Big Cats Differences

                             Cheetah and Leopard
 The difference between Cheetah and Leopard can be a difficult task to many people.

• Cheetah has spots while Leopard has Rosettes.
•  Body size the Cheetah has smaller body male weigh 54 kgs while Leopard has bigger body male weigh 70 kgs.
• Tail shape, Cheetah Tail is flat while Leopard Tail is tubular in shape.
• Facial Marking, The Cheetah has black line at the corner of the eye down the cheeks while Leopard lack. Cheetah eyes are amber in color while Leopard eyes are more green blue in color.
• Claws structure, Cheetahs lack retractable claws because the need to speed up in running while Leopards has retractable claws.
• Behavior, Cheetahs are Diurnal active during the day, While the Leopards are nocturnal active during the night.

Cheetah yawning in the Maasai Mara.

Leopard on the spot during the day.

Whole World looking upon Maasai Mara why?

Whole World looking upon Maasai Mara why?
During Wildebeests migration time, Many friends across the world experience great happening in Maasai Mara wildebeests crossing the Mara River and also spotting other games in the Maasai Mara Savannah grasslands. At Oldarpoi Mara Camp, we had a great tour to the Mara ecosystem and we saw a lot of animals.
First, Our game drive day 1 in Nashulai Maasai Conservancy which is  an animal haven and a safe animals corridor that link the Maasai Mara National Reserve and communities conservancies. We first spotted Maasai Giraffes and the luckiest part is that we saw a newly born baby, struggling to stand before the hungry Mara predators like Hyenas or Wild Dogs and so on.

Before, heading to a sun downer with a Bonfire, we spotted African Savanna Elephants led by Female Matriarch browsing with no hurry, " what is that between eye and the Ear, that look like fluid path". said Mark. This is the Temporal Glands that is found on both Females and Males but it occur due to maybe the Elephant being existed, stressed or male musth ( Mating season).

Day 2, Hoping to see Big Cats in the Maasai Mara National Reserve. We packed our lunch boxes for all of our crew. What amazed me is that we encountered again a newly born Impala Fawn near the main entry to Maasai Mara at a gate called Sekenani Mara Gate.
After 8 kms drive, we were welcome by the African largest cat, King of the jungle feeding on a cow fresh carcass after becoming the Lion prey at dawn.

Wonders in Mara

Wonders of the Mara Ecosystem is not only Wildebeests or the Mighty wildlife diversity.
Our Mara Learning and Development Centre Botany Class had a trip to Maasai Mara Botanical Garden 8 kms away from the Centre.
We saw the magnificent plants e.g Coffee, Coconuts, and many others that we were not expecting to encountered in the semi arid climate of Mara Ecosystem.
We had a a fantastic tour by The owner Mr. Suraj a Botanist who decided to plants many fruits in The Maasai Mara for both pure organic with only cattle manure to add nutrients to these fruit plants.
"Why in the Mara?" one trainee ask. "Plants grow in places like India, why not in Maasai Mara"
"What is the mission of you establishing this Botanical Garden". Reson ask in curiosity. I started so to empower people and to change the community mindset that plants only grow in the wildness and all fruits must be bought in towns and cities. I want to commercialize this Garden.

Lioness Facts

Do you know that it the Lioness who hunt? the fact is that the Lioness is the main hunter but they prefer hunting in groups to facilitated the killing to success. In a pride of Lions, females are related to each other e.g. Sisters, aunties and Cousins who live together forever.
Warriors knows that the Lioness with cubs are always so aggressive. They are always warn so to be keen when looking after their domestics animals in the wild.

The White Baboon

It is quite rare to encountered white Baboon, But recently in the Mara Simba Lodge area, we frequently got a picture of an albino Baboon. It might not be true that is Albinism but it might be Leucism which affect the pigment in the skin and its fur. This might be a topic to discussed from the blue as many are not aware of the white Baboon in the wilderness. What amazed me is when the white creature forage with no worry among the troop of about 35 troops. "I got closer so to agree it is the white baboon" Said John.

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Our volunteers got this Albino Baboon in Mara Simba area Maasai Mara. our village Photographer

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James oneof the Maa Silver Research Citizen Scientist capture this 2021.

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First 2010 by Teacher Sopia our Chief researcher.

White Baboon foraging

It is under research so to identify what has affecting the Baboon to appear white. It was on our morning hour research when volunteers got the snapshot of the white creature which has astonished many of our facebook page fans.
 The Baboon is luckly to survive the unfamiliar and non camouflage environment, so for the safari goers tour the Maasai Mara ecosystem to be luck to encounter the unusual creature.

Four of the Big Five Animals

Why called the Big Five?
These are the animals in Africa that are referred by game hunters that are difficult to hunter on foot.
Being the Africa Buffalo, Africa Elephant, Lion, Leopard, and Rhino.
I decided to discuss the four of the Big Five that I encountered recently in the Greater Maasai Mara National Reserve.
Leopard; Is an elusive cat that is active during the night but we were lucky enough to spot it being active that morning.
Leopard are also good climber and they can hide their prey on top of the trees, so to keep away any predator from reaching.
Gestation period of the Leopard is 90 to 95 days.

