Three years ago, Mara Elephant Project launched Crops for Coexistence, a bold initiative aimed at reducing human-elephant conflict by replacing vulnerable food crops with predator resistant and market-ready alternatives. Now in the second phase, MEP is working with 120 local farmers to put our findings into practice. In the second quarter, 15 women were provided 10,000 rosemary seedlings grown on the MEP farm and they are planting them in the Transmara, an area severely affected by crop raids from elephants and hippos. The coexistence team has also secured a market for the rosemary by formalizing a partnership with Kutoka Ardhini. Through these partnerships, MEP has secured a guaranteed market to ensure a reliable income source for the farmer’s participating.
In the second quarter, they expanded on the program with the first module of the entrepreneur classes MEP is hosting. During these classes, the participating farmers acquired foundational entrepreneurial knowledge, and the MEP team is excited to progress through the remaining four classes. The two farmer groups who previously planted rosemary have commenced the crucial weeding process, ensuring the healthy growth of their crops.
Identifying and documenting new individual elephants for inclusion in MEP’s ElephantBook software has been a key focus for the long-term monitoring team in the second quarter. They added six newly identified elephants in Q2, all of which were bulls belonging to collared elephant Fitz’s herd.
They took a keen interest in the movement patterns of collared elephant Fitz. If you recall, in March, for the first time since the Kenya Wildlife Service, Wildlife Research and Training Institute, and MEP began tracking him in 2019, Fitz left the Nyekweri Forest, moved down the escarpment, and stopped along the border of the Maasai Mara National Reserve. He then returned to the forest the same day. In the second quarter, Fitz and 40 individuals from his herd moved from the forest down to Mara North Conservancy and stopped right along the Mara River. MEP deployed our team to monitor this rare move, and thanks to his tracking collar, supported by the Angama Foundation, they were able to document Fitz and his herd. Though this second trip out of the Nyekweri Forest was also short-lived, his abnormal movements lead MEP researchers to believe these elephants are leaving the forest due to increased human activity. MEP and our partners continue to monitor his movements to support his protection.
The long-term monitoring team also monitored collard elephant Kevin in the second quarter, who had a newly broken left tusk. Additionally, after 2 days of tracking collared elephant Fred, the MEP research team traced him to Mara North Conservancy at one of his favorite marshy spots, grazing. After a few minutes of drone monitoring and observation, Fred was seen in the company of a new sub-adult elephant bull. The two elephants were in good health.
In early June, the MEP outreach team visited Emboo River Camp and Encounter Mara to raise awareness about their work. In addition to their presentations, guests were taken on a field experience where they observed their monitoring techniques, learned about individual elephant identification, and gained insights into MEP’s work to promote coexistence. The MEP education team celebrated World Environmental Day at Oloonkolin Primary School, together with Women in the Wild and Enoonkishu Conservancy. Sixty students helped the team build and plant a new kitchen garden with 30 fruit seedlings. At Isokon Primary School the education team engaged young readers in a discussion on the book “Ole Peenko Survives the Drought,” which tells a story that demonstrates the effects of climate change. Forty students from the school also visited MEP HQ, Mara North Airstrip, Ol-Choro Rhino Sanctuary and Women in the Wild, to learn more about local conservation efforts. All of these amazing activities are supported by Kampur Travel Diaries.
