Thirteen master’s students from the University of Helsinki (UH) traveled to Kenya for the field course “Human-Wildlife Conflicts in East Africa.” Over twelve days, we explored different regions of the country, interviewing various communities to understand their experiences and perspectives on large mammals and birds. The course was supervised by Iñaki Abella and Dr. Pablo Manzano from Asociación Bio+, Dr. Mar Cabeza from UH and local researcher Kimani Ndũng’ũ.

Aina (from Otus Wildlife Tours) and I were the only students traveling from outside Finland. As our first time in Kenya, we coordinated our journey with our own agendas and interests, making the most of stopovers in Qatar (read the trip report here) and extending our trip before and after the course. Our project focused on olive baboons as potential conflict drivers, but we also explored local wildlife encounters and engaged with the rich environmental knowledge of the communities as often as we could. This report, therefore, doesn’t cover detailed locations or logistics, as many of our sightings — especially birds — were spontaneous, rather than part of a planned itinerary. Instead, this serves as an archive of memories of such an awesome experience.

The journey unfolded in five distinct stages. We began with the first extension during the pre-course days around Nairobi. As we acclimated to birdwatching in Africa, we encountered highlights such as white-backed duck and Kikuyu white-eye.

Once the lectures started, the course was divided in three parts. The first stage took place at Mpala Research Camp in Laikipia county, home to Kenya’s highest densities of mammals. Cracking encounters with African wild dogs, Grévy’s zebras and Kori’s bustards were remarkable. Then we moved on to lake Naivasha area, where hippos have become a big problem for local communities. Staying in Kenya Wildlife Service and Training Institute (KWSTI), we connected with numerous raptors and wetland species in the area. The last leg of the course happened in Mara, where the Maasai showed us their connection to lions, and where we enjoyed specialties like the bateleur and the secretarybird among thousands of ungulates.

For our last few days, Aina and I decided to explore a different part of Kenya, taking a short flight from Nairobi to Malindi on the Indian Ocean coast. Following recommendations from our professors, we camped at the Mwamba Field Study Center, run by A Rocha Kenya. This area allowed us to delve into the rich biodiversity of the forests and tidal mudflats around Watamu, where we encountered gems such as the Sokoke scops-owl, crab-plover and golden-rumped sengi.

The 274 bird species and many other wildlife seen during this odyssey are overshadowed by the landscapes, flavors and scents, the learning outcomes, the warmth of people and the quality time spent with friends focused on learning the ways of humankind. While this report lacks logistic details of many of the places visited and might not be too useful, I am glad to have shaped and shared this archive of memories of mine.