Thirsty Lions
on Nov 1, 2009Some of you may already know this, but most of Kenya is in a severe drought. This is affecting crops, livestock, and wildlife within and outside of the parks. Driving back from Nairobi the other day, I couldn’t help but notice how dusty and dry it...

Camp's newest visitors
on Sep 27, 2009Our latest invasion is by a family of banded mongooses (no, the plural is not "mongeese"). Banded mongooses are small social carnivores that inhabits the Mara. To give you a reference point, they look and act a lot like meerkats—lots of vigilant be...

So far, so good...
on Sep 3, 2009...

Potter Park Zoo lecture
on Aug 25, 2009To those in the East Lansing area:A Maasai safari guide will be giving a guest lecture on Kenyan wildlife next month at Potter Park Zoo. You can find out more information here.

Cub cuteness
on Aug 23, 2009Okay, you've earned it. Here's a completely frivolous post that has nothing to do with the harsh realities of natural selection. Enjoy our latest crop of kiddos.

The shallow end of the gene pool
on Aug 17, 2009As we all know, we are not all equally blessed when it comes to genetic perfection, and our hyenas are no exception. Here are two particular gems:Having had braces for five years, I can relate to poor Snaggletooth, who's looked like this since she wa...

Nancy Drew's lost file: crimebusting, Maasai-style
on Aug 14, 2009There are three things you should know before reading this post:1. This is easily one of my all-time favorite stories from living in the Mara. Right up there with the cobra slithering across my foot.2. Because of #1, I am unwilling to compromise on t...

Mara Hazard #712: Loss of phone whilst peeing
on Aug 11, 2009One lovely part of working out here is that we never have to “hold it”—since there are no official bathrooms, everywhere is our bathroom. When we have to pee, we just stop the car, hop out, look around for peeping-tom tourists and hungry-lookin...

Displacement Behavior
on Aug 1, 2009 in courtship mating In her recent post, Kay described how conflicted males feel when courting females and how they do what we call "approach-avoid" ("I want you...but I'm scared of you...but you're cute....but also dangerous..."). I once watched a male hyena approach-av...

NSS Episode Three: Moving Day
on Jul 31, 2009 in mongoose den North In a land where Elf (the dominant female) is queen, and clashes with lions are the norm, we bring you a clan. Located between the beautiful Oz Valley and the famous Mara River, this is where the drama unfolds. Known to many as “fisi,” we just cal...