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In this blog post I will provide an insight into how we conducted one of the world's first, large-scale, joint acoustic and camera trap survey, and how the acoustic data is helping to unearth a secretive side of large carnivores. Entering the hidden world of large carnivore vocalisations Good conservation is rooted in evidence-based decision-making. For conservation practitioners, one key bit of evidence is the knowledge of where and how many individuals of a species exist in a landscape. Conservation technologies such as camera traps (cameras which are triggered by movement), GPS collars, or autonomous recording units (microphones which record sounds) can help. These record data which can be used to calculate population sizes, determine where a species occurs across a landscape, or understand how a species might be impacted by human-wildlife conflict issues. However, biodiversity monitoring surveys rarely integrate different types of technology and autonomous recording units have never been used to study the occurrence of large African carnivores across a landscape. So, in August 2023 we set out to change this. In Nyerere National Park, Tanzania, an area with globally important populations of lion, leopard, and spotted hyaena, we conducted the first large-scale acoustic monitoring survey - 50 devices across 300km2 - for African carnivores alongside a camera trap survey and the collaring of 4 lions, with the goal of recording what lions sound and look like. This picture is formed from 2 separate camera trap images fused together to demonstrate the technology which we deployed in Nyerere National Park. Nb this lioness was collared by the Tanzanian Wildlife Institute for Research (TAWIRI), not Lion Landscapes. What are autonomous recording units/acoustic devices? Autonomous recording units, which is just a fancy way of describing a series of microphones encased within a plastic enclosure, record both ambient sounds and those originating several kilometres away. As an interesting side note, and as a general rule of thumb, acoustic devices have a similar ability to ‘hear’ sounds as humans do. On the left: an autonomous recording unit, named CARACAL. Each unit contains a circuit board with 4 microphones and a GPS unit. Cockroaches are generally not included. On the right: an example of the installation process of a CARACAL. Usually, in terrestrial habitats, these devices are installed several metres high onto a solid substrate (e.g., a tree), are powered by a battery source, and record acoustic data onto an SD card. Our devices were powered by 6 D-cell batteries and recorded acoustic data onto a 256 GB microSD card. This enabled us to continuously record the highly diverse sounds of the African bush for three weeks, before the card became full and the batteries died. Because data were recorded continuously, in addition to large carnivore vocalisations, we also captured brand-new sounds emitted from birds, insects, and other mammals. In total, the acoustic survey ran for 60 days (this required a set-up, two checks and a takedown - these efforts were supported by the Frankfurt Zoological Society, Lion Landscapes, TAWIRI and the Tanzania National Parks Authority - TANAPA - for which I am immensely grateful) and racked up a massive 75,000 hours of acoustic data. So now that I’ve recorded lions, what exactly am I going to do with the data? What do you mean - ‘lions have unique roars?’ A little-known fact is that lions have unique roars. A lion’s roaring bout is actually made up of 4 different stages and their unique full-throated roar is only one section of this full bout. We can use computational software to see how a lion's full-throated roar differs per individual. But admittedly, this is a weird concept - how can we see sound? We can view sound using something called a spectrogram. A spectrogram is a visual representation of frequencies within an audio signal as it varies with time. Below we can see the roaring bout of a lion. A lion's roaring bout can be separated into four distinct stages. Initial soft moans develop into full-throated roars which then switch to intermediary roars before the bout is finished off by a series of grunts. We can see that actually the majority of a roaring bout is made up of grunts and that the full-throated roars (which are the really important section because these roars are unique per individual) are usually restricted to 2-4 per bout. This is a spectrogram of a lion’s roaring bout. Black lines indicate the different vocalisations within the 4 different stages of a bout. A bout can be broken down into four stages. A) moans B) full-throated roar C) intermediary roar D) grunts. The full-throated roar of three different lions. We can see how the contour varies per individual. One focus of my PhD is to use the fact that a lion's full-throated roar varies per individual to produce a density estimate by looking at the number of unique roars across the landscape. The idea being that the number of unique roars is related to the number of vocalising individuals in Nyerere National Park. Any estimate that we calculate can then be compared to the results from the camera trap survey - a more standard and proven method of estimating the size of lion populations - to determine the usefulness of acoustic data in estimating the density of lions. But what about other species? Surely spotted hyaenas and leopards make cool noises too? Whilst this blog has specifically looked at lion vocalisations, my research will also hopefully incorporate the fascinating noises produced by spotted hyaena and leopard too. Via research or anecdotal/heuristic knowledge these species are also thought to produce vocalisations which are unique to an individual. But these have their own challenges. Spotties (spotted hyaena) have incredibly complex vocal repertoires. This is really cool, but from an analytical point of view, a nightmare. So, what this means is that for any analysis which attempts to differentiate between individuals I will need to select one very specific type of vocalisation. Even across a spottie’s whooping bout there are several variations of a whoop. Research has suggested that using the symmetric whoops are the best way of differentiating between individuals. This means though that there are many other very cool and interesting vocalisations that I will not use for this study e.g., hyaena laughter or predator-prey vocal interactions. Different vocalisations within a hyaenas whooping bout. Black lines indicate the different vocalisations within each stage. A bout can be broken down into 4 stages. A) preliminary whoop B) symmetric whoop C) asymmetric whoop D) terminal whoop. Leopards produce incredibly distinctive ‘sawing’ roars. If this statement leaves you confused, check out this link - and be ready to discover nature’s own chainsaw. Currently, there is no baseline study which proves that leopard roars differ per individual. This makes it difficult to conduct an acoustic density survey. However, given the volume of data that we have collected we are hopeful that these more basic questions can perhaps now be answered, and therefore lay the groundwork for future acoustic surveys of large carnivores. When applying the notion that an animal's vocalisations are unique to themselves, an important caveat and absolute necessity is that there is greater interindividual vocalisation variability than intraindividual. I.e., there is more variation between the vocalisations of different individuals than the natural variation that occurs from the same individual. The discovery of carnivore vocalisations Something which I find incredibly exciting is that large carnivore vocalisations (including the globally recognisable lion roar) are very much an under-researched field. But we are entering the gold-rush phase of acoustic monitoring; by combining large-scale passive surveys with newly acquired AI tools which allow us to process data more quickly, we will start to break into and discover a world that in the past we have only been a listener to. Combining audio data from the acoustic devices, visual data from the cameras and GPS from the collars will surely only be a good thing if we want to succeed in our goal to develop a more holistic understanding of large carnivores across a landscape. About the author: Jonathan Growcott is a PhD student working with Lion Landscapes. He is integrating tech, AI, and on-the-ground fieldwork to improve the monitoring of large African carnivores with a particular focus on lions. You can follow his work on Twitter/X.

