Amboseli Trust for Elephants

July - September 2023

30th September 2023 | Newsletter

Note from our Director

Dear Cynthia,

On August 22, H.E. the President of Kenya, William Ruto, issued a directive to the effect that the management of Amboseli National Park be transferred from the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) to the Kajiado County government.

Needless to say, this directive was a shock to us at ATE. We immediately began to confer with other conservationists and Maasai leaders. We know that this will be a huge loss for KWS but we also realize that the creation of the Park in 1974 was, as the Maasai say, an historical injustice. All revenue from the Park currently goes directly to the central treasury of Kenya, which in turn makes an allocation to KWS for its custodianship of Kenya’s wildlife. Amboseli is one of the most popular and lucrative parks in the country. The other areas held by the Maasai people—the Maasai Mara in the southwest and the Samburu Game Reserve in the north—were never turned into parks but instead are reserves run by the county governments who collect revenue and thus earn directly from tourism.

Any transition will not come easily or quickly. The “de-gazettement” of a national park has to be passed by Parliament, and include a 60 day public consultation. A structure for the management of the area has to be worked out, and a transition plan outlined, as well as a new role for KWS in the area. The government of Kajiado County is well aware that at this time they don’t have the capacity to manage a protected wildlife area. Partnerships will have to be formed.

Positively, Amboseli already has legally gazetted land-use plans that, with the enforcement of an active County leadership, should create a bright future for the landscape beyond the Park, on which the entire ecosystem depends. When President Ruto made the announcement he also directed the Kajiado government to increase the size of the current protected area. In a previous directive made in July the President halted all further land subdivision, change of land use, and construction in key wildlife areas in the country until conservation policies were developed, particularly to protect corridors and migratory routes for wildlife.

There are some good things being said, but there is also immense concern. We hope that the right decisions will be made for the Amboseli ecosystem, for its people, and for our beloved elephants.

Cynthia Moss

Director

Norah Njiraini - Winner of the Diane Skinner Award for Unsung Conservation Heroes

Diane Skinner, a dedicated conservationist, tragically died of cancer last year at the age of 41. In her memory an award has been created to recognize and celebrate the unsung heroes in our communities and to acknowledge exceptional individuals who have made a significant impact in their respective conservation fields. The first winner of this award is our very own Norah Njiraini. Of course, we at ATE have been singing Norah’s praises for decades, but now many more people are aware of this amazing woman’s accomplishments. We are very proud of her.

Norah joined the Amboseli Elephant Research Project in 1985 as an assistant to Joyce Poole who was studying the phenomenon of musth in male elephants. Norah was young and scared at first, but she soon fell in love with elephants and she has never lost her passion for them.

Norah with her award at the ceremony in Rwanda

Joyce moved on from AERP to join the newly formed Kenya Wildlife Service and Norah went with her. However, her time away did not last long because she missed the elephants so much. Norah came back to Amboseli and eventually became our Training Coordinator. In 1990 we started a training program for scientists and wildlife managers who were about to begin their own studies of elephants. Norah turned out to be an exceptional teacher and has inspired researchers from many countries in Africa.

Her ex-student Paula Kahumbu was one of the people who nominated Norah for the prize. She said, “Norah Njiraini, not only inspired my journey with elephants but has also paved the way for countless girls across Africa. During my short internship with Norah at the Amboseli Trust for Elephants, I was deeply moved by her dedication, passion, and knowledge about elephants.”

Joyce also nominated Norah for the prize. This is part of what she wrote: "In the first week that she began to work with me she told me that people were telling her she should quit because studying elephants was not a job for an African woman. I told her then that all that was required for her to succeed was love for elephants and dedication to her job...She cares deeply for the animals she studies and protects. Her dedication and love for elephants shine through for all to see and, I believe, these qualities have helped to keep the Amboseli elephants safe all these years. Norah is an inspiration, a role model and an unsung hero. She deserves to be recognised far and wide."

