Colobus Trust

Category: Habitat Restoration/Conservation, Human - Primate Conflict Resolution | Date: Oct 05 2009 | By: colobus

Once again we have another tragic tale to report: the untimely death of a juvenile Colobus. This time the Colobus was hit and killed instantly by a car on the Diani main road. The car was not speeding; it was just a case of the Colobus deciding to cross the road at the wrong time.

Above: The size and injury to the Colobus is shown

Probably the most shocking aspect of this death, however, was the state that the Colobus was in before it died. Embedded in its abdomen was a snare that had clearly been there for some time. Here is a demonstration that the illegal use of snares in the forests to catch Suni not only affects the Suni but also other fragile species. In order to reduce the frequency of this happening the Colobus Trust regularly carries out de-snaring in the area. Only last week 6 snares were found by Peter in the Jardini forest, just where the Colobus was hit.

Above: The snare embedded in the abdomen

Our thanks to Darren and Emma of Ngiri’s Bar and Restaurant for reporting the incident to the trust.

Let’s hope with our continued work and your generosity we can stop this happening!

Tags: Colobus monkey, Colobus Trust, diani, Kenya, road traffic accident, snares

One response so far

Category: Fundraising, Primate Rescue/Rehabilitation | Date: Feb 11 2009 | By: colobus

As mentioned in the earlier blog we, sadly, had a record breaking month at the Trust in January and were all hoping that February would have a much lower incident rate.  Unfortunately, despite a quiet first few days, it now looks like this month may see no significant reduction in the number of primate deaths in Diani unless something changes- fast.

On Monday 2^nd the Animal Welfare Team responded to a call about an adult Sykes which was suspected of being poisoned.  There were no obvious signs of injury but it seemed to be slightly paralyzed down its left side.  The vet treated him and over the next few days we regularly gave him Dextrose to keep him hydrated.  Unfortunately, although he looked like he was getting stronger; he died on Wednesday of Tetanus and was cremated in the afternoon.

On Thursday we had three new cases, the first one was a female Vervet which had a superficial injury on its right side, possibly from ‘in troop’ fighting.  The worrying thing was that although it certainly seemed more alert than the Sykes, it too was displaying paralysis in its left side and dragged its left leg.  Regrettably, she too died within 48 hours of being brought in to the Trust, another victim of Tetanus.

The second case, on the face of it, looks hopeful.  Just as the staff were finishing for the day a local resident pulled up with a small cardboard box with holes punched in the sides and there were some very strange noises coming from inside.

Call of Baby Vervet

When we opened the box a small Vervet face was looking up at us, an infant who had been brought all the way back from Tsavo (approximately 200km from Diani)!  It seems that the resident had been visiting and seen some children playing with the baby, its mother nowhere in sight, so had brought him to us for the correct care and attention. After a quick check up to ensure there were no obvious problems he was handed over to us, the volunteers, for feeding every 3 hours.  He’d had a long journey from home, but I’m keeping my fingers crossed that it is one which will have a happy ending.

Almost immediately after we had given him a feed and got him settled with a hot water bottle for a surrogate Mum; another Sykes monkey was brought in.  Disappointingly this was another victim of a road traffic accident.  We haven’t taken any photos as the whole face had been torn open with a large gash from forehead to mouth and the prognosis didn’t look hopeful.  Just the shock of what was obviously such a high speed impact would have been enough to prove fatal.  We called the vet to treat her and followed his direction for after care but unfortunately when we checked in the morning she had died.

Three-hourly feeding of the baby Vervet continued and late in the afternoon of Friday a juvenile Sykes was brought in, a further RTA victim.   This guy looked in bad shape and after a visiting vet had looked him over the diagnosis was possible internal bleeding with regular check ups required through the night.  Unfortunately this was much too traumatic for the small Sykes and he died the next day.  After such an investment of time and emotions it can be hard to accept.

On Monday two more dead monkeys were found.  One, on the road not far from the Trust, had obviously been killed on impact by a hit and run driver.  Thankfully a resident had called to let us know what had happened.  The other, a victim of electrocution that will be investigated further.

Despite all these sad stories the baby Vervet continues to go from strength to strength (if his bite is anything to go by).  And although he does require a lot of care and attention, as all babies do in the early months, we have to think that he will have a long future ahead of him.  To dwell too much on the trauma of him being taken from his mother, or indeed what her fate might have been, does not help remedy the situation and we are doing what we can to find him a suitable home where he can play and learn with other monkeys.

Only with your continued help, support and donations can the Trust continue to provide care for injured monkeys and monkeys in need of rehabilitation.  If you are planning a holiday why not plan the experience of a lifetime and come to volunteer at the trust.  You will be helping to prolong the life of the primates in Diani.

