Colobus Trust

Category: Habitat Restoration/Conservation, Progress report, deforestation, volunteer | Date: Nov 05 2009 | By: colobus

As the rains enter full swing, the staff and volunteers at The Colobus Trust have been working hard to prepare the tree nursery for what is surely one of its busiest seasons. This week, Dougie and John took it upon themselves to start sorting through the various plants and trees which make up the nursery.

Visitors to the Trust are encouraged to purchase a tree which is then nurtured and finally planted in the Diani area as part of the trust’s general conservation work. Unfortunately, as tends to be the case in Kenya, a number of these trees die before they can be planted and it is necessary to continually plant more, in the full knowledge that only a small number of them will survive. Over the past few months, the number of trees in the nursery has fallen dramatically as they struggle to deal with the harsh climate and salted water in Diani.

Despite these problems, all the volunteers have now been involved in this project and the area is looking much better. We all hope that the new nursery will prove to be a hit with visitors and will be more inclined to purchase a tree in the future.

We hope the rains continue year upon year as our trees continue to grow!

Dougie

Eco-Volunteer

Tags: Colobus Trust, diani, Kenya, reforestation, Tree nursery

One response so far

Category: Progress report, Research, deforestation, volunteer | Date: Oct 01 2009 | By: colobus

In the last few days we have stepped up our data gathering on the potential Vervet/Sykes hybrid.

For the past three days the Sykes troop with which the hybrid associates has been located on the old nature trail at Leopard Beach Resort and Spa, close to the hotel’s southern boundary.

The hybrid can be differentiated from the rest of the troop by several factors. Its fur is much more Vervet-like in colour than that of the Sykes. The most obvious difference is that unlike Sykes monkeys but in common with Vervets it has blue balls. There is also the fact that it just looks a bit strange that makes it stand out. He is also currently carrying a few injuries which make him more readily identifiable. He has a cut on its left shoulder which he can often be seen trying to lick, as well as an older injury on his right front leg. The injury on his leg appears to be painful as he does not put his full weight on it and so limps along a little. A male Sykes in the troop also has a couple of recent injuries to its right shoulder and leg. Whether this is just a coincidence or the result of a fight between the two we don’t know.

The hybrid is almost always found on his own and often on the periphery of the troop. Although other Sykes do move relatively close to him, the closest recent social interaction that has been observed is when the hybrid moved up to and sat next to an adult female Sykes. However she walked away almost immediately when he did this.

Above: The hybrid at Leopard Beach

Due to the density of some of the low-level forest vegetation, maintaining visual contact and following the hybrid at times have proved to be challenging to say the least! Fortunately there appears to be a pattern with their movement over the last few days so it has often been possible to head them off at the pass, as it were. On a number of occasions the resort’s staff have also been very helpful in locating the hybrid when he has been out of sight.

Most of the observations recorded so far suggest that the main activities the hybrid engages in are grooming himself and resting. This may just be a result of the time the observations have been taken rather than due to other factors. Most primates indulge in the majority of their direct social interactions, such as grooming and playing, in the early morning and late afternoon. So far the recent observations have been taken from mid morning till about 1pm, this might explain the lack of social interactions between the hybrid and other members of the troop. Hopefully a couple of early morning starts will show if the hybrid does interact with any other monkeys.

The question is how did this potential hybrid arise? We think that the hybrid may be the result of greater interaction between the Vervets and Sykes caused by the continued reduction in the availability of suitable habitat for each troop. Further study is needed to reveal if this is indeed the case. For example, however, just yesterday the Sykes troop and a Vervet troop met up with each other on a grassy area in front of the resort’s Spa buildings. The two troops freely intermixed but only two cases of direct interaction were observed. A juvenile Vervet and a juvenile Sykes briefly approached each other and touched before walking away again and there was a small fight between a Vervet and Sykes. The Sykes troop is also often in proximity to a couple of different Colobus troops but no direct interaction has yet been seen.

At some stage we are planning to dart the hybrid so that we can take physical measurements and to obtain a DNA sample so that we can have a genetics test run. However because we are currently critically low on our resources required for darting, they are being reserved for welfare cases only at the moment.