Why do we identify lions? Identifying lions allows us to build an ID database so everyone can recognise the wild individuals in the field. Recognising individuals helps us understand: Where and how far they roam / how they disperse The degree of connectivity between groups Where conflict may occur All of this information can be used to better understand lion behaviour and manage potential conflict, working with multiple stake-holders to help develop successful conservation initiatives. How do we identify lions? There are a variety of features we use to help us ID lions, ranging from whisker spots to ear tears, scars or missing teeth and tail tips. As new lions are being born, and acquiring new distinctive features throughout their lives (e.g. ear tears, scars or missing teeth or tail tips), we need to constantly keep our database updated. There is however, one unique feature that doesn’t change throughout a lion’s life. Whisker Spots: The Lion Fingerprint! Did you know that the whisker spots of a lion are as unique as the human fingerprint? They are one of the only characteristics that don’t change throughout a lions life, which makes them ideal for identifying individuals as long as we have clear photos for the left and right side - check out the example below! Traditionally, the whisker spots are classified manually by counting the number and recording the position. Lion Ranger Wilson Sambaine, took this picture of this Borana female lion. For the left side, she has eight spots on her second line, and two on the top. These two ‘reference spots’ lie between spot 3 and 4, and 4 and 5. Along with clear photos of her other side (right), this unique patterning allows us to successfully ID this female if we come across her again in the field. If the whisker spot photos aren’t completely clear, we can use other features to support our identification, like the ears, nose, eyes, teeth and even scars!⁠ Left Side Reference Whisker Spots of Borana Female . Reference spot 1 lies in between spot 3 and 4. Reference spot 2 lies in between spot 4 and 5. Along with clear photos of the right side, this unique patterning allows us to successfully ID this female if we come across her again in the field. Lion Landscapes ID catalogues Once we have clear photographs of lion features, we can add individuals to our running catalogue. This can be used by Rangers and Researchers to quickly identify lions in the field from their facial structure, whisker spots, and any distinguishing features on their ears, nose and eyes. See the example catalogue pages for Bradymark, a female lion residing on @boranaconservancy, below! ID Catalogue for Bradymark, a female lion on Borana. Whisker spots, along with other distinguishing features, are collected to create an ID sheet for each lion. The Lion Identification Network of Collaborators (LINC) Lion Landscapes is part of a community of conservationists, that currently span Kenya and Northern Tanzania, in using LINC to upload and share our Lion ID’s. LINC is an open source platform that uses Artificial Intelligence (AI) to help identify recorded lions if they are uploaded to the system. This app uses facial and whisker recognition algorithms to allow users to compare photographs of unknown lions to an expansive database of individuals, helping to identify lions who move beyond an organisation's study areas. Since its launch in 2015, over 450 individual lions have been identified on LINC. You can help If you are visiting Laikipia, you can always contribute to our conservation efforts by sharing your photos of the lions you have seen on your safari. Follow the attached guidelines on how to take your photographs. If you have visited Laikipia in the past and have photographs of lions, we are still very interested to receive these images, even if they aren’t taken according to these guidelines. Please contact us at info@lionlandscapes if you have photos to share and we’ll invite you to a web folder where you can upload the files. Your sightings will be added to the LINC system, and LINC’s AI recognition tool will identify each individual that you’ve seen. By doing this, you will be contributing to the long-term dataset on the lions in this ecosystem, and helping to inform actions to protect them. Volunteer and help from home! Our small volunteer network has been vital in helping us build ID databases for Laikipia’s lions. We are always on the lookout for new volunteers to help us with lion ID by cropping key features from survey images. If you are interested, please contact us for more information. Hear from one of our volunteers Menina below: “My name is Menina and I have been IDing lions for Lion Landscapes for the last 10 months. The ID process comes with great amusement and reward. With each crop I take and every ID that I make, I get to know the unique personalities of Laikipia’s lions. It’s a really inspiring job that makes my day, everyday! The identification of lions is such a critical part of our conservation program and knowing that I am contributing to saving a species that I have got to know and love is a totally unparalleled feeling. If you are interested in conservation or helping to save a species, I cannot urge you enough to get in contact with Lion Landscapes - you won’t regret it!” If you would like to keep up to date on the lion research & conservation efforts of the Coexistence Co-op in Laikipia, please subscribe to the Lion Landscapes newsletter.

