Tuesday, May 6th, 2014 Today marks almost a week since we have arrived in Kenya. The morning began with breakfast prepared by Agnes and the wonderful Rivercamp staff. We then headed out in the land rovers to complete another day of research. Today’s research focus was to determine if the four ant species that reside … Keep reading »
Kenya Field Course blog
Fieldwork and wildlife sitings
Monday May 5th, 2014 I still can’t get over the amazing sites of yesterday. We went to the hippo pool and we saw a bunch of hippos!! We got to see so many baby vervet monkeys! They are the cutest thing ever! It is just pretty awesome to see them playing. I don’t know how … Keep reading »
Sunday relaxation
Sunday May 4, 2014 Today was a day of much needed rest and relaxation after our long day of burning yesterday. We woke up to a lovely late breakfast (7:30, woohoo!) and spent the morning doing homework, reading, and enjoying the savanna singing it’s beautiful songs to us. To contrast our experience at the rustic … Keep reading »
Burning!
May 3rd, 2014 This was our third day in Laikipia county at Mpala ranch, and the beauty, significance, and novelty of this place is no less awesome than when we arrived. The wonder of Laikipia is compounded by the fact that humans first evolved in savannah ecosystems like this one over 100,000 years ago. About … Keep reading »
Arrival at the River Camp
May 1-2, 2014 On Thursday morning we made the 4 hr trek from Nairobi to the Laikipia region of Kenya, which is in the western rainshadow of Mt. Kenya. We enjoyed lunch at the River Camp which will be our home for the next 12 days (later we’ll move to the dorms at Mpala Research … Keep reading »
Students all arrived safely!
All 14 Goshen College students of the 2014 Kenya Conservation and Research Methods in Savannas class arrived safely last night. After three trips to the airport, the last at 2:00 a.m., the students enjoyed a short night of sleep at the Mennonite Guest House in Nairobi. Today’s plan is to rest, recuperate, and orient ourselves … Keep reading »
Kenya Conservation & Research Class – 2014
The 2014 Conservation & Research Methods in Savannas class blog is about to launch. We just need the students! The students are eagerly finishing up the semester in Goshen and will fly to Kenya on Tuesday April 29th. After spending 2 nights in Nairobi, we’ll make the 4 hour drive to Mpala Research Centre, our … Keep reading »
Final Farewells
I write this final blog from Nairobi at the Mennonite Guest House. On Wednesday, we came to town (4-5 hour drive) to return Beryl, Dedan, Erick, and Hannah to their homes in addition to bringing Leah and Mandy to the Guest House. It is hard to believe the course is over, but we’ve many memories … Keep reading »
Segera Visit and Weekend Renewal
On Friday we visited Segera Ranch, a ranch that borders Mpala ranch where we are staying. Segera works closely with its community members on its borders and we heard a presentation by Njenga, the coordinator of the Zeitz Foundation’s outreach programs. More information can be found here. Students were impressed with the various projects underway: … Keep reading »
Data analysis, wild dogs, and Jessel Ranch visit
This morning we all worked on organizing and analyzing the data that we gathered during our field visits earlier in the course. However, later in the morning, Ryan suddenly came around and whispered urgently for all of us to leave what we were doing and quickly come load up in the van and Land Rover. … Keep reading »