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Published: April 16th 2008
Making Haste
Sheep herders hurrying back to their boma with their flock. Herding sheep into a driving rain is all but impossible as they will close their eyes and wander blindly - so it's best to get them back to the boma before the rain starts!After much anticipation and waiting, Mpala has finally been graced with the sweeping thunderstorms and driving deluges that signify the beginning of the long rains. It really is a pleasing sight to see dark clouds and distant squalls approaching after so many weeks of sun and heat. Must be the Pacific Northwester in me - I’ll always love rain. There is just something about it I’ll always find soothing and soul-refreshing. I think that most people reading this, particularly fellow Seattlites, will think I’m crazy, but: I’ve missed it. I’ve missed rain.
Kenya has missed it, too. The country has been dry and grey for several months; Kenyans have been praying for rain to refill dams and make the bush green, again. The amazing thing is, even though it’s only been four days since the first drops were consumed by the parched and thirsty earth, the bush is already undergoing a visibly impressive transformation: what once was grey and brown, is turning green and lush. Trees that look dead in the morning are well on their way to a complete rebirth by that very same evening. It really is extraordinary; like time-elapsed footage from Planet Earth, witnessed in real-time.
Also remarkable is the intensity with which the rains pummel the earth. The tremendous amount of water saturating the bush, especially in the amount of time it does, is something to behold. Luggahs (dry riverbeds) yield flashfloods, the depths of which sometimes reach several feet at peak flow, only to recede to a trickle in a matter of hours as the water is quickly soaked up by the roots of surrounding trees and the dry earth. Rivers swell so much that their waters threaten to overtake their banks. Dams, in contrast to the luggahs, hold these substantial inputs of water long after the rain stops. A completely dry dam can be filled to the dike’s brim in a few short hours, and will retain that water for several weeks, even months. When this is taken into consideration, I suppose it’s not too surprising that the bush makes the rapid transformation it does - the flora wants none of this precious water to go to waste, and drinks it up as voraciously as possible.
The animals of the bush, too, are eager to take advantage of this momentous occasion. Ungulates that have been hiding amongst the few scattered and sparse
Herders on the Lookout
Sheep herders watch their flock from atop Soit Ny'iro, a large rock in the middle of the bush. oases of green for the past several months are spilling out of the bush into the vast green lawns now carpeting the once-bare ground. Perhaps most impressive is the explosion in the abundance of insects - flying ants and termites, in particular, are a welcome arrival to the countless insectivores of the bush. The first night it rained, for instance, termite wings littered the ground beneath any light source as dozens of geckos, slow from the cool air and a belly full of termites, fill themselves on an insect buffet. Though I have yet to witness it, apparently when these termite hatches occur deeper in the bush, a variety of animals will come to gorge themselves, oblivious to their surroundings in an awesome feeding frenzy.
For me, the rains signify the start of several long, laborious weeks of field work. Superb Starlings begin breeding as soon as they feel the first wet drop of rain on their feathery heads, meaning we not only have to begin observing and documenting all nesting and breeding activity on each of the nine study sites every day, but I have to start the second phase of the Brain Hormone Project. Then, when that’s
White-tailed Mongoose
Occasionally, when we have meat for dinner, I'll leave scraps in a Have-a-hart trap (thanks, Jake!) outside my banda to see what shows up. This White-tailed Mongoose was not too pleased to be a victim and growled and barked something ferocious at me when I tried to let it go. done in 3-4 weeks, I begin my telemetry project. Meanwhile, we have to find and set up a couple dozen nestboxes and beehives (to be used as nestboxes) for Greater Blue-eared Glossy Starlings. How does this all get done? I’m not sure, yet. At least, not sure how it gets done and I maintain my sanity. We’ll find out during the next several weeks!
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Shannon
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craziawsumnus
Those are some great pics! Dare I even say some craziawsumness pics!