Last chance to donate to the Wildlife Ranger Challenge 2021 The Wildlife Ranger Challenge organised by Trust Trust took place last Saturday. It was a competitive race with over 150 teams from across Africa. The fantastic teams of Laikipia Lion Rangers held their own and came in with some really great times. As Lion Landscapes we are so proud of all the Laikipia Lion Ranger teams and grateful to the ranches and conservancies they represent. This was the second year of the Wildlife Ranger Challenge, which is organised by Tusk Trust to support Africa's rangers, allowing them to continue the vital work they do to protect wildlife, people and the precious natural landscapes of Africa. Meet some of the Laikipia Lion Ranger teams who took part in this gruelling 21km race below. Not only did they carry 22 kg backpacks while running this distance, they were running through incredibly tough terrain on the conservancies and ranches they work on. Traversing this kind of terrain is all part and parcel of their daily lives but not at a run. The Lion Rangers all trained hard for this race, showing impressive dedication on top of their daily work . Lion Landscapes is so thankful for the donations received so far that will support our work, and particularly these Lion Rangers. There is still time to show your support for their incredible efforts. Thank You! Sosian Lion Rangers - the fastest Laikipia Lion Ranger team Ol Maisor Lion Rangers - coming in 12th overall "The race was very tough and tiring.... we tried our level best and we enjoyed the race even though one of us was injured by thorn but we made it. We thank our management for their support for being with us at the ground from the start to the end and we thank Lion Landscape as well." Nicholas of Ol Maisor Mugie Lion Rangers "The race was tough especially due to the terrain and mud. We would wish to encourage other rangers to partake on the Challenge next time. Looking forward to next years Challenge" Samuel Losike of Mugie Borana Lion Rangers Karisia Lion Rangers Mpala Lion Rangers "The rangers were very enthusiastic about the run. We started with the full team hoping that if someone would drop along the way during the practice, we still had the minimum of four rangers, but all six managed to go to the end." Mpala Ranch For the full results of the Wildlife Ranger Challenge 2021 check the website . Stay in touch You can visit our website and keep up to date on our work and research in Africa by subscribing to our general newsletter. Join us on Facebook , Instagram , Twitter and LinkedIn for recent photos and stories from the field.

The WhatsApp message "Do you know these lions?" accompanied by a photo, is not an unusual question. What is unusual is to recognise a lion instantly, and without doubt, by his face. Normally it takes a process of checking and double checking whisker spot patterns, and any other distinguishing marks, before a positive ID is confirmed. But Mini's, which mean 'short ear' in the Maa language, is different. He has a strange and unique face with particularly small ears, and when our partners at Ewaso Lions sent through his photo in July this year, we recognised him instantly. With that recognition, Mini's and his 2 brothers were confirmed to have arrived in Westgate (in Samburu) having left Loisaba Conservancy (in Laikipia) over a year before. The excitement over this news was palpable. As the crow flies, it is not an extraordinary distance - 80 km - a lion could cover that in a few nights. The arrival of these 3 young male lions in Samburu was exciting because it meant that such a journey is still possible - lions can still move between Laikipia conservancies, which support abundant lions, and the community conservancies in Samburu. This 'connectivity' is important for the genetic health of both populations, and for the persistence of lions in community conservancies. Maintaining connectivity in the Ewaso ecosystem is a goal Ewaso Lions and Lion Landscapes share. Growing villages, increasing infrastructure and livestock densities all make dispersal for young lions seeking new territories increasingly difficult. Collar data from lions navigating this landscape help us to identify where passable routes still exist, and target our conservation programmes that facilitate coexistence between people and lions in these areas. Mini's is an unlikely hero. While his two brothers accompanying him are typically big, powerful Laikipia lions, Mini's is smaller than most, and his tiny ears and slightly shorter legs make him look distinctive different. When he was a cub we worried that he might not survive because he looked so small and disadvantaged. We rooted for him but tried not to get too attached, expecting to hear that he had died or been killed by another lion, but instead he survived to make an inspiring journey. Life ahead for these 3 lions will be full of challenges - a coalition of 3 adult male lions is not easy for a pastoral community to coexist with - but right now they are a beacon of hope for lion conservation in the Ewaso ecosystem. Read Ewaso Lions account of this story here . Mini's (left) and one of his two brothers (right) after arriving in Samburu from Laikipia's Loisaba Conservancy. By Ewaso Lions. Stay in touch You can visit our website and keep up to date on our work and research in Africa by subscribing to our general newsletter. Join us on Facebook , Instagram , Twitter and LinkedIn for recent photos and stories from the field.

