It’s been a quiet time in Samburu since the river came up a week or so ago. As we listen hopefully to distant thunder and watch as the clouds form and the rain falls in the distance of surrounding regions, Samburu has received no more than a few minutes of raindrops in the afternoon – if we are lucky. The wildlife seems to have taken advantage of the nearby rain and left for greener pastures – in recent days it seems only dik dik, gerenuk and the bat eared fox remain behind. Not to discredit any of these three unique creatures – I’m always happy to see them – but not quite the diversity I’d become accustomed to seeing each time I left camp. Even without the abundance of wildlife, Samburu and Buffalo Springs are still strikingly beautiful reserves, with the dramatic dry landscape back-dropped by hills and mountains. The beauty is further accentuated by sunsets reflecting on the river, where the crocodiles laze.

When I say it’s been quiet, I certainly don’t mean boring. It’s been a great opportunity to really get stuck into my Masters project. I’ve spent what seems like endless hours extracting data from video footage of Lucy and Joseph’s sound experiments of the previous four years. For each video I have matched up ‘focal groups’ of adult females and their offspring, and recorded every movement and behavior made for each individual. That in itself took hours of pouring through the photographic ID file to identify females and of practicing ageing calves so the females could be matched with their appropriate offspring. David and Chris have been extremely helpful in confirming identification and recognizing individuals I couldn’t match up. What takes me hours, takes them mere seconds! The next step is to start re-watching the videos looking at vigilance behavior. It is so interesting looking at interactions within the families, and how older or younger calves react within the group. I can’t wait until I’m ready to do some proper statistical analysis and see what patterns arise.

And when I can’t look at the computer screen any longer there’s always something to distract myself with. Priscilla, our resident office bat, keeps me company above my desk; the klipspringer meanders past to say hello, or the tree hyrax run amok in the late afternoons. I can’t imagine a more perfect place to be!