Getting to Know the Animals on the African Wildlife Cams

We hope you’ve been enjoying the new African River Wildlife Cams… it’s been a thrill for us to watch these gorgeous animals! Read what the director and experts at Mpala, our partner in Kenya, have to say about the animals we’re seeing on the live cam in this first installment of behind the scenes facts!

Today we’re getting to know two of the prettiest species who hang out by the river and whose immaculate skins have contributed to their status and endangered: Reticulated Giraffes and Grevy’s Zebras.

Out of Africa author Isak Denisen penned a lovely description of a herd of giraffes as “a family of rare, long-stemmed, speckled, gigantic flowers slowly advancing.”

He really nailed that, didn’t he?

Reticulated Giraffes have distinguishable diamond or polygonal patterned skins, and as you’ve probably seen by now on the cams, are just beautiful. One of nine subspecies of Giraffes, there is thought to be currently less than 5000 Reticulated Giraffes left on the planet, and the Mpala Research Centre’s area of Lakipia is a safe haven for them.

Grevy’s Zebras are named after Jules Grevy, the French President in the late 1800s. He was given one of these Zebras as a gift by the government of what would eventually become Ethiopia.

You can tell Grevy’s from other subspecies of Zebra by their stripes, which end at their bellies instead of going all the way around and are narrower. They also have a black dorsal stripe to complete their majestic look.

Grevy’s Zebras are endangered and found only in Ethiopia and Kenya. Population estimates differ from approximately 2000 to 2500 and all of us at explore are very lucky that perhaps as many as one-third of the global population live in Lakipia and we’ll be able to see plenty of them on the cams!

Visit Mpala’s website today to learn more about how you can get involved and ways to support the wildlife in the region.