Dear Supporters,

We’re excited to share an update on our recent raptor conservation activities. We’re very proud of the expansion of our nest monitoring work in the Mara with further growth scheduled for early 2024. In Kwenia, the use of the formal monitoring protocol helps us collect robust data in order to make comparisons with data collected up until 2011. A decline in the breeding population is evident unfortunately and establishment of the community vulture sanctuary will be crucial for the long-term success of this colony. Our raptor centres have been receiving many visitors, all leaving with a better appreciation of birds of prey and understanding of the threats. Rescue and rehab is ongoing and we've selected two stories to share. We hope you enjoy reading and as always we're grateful for your support on our journey to secure healthy raptor populations in Kenya.

Nick Trent, Executive Director

Expanding the Mara Raptor Project

Earlier this year the Mara Raptor Project team worked with researchers, conservationists, government officials and community members across the Mara to develop an Ecosystem Monitoring Framework that will be officially adopted and implemented by the Narok County Government, The Wildlife Research and Training Institute (WRTI) and the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) to measure the regions health and to hold actions accountable. As part of this process, we have agreed to share our nest monitoring data with the Framework and to try and expand our nest monitoring efforts as rapidly as we can across the entire Greater Mara. Fortunately, this year generous funding from the BAND Foundation, The Peregrine Fund, CARU Containers, Basecamp Explorer Kenya Foundation, The Angama Foundation, Wageningen University and Research and several other donors enabled us to expand our team and we are now monitoring almost 500 nests in roughly half of the Greater Mara with plans to expand to three quarters of this area by early 2024. As part of this expanding work, we are working very closely with conservancy managers and land leasing entities to guide decision making for the benefit of breeding raptors.

Lemein Pair is continuing work in the Maasai Mara National Reserve and has now identified over 350 nests. Monitoring these nests consistently is an enormous amount of work given his other responsibilities as project manager and we are looking to fundraise for an assistant for him in 2024. Duncan Njapit was hired in March to work in Naboisho Conservancy and the surrounding region. As of October, he is monitoring roughly 120 nests in Naboisho alone. This year the martial eagle pair in Naboisho Conservancy successfully fledged a chick - their first in 8 years.

Naboisho Martial Eagle chick at it's nest, the first to successfully fledge in 8 years.

In Pardamat Conservation Area, Rebekah Karimi and Danson Rakwa have been hard at work searching for nests. Pardamat is a multi-use conservation area, and we are learning that raptor focused management is needed to secure the area for breeding raptors. Despite significant effort, we have only found three active nests here over the last few months. Fortunately, one of these nests is being used by an African crowned eagle. There are very few breeding pairs of African crowned eagles in the Greater Mara, and we hope that this pair will be an ambassador for broad raptor focused land leasing and management within Pardamat. As of the writing of this newsletter, Jackson Mokita is starting work nest monitoring in Nyekweri and Oloisukut. We wish him luck as he searches for breeding raptors in an area that is being deforested rapidly.

In the Maasai Mara NR we monitor 350+ nests and 120 in Naboisho. We've started locating nests and monitoring in Oloisukut and Pardamat and will expand to the Mara Triangle soon.

Monitoring raptors and other wildlife at Kwenia Vulture Sanctuary

Earlier this year we established a protocol for monitoring Rüppell's vulture nests along the cliffs at Kwenia Vulture Sanctuary. The team on the ground has been equipped with a photo guide with labelled nest locations, equipment, and data sheets to consistently monitor the status of nests.

From August 2023 to present, 12 vulture counts and nest monitoring sessions have been conducted by the team of 17 vulture guardians employed from the community. Currently, there are four chicks being brooded on the cliffs and an average of 108 Rüppell's vultures have been counted, ranging from 71 to 140. The team has expanded the data collected to include other raptors seen during the counts, including a juvenile Egyptian vulture.

In addition to monitoring the birds of prey, the team of vulture guardians conduct three patrols every week throughout the sanctuary to monitor mammal species and report any activities that are detrimental to the wildlife. During the nest monitoring session on 26 September, the team observed a bush pig traversing the base of the cliffs, first evidence of a species no one knew occupied the area!

Active Rüppell's vulture nest at Kwenia.