Long term research in Laikipia has shown us that conflict between lions and people can be effectively managed by collaring and monitoring lion movements, and giving livestock owners access to real time lion movement data. This allows livestock owners to be proactive and keep their livestock away from lions, or increase their protection of livestock when close to lions. In January 2020 we decided to collar Felix, one of 5 young males, because we feared that such a big group of young nomadic males would kill livestock in neighbouring communities. Felix with his first collar and with his brother in January 2020, by Boniface Lowoi. However, as illustrated by a random selection of Felix’s movement maps over the last year, Felix and his brothers spend the majority of their time on Loisaba. The rest of the time he stays on other conservancies/wildlife ranches like Kamogi, Suyian, Ol Malo and Tango Maos Ranch. He only occasionally visits neighbouring Morijo, NYS and P&D communities, and there have been no reports of livestock killed during his visits. For a coalition of five adult male lions, Felix and his brothers have caused little trouble! On the early morning of the 22nd Nov 2020 Felix was re-collared as his previous collar stopped working. Heavy fog made the operation more 'atmospheric' than normal, as the team had to be extra alert to the presence of Felix's brothers. When recaptured the old collar showed some damage, which we suspect was caused by another lion. Data from the new collar has allowed our team and the Lion Rangers to monitor Felix and his brothers, checking for unusual movements that may indicate a problem. On the 14th March 2021, Felix's collar showed much less movement than normal and when the Loisaba Lion Rangers checked on him, he was found to be fairly badly injured. Felix’s coalition had been in a territorial dispute with an unknown pride. One of his brothers was also quite badly hurt. Collaring male lions has revealed that they are killed in fights with other male lions more often than we had thought. Felix and his brothers, however, survived to continue ruling their territory. On October the 5th, Felix was checked on by one of the Loisaba Lion Rangers after again receiving warnings from his collar that he was moving more slowly than normal. This time the news was brighter, Felix was mating with a female! Felix's collar has revealed him and his brothers to have settled into being highly functional pride males, defending a large territory, breeding and selecting wild prey over livestock. The map below shows the distinct ranges of current collared lions in Laikipia. Not all prides are collared and so other prides fill the 'gaps'. Five new collars are currently being shipped to Kenya and more collarings scheduled for November. Maps of Felix’s movements since recollaring Stay in touch You can visit our website and keep up to date on our work and research in Africa by subscribing to our general newsletter. Join us on Facebook , Instagram , Twitter and LinkedIn for recent photos and stories from the field.

World Lion Day is a moment for reflecting on lion conservation, which can be sobering. This most iconic species is undergoing decline at an alarming rate. Between 1993 and 2014, monitored lion populations dropped by over 40% with the main threats being habitat loss, prey loss and conflict with local people. Lions have disappeared from over 90% of the areas they used to occur in. Most remaining lion populations are small and isolated, with only six having more than 1000 lions. These challenges should not be underestimated: conserving wide-ranging, dangerous animals is extremely complicated. But there is also much reason for hope. Over this past year, the Ruaha Carnivore Project and Lion Landscapes decided to formally join forces and achieve more successful conservation through collaboration. We are now working together under a new Lion Landscapes organisation that benefits from the collective knowledge and experience of all our teams. Today we unveil our new, blended logo, which reflects the fact that both lions and people, walking together in shared landscapes, are at the heart of everything we do. But our organisation is about far more than just lions, or carnivores – it is about big, amazing, wonderful landscapes which sustain immense biodiversity as well as supporting people. Working across some of the most important remaining lion populations, our Lion Landscapes teams in Tanzania, Kenya and Zambia have developed effective, locally-informed approaches to help tackle major threats to wildlife. ‘ Lion Carbon ’, which we co-developed with BioCarbon Partners , helps incentivise habitat and wildlife conservation while tackling climate change. Our ‘community camera-trapping’ provides meaningful benefits to communities as a direct result of tolerating wildlife. Our ‘Coexistence Co-op’, which we run with The Peregrine Fund , empower communities to better live alongside dangerous wildlife. Local warriors, employed as Lion Defenders, safeguard people and livestock and deter illegal lion hunts. Meanwhile, on the Kenyan conservancies we partner with, Lion Rangers play a vital role in tackling conflict and poaching. Where do we work? Map displaying our locations. Those are just some elements of our collective work, which is showcased in this flyer . We have three 3 core pillars: stopping the loss of wildlife, reducing its local costs, and unlocking the value of conservation. Those pillars are on a foundation of local engagement and strong science, so we can make the best and most appropriate choices. We have seen real success: our work has reduced wildlife killings, helped local people and improved coexistence. And while it takes a large team on the ground, it would be impossible without the support of so many dedicated supporters around the world. So today we want to celebrate working together, thank you all for everything you have helped us achieve and look forward with positivity. Through passion, dedication, collaboration and partnership, we can and will build a better future for lions and for people. Please do take this moment to learn more about what we do , and to support it if you can. Thank you all very much!

