Discover, Plan & Go!

You will help Dr. Donald Ogweno, Fred Atieno, and Dr. Alexander Njue evaluate wildlife habitats both within and outside protected areas. You will conduct field surveys of wildlife and vegetation and map your findings to augment satellite images, measuring percent cover and height of grasses, shrubs, and trees. You will also assess the condition of habitats, including trampling, erosion, overgrazing, and other wildlife signs, and record the animals you see. For selected species, you will also observe foraging behavior. The information you gather will help determine which areas are used by which species, which areas are critical corridors or pathways, how the areas are responding to changing human land-use patterns, and how effective protected areas are in sustaining critical wildlife populations. In addition to your daily glimpses of African wildlife, you will also go on wildlife drives in nearby reserves.

The Wamba area is in the Samburu District of Kenya. Wamba is communally owned and the nomadic Samburu pastoralists, their livestock and wild animals live in close proximity. The area is rich in wildlife and includes Grevy’s zebras, elephants, various antelopes, gerenuks, cheetahs, lions, leopards, hyenas, the endangered wild dogs, birds and an array of invertebrates. There are no fences to keep wildlife within certain areas, and human-wildlife conflict over critical resources (water, food, etc.) contributes to a greater dispersal of wildlife. However, there are also several conservation areas in the vicinity, including Buffalo Springs, Samburu and Shaba wildlife reserves. Namunyak Wildlife Conservation Trust land can be accessed from Wamba town, where volunteers will be based.

The town of Wamba is one of the larger population centers in Samburu and has been the base for Earthwatch operations since 2003. Wamba is a rural town with almost no tourism, although many tourists visit the nearby reserves. The people in and around Wamba live the traditional lifestyle of the Samburu people. While in Wamba, volunteers will have the opportunity to get to know some of the community members who are crucial partners in Earthwatch’s efforts in this area. Volunteers will also learn more about the local Samburu culture. The Samburu people share a language and many cultural practices with the Maasai. They have a nomadic lifestyle and are believed to have emigrated from Sudan (which borders Kenya to the north) in the beginning of the 15th century.

High temperatures and low humidity characterize this semi-arid area. The vegetation changes with altitude and is dominated by acacia trees. The average annual rainfall in Wamba is 255-510 millimeters (10-20 inches), most of which falls during the two wet seasons (March-May and October-December). Earthwatch teams are scheduled to avoid the height of the rains.

As an Eons member, you'll get a free, 1 year membership to Earthwatch — a $35 value — when you sign up on any expedition. And members pay $100 less on their expedition contribution — so you save $135! Just put code EONS2007 in the comment field on the signup form, or, if you call, tell the Expedition Coordinator that you found us on Eons.

Earthwatch expedition-related costs may be tax-deductible in the US as volunteer expenses. Please check with your tax adviser.