Baby Tira…and Elephants
We had heard about a baby zebra born with unusual coloring: white polka dots on black fur, a rare condition called melanism. Determined to find him in the great expanse of the Mara, Jonathan, acting on a tip from another Sunworld driver, made a beeline across the savannah toward an immense herd of grazing zebras and wildebeests. Stopping along the way, he stood on the car seat and pointed his binoculars toward the herd ahead. “Got him!” he told us jubilantly, as we made our rollicking way forward. Sure enough, about 2 miles(!) later, there was little Tira, grazing with his mother. These images don’t do justice to the tens of thousands of wildebeests and zebras in the surrounding area, which made it all the more remarkable that Jonathan actually spotted him.
We were concerned that his distinctive coloration would make him stand out to predators or cause the herd to reject him. We learned that zebras are very tolerant of differences, so no worries on that score. Hopefully some naturalists are tracking him; it will be interesting to see if he passes his condition on to his progeny in a few years, assuming he survives.
Elephants were everywhere: in Samburu, in Nakuru and in the Maasai; and there were lots of babies. I love watching them scamper to keep up, and as they frolic under their mothers’ and aunties’ legs it’s a wonder they aren’t trampled.
I’m endlessly fascinated by these highly intelligent creatures. Kenya has taken aggressive steps to curb poaching, and several organizations besides the Sheldrick (mentioned in an earlier post) are committed to rescue and anti-poaching efforts. It’s mind-boggling to realize that 100,000 elephants were killed for their ivory just between 2010 and 2012. There’s a wonderful episode of the PBS series Nature about Naledi, a calf orphaned at six weeks when her mother died. The film recounts desperate efforts to keep her alive when, uncharacteristically, other herds refused to adopt her. Check it out!