False msafiri WILDLIFE 116 KENYA’S TERRIFIC TRIO Lungfish Deep beneath the cracked mud of a dry lake bed lurks a living fish. The lungfish waits out the dry season in a cocoon of its own mucus until the rains arrive to release it. Its lung- like air bladder allows it to breathe out of water. Armadillo girdled lizard This spiny- scaled reptile inhabits rocky crevices in South Africa’s Western Cape. If caught out in the open by a predator it will take its tail in its mouth and roll itself into an unswallowable ball. Hero shrew A small, furry animal weighing just 100g. Step on it and you’ll crush it – right? Wrong! This remarkable insectivore has a massively reinforced spine that can support the weight of a grown man. Nobody is quite sure why. Black heron A floating hat? An abandoned umbrella? No – it’s a black heron, making a unique canopy of its wings in order to lure fish into the shade. They won’t make the same mistake twice. European swift This migrant from Europe has such tiny, vestigial feet that it cannot perch – except by clinging to vertical surfaces. But who needs feet when you can feed, mate and even sleep on the wing? Some never touch down in Africa at all. Cartwheel spider When ambushed by a hunting wasp or lizard, this diminutive denizen of the Namib Desert simply flips on its side and cartwheels away down the dune slope. Africa’s wildlife is struggling under ever- increasing human pressure. Of the Big Five alone, already black rhino, white rhino and elephant are listed by the IUCN as internationally endangered, while lion populations are plummeting. Here are three conservation organisations that are working in Kenya to help secure the future of its wildlife. Q Kenya Wildlife Service www. kws. org KWS was established in 1990 to manage the country’s biodiversity and protect and conserve its flora and fauna. It also manages all national parks and reserves, channelling money from entrance fees into conservation projects nationwide. Q WWF www. panda. org The world’s largest conservation organisation has been active in Kenya since 1962. Today it is working with local communities to protect the East African marine ecoregion, which boasts over 11,000 species of plant and animal. Q David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust www. sheldrickwildlifetrust. org This trust, founded in honour of the famous naturalist, plays a key role in Kenyan conservation – especially in Tsavo National Park. Daphne Sheldrick ( David’s widow) is famous for her pioneering work with orphaned elephants and rhinos. Some animals just never seem to show. Many are rare or live in remote places, but others have simply perfected the art of eluding the observer. THE secret7 Pangolin You’ve seen its picture everywhere: that scaly creature curled up like a giant artichoke. But have you ever seen the animal? Widespread, but notoriously elusive, it continues to frustrate many a seasoned safari watcher. caracal The field guides reveal this beautiful cat to be one of Africa’s most widespread carnivores. So try finding one. Sightings happen – but only for the chosen few. black- foted cat Rare and shy is not a helpful combination for the observer. To spot this tiny cat you will need to search the arid scrubland of South Africa’s Karoo by night – and probably for a very long time. Coelacanth This ancient fish, presumed extinct for 65 million years, first turned up on a South African trawler in 1938. Since then more have appeared in Indian Ocean locations, including off Kenya and Tanzania. But as they generally live at 100m or below, live sightings are only for deep- sea divers. Pel’s fishing owl This enigmatic, apricot- coloured owl has acquired a certain mystique among birdwatchers. But some locations, including Zambia’s Luangwa Valley, offer reliable sightings. Check out big trees overhanging quiet lagoons and rivers. Okapi So elusive is this cousin of the giraffe that it was not described by western science until 1902. Today it is confined to the Ituri rainforest of the Democratic Republic of Congo, where its striped coat blends into the dappled under- storey. Congo peacock While looking for okapis, you could also try ( and probably fail) to find a Congo peacock. This shy bird was discovered even later: in 1936. Scientists were amazed to find that it has close affinities with the Asian peafowl. Africa’s wildlife has a trick or two in store, producing some unexpected solutions to the thorniest of survival challenges. 6 Pete Oxford/ NATUREPL. COM THE sURPRISING HERMANN BREHM/ NATUREPL. COM

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