Hope to give you more information soon!

Rob

Colobologist

Tags: behaviour study, Colobus Trust, deforestation, Hybrid, Kenya, social interaction, sykes, vervet, volunteer

One response so far

Category: Education, Habitat Restoration/Conservation, Human - Primate Conflict Resolution, deforestation, volunteer | Date: Sep 19 2009 | By: colobus

Our peaceful Saturday morning was interrupted by a call on our hotline. Diani Sea Resort was calling to report a dead juvenile Colobus monkey. We knew this wouldn’t be an easy call out, but nothing could quite prepare us for what was waiting at the scene. The juvenile was in fact a very young infant, its death a result of fighting between two troops on the premises. Our animal welfare officer John estimated the infant was around one week old, as its fur was still completely white and the remains of its umbilical cord were still present. The Colobus only carry a single offspring at a time (although a set of twins can occur on very rare occasions) and take four to six years to reach sexual maturity. Therefore to lose an infant after a six month gestation period is a big blow to any Colobus troop, but more so in Diani where the population is dangerously low.

We were told by staff at the resort that intense fighting had occurred the previous day, with visible injuries to some of the adults. It is unclear at what stage and how the infant was killed, but it is likely that the mother continued to carry the infant after its death.

Increasingly fragmented habitats result in increased levels of stress in the species which live in them. Territorial disputes between rival Colobus troops are a natural occurrence; however the forest loss in Diani gives rise to a greater number of conflicts between the troops over the territory that remains.

To try and counter this, the Colobus Trust is working to create forest corridors for the Colobus and other native species to have better mobility between forest fragments.

More on this in another post!

Rob and Cara

Tags: Colobus monkey, Colobus Trust, conflict, diani, forest, Habitat Restoration/Conservation, Kenya, Monkey, reforestation, trees

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Category: Education, Habitat Restoration/Conservation, deforestation, sustainable, volunteer | Date: Sep 08 2009 | By: colobus

Hi there, I am one of the new volunteers at the trust and my first week has certainly been busy. Spending only a week here has shown me just how diverse and important the work of The Colobus Trust is.

So far I have been involved in a variety of the many projects that the trust carries out to ensure that the endangered Colobus monkeys have a future. These projects have ranged from climbing trees to mend the damaged Colobridges or being called out to search for an injured colobus or walking through the ever depleting forest to search for native saplings to add to the unique Colobus Corridor – this will hopefully develop corridors of forest in between the forest patches so Colobus have areas to move safely in.

Polly watering the saplings collected

As I am a qualified teacher, I have also become interested in the environmental education work that the Colobus Trust carries out and with the help of Hamisi I hope to begin a new programme after the long school holidays. I will keep you updated on this!

In just a week I have realised the hard work that the Colobus Trust has ahead of it but I do believe with continued hard work from the staff and support from volunteers it is possible.

Polly

Volunteer

Tags: Education, reforestation, Volunteer update

One response so far

Category: Education, Habitat Restoration/Conservation, deforestation, good wood, volunteer | Date: Sep 02 2009 | By: colobus

It began as a mere suggestion to create a nature trail involving eco-friendly hotels, through which visitors could get enriched with information regarding the Colobus monkey as they enjoyed a nature walk. The Nomads hotel, which still has a very rich forest patch in their premises, joined hands with the Colobus Trust not only to talk the walk but also to walk the talk of conserving the environment. The planning and implementation of this marvelous idea took four days.

Above: Peter talks about the forest

This walk begins at the Nomads reception desk where one receives a warm welcome and gets guided professionally through the trail. During the walk one gets to see and learn about indigenous trees over a century old and most importantly come across the precious, almost extinct, Colobus monkeys. For bird lovers, this is the perfect place as well as a haven for other creatures such as millipedes (almost a foot long) and forest rodents. One gets furnished with information regarding primates, medicinal herbs and the coral forest.

