The Tsavo Man-Eaters

The story of the Tsavo man-eating lions begins in the late 1800s when a railroad was being built to divide Tsavo National Park in southern Kenya.  The project was lead by an English general and was well underway when something went horribly wrong.  By night construction laborers were attacked and taken away by two male lions.  It is estimated that thirty-five to one hundred men were eaten before these lions were killed.  The lion pelts, which were used as rugs by the general for several years, have been restored and are shown in a Chicago museum.  It is theorized that the lions may be a sub-species because of their larger size, shorter manes and taste for human flesh.  To this day it is required to have armed guards from the Kenya Wildlife Service stay at the campsite at night because several years ago a couple was dragged out of their tent by the Tsavo lions. 

For the past week I’ve been camping in Tsavo, but unfortunately didn’t see any of these famous lions.  We did see giraffes, elephants, multiple antelope species and even a cheetah, which is extremely rare for this park!  On the way to the campsite we stopped at Shetani Lava Flow, an impressive landscape composed entirely of volcanic rock, and Mzima Springs, the most beautiful, clear water filled with fish that I have seen yet in Africa.  There was even an underwater viewing tank.  Since the severe drought in 2009 there are no longer hippos here but we did see a massive crocodile.

The next day we took a trip to the Chyulu Hills, an incredibly scenic conservation area with roads that are better than a Disney ride.  Aside from a few bird ecologists, we are the only people that use the road that climbs up through the hills completely covered in tall grass and thorny trees.  Standing up in the Land Cruisers, we were dodging fallen trees and thorns as if it was some kind of obstacle course.

We went into town after a lecture day, a major truck stop called Mtito Andei, which is halfway between Mombasa and Nairobi.  Myself and a few of the other girls were thrilled because we were in Kamba territory!  I was given a Kamba tribal name by the previous staff in Tanzania so when we were talking to the vendors we introduced ourselves with our Kamba names.  The women started laughing hysterically and speaking Kamba to us.  They really got a kick out of it, and I think they may have given us a better deal on the wood carvings we bought because we were “sisters”.

On our last day we visited the Ngulia Wildlife Sanctuary and listened to several Kenya Wildlife Service officers talk about the successes and failures of the sanctuary.  They even named one of the newborn rhinos after an SFS student in the last group!  So of course we all put a word in for a rhino to be named after us.

It’s been stressful ever since we got back because of exams and papers, but we’re finally starting Directed Research in only a few days.  I’m hoping to do Wildlife Ecology, which focuses on water usage in the region.  At the end, we present our research to the entire community, with a translator for the locals in attendance.  I have mixed feelings about beginning the last academic portion of this program, both sadness that I’ll be leaving East Africa in less than a month and relief to get back to the comforts of America.