02/02/2023
Nagol – Neema’s two-year-old daughter, Rani’s granddaughter and Shakira’s great-granddaughter, was born in November 2020. From the very beginning of the independent life at the age of 17 months, Nagol turned out to be the most successful hunter of the three Neema’s cubs. After three months of staying together with her brother Noma and sister Nariku, Nagol left her littermates, who remained together for another 2 months. However, even when catching large prey for herself, Nagol did not always had the opportunity to eat the whole carcass, especially if she hunted in the open field. Unlike males, females try to hide prey from kleptoparasites, sometimes dragging it to a distance of more than 50 meters, and hiding it in tall grass or under a bush. Vultures are often the first to notice prey, after which jackals come to the place, followed by hyenas. Jackals, especially if there are several of them, can wait for their turn to eat for a long time, but try to get access to food from time to time. One of the adults tries to distract the cheetah by attacking from behind and biting on the rump or tail. Experienced cheetahs are not distracted from food, but periodically make a throw at the annoying predator. But when a hyena appears, a lone cheetah does not have a chance to save prey, even if jackals detain a stronger competitor at a distance. In the wild, cheetahs experience injuries (eg, external wounds, temporary joint dislocations etc.) for which the cause is often unclear, and the animals generally recover on their own. If the cheetah can move freely and successfully hunt, intervention is not necessary. In rare cases, cheetah has no visible wounds, but cannot move properly, that is cannot escape from predators and get food. Even temporary immobility can cost a cheetah its life. Therefore, it is important to monitor the physical condition of each individual in order to help if necessary. In the end of January, one of the Mara guides informed us that he had found a female who was walking with great difficulty. We found her sleeping in the bush, and within 2 hours she got up only once (by that we identified her as Nagol), and from the manner of her movement (limping on the left front and back legs) it became obvious that she had a problem with the spine of unknown etiology. We immediately reported this to the park authorities and veterinarians, and the necessary assistance was provided to the female. The drug, administered by the KWS Veterinarian with the help of a dart (without immobilization of the animal), had a beneficial effect, and after a 3-hour rest, the female moved noticeably more freely. Over the course of several days of close monitoring, we watched as the stiffness of her limbs disappeared, within 2 days Nagol travelled over 10 km and later hunted successfully on her own. Nagol is a young female and her role in enriching the genetic diversity of the cheetah population of the Mara-Serengeti ecosystem cannot be overestimated. We would like to note the vigilance of the guide John Musukut and the well-coordinated work and the fast response of the KWS veterinarian team and in particular Dr. Michael Njoroge (operating on a program SKY VET, sponsored by the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust) and Felix Micheni, Veterinary assistant to the KWS Mara Vet, and the Maasai Mara National Reserve Warden Robert Parmuat, who altogether saved the life of a young cheetah Nagol. Teamwork is the key to success in the conservation of rare species!
