By: gvikenya

Neil joined us as a volunteer here in Kenya and below gives us his thoughts on the experience:

Having travelled for three days – including a wonderful overnight stay at the Reef Hotel in Nyali, Mombasa – it was good to arrive at Shimoni, cross to Mkwiro, and start the settling in process. Meeting lots of people for the first time, getting to grips with living very simply in a constantly changing community, and starting a steep learning curve for the activities of the next five weeks is no easy matter! It is however, interesting, exciting and challenging.

This is certainly not a holiday; long working days in intense heat – and I haven’t got into the forest yet – are hard work. So, too, is the fact that the base is on an island with no mains power or running water. Everything has to get to this island and the last part of its journey is usually a matter of carrying it from the boat by the staff and volunteers: at high tide, that means up the steps from the sea and at low tide, there’s an additional journey along the beach before reaching the steps!

All this effort is to enable GVI to work with and serve its partner organisations here in Kenya, principally Kenya Wildlife Service and, of course, the wider community, both in Kenya and throughout the world. Conservation and living in more sustainable ways is not just a concern for local populations but for us all. This wider perspective is very important. This last week, I’ve been on the boat for three days: on the first two, we saw spinner, bottlenose, and humpback dolphins and it was very exciting and rewarding; on the third, we saw just one humpback dolphin and spent hours hoping for more that didn’t appear. But that’s one of the differences between being a tourist and contributing to scientific research; the experience of my third day may be telling just as important a part of the story of dolphins here in Kenya, as the one of my first two.

Tags: bottlenose dolphin, conservation, dolphin research, humpback dolphin, Kenya Wildlife Service, mkwiro, spinner dolphin

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Category: Cetacean research, Dolphins, Kenya Wildlife Service, Kisite Mpunguti MPA, Turtles | Date: Mar 16 2009 | By: gvikenya

Jon “JR” Olson is a U.S Naval Attache based in Helsinki.  He has joined GVIs marine research proramme on the south coast of kenya for 2 weeks.  He has kindly writtten this blog about his first day out on the water.

I woke up feeling exhilarated as this was to be my first official day working as a member of the dolphin research project in the Kisite/Mpunguti Marine Protected Area.

By 0600 I was showered, had organized by personal snorkel gear, camera, sunscreen, some additional clothes, etc, and was in the kitchen eating a quick breakfast.  By 0630 our group of nine people was hauling the gear down to the water and loading up SQUIRREL, our shuttle boat.  A few minutes later we were motoring our way across the Wasini Channel bound for Shimoni Village and our moored research boat known as BARDAN.  After transferring our gear to BARDAN, we got underway on our search for dolphins and other marine life.

Within minutes of starting out, we spotted our first pod of bottlenose dolphins, right in the middle of the Wasini Channel.  We spent 45 minutes following a pod of seven dolphins as they transited west down the channel.  We took dozens of photographs, logged the entire event, and ended the sighting around 0745.  BARDAN then turned east and we headed out into deeper water destined for Kisite Island by way of Funzi Bay.  We motored slowly under cloudy skies, which, on this particular morning, considering my still pasty white flesh, was OK with me. 

Bottlenose dolphin feeding on a turtle

The conditions were absolutely perfect for searching the seas for pods of dolphin and other marine species.  And, as luck would have it, while transiting south from Funzi Bay, we spooked a large surfacing turtle which promptly inhaled deeply and rapidly dove back into the deep.

Some two hours after we departed Shimoni, we arrived in the channel area of the Kisite Mpunguti islands.   It was not long before we spotted a small group of tourist dive boats and we set course for those boats as it was likely they would be accompanied by some type of marine life.  Once again, we were lucky and as we arrived in the vicinity of the tourist boats, we spotted a number of pairs of bottlenose dolphins, all of them engaged in socializing behaviors, and possibly some feeding.  We tracked these pairs of dolphins using cameras, the event and sighting logs, and maintained contact for approximately 30 minutes.  The dolphins then disappeared and we began making our way toward our snorkeling destination near Kisite Island where we would snorkel a defined path, known as a transect, in search of more turtles.