After several gruelling days in the field, we are delighted to announce that 104 camera traps across 52 stations have been successfully deployed across the Zambia project areas for a brand new 2021 survey. The project spans Rufunsa Conservancy in the Lower Zambezi REDD+ Project area, and Munyamadzi Game Reserve & Kazumba Game Ranch in the Lower Luangwa Valley. View of the survey areas. Most of the lower Luangwa survey areas and all of Rufunsa are covered with Miombo woodland in hilly terrain. Reaching the sites Rufunsa has 28 stations of two cameras each, taking at least five long days in the field to set up. Many camera stations are over 2km from the nearest road, located in steep terrain. The most gruelling day working in Rufunsa includes a four-hour one-way drive to the western side of the Conservancy, where just two camera stations are deployed. The LLZ field vehicle next to some of the tall grass we have to walk through to access camera survey stations. In the Lower Luangwa Valley, sites are slightly easier to reach, albeit involving 4km treks from the nearest accessible road through 3m tall grass and in some places, deep mud. One camera station needed four hours driving followed by a four-hour walk where we came across a 3m cobra on the path! Deploying cameras at Kazumba requires a 90-minute one-way drive from the Munyamadzi camp, with collection and drop-off of a Kazumba private scout required. Some roads are too rough to navigate, with sticky mud and deep elephant foot holes. The field ecologist Nicky would most days leave camp at 5am to return at 8pm during the 7-day deployment schedule. Thanks to the hard and dedicated work of the field teams, all traps were successfully deployed to schedule ready to collect data! Right to left: Scout Brighton (LZRp training exchange), Nicky and Boniface (Munyamadzi Game Reserve) finishing recording camera station metadata before concluding deployment at this station. Results so far! The first card checks include the first record of wild dogs during the survey, all with full bellies! The female photographed below may be pregnant or have pups at a nearby den, a theory supported by frequent sightings of the pack in the same area over the past few months. Female mentioned in paragraph above; the group are other individuals in same pack. Transect sampling The early dry season distance sampling transects at Munyamadzi took place in the beginning of June a few days after the cameras were deployed. This involved refresher training for seven of the privately employed anti-poaching scouts and initial training for two women who did not make the cut for formal scout training in May. An additional four women were recruited into the teams to help carry equipment and water, all of whom were employed by Munyamadzi to cut grass for the camp roof thatching and were excited to be involved in the biodiversity monitoring activity. One grid cell was not able to be sampled – a first for Munyamadzi – due to closure of the only access road. Despite several dangerous encounters with elephants by the transect teams and deployment vehicles, everyone remained safe and very pleased with their accomplishments. Why do we sample these sites? The goal of the project is to develop a robust biodiversity monitoring system for the Lower Zambezi REDD+ Project area (LZRP) and LCFP, which supports BioCarbon Partner (BCP)’s objective of demonstrating enhanced biodiversity conservation. The camera traps allow us to monitor changes in population densities of key large herbivores, carnivores and Southern Ground Hornbill and to detect changes in population densities for these species within a realistic time frame.

We are delighted to share that two lions, Ronnie and Ian, have successfully been collared on Mpala and Sosian. Prior to collaring, they had attacked and killed numerous livestock on both ranches and local communities, resulting in building anger towards lions in general. Collaring a lion is no easy feat and so this is an incredibly exciting update; we have been playing hide and seek with the elusive Ian for over a year! Read on to discover the field stories from the day and the positive impacts their collarings are already having. The Collaring of Ronnie on Mpala The coalition of Ronnie and his brother Reggie has been hassling the livestock on Mpala and the surrounding communities for a long time. Since September 2020, we know of at least 12 cattle and calves (including a breeding bull) and 4 sheep who were killed by them. It is possible they were also the cause of the incident last August when a lion became trapped in a boma (livestock enclosure) and killed 34 sheep. There are likely more livestock killed by these lions that have not been reported; the loss has already cost thousands of US dollars and is a significant amount for livestock owners in Kenya to bare. To prevent further human-wildlife conflict (HWC) and safeguard the lions from retaliatory killing, Mpala were granted permission by Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) to dart and collar, with the collar provided by Lion Landscapes. After waiting for the perfect moment for weeks, on the 3rd of May, they struck again on Mpala and killed a community member's camel. As a dead camel meant the lions might stay in one place long enough to get the teams together, this was our perfect opportunity to get the collaring done! Out of the two males, we chose to dart and collar Ronnie as he had a slight injury on one of his legs, so we could check the injury and collar him at the same time (although no intervention was required as it was just a sprain). Thanks to the excellent collaboration with Kenya Wildlife Service and Mpala, it was an extremely easy and successful collaring. Dr. Dominic Mijele and his team from KWS first darted Ronnie with a perfect shot. Lion Landscapes worked alongside Mpala and their excellent research team at the scene to coordinate the capture. After recording his details and weight, Mpala were able to keep an eye on Ronnie post collating to make sure he was protected until he had completely recovered from the drugs. The Collaring of Ronnie. Photo by Tim Collins. Since the collaring, Mpala Research Centre and Wildlife Foundation have been continually monitoring Ronnie, using the mobile tracking app, and the two brothers have been doing very well. In the 2-weeks since Ronnie’s collaring, two potential HWC incidents have been averted using the GPS movement data. Last Sunday, the pair moved into a point that intersected with the route cattle use to go to a dam to drink. With that information, Mpala were able to warn the herders and have vehicles move through the area to chase the lions away before cattle arrived. Without the collar, the lions would have almost certainly attempted to attack one of the herds, as ambushing animals as they come to drink is a classic