Eila in the Field: February 2014

On to Anubisland!

We have had some changes on the CABS project. As it was logistically difficult to be moving back and forth between the sites I am now going to be concentrating my effort in Kenya with the Anubis. Although I'm sad to leave Ethiopia for a while and I'll miss all of my friends (both human and baboon), I'm excited to simplify my life and get back to data collection (instead of only doing logistical and administrative work for both sites all the time).

As part of this change, both Megan and Sam have moved to Kenya to work on the Anubis after their time at Filoha. Now all of the babettes are under the same roof :)

Sam, Megan, and Laura in a cafe in Nanyuki - milkshakes and wifi, what more can we ask for?

I've now run out of time here in town. More soon from Anubisland!

Primatologists in Paradise II

The last stop on our Ethiopian vacation (organized by our wonderful friend Tariku at Yama Tours) was Awassa. It is the capital of the Southern Ethiopia Nations described as a melting pot of over 50 distinct tribes all with their own traditions, languages, dress, dance, and culture. The city is located on Lake Awassa which has what is likely the highest diversity of birds in the country. We were only there for one night, but I got some great birding in over happy hour on the patio of our hotel:

A nice cold beer was very nice after the long dusty ride from Arba Minch

Cormorants and egrets on the dock

African pygmy geese

African cormorant

Egyptian geese

Malachite kingfisher

And you know a primatologists' happy hour would be incomplete without at least a little primate disturbance. This is one of many vervets that were roaming the restaurant patio in search of a quick and easy snack.

That night we enjoyed a candlelit dinner on the same patio, but the vervets were replaced by cats underfoot at all times. Sam was particularly smitten, the rest of us missed the monkeys.

The next morning we set out to the Awassa Fish Market. There were some roaming vendors of these bright baskets moving around the fish stalls.

Fishermen brought their boats right up on shore, cleaned their fish and transferred the fish to the stalls.

Meanwhile marabou storks swamped the lakeshore and the market begging for fish scraps.

Other birds were also scavenging at the market, including this beautiful little African jacana.

Rumor had it that there were some monkeys in the park next to the market. So what do the primatologists do? Head straight over and start sweeping the park in search of them! We quickly found more vervets. And later found some poorly behaved black and white colobus.

This one desperately wanted my snack.

On our way back to Addis Ababa we stopped at Abijata-Shala National Park. We were immediately greeted by ostriches on the road into the park.

Then we went down to Lake Shala to see huge groups of flamingos and other birds.

That was the end of our time in paradise. We returned to Addis and then back to our respective field sites, but what a great vacation!

If you are at all interested in visiting Ethiopia, please talk to our friend Tariku at Yama Tours:

Email: info@yamatoursethiopia.com / yamatours@gmail.com
Website: www.yamatoursethiopia.com
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Yama-ETHIOPIA-Tours/183994918322291

Primatologists in Paradise I

We began our vacation in Arba Minch - known as the home of the largest crocodiles in Africa. After a long ride from Filoha....

...we enjoyed a much deserved shower and a cool drink on the hotel terrace. We met up with the Gelada Project managers, Tara and Levi. The company was wonderful and the view was spectacular, overlooking lakes Abaya and Chamo and the Nechisar National Park.

Levi and Tara

The next morning we went on a boat trip around Lake Chamo in search of those giant crocs, hippos, and (of course) birds. It was refreshing to get out on a boat for a change and the different wildlife viewing was refreshing (I know, we are so spoiled as it is. But you can only see so many zebras and elephants before they become common to you!).

Crocs:

Hippos:

Fish Eagle:

We also saw fisherman working all over the lakes. Considering the numbers of crocs and hippos we saw, the delicate look of their boats made me a little nervous, but they did not seem to mind.

This gentleman caught a Nile perch estimated at 20 kg!

Needless to say, we had our fill of fish dinners in Arba Minch. Next stop in Paradise: Awassa.

Comparative Christmas Vacation II

We continued our comparative experience, heading to Filoha to see the hamadryas baboons. It was a shock to move so quickly into the hot, dry climate in Awash National Park after freezing in the Simiens, but we were excited to be able to see the hamadyras immediately after spending time with the geladas.

Geladas and hamadryas baboons have similar social systems comprised of multiple levels. The lowest level, the unit, is generally made up of a leader male, multiple females, and offspring. In both species, multiple units come together to form a band and bands can come together to form what has been called a herd or a community.

Geladas and hamadryas are different in a number of important ways. For example, gelada females remain in their natal units for life while hamadryas females will move in and out of units over time. Their diets are also vastly different. While geladas are limited to the highlands of Ethiopia by their grass diet, hamadryas (like all baboons) are opportunistic and will eat anything they can get their hands on. Luckily, the hamadryas at Filoha have a pretty natural diet consisting mainly of palm fruits, roots, and acacia seeds,

At Filoha it was time for Megan, Sam and I to host our guests: Laura from Anubisland and Elizabeth from Geladaland. Both of our guests were shocked by the heat (despite this being the coolest time of year), both coming from much cooler climates.

Each morning we got up before sunrise, drank a quick cup of coffee and had a snack before setting out to find the hamadryas. Like geladas, hamadryas sleep on cliffs at night to stay safe from predators - lions and leopards here.

Of course Teklu helped play tour guide, demonstrating the hamadryas data collection process and sharing details about the park.

The baboons were being great sports about all the photos being taken, resting in their units as the sun came up and tolerating some nice close-ups. Laura and Elizabeth were welcomed right into the band.