Participating in development of the first Vulture multi species action plan for Kenya

Kenya Wildlife Service, in collaboration with National Museums of Kenya, the Peregrine Fund, and Nature Kenya is in the process of developing the first edition of the Vulture multi species action plan (VMSAP) for Kenya. As part of this process KWS participatory consultative workshops involving all stakeholders have been held regionally throughout Kenya to review the objectives of the plan. Kwenia Vulture Sanctuary Manager Robert Kaai participated in the session at Amboseli and our team from the Mara Raptor Project participated in the Narok workshop. At both sessions, there were lengthy discussions on the threats to vultures and the community’s perceptions of vultures.

The tentative schedule for the start of the roll-out of the vulture multi-species action plan is March 2024.

Participants of the Amboseli (left) and the Narok (right) workshop.

Work experience at the Dubai Falcon Hospital

This week marks the last days of our wildlife veterinarian’s externship at the Dubai Falcon Hospital. Juliet started her journey on 8 September and she describes this opportunity to enhance her surgical and biological knowledge on raptors as surreal. The externship provided her with an opportunity to treat Peregrine, Gyr and Saker falcons, raptors she hasn't come across in Kenya. This specialised falcon hospital has several departments, from comprehensive diagnostic work to X-ray, haematology, biochemistry and endoscopy work. Juliet was privileged to work in every one of these departments but focused mostly on honing her skills in the surgical and clinical areas. The extent of raptor medicine advancement and training she received under the tutelage of Dr Panos Azmanis and Dr Antonio Di Somma, is a huge contribution to her experience which she will use as she continues her clinical work as a vet in Kenya.

We are extremely grateful to Dr. Panos and the Dubai Falcon Hospital for offering this life-changing opportunity, and to the Perfect World Foundation for funding Juliet's externship.

The challenges of releasing juvenile vultures

In September we released two young vultures that both were rescued after falling out of their nests. One release was successful, the other not so much.

When set free on the morning of 20 September the young white-backed vulture didn’t think twice before flying off into the wild. Like all vultures we release, he was fitted with a transmitter allowing us to monitor his movements and facilitate follow-up if required. On the morning of the 22nd we drove up to its last location in a riverine area in Naboisho conservancy and sure enough we found several white-backed vultures roosting in the trees. We waited for the next data-upload to confirm it was indeed ‘our’ bird. We kept following his movements which indicated he was doing fine which was confirmed in early october when we received this picture of him from Sammy Komu in the Mara Triangle at a Buffalo kill!

Released vulture on a buffalo kill in the Mara Triangle on 5 October. Map of its movements since release.

The Lappet-faced vulture was a whole other story. After his release he didn’t fly, but just hopped around a bit. At dusk it was still on the ground and the rangers from Naboisho conservancy had to catch him and put him back in the temporary holding enclosure. As he wasn’t eating we tried to feed him but he wasn’t interested. When we caught him again at the end of the day on the 22nd he didn’t fly away from us, just hopped and flapped. He needed to eat so we force fed him but he just regurgitated everything we gave it.

What to do in a situation like this? Would a few more days out help him to get his act together and fly away? There were many hyenas in the area and we didn’t have the manpower to keep watch over him all day. Reluctantly we decided to take him back to Soysambu and to train him how to survive in the wild. His story is to be continued.

Juvenile lappet-faced vulture in the temporary holding enclosure at Naboisho - finally eating.

Rescue of Gabar Goshawk siblings

These little things came into our care on 23 September when their nesting tree was cut down. We tried to persuade the owners to place the nest high up in a neighbouring tree which would have allowed the parents of the chicks to keep feeding them. Unfortunately this wasn’t an option so Simon jumped in the car to collect them.

Compared to big eagles and vultures, Goshawk chicks grow up really fast. One day they were hiding in a corner of the courtyard, the next day one had climbed up on the roof! This meant they had to be transferred to an enclosure which was a good thing anyway to keep them from becoming too habituated to humans.

Chicks on 23 September and one week later on 30 September.

On arrival they were hand fed, after a few days they fed themselves from a platter of cut up meat and a day or two later they were quite able to tear up day-old chicks by themselves. In a few weeks time Simon will start intensive training to hack them back into the wild.

Thank you for your support