Norah carrying out research in Amboseli in 1994

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A Brief History of Amboseli

The small Amboseli National Park sits in the middle of the greater Amboseli ecosystem where rapid land-use changes are threatening the wildlife corridors and dispersal areas

The history of people and wildlife in the Amboseli area has always been complex. The area that today contains Amboseli National Park was part of something called the Southern Reserve, which was created in 1904 by the colonial government to contain the Maasai after they were forced to leave the highlands of Kenya. Eventually within that reserve a “game reserve” was created in 1948. (Essentially, game reserves are multi-use areas for both people and wild animals, while national parks are exclusively for wildlife.)

The Amboseli Game Reserve spanned an area of 1,260 square miles (3,260 sq. kms). In the 1950s tourism began to grow and there was some revenue sharing with the Maasai. In 1961 the Game Reserve was turned over to the Kajiado County Council and all revenue went to the Council. Unfortunately, the seat of Kajiado County was nearly 100 miles away and very little revenue came back to the reserve or to the local people.

There were growing concerns about the overuse of the central area of the Reserve and with pressure from conservationists the then President issued a decree in 1971 declaring that an area of Amboseli be set aside exclusively for wildlife. Amboseli National Park was established in October 1974 under the management of the Kenya National Parks. The new protected area was reduced to 150 square miles (392 sq. kms), only 12% of what the Reserve had been. Various promises were made to the Maasai, the most important was to provide water outside the Park, but the promises have only partially been met.

So now 52 years later another presidential decree has declared that Amboseli National Park should be returned to the County Council.

On September 25th, part of the ATE team made a presentation to the Director General of KWS, Dr Erustus Kanga. He was given a report on AERP's 50 years of achievements and a copy of our scientific book, The Amboseli Elephants: A Long-Term Study of a Long-Lived Mammal. In turn, Dr Kanga presented ATE with a framed Certificate of Conservation. We were very appreciative of this recognition by KWS and look forward to continuing our long history of partnership.

The whole ATE team (left to right): Tal Manor, Norah Njiraini, Sylvi Nyambura, Phyllis Lee, Cynthia Moss, Lydia Tiller, Keith Lindsay, Vicki Fishlock, and Katito Sayialel attended a three-day conference on wildlife research from 26-28 September organised by the Wildlife Research and Training Institute in Naivasha. Dr Keith Lindsay was part of the AERP team back in the late 70s and early 80s and was here to advise us on a number of issues. Our members gave four presentations which were very well received.

Thank You to Our Donors

We would like to thank the top donors who generously contributed to our work within the last three months:

Ranbir Bains

Diane Brady

Lisa Ching

Joseph & Marie Field Family Environmental Foundation

Jurate Kazickas

Maue Kay Foundation

Joscelyn Minton

Peace and Prosperity Lodge

Penelope Naylor

John and Margaret Schaake

Nick Wild

Ways to Support ATE

Join Elatia

Eliot (Echo's daughter) and her new calf, born in July, are members of the EB family, one of the six families you can follow through our Elatia program. When you join you will receive regular updates, which include photos and videos and news of what is going on in the family. To learn more about Elatia go to this link or contact us directly on: info@elephanttrust.org

Name an Elephant Calf

Kitty's calf, born January, 2022, will soon be needing a name. Kitty belongs to the KB2 family so her daughter will get a name beginning with 'K'. You can name her or another calf by joining our naming program. The name you give "your calf" forms a part of the Amboseli dataset for all time. For more information write to us at: info@elephanttrust.org

Give a Gift that Lasts Forever

Pascal is one of Amboseli's very impressive males. At 43 years old he's in his prime and we want to make sure he continues to pass on his good genes. Designate ATE as a beneficiary of your will, individual retirement account, or life insurance policy. To learn more about planned giving, contact Betsy Swart: eswart@elephanttrust.org

Tel: +1-508-783-8308

iGive

Pleiades and Piedad are cousins of Pascal. They belong to the PC2 family led by Petula. They and their calves are doing well now that the rains have come. One of the ways you can assure their future is to support ATE by making your online purchases through iGive. If you sign up the Amboseli Trust for Elephants as your recipient organization, we will get a small percentage of the sale. www.igive.com

Make a Donation

We use a secure online system on which you can make your donation with a credit or debit card. All donations exclusively support our not-for-profit organization.

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