Above: an example of the tree labeling on the trail

This project will enhance knowledge and also appreciation of the unique flora and fauna of the visitors together with the residents. If we keep cutting trees and building more concrete structures, where will all the greens go? Where will we have nature walks and where will be the nature itself? Let’s join hands in this noble task of ensuring that we conserve our environment. How we conserve our environment today determines our future!

Thank you for visiting the Colobus blog!!

Peter

Field Officer

One response so far

Category: Habitat Restoration/Conservation, Primate Rescue/Rehabilitation, deforestation, volunteer | Date: Aug 18 2009 | By: colobus

 Capture

Peter, Sarah, Sam and Tom went to the location where the report of an injured Vervet monkey was reported. After looking around the grounds it seemed that a capture would be unsuccessful today. Either way, the gentleman who reported the incident offered them drinks for their troubles…… Then what do you know? The monkey arrives! The capture was a relatively easy one which involved luring the monkey into the cage with fruit! Once it was trapped, it was sedated and brought into the clinic.

Treatment

Claire, Peter and Jody assessed the monkey on arrival. On examination, there were wounds visible on both arms and a major wound on the back of the right hand. All wounds were cleaned thoroughly by the team and Jody sutured the hand wound with dissolvable stitches. Claire gave antibiotic, anti-inflammatory and Tetanus injections intramuscularly. Iodine was applied to all wounds and the monkey was placed back in the cage to come round fully under observation. Once the monkey was awake water and food were then offered.

After Care

Following the procedure, antibiotic injections were given for another day and the monkey’s progress was monitored.

Release

24 hours after the procedure, the monkey was taken back the location where it was captured. Here, he was released successfully and roamed his natural environment back where he belongs!

All in all, it was a positive outcome for the monkey and team!

www.colobustrust.org

Tags: primate rescue, Primate Rescue/Rehabilitation, Veterinary clinic, volunteer

2 responses so far

Category: Fundraising, Habitat Restoration/Conservation, Marketing, Newsletter, deforestation, sustainable, volunteer | Date: Aug 10 2009 | By: colobus

The following article is the press release from Safarilink the new corporate sponsor of Colobus Trust. We at the trust would like to thank Safarilink for all there support and look forward to an amazing relationship. It is always inspiring when a company of this magnitude cares enough about the local environment and organizations dedicated to protecting it.

SafariLink Helps Protect Diani’s Primates

Nairobi, Kenya xx August 2009 - As part of its ongoing corporate social responsibility programme, SafariLink, Kenya’s premier safari airline, has announced that it will donate $2 to the Diani Beach based Colobus Trust for each passenger it flies into or out of the Diani airstrip.  In addition it has sponsored the purchase of a ‘tuk-tuk’ which will be used by the Trust to collect tourists from their hotels and take them to their headquarters where they will be able to learn about the Coast ecosystem and the work of the Trust. The airline, which commenced daily flights to Diani on the 1st July 2009, has taken the decision to assist the Trust which runs the primate conservation and rescue centre on the south coast of Kenya.

The Colobus Trust was founded in Diani in 1997, initially to come up with a way to prevent the high number of monkey ‘road kills’ on Diani Road.  Today, the Trust has expanded to become a wildlife rescue and rehabilitation centre, focusing on primates, with both Kenyan staff and international volunteers. The Colobus Trust also helps to educate local schoolchildren, gives guided eco-tours and provides a rehabilitation programme for monkeys that have been kept illegally as pets.

“The rapid growth in tourism infrastructure and growing human population in the area has had a significant negative impact on the remnants of a once large and rich coastal forest ecosystem and hence a decline in the primate population,’ said John Buckley, Managing Director, SafariLink Aviation.  “For more than ten years the Colobus Trust has been dedicated to the conservation and welfare of primates living in the Diani area.  SafariLink, as a socially responsible company, is therefore happy to help the Trust in order to help safeguard the environment for the remaining primates and hopefully thereby stop the decline in their numbers.”

In support of the donation, Raymond Matiba, Chairman of The Colobus Trust said, “75% of the Trusts core revenue comes from tourism.  But sadly the Kenya Coast has suffered a  decline in tourists in recent years and hence our income from visitors to the Trust has decreased.  We are therefore particularly delighted that SafariLink have made this very generous donation to the Trust and their pledge of long term financial support will help us plan for the future.”

