The first three months of the year had passed, and still no signs of rain. The heat was unbearable and the daily death toll for Grevy’s zebra was increasing. There was no grass left on the plains and the life giving water of the Ewaso Nyiro river was non-existent- you could see the dust clouds rising high into the sky as animals desperately tried to dig the dry river bed in the hope of reaching water underneath the sand. Our daily efforts to provide hay to Grevy’s zebra and other wildlife were unyielding- but our motivation was at an all-time low. How long could any animal survive under the constant pressure?
On the evening of 1st April 2017, at the height of the ongoing drought, an emaciated female Grevy’s zebra appeared at our camp. She had been attracted by the good quality grasses within the camp which have been spared by the livestock, and grazed all night between Tents 1 and 2. However, we were concerned – she was very weak and she had severe diarrhoea. The following day the team at camp got straight into action, putting out hay for her and creating a small water point for her between the tents so that she would not have to use energy walking the few kilometres to the nearest water point. On 4th April, she was named Naisabwa – “the Visitor”.
Our team What’s App group was filled with excited updates on Naisabwa. Her condition was rapidly improving, her strength improved, her dung healthy, and she had habituated to life at camp, grazing right next to the tents and mess area both day and night. People in the community wondered how she knew to come to the Grevy’s Zebra Trust camp and would visit our camp to see her for themselves. The explanation of grass attracting her to camp was not enough to dispel the belief among some that she was in the realm of the magical.
Here are some of our favourite daily excerpts from our team What’s App group were from Joel our Camp Manager took charge of Naisabwa’s well-being:
6 April: “Fantastic!! Naisabwa has taken water from her well located between tent 1 and 2! Tonight she is not going to Pukur.”
8 April: “Hi team I hope you are all doing well! All is fine here with good rain blessings! Naisabwa is doing great, she has improved. Every morning at 6 am she moves from the camp towards the buffer zone just hanging there till 10 am and back the rest of the hours of the day within the camp and the whole night.”
With the combination of rain and the proximity of a Grevy’s zebra herd that moved into the area, we believe that Naisabwa joined them to look for other pastures following the rain. Although she was our camp guest for just 10 days, Naisabwa touched all our hearts, and the memories of her will always stay with us.