lion hunting strategy. Saving just 1 adult cow has huge impacts, with a cash value of ksh 60,000 ($550) each. Ronnie waking up after the collaring. Photo by Tim Collins. Map showing Ronnie's most recent movements. The Collaring of Ian on Sosian In memory of conservation hero Ian Lemayan. Ian and Jasiri are another coalition of notorious livestock killers living in close proximity to people on ranches and within communities. The pair are true escape artists; slightly aggressive, extremely shy and very cunning. Over the course of the year, we have found them many times and been prepared to collar, only for them to disappear before a vet could be mobilised. There has been a lot of effort and resources used to collar one of these males. Besides Kenya Wildlife Service who is responsible for the collaring, it has taken two Lion Ranger teams (Sosian and Ol Maisor), plus Lion Landscapes’ Thomas Mojong working together to achieve this. The teams searching for Ian and Jasiri. Photo by Tim Collins. For once, all the stars aligned. After a 13 hour day, traversing through extremely tricky terrain of thick bush and rocks, and moving from one ranch to another, we finally managed to catch and collar one of the two males. He has since been named by Sosian’s donor as ‘Ian’ in memory of the late conservation hero Ian Lemayan. Captain Ian Lemaiyan sadly passed away in February after the aircraft he was piloting crashed in Nanyuki. Lion Ian before collaring. Photo by Tim Collins Collaring Ian would have not been possible without the true determination displayed by Dr Michael Njoroge and his team, who travelled from Samuru to Sosian at 4am after working late the previous day to save an elephant. They spent the whole day trying to dart Ian, eventually managing to dart him at 6:46pm, and moved on the next morning to help rescue a grevy’s zebra. We are incredibly thankful for all the dedication and continued hard work from KWS, Sosian, Mpala and all of our partners on the ground. Ian's recent movements on Ol Maisor Understanding the behavioural ecology and demography of lions Collaring lions is important for protecting livestock from lions, and preventing the retaliatory killing of lions. It is also important because it helps us to try and understand the behavioural ecology and demography of lions in the area. Collaring is not a solution on its own, however. Our teams continue to work hard on a daily basis to monitor lions using the collars, better protect livestock and mitigate conflict. To learn more about our research projects on young adult dispersal and energetics living in human-dominated landscapes, visit our Research page. Lion Landscapes. Stop the Loss. Reduce the Cost. Unlock the Value.

Lion Landscapes CEOs Amy and Alayne recently visited Mark Adlington's exhibition at the John Martin Gallery London and were blown away by his evocative paintings. “Lion”, showing until the 28th of May, is the result of a three-year project by artist Mark Adlington to study wild lions in six different habitats across Africa. Every painting stimulates stories and intimate details from the many cumulative hours spent in the presence of lions, from the way they twitch their tails in different moods to bending their front paws inwards just before placing them on the ground. The magnificent exhibition is being held in collaboration with Pride Lion Conservation Alliance, with 10% of all proceeds from any sales directly supporting Pride and Lion Landscapes. If you cannot visit in person, we strongly recommend a visit to the online viewing room, to soak up some of Lion's essence. Read on to explore more through our exclusive interview with the artist. Lion Landscapes CEO's Amy and Alayne visiting ‘Lion’. Q. You have captured the essence of the lion really well (and that is coming from lion behavioural ecologists). Is it spending time with the animals themselves that allows you to do that? Where did you do your field research? Mark: Firstly thank you - really the best compliment I could receive! I have (reluctantly) used animals in wildlife parks in the past where necessary, but with this project, I made a decision from the beginning that I only wanted to draw wild lions. The captive lions in northern zoos had an overweight shaggy feel that failed to inspire me. I was lucky enough to make six separate trips to Kenya and Namibia, helped enormously by conservationists in both countries who have since become friends. Every place that I visited brought different lions, different landscapes, different light and different conditions - which is interestingly apparent in the finished paintings. In some places (Etosha) for example, you can only observe from the road, but then you also have the luxury of driving yourself and therefore putting in 12 hour days where necessary. In other places, I could watch them at night, or on foot. For me spending time with the animals was totally essential. I can honestly say that I learned something new from every single encounter - though this does leave you with a horrible awareness of just how much you don’t know! "For me, spending time with the (wild) animals was totally essential." - Mark Adlington Q. Were there any particularly powerful moments during your field research (or afterwards) that really influenced your paintings that you would like to share with us? Mark: As a painter it can often be strangely abstract visual things that really hit you - the surprising beauty of a carcass in the evening light, the pink curl of a lion’s tongue when grooming, or the way the myriad khakis of grasses blend into a lion’s coat. I once watched a small pride coming across a tortoise and using it as a football for half an hour. The big Male cuffed it about a couple of times then gave up, but the lioness was hugely athletic and knocked it about for far longer as if to try and teach her only cub, who then tried to emulate her before sitting on the tortoise for a long time before losing interest. I often found that subadults, particularly young males, just on the verge of being kicked out of the pride, were the most interested in me, as if looking for distraction while sitting out the long day and waiting for their free meal to arrive with their mother. Cubs playing are obviously endlessly entertaining and charming to watch, though that also gave me enormous respect and admiration for the wisdom and patience of their mothers. I only ever witnessed one successful hunt, in the Mara but have also seen how opportunistic lions can be, stealing an impala from hyaenas, and freezing, grandmother's footsteps style when stray game presents itself. Q. What was the most difficult and wonderful thing about painting lions (as opposed to other species)? Mark: I suppose the most frustrating aspect of the research element in this project was the famous 16-20 hours of sleep that lions can luxuriate in. To