“In addition, the introduction of the SafariLink daily flights to Diani is in itself a very positive move which we believe will result in an increase in tourists as well as being beneficial to the residents in the area,” added Matiba.

SafariLink is involved in other socially responsible initiatives that include an indigenous tree planting exercise on the foothills of Mount Kenya National Reserve in conjunction with the Bill Woodley Mount Kenya Trust.  This project aims to compensate for the carbon-dioxide emissions from their aircraft and hence minimize the company’s operational impact on the environment.  Additionally the company has an agreement with the Lewa Conservancy, www.lewa.org, whereby approximately 5% of the cost of each ticket to Lewa is donated to help their conservation research.  In addition, SafariLink assist the Safi Lamu group who are tidying up Lamu and provide flights for the charity Medical & Educational Aid to Kenya, www.meak.org, to help them reach disadvantaged persons in remote areas who need medical attention for heart and eye conditions.

-ENDS-

About SafariLink

SafariLink is a Kenyan company established in 2004.  Based in the ALS Building, Wilson Airport, SafariLink offers a network of scheduled services that cover the main ‘safari’ tourist destinations of Amboseli, Tsavo, Chyulus, Naivasha, Nanyuki, Lewa Downs, Samburu, Loisaba, Shaba, Masai Mara, Kiwayu and Lamu in Kenya and Kilimanjaro in Tanzania.  In addition, SafariLink can provide you with charter flight within Kenya and throughout East Africa.  SafariLink currently operates a fleet of Cessna Caravans, a Let 410 and Dash 8.

About The Colobus Trust

The Colobus Trust is a conservation organization designed to promote the conservation, preservation and protection of primates like the rare Angolan Colobus monkey (Colobus angolensis palliatus) and its coastal forest habitat in southern Kenya. The Trust was established in 1997 in response to an outcry from local residents about the high number of deaths of the Colobus in the Diani area. Now the Trust has numerous projects concerning the wildlife and the citizens of Kenya, including animal welfare, biological/ecological research, community development and education, forest protection and enrichment and eco-tourism awareness programs.

Tags: deforestation, Fundraising, habitat restoration, Marketing, Safarilink, sustainable, volunteer

One response so far

Category: Habitat Restoration/Conservation, Human - Primate Conflict Resolution, Primate Rescue/Rehabilitation, Research, deforestation | Date: Aug 06 2009 | By: colobus

 Recently Colobus trust wrote about finding a new hybrid species. This was believed to be a mix of vervet and sykes monkeys. The picture we posted belonged to Yvonne A. de Jong & Thomas M. Butynski, since then the Colobus Trust team has been out on a number of occasions trying to learn more about these creatures. 

When I first heard about these animals, to be honest, I didn’t believe it. Normally sykes and vervets don’t like to interact very much.  Opposed to Colobus who do not eat the same foods, these animals do have a lot of competition for food. It is not unusual that they would live in the same area. But for them to be in such close proximity to one another that mating begins to take place is a sign of something. I believe this has something to do with the loss of natural habitat in Diani putting these animals in much closer proximity.  Until I saw these new pictures I believe you could have made the argument that this was just a funny looking skyes monkey. What is very interesting to us is that the testicles of this animal are blue. This is a very specific trait of the veret monkey and not sykes. With this evidence there is no doubt in my mind now what we are looking at. This is indeed a hybrid and we are very excited to share these photos with you today.

We have been spending much more time with these animals in the last few weeks trying to gather as much information as possible. We have confirmed two individuals but know that there are at least 5. The one we followed on this day was hanging out with a group of sykes. Although he was positioned on the outside of the group, he seemed to display some of the dominant traits. The other monkeys stayed out his way and on a few occasions he approached our team a bit aggressively.  It is a common belief that when these two animals of different species mate the offspring will be unfertile. The question then arises why are there so many and have they formed a troop of their own? These are things we here at the trust are looking into. We look forward to collaborating with other researchers such as Yvonne A. de Jong & Thomas M. Butynski on this subject. The Colobus Trust will keep you updated on what we find as well as any information about where other incidences such as this may have happened before.

