Elephant Voices

Category: 1. General News, 2. Field News Kenya, Elephant Photos | Date: Jan 16 2008 | By: admin

Our return to Norway and our office took quite some time. At Jomo Kenyatta International Airport on Sunday morning we were told that our flight had already left – Petter’s ticket showed a departure time that had obviously been changed. Our rather annoying option was to take KLM’s next flight that evening, which meant 14 hours of waiting at the airport. For the time being KLM does not consider it safe for their crews to stay overnight in Nairobi. As a consequence we had to fly to Amsterdam via Dar es Salaam, where we refueled and received a new crew. We arrived in Sandefjord 20 hours later than expected, but our joyful reunion with our Border Collie, Malita, erased the extra hours.

Our month long field trip was very productive. We both have high expectations and Joyce’s exuberance sometimes means that she plans for more than we can achieve without stress. With so many of the western and Tanzanian elephant families visiting the central part of the park, we were able to accomplish all of the playbacks we had planned for in good time. Even though the current unrest prevented us from completing the ATE’s new Elephant ID database, we are very pleased with its development. We expect that it will be ready for field testing in the next few weeks.

We continue to follow with deep concern and interest the political and humanitarian crisis in Kenya. A solution that provides the basis for a peaceful and prosperous future, rather than a quick fix, is vital for all. And even if such an agreement can be made, the trust and bonds between Kenyans as individuals and as communities must be rebuilt and strengthened. We are looking at a long process.

Photos above from top: 1. Our last days in Amboseli saw more and more dust devils. Rain is much needed – it was flooding at this time last year. 2. Amboseli National Park swamps are always a good alternative for thirsty elephants and other animals. 3. Meeting Echo is always a treat and we look forward to seeing her next time. Her 2005 calf, Esprit, is doing fine, but we predict she was Echo’s last.

The next few months promises to be busy. Analysis of our playbacks (audio and video), writing papers, making additions to our photo library, updating our visual and tactile signals database, educational outreach and selected elephant welfare challenges, will fill our days in the months to come. In addition there is always a flow of incoming e-mails and elephant related requests that we do our best to respond to.

Thank you again for being with us in Amboseli, and we hope that you will continue to visit our blog and ElephantVoices throughout the year!

Best wishes, Petter and Joyce

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