Tracey Stenson, Colobologist

Tags: Electrocution, infant, road traffic accident, RTA, sykes, Tsavo, vervet, volunteer

3 responses so far

Category: Human - Primate Conflict Resolution, Primate Rescue/Rehabilitation | Date: Nov 28 2008 | By: colobus

By Fleur Downard, a volunteer at the Colobus Trust from 27 October – 14 November 2008

Part 3 – Hope for the future

Chuma is a wild animal, used to living either in his troop as the dominant alpha male or as a solitary male, in the forest foraging for leaves, flowers and unripe fruit for his daily meals.  His sad, dark eyes stare at you as you peer in at him in his cage.  I know and he knows he does not belong here.  I want him to survive and John (one of the Colobus trust staff members who will be looking after Chuma after I leave tomorrow) and I have adopted him.  However, I am aware that unless he regains his sense of balance and recovers to his previous health he will be unlikely to return to his previous life in the wild but will be dependent on the Colobus Trust for his food.  He has been seen by the local vets Dr Allan and Dr Oscar and also a visiting wildlife vet, Noni, who has arranged for an orthapediac vet to review his x-rays and they are all confident he can survive, although it is unlikely he could return to the wild.  The staff and volunteers at the Colobus Trust are doing everything possible to ensure his survival and I look forward to receiving weekly updates on his progress.

Even though it saddens me, I do understand that Chuma may not be happy living his life as a caged animal and unable to jump from branch to branch with careless abandon, so rather than looking at me with his sad caged eyes he may be better off in Colobus heaven where he can be wild and free.

Tags: , animal rescue, colobus, Monkey, road traffic accident

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Category: Human - Primate Conflict Resolution, Primate Rescue/Rehabilitation | Date: Nov 26 2008 | By: colobus

By Fleur Downard, a volunteer at the Colobus Trust from 27 October – 14 November 2008

Part 2 – Recovery and Rehabilitation

The Colobus monkey was very groggy when he woke up from his sedated sleep later in the afternoon.  He looked disorientated but was too weak to look for ways to escape from his cage in the vet clinic.  I felt sorry for him, he looked so sad and his eyes were pleading for a way out of this pain.  I decided to name him Chuma, the Swahili word for metal, to give him strength to overcome his injuries.  He is about 17 years old (which is old in monkey years), a male Angolan Colobus monkey, weighing about 9 kilograms, with black eyes and a cute, slightly lopsided smile due to his injuries.

Dr Allan advised that it would be best to have some x-rays taken of Chuma’s jaw and head so we can check the extent of his injuries.  Chuma was sedated again about a week and a half after the rescue and taken to the local hospital for an x-ray.  The radiologist took an x-ray of his head and his jaw, while Chuma was spreadeagled on the table, oblivious to the doctor, the vet and the Colobus staff fussing over him.  Dr Allan concluded that Chuma indeed had a fractured upper jaw with a possible fracture in the skull, hence we needed to ensure he does not chew so his jaw can heal.

Over the past two and a half weeks I have spent a lot of time with Chuma, talking to him to try to comfort him (in English which of course does not understand) and making a lip-smacking noise, which is how the Colobus monkeys communicate with each other.  He loves eating bouganvillea flowers which we have been hanging in his cage or cooking the flowers with water so it is easier for him to eat with his fractured jaw.  We have also started giving him mashed banana, papaya and watermelon to help give him more strength and nutrition.  Chuma lives in a small cage as he falls over easily and does not have a good sense of balance so we cannot transfer him to a larger cage where he might fall down and injure himself.  We try to make the cage as homely as possible, filling it with leaves and branches to mimic the forest environment he is used to living in.

Tags: , animal rescue, colobus, Monkey, road traffic accident

2 responses so far

Category: Human - Primate Conflict Resolution, Primate Rescue/Rehabilitation | Date: Nov 22 2008 | By: colobus

By Fleur Downard, a volunteer at the Colobus Trust from 27 October – 14 November 2008

Part 1 – The Rescue

At about 9am on Tuesday 28^th October, Gwili Gibbon, the assistant manager at the Colobus Trust at Diani beach, Kenya, received a call from a distressed Luciana, one of the trustees of the Colobus Trust.  Luciana had found a male Colobus monkey that had been hit by a matatu (a minivan used for public transport in Kenya) on Diani Beach Road, near the Safari Beach Lodge.  While Luciana was waiting for Gwili to arrive to rescue the Colobus, she stood on the road to protect the injured monkey and also waved her arms and shouted at passing vehicles, urging them to drive at 50 kmph to help avoid this kind of accident occurring again.  The Colobus Trust has built 23 colobridges in Diani, so that the monkeys can safely cross the road by using these bridges.

When Gwili and Peter arrived on Diani Beach Road the Colobus was in shock and difficult to restrain, being an older male monkey weighing about 9 kilograms, so they sedated him and put him in a cage before taking him back to the Colobus Trust.  He had been hit on the right side of his head by the matatu and was bleeding heavily from his right ear.  Doctor Allan, the local veterinarian arrived within minutes of Gwili arriving at the Colobus Trust vet clinic with the Colobus.  He inspected the Colobus’s bleeding ear and felt around the right hand side jaw area.  He felt a broken bone in the upper jaw area and concluded that the Colobus probably had a fractured jaw with possible injuries to the skull.  He prescribed some painkillers and anti-inflammatory drugs for the Colobus.

Tags: , animal rescue, colobus, Monkey, road traffic accident

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