Andrew Hayes

www.colobustrust.org

One response so far

Category: Education, Fundraising, Habitat Restoration/Conservation, Human - Primate Conflict Resolution, deforestation, sustainable, volunteer | Date: Aug 03 2009 | By: colobus

Recently the Colobus Trust has been making big moves to raise awarness in diani and all across Kenya. One big supporter of our cause has been the Daily Nation news papper. In the past few weeks two seperate articles have been written on the plight of the Angolan black and white colobus, our flagship speices, whos only remaining habbitat in kenya is here on the south coast. We would like to share these articles with our readers and thank the Daily Nation for its support. Media is one of the best ways for conservation groups to raise awarness. This is one of the largest news pappers in Kenya and is read by thousands of people a day.

http://www.nation.co.ke/News/-/1056/633412/-/item/0/-/18yang/-/index.html

http://www.nation.co.ke/News/regional/-/1070/630462/-/7l0l1v/-/index.html

 We would also like to thank the Great Primate Handshake. This group was with us a few weeks ago and worked on some very important videos for us here at the Trust. The first video is going to help us with our volunteer programs. We at the Colobus Trust would like to build our volunteer program to allow us to complete many of the projects which require more man power. If you know anyone who is interested in doing some volunteer work or who may have some vacation time and would like a different experience please let them know about us. I can personally guarantee a wonderful stay and an experience you can never forget.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYgtC5597b8&feature=SeriesPlayList&p=094AF86F0F47431C

This next video was made for the Kenya ferry service. This Ferry shuttles some 50,000-70,000 people back and forth from Likoni to Mombasa every day. At the waiting station for the ferry are two large screens, one on either end. We have arranged for the ferry service to play our video for free. This is going to raise a lot of awareness about the major issues here in Diani as well as provide information to tourist on what it is we do here at the trust.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=98fwLExkgEs&feature=SeriesPlayList&p=094AF86F0F47431C&index=2

 Once again I would like to thank you for joining us. As always small organizations with large responsibilities, such as the Colobus Trust, would not be able to exist without the support from doners such as yourselves. Please continue to support us and we will keep you updated on all of our projects.

Best wishes,

Andrew Hayes

Assistant manager

www.colobustrust.org

Tags: Education, Kenya Ferry services, News paper, primate handshake, volunteer, you tube

2 responses so far

Category: Habitat Restoration/Conservation, Habitat Restoration/Conservation, Human - Primate Conflict Resolution, Research, deforestation | Date: Jul 28 2009 | By: colobus

Diani is the most magnificent place ever, I come from western Kenya where people there are so passionate about farming of crops. I am very sure that everyone understand what I mean when I talk about crop farming, not many trees are found here, no forests, no wild animals live here anymore. My main point here today is about Diani, the place I currently live, I have been here for thirteen years now. I have worked with monkeys in trying to fight for rights and help them live a better life but for the last few years I have had sightings that are interesting to see. Lately I have seen a new species of monkey that looks like half vervet and half syke monkeys, I mean from the head they look vervet but from the rear end they look Sykes.This is one thing that many people may not want to believe because Diani has always had only four known species of monkeys, namely, colobus , baboons , vervets and Sykes.

(Photograph taken by Yvonne A. de Jong & Thomas M. Butynski)

I have never heard of cross breed amongst monkeys before,but now it seems to me that the real problem of deforestation in Diani is phasing out other species of monkey who have found it hard to survive on a very limited patch of coral rag forest remaining in Diani. I am now officially inviting people to see this new species so that we confirm a fifth species of monkeys in Diani. It will be interesting to see the effects of deforestation in Diani because many more funny looking species of animals will come up due to serious destruction we are witnessing here.

John Abuor- Colobus Trust, Animal Welfare Unit

www.colobustrust.org

Tags: deforestation, habitat restoration, human-wildlife conflict, Research

2 responses so far