watch the golden hour casting magic over the landscape hoping that the lions will become active, only to see them begin to move the second the sun has truly disappeared. On the plus side, the powerfully fluid muscularity of wild lions meant that any simple action - sitting up, grooming, rolling over - presented me with an inspiring subject. And while the hypnotic charisma of their inscrutable stare is irresistible, three of my favourite paintings in the show, show lions turning away forcing the viewer to focus on the amazing structure of their bodies. The shapes of a lion, lion lines as I thought of them, are subtle and specific and more elusive than more eccentrically designed mammals like rhinos or elephants, and in the case of male lions, a lot of the structure is hidden in that famous hairdo. As someone who has always suffered from back issues, the incredible flexibility of a lion’s spine was a great inspiration through the amazing variety of poses they can adopt. Q. What made you decide to do a whole exhibition on lions? Mark: I have always tended to work with shamanistic intensity on one species at a time, but clearly tackling what must be the most iconic species in the world takes a bit of guts! I found the millennia of lion images from around the world rather overwhelming, but the more I got into the project, the more fascinating it became to see where even heraldic or highly stylised lions in art originated. I even began to understand that the numerous myths (Androcles/ Saint Jerome) could well have had their origins in real stories when I saw how relatively quickly wild lions that were not threatened became used to me over even a period of weeks. My ambition was to produce artwork which had observation and experience of wild lions as its absolute starting point but went beyond the normal confines of “safari art” in its execution. Q. What made you want to support Pride? "I knew I was watching and drawing lions in places that had come perilously close to losing them altogether in the recent past" - Mark Adlington Mark: I had first-hand knowledge of two of the organisations within the Pride umbrella, as I worked in the Chyulu hills and at Loisaba where Lion Guardians and Lion Landscapes have had such success in making it possible for people to live and work alongside lions with the minimal possible friction. And knew that I was watching and drawing lions in places that had come perilously close to losing them altogether in the recent past. I then heard about the Tusk Conservation lecture in London’s Royal Geographical society and went along. The talk given by Dr. Amy Dickman and Dr. Alayne Cotteril was hugely inspiring. Quite aside from the wealth of experience and pragmatic imaginative, multi-faceted conservation action, I found the whole concept of sharing experience, successes, failures, and even funding across borders and organisations obvious and ground breaking in equal measure. I am based in central London for much of the year, where I struggle (no really!) with pigeons and grey squirrels. We are asking local communities in African countries to live alongside lions. This is not an easy ask but if anyone can find a solution which provides a realistic future for these magnificent and most charismatic cats, I feel the Pride Lion Conservation Alliance can. It was a no brainer. Ten percent of the proceeds from any sales goes to supporting the Pride Lion Conservation Alliance.

Directly Linking Wildlife Presence with Community Benefits Living alongside large carnivores can be a scary and costly reality; imagine if your garden foxes were replaced with Africa’s top predators. Lions can sometimes attack both humans and the livestock they rely on, which can lead to the retaliatory killing of endangered species. Our programmes, including anti-poisoning training and boma reinforcement, have significantly reduced this potential conflict. However, people will never want to keep wildlife around just because the risks have been reduced. For long-term conservation - and for the welfare of local communities - it is vital that wildlife becomes a true asset to the people who live alongside it. This is why our conservation approach has three main pillars: Stop the Loss, Reduce the Cost, and Unlock the Value of living with lions and other large carnivores. ​ How do we Unlock the Value? Community Camera Trapping One way of unlocking the value of lions and other carnivores is our innovative Community Camera Trapping (CCT) programme. This directly links the presence of wildlife on village land to tangible community benefits. Villagers monitor their own wildlife populations through camera traps, and villages with more wildlife receive the most additional benefits. The initiative first started in Ruaha, as part of our joint-CEO Dr. Amy Dickman’s Ruaha Carnivore Project (RCP). Instead of researchers setting out camera-traps on village land, local villagers were trained and employed to do it. Two CCT officers from each village are equipped with camera-traps, bikes and GPS units. The CCT officers are selected by the village themselves and thus know the best areas for wildlife on village land. Every image of a wild animal captured generates a certain number of points, depending on the likely conflict risk and endangerment of the species. A lion generates 15,000 points and an endangered African wild dog is the most valuable at 20,000 points. Villages then compete against each other in groups of four on a quarterly basis to see who can generate the most points. All villages receive some benefits, but the winning gains ~US$2000 worth of additional community benefits, with the second third and fourth receiving $1500, $1000 and $500 respectively. The villages are grouped based on criteria such as proximity to the national park boundary and abundance of wildlife so each village has a chance to win within their group. At the end of the quarter, villagers all get together to celebrate and benefits are distributed. The images are shown to all villagers so they can see the wildlife that has been photographed on their land which ensures they understand the connection between the benefits and the presence of wildlife. Recent CCT captures in Idodi, Tanzania: Collared Lion 30,000 points (base 15,000 x 2 because of the collar). Leopard 15,000 points. Who decides on the benefits? It is vital that any community benefit initiatives actually address the needs and wants of the relevant people, and that people recognise that it is the wildlife (rather than the project) which is generating these benefits. To determine the best benefit initiatives, RCP had the villagers vote at community meetings, and they selected three top priorities: Better education for their children Better access to improved healthcare Access to good quality veterinary medicines However, these needs are constantly changing