There Really is Wildlife Here

March 1, 2006

We saw baboons!

The Sunday after Carrie’s birthday we convinced Wimpie to go up to the escarpment in the evening. We borrowed a car from another fellow, loaded up beer and leftover food, and headed up the hill.

It was a beautiful evening. The sound of our car disturbed a group of Vervid monkeys that were camped out nearby. They scurried up the hill and out of sight almost before we saw them at all. The baboons were already on the ridge when we arrived. We sat on the opposite side of the gulch and watched them. We also listened to them as they make a tremendous amount of noise. Zachary could hear them although he could not see them.

There was a huge group of them. They played and fought and climbed all over the cliff. They shook the trees, screamed their indignation, and climbed up and down the cliff like it was nothing. They seemed to take great joy in chasing a group of black storks off of the promontory. The birds would take to the skies, make a wide arc and land right back where they started from. Eventually the baboons would find them again and chase them off. The Fish Eagle, the Kestrels, and our small group of people just sat and watched the events unfold.

Baboons are really big. They move incredibly fast for their size though. The king daddy of all of them just sat and watched while the smaller males ran about keeping order. Eventually another troop showed up to claim a spot on the ridge. There were loud barks and a shuffling of personnel, but soon enough everyone was settled into their place for the night. We watched until it was too dark to see. Then we listened until there was nothing more to hear. We finished our beers, loaded into the Land Rover and headed for home.

It was a magical night. The noise those animals make will be forever etched in my mind. I hope we get to go back and see them again.

Oh and hey, check out what Mohammed found in our backyard! The sandal next to it is a size nine.




MJR