Hallo all Friends, and Friends of the environment,
ANNOUNCEMENT, BIODIVERSITY SURVEY
OL ARI NYIRO, LAIKIPIA NATURE CONSERVANCY
Laikipia West
KENYA
8TH ANNUAL BIODIVERSITY SURVEY
( wet season )
3rd to 11th August 2015
Endless natural marvels still unravel in Ol ari Nyiro, The Place of Springs.
Despite the harrowing unprecedented pressure of wide spread illegal grazing throughout the Laikipia region, and the fires of February and March, eight researchers of the National Museums of Kenya with Victor Wasonga and Kennedy Mateka, Reuben Mwakodi, and Philista Malaki, undaunted by challenges, camped at Enghelesha and went exploring forest valleys and ravines with our team, Enock Ochieng , resident ecologist and Thomas Ole Kaichu, resident Forester: and managed to discover yet new species unrecorded as yet in our very extensive biodiversity list.
This is a quick preliminary analysis, that I could not resist sharing with you.
More plants and all the invertebrates are at this time still been examined- so expect more from me.
The next -Dry Season- biodiversity Survey for 2015 will be in November.
HERPETOLOGY
New Species of snake found
- East African Shovel Snout (Prosymna stuhlmanni)
Previously unrecorded in the Laikipia region
by VICTOR WASONGA
NATIONAL MUSEUMS OF KENYA
on 11 August 2015
Location : Lugga Tunkuri
East African Shovel Snout (Prosymna stuhlmanni)
This species has only so far been recorded along the Kenya Coast and South Eastern Kenya, never yet north of Tsavo.
- One specimen of Rhombic Egg Eater( Dasypeltis scabra) was recorded by Victor Wasonga at Lugga Tunkuri for the second time in Ol ari Nyiro in approximately 36 years.
It was formerly only reported by the late Emanuele Pirri-Gallmann (my son, a young herpetologist who died at 17 of a snake Byte on 12th April 1983)
BOTANY
New Plants to our list:
by KENNEDY WAMBUA MATEKA
NATIONAL MUSEUMS OF KENYA
on 11 August 2015
LUGGA YA SAMBARA
above : Fig 1 Bowiea volubilis
LOCATION: Sambara Area, Ol ari Nyiro, Laikipia Nature Conservancy
GPS Coordinate: 37N 0198445.7 UTM 0060834.6
Altitude 1916m
Above Figure 2: Aristea sp
LOCATION: Sambara Area, Ol ari Nyiro, Laikipia Nature Conservancy
GPS Coordinate: 37N 0198435.5 UTM 0060546.9
Altitude 1944m
As this news is going out Two /Three more species of possibly new aquatic plants are to be confirmed – and MANY invertebrates, so watch out for more news !!!
….and- to crown it all, Centre Patrol with Duncan Ndegwa, on a regular patrol survey, came across a female WILD DOG with FIVE pups past Lugga ya Logwagippi!
Humbled by nature resilience, and in praise of the” small five” I thank you, and our friends of the National Museums and of the Kenya Wildlife Services who are instrumental in helping us protect this amazing corner of Kenya- of the planet, and send you
SMILES!!
Kuki with team.
Ol ari Nyiro, Laikipia Nature Conservancy
on the Great Rift Valley
August 15th 2015