ELAND RESEARCH PROJECT AT FIG TREE CAMP Researchers based at Fig Tree Camp in the Masai Mara National Reserve have discovered that male elands use a system of ‘status badges’ that include changes in face colouring and clicking kneejoints to assert their dominance. Kirsten Alexander reports.
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n exciting feature of Mada Hotels’ Fig Tree Camp in the Masai Mara National Reserve is the opportunity for guests to see the highly distinctive antelope known as the eland. Eland are the largest species of antelope in the world, with males weighing up to 1,000 kg and reaching up to 1.8 metres at shoulder height. There are two main types: common and giant. The giant eland is found in South
Above: Studying elands in the Masai Mara
Sudan, Central African Republic, Cameroon and Chad, while the common eland can be seen across eastern and southern Africa, including in the Masai Mara.
Orphaned Fig Tree Camp is no stranger to eland, as just two years ago it became home to an orphaned baby eland called Naserian. The calf had run into a herd of cows that were being looked after by a group of Maasai boys after her mother was killed by a lion. Naserian was rescued and taken to Fig Tree to be looked after by gardener Ole Silantoi and is now leading a safe and happy life in the Mada-owned camp. In addition to Naserian, Fig Tree Camp has
Jakob Bro-Jorgensen
played host to a research project, led by Jakob Bro-Jørgensen, investigating the Masai Mara elands. Jakob set up the Mara Herbivore Research Project at Fig Tree Camp in 1999 and began studying the communication methods of both eland and topi antelopes.
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