and we frequently hold meetings with villages to understand how we can improve. We recently received feedback that the youth felt neglected. Young men in our RCP work area are often a "forgotten" group and can easily get involved in an illicit activity such as poaching. In order to engage and support them we have modified our Community Camera Trap agreement and now include a special fund for the youth. The first purchase for nearly every village youth group was football related! We look forward to continuing to engage the youth across our landscape. Youth in Tanzania with new football equipment supported by the RCP CCT programme. Expanding Out: CCT Pilot in Lower Luangwa Given the success of the CCT in Ruaha, the programme is currently being piloted in another of Lion Landscapes’ study areas: Lower Luangwa, Zambia. Large areas of the Luangwa Valley are part of Lion Carbon. Participant villages in this pilot include the Chalubilo Village Complex & January Village Complex. The camera trap scheme will award communities with direct benefits (in the form of items purchased for households or community projects), based on the amount and type of wildlife recorded on camera traps placed within community managed areas. This should provide a very clear and visual link between wildlife presence in the village area and community benefits. As in Ruaha, Vulnerable species will earn communities more points, enabling the targeting of High Conservation Value species for both wildlife monitoring and community engagement purposes. Benefit funds are mostly spent on agriculture/food security (hoes, maize seed), health care (maternity, neonatal) and education (student stationery). The CCT has captured some incredible wildlife so far, including servals, wild dogs and elephants! Serval on the CCT, generating 5000 points. Three African Wild Dogs at 20,000 points each, providing 60,000 points for Luangwa! Elephant on the CCT, earning 15,000 points for Luangwa. Elephants offer a large number of points because they are costly to live alongside, damaging crops. Young Herders checking out the Community Camera Trap in the January Village Complex, Luangwa. Future Plans CCT has been highly successful, directly engaging and training local people in wildlife monitoring on their land, whilst providing an extremely clear link between wildlife presence and the provision of local benefits. In Ruaha, whole villages have imposed community bans on lion and elephant hunting which both used to be rewarded. This is a huge transition and demonstrates that communities can change quickly if they see a reason to do so. Ultimately, Lion Landscapes has goals to expand this CCT programme further across Tanzania, the Luangwa and Luano Valleys and implement it in Laikipia, Kenya. Lion Landscapes. Stop the Loss. Reduce the Cost. Unlock the Value.

Happy Earth Day! Today we celebrate positive climate action to protect our Earth. Lion Landscapes has recently committed to being 100% Climate Positive using Lion Carbon, an innovative carbon offsetting model developed by BioCarbon Partners (BCP) in partnership with Lion Landscapes. Since our announcement, we have received lots of questions about how the Lion Carbon REDD+ model works and thought that Earth Day would be a great time to answer your queries! Q: What does REDD+ mean? A: REDD stands for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation. It is a UN Climate Change mitigation strategy, based on the principle that carbon will be locked up in protected forests instead of being released into the atmosphere. Currently, deforestation alone is responsible for up to 20% of greenhouse gas emissions. The additional “+” in REDD+ is added for the conservation of existing forest carbon stocks, sustainable forest management and enhancement of forest carbon stocks. Q: Is offsetting really the solution to Climate Change? A: Offsetting provides a mechanism to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the most cost-effective and economically efficient manner. Offsetting therefore plays a vital role in combating climate change, but if done in isolation is definitely not the solution. Before offsetting is considered, initial emissions must be reduced as much as possible to then offset those remaining unavoidable emissions. Q: How do you make sure all communities are fully involved in forest selection? A: Reducing deforestation can never be successfully or fairly achieved if communities are not leading the decision making themselves. In the Lion Carbon model, planning and implementation of forest management is all community led through Community Resource Boards. Teams are built internally from within local communities to protect and monitor their own forests, with support from BCP, the Department of National Parks and Wildlife, and Lion Landscapes. As expected, engaging all communities has been no easy feat, involving a long process run by BCP starting in 2012. BCP follows internationally recognised standards of obtaining “Free, Prior, and Informed Consent” in order to work with communities to protect forests through 30-year agreements. In this case, BCP not only ensures that communities understand and agree to a REDD+ forest protection project, but that they are front and central to the development and implementation of that project. BCP CEO Dr Hassan Sachedina has recorded a podcast that you can listen to for more information on this story. Q: How are the offsets ‘Certified’? A: Like all of BCP’s offsets, all Lion Carbon offsets are verified by The Verified Carbon Standard (VCS). VCS is the world’s most highly regarded and recognised independent authority on verified carbon projects. BCP is rated the most impactful REDD+ developer in the world, as the first to receive five consecutive verifications and Climate, Community and Biodiversity (CCB) Triple Gold status for exceptional community impacts. These standards also verify that our carbon offsets are real, rigorously and scientifically measured, and benefit local communities, forests, and biodiversity. Q: How are the offsets monitored? A: The Forest Monitoring Team is a select group of 4 from the local community who have been trained to collect data on biomass, illegal logging, wildlife and soils on the ground. They work with the Community Scouts and the Carbon Accounting team using GPS technology and satellite imagery to identify areas affected by deforestation and encroachment. They also use a smartphone application (spatial monitoring and reporting tool - SMART) to collect forest carbon data and to record and track wildlife sightings of key species such as lions, ground hornbills and wild dogs, and any illegal activity encountered. This contributes to our wider biodiversity monitoring efforts in the area, which monitors the trends in number and distribution of wildlife species in REDD+ forests. An estimated 512