A bottlenose dolphin with severe scarring.  Thought to be the result of a shark attack

Once in the water, which, to me, feels like bath water because it is so warm, we started our transect and were not disappointed after sighting three turtles, two of which we were able to specifically classify as Green Turtles.  Once back in the boat at the end of our snorkel phase, we logged the information on the turtles in the Mega Fauna log and then proceeded back to the northeast, heading back to base for lunch and afternoon of data entry into the computers and some time spent correlating dolphin photos with individual dolphins. 

 It was amazing to me to see the truly distinctive dorsal fin marks on each of the local, or resident, bottlenose dolphins listed in the photographic data base.  After expert tutelage by GVI intern Karen, I was able to quickly identify a number of dolphins in the data base with photos taken by other research teams, providing much needed data for GVI to inform the Kenya Wildlife Service about key aspects of dolphin behavior.  This information will allow KWS to develop better policies for protecting the Marine Protected Area, which will, in turn, protect the bottlenose dolphins habitat.

As I finish this blog, I realize it is almost 10PM and I have to get up again shortly after 0500 tomorrow morning.  I get to do it all over again!  I can’t wait!

Tags: , bottlenose dolphin, green turtle, marine research, shark

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Category: Cetacean research, Dolphins, Turtles | Date: Feb 25 2009 | By: gvikenya

Ross Hellings has recently joined us as a volunteer to assist in our research and community work, and gives us his first impressions of life with GVI Kenya:

I arrived on base in Mkwiro on Saturday afternoon after an adventurous trip from Mombasa, and from that point on it’s been a hard, fast and fun learning experience…

Day 1: camp training with exciting items like fire extinguisher training, oxygen tank checking, radio training, safety lectures and practice scenarios, and the list goes on!

Day 2: the real fun began… we started the day with lectures and tutorials regarding the on-going marine research, and then into identification of different marine mammals and turtles, and methodology of the research.  A swim test was also thrown in for good measure before lunch, under threat of otherwise needing to wear highly fashionable fluorescent orange life vests for 2 weeks.

Day 3: our first day on the water, and what a day!  Early on we found Bottlenose dolphins, and then the highlight, a pod of almost 100 spinner dolphins!  These fantastic mammals stayed with us for around 30 minutes, playing, socializing, jumping, surfing the waves, and bow riding!  It was an amazing experience to watch.  We ended the day with an ‘exam’ to test our identification skills as well as our knowledge of the methodology and practice of the research.

Day 4: again early on in the day we had our first encounter, this time humpback dolphins, followed shortly by bottlenose dolphins!

I could continue, but there is too much to say… My first week has been amazing, seeing the major species we would expect to see in the region, as well as spotting a few elusive turtles!  I can definitely say doing marine research is much much more fun than a normal working day;  I have a new saying, a bad day on the ocean is better than a good day in the office!

May the adventure continue!

Ross

Tags: bottlenose dolphin, dolphin research, humpback dolphin, spinner dolphin, turtle

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Category: Cetacean research, Dolphins, Kisite Mpunguti MPA, Uncategorized, bush baby | Date: Jan 30 2009 | By: gvikenya

So the last blog was all about going out in search of the wildlife… today’s is more about the wildlife coming to us. I mentioned before that we had discovered the night time raiders of our bananas; a pair of short-eared bush babies (or short eared galagos as they should be referred to).

Provisionally named ‘Bushy’ and ‘Fishy’ - I know it doesn’t seem overly original but we’re not being quite as obvious as it seems… they’re named in honour of Ekens, our former national scholarship programme student from Kenya Wildlife Service Training Institute, and then intern, who has been battling to recovery from an accident four months ago. He loves the bush… and fish! We know he’ll be as excited as we are to have the forest wildlife sharing our office and home…

Tags: bottlenose dolphin, bush baby, code of conduct, dolphin calf, dolphin tourism, galago, kisite mpunguti marine protected area

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