Leopard (Pantera Leo)

 African Elephant; Large land mammal with amazing good memory that can enable them to identify their relative killed for quite a period of time. They have the longest period of gestation that can take it 22 months to give birth to one calf.
They are also huge animals that can forage for about 16 hrs and also good seeds disposal animals, there are seeds that only grow when passing through their digestion system.

African Elephant (Loxodonta Africana)

Lion; Is not only the Big Five is also the Big Cat and only the cats that form pride (walk on groups).
It takes a Lion 108 days to give birth to cubs.
The chores for hunting is mostly done by females and the dominant male work is to protect the territory and first to feed on a prey after the hunting is done as a prize for the protection. Then the last to fed on are the cubs.
They spend time napping after eating that can take 20 hrs a day. They don't worry they the kings of the jungle.

Lion (Pantera Leo)

African Buffalo; They grazers animals that can live on their herds or mostly old males prefer living alone when aged.
They are the most aggresive of all Big Five said by the game hunters and known to kill many game hunters.
Gestation period takes 11.5 months to give birth to a calf.

Buffalo (Syncerus Caffer)

Ngama Hills Nature Walk

 The hill is in the rich diversity ecosystem in the Mara greater  environments around.
These are the flora life  four the Ngama field;
Combretum Mole called in Maasai Olmaroroi, use for making soup with herbals.
Arrow Poison Tree called by in Maa language Olmorijoi which is a poisonous tree.
Wild Camphor or Leleshwa use as a deodorant detergent in the traditional cultures and also use to sleep on when spending in arid or some of the alone.
Green heat tree or Elephant Peppers use to cure malaria or tooth ache and used to brush the teeth.
the leaves are so poison so to give the one but  aside.

Ososian valley in the Maasai Mara.

Ngama Hills Easter nature walk

Education for a Decade

The year 2017, When I turn 28 years old. I also counted a decade since I started practi-cing my passion of being an educator in difference counties in Kenya.

ICT Training

Nature walk for Flora and Fauna

This year I Join my area community initiative called I See Maasai Development Initiative that runs a center in the Maasai Mara ecosystem called Mara Learning and Development Centre to help the community as a trainer in Tourism and ICT to Maasai youth in the area and in other counties.

I also this year has a lot of plans for training and creating awareness on wildlife conservation and training children importance of Wildlife conservation in the Maasai Mara for the better tomorrow.

Leopard on a tree in Maasai Mara.

Mara Learning Academy

Gifts from our Norwegians friends

Design Thinking Forum.

Design Thinking as Methodology to Problem-solving

What comes to mind when you think about design thinking as a tool to use?
In trying to figure out what the design thinking is, last Friday we attended a Design Forum at Pawa254 in Nairobi. Technology is changing at a rapid pace, that's why we've reached out to visionaries and experts to get more understanding of design thinking.

The panelists were all optimistic and they started describing what design thinking means; each one of them in turns. "Design thinking is the process of solving problems by being users oriented designer who creates solutions to complex problems," said Elmar from Design without borders.

The audience listened carefully and one of them asked the speaker about the courses one needs to specialize in to become a design thinker. Felix Tao from Aleutia in the panel described that a design thinker is a person who understands the process well because, design thinking is collaborating with partners, users, and stakeholders who use the product or need the service. "In design, you have to be everything, not one specialized skill," Sarah from Thinkplace said.

The design forum ended with takeaways from everyone. We all gained knowledge that human-centered design is a design thinking approach to problem-solving; all about building empathy with the people you designing for, and sharing innovative ideas with the people in need of the solutions; and what you have made for them.


The future of design thinking is the human-centered design methodology that plays an
important role by connecting the users with their needs to solve problems in their daily
lives.

#GMERL Nairobi 2016. #Stand4wildlife

Kenya wildlife heritage staggering at an alarming rate. Where would the next generation get to see our Big five animals in free range wild if poaching for their ivories, Rhino horns and hunting for trophies and Lions claws continue be a great demand in the black market? No more poaching? we stand and shout for our magnificent species to worth living.

Youth stand for Wildlife our key message as we march for our heritage.

A bright day for animals started well as we march sending the conservation message to all. We started the global march 2016 for Elephants, Rhinos and Lions after the cabinet secretary of Environment and natural resources Prof. Judi Wakhungu flagged off in the National Museums of Kenya Nairobi at 9:00 Am. 

#GMFERL Nairobi 2016

We all joins hands with a slogan "Youth stand for wildlife, will you?" till 12kms marching in solidarity to Kenya Wildlife Service headquarters. Despite that the sun was hot, we all march tirelessly for our magnificent species in the wild.

"Africa highest population is young people so if youth stand for conservation, I believe the world will hear us because are not going back but the fight is on" Said Peter Moll the CEO and the President of www.suso.world.

Our work has not been in vain since we started global marching for our wildlife in 2014. We saw a change in our society. For instance, the fourth President of Kenya burned 105 tonnes on 30th of April 2016.

Also Kenya five proposals for saving our Elephants presented to Conference of parties known as COP 17 CITES in South Africa brighten the future of our Elephants. Four of the proposals adopted, that make a success of 80 % to Kenya proposals won the battle.