Wapi fisi?

[Translation: 'Where's the hyena?']

There are just some days when I really do believe that the hyenas just have it in for us. We recently misplaced one of our clans - Serena North - and went on a few obs sessions either seeing no hyenas or seeing only a couple that were sacked out and clearly had no desire to get up from their R&R to conveniently lead us to their new den.

What made it worse was that we had been hearing REALLY close hyena whooping each night, indisputably belonging to our Northies (our campsite is located right in North clan territory). So, each night and morning we would head out falsely believing that THIS was the time we would find our hyenas again.

The photo below is documentation of how utterly annoying the fisi can be at times. I took this photo on one of those disappointing obs sessions in North where we found a hyena or two but much to our despair, no den. I urge you to find the hyena in the picture, although it shouldn't be too bad considering I fussed with the contrast to make it stand out more (click on it for full size). This photo is also proof of how hyenas seem to defy the laws of physics. The hyena in the photo is Waffles (WAFL); she is an adult female, has 2 young cubs (Hungry Jack and Log Cabin), and is by no means a small hyena. How she managed to lie so flat on the ground behind a couple stalks of grass is beyond me.

 

 

With cases like this, it becomes no surprise to me how easily we can lose our hyenas. We could have easily driven past her and not even noticed. And there's hardly even grass on the ground, thanks to the wildebeest. I'm not excited for the time when the wildes are gone and all the grass grows back; I think I'm going to need to develop a hyena-spotting super power!

Those things can come out of nowhere ... #7

The last hidden animal was a lioness at dawn with the moon clinging to the night sky. Animals frequently appear out of nowhere as the sun rises in the morning. Puzzle #7 is in broad daylight and should be an easy one. Not much going on in this picture at first glance, but these can be easy to miss when you are driving around looking for hyenas.

Those things can come out of nowhere ... #6

The last post in this series had two pictures, one had two leopards going out of sight (oos) in the bushes and the other had three leopards being watched by a group of tourists. Until that lucky morning I had never seen more than one leopard in a day, so seeing three at once was quite a treat. A few days later we saw a leopard in the same area creeping along a stream, sneaking up on a group of impala. We waited to see if it would pounce, but the impala moved away from the stream before the leopard could get close enough to spring its attack.

Here are a few more pictures of the leopards. A friend was bragging they had better leopard pictures than I did, but they had just one leopard. When seen together it is easy to distinguish the three.









The picture below should be pretty easy, but don't be fooled in the dim light. It might not be what you think!

Those things can come out of nowhere ... #5

The last picture in the series was of "the most dangerous snake in Africa" according to the guidebook we have in camp. It is also know as the puff adder. I have been told that this species kills more people than any other type of snake in Africa. I believe one of the reasons is because it usually moves slowly, thus doesn't get out of the way when you are about to step on it. Another reason is that it seems to be quite bold. I saw a huge black-necked spitting cobra yesterday and the only thing on this snakes mind was to get away from our vehicle. Quite a contrast to the puff adder that needed a little prodding just to move one meter off the path.

I was walking down the path to Kay's tent and nearly stepped on this little fellow. My foot was about ten inches away before I saw it. I immediately pulled my foot back and a crisis was averted. After that it was time to get the camera out and try to resist the urge to capture it like Steve Irwin would have. Since I have never actually caught a snake before, this would obviously be a very, very bad one to start with. I had freshwater ecology teacher a few years ago that enjoyed diving after snakes. He actually knew what he was doing, so I think I will leave it to people with a little more experience.

Here is another photo of this magnificent little snake. Yes, magnificent, even though my mother probably thinks the only good snake is a dead snake.




The pictures below are from a fortunate situation that happened on Tuesday. Just another one of the once in a lifetime experiences I have had in Kenya. You may be able to find a hidden animal quickly, but can you tell how many there are?

Those things can come out of nowhere ... #4

The last post in this series was a picture of a deadly Boomslang creeping in the tree. Ben was first alerted to this snake by a bird giving an alarm call. We watched the snake for a few minutes and then it seemed to vanish into the tree right before our eyes. The cryptic coloration of the snake is very effective at making it blend into its surroundings. We have seen a few other green snakes around camp in the past few weeks, but have not been able to identify which species they were. We have had very little rain in the past month and most of the area is brown, rather than green. Most trees have managed to hang onto their green leaves, but if we don't get a significant amount or rain soon, the camouflage of snakes may not be so effective. Here are a few more pictures of the Boomslang.






Since I first arrived in Fisi Camp last year, I have been quite vigilant about searching for animals lurking around camp. When walking down the path, I try to look for things like siafu (biting ants), thorns that poke through my imitation crocs, or snakes in the path. For those of you that found the deadly Boomslang snake in the tree in the last hidden animal puzzle, you can see why I have been looking up at the trees and less at the ground lately. I also have a bad habit of walking at night without a flashlight, so that I can let me eyes adjust to take in the magnificent night sky.

A few days ago, I was reminded that I must not forget to watch where my feet are falling on the path. Shouldn't be too hard to find what I almost stepped on, but it may be more difficult to figure out what species it was.

Those things can come out of nowhere ... Puzzle #3

About 3 weeks ago I was preparing to leave for evening obs when Ben calmly walked up and asked if I wanted to see something. I said sure without asking what it was because Ben is great at finding cool animals and birds to look at. We walked a few paces up the driveway and he pointed to the a tree. I stared for a few seconds and spotted a ....

See if you can find what it was.

The last post had a baby Thompson's gazelle hidden on the right side of the picture. About two months ago there were hundreds of these around the Mara. They lay completely still in the grass to avoid being noticed by predators, like hyenas. They remain so well-hidden and calm that we almost drove over a few, but always managed to avoid them at the last minute.

Those things can come out of nowhere ... Puzzle #2

For those of you that posted comments on the first picture in the series, there were three elephants in the first picture. There was a little one hiding in the bushes. In this group there were probably 8-10 elephants that were sneaking in and out of the bushes. I hope you can visualize a minute before I snapped this picture, when the huge elephant with the tusks was completely hidden in the bushes!

Here is the next picture.

Hint: Things are often hidden in the bushes, but sometimes things are hidden in Plainview.

Those things can come out of nowhere ... Puzzle #1

Countless times in my 6 months in Kenya I have been surprised when and animal suddenly seems to appear out of nowhere. One time in particular stands out in my mind. It was early in the morning, before the sun creeps over the escarpment to the east. We were following a small group of hyenas and surveying the scene. We stayed in place until the suns rays illuminated the Mara. Soon after the sun made its daily appearance, a group of about 10 elephants appeared on the horizon 300 meters from our research vehicle. The terrain we were in was relatively flat, so we were astonished that more than 15 tons of mammal could sneak up on us on an open plain!

The elephants trudged slowly along, making their way to the next group of trees and bushes. Within 10 minutes, the elephants vanished into the bushes. The only way to know the elephants were in the bushes was to either see them go in or listen for branches and trees being snapped by the powerful animals.

This will be the first post in what will hopefully be a fun series of interactive "Where's Waldo" type puzzles. I will post a picture with hidden animals and the blog readers can try to find the animal or animals. For each picture posted, I will give the story behind the picture in the following blog post in the series. If I told there story at the same time as the picture being posted, it would make it too easy. Of course, since I am a poor graduate student, there will be no reward for people that correctly spot all the animals. The first picture is an easy one, but it should help blog viewers to comprehend how an 8,000 pound (~3600 kilogram) animal can be there one minute and gone the next without having David Copperfield in area.



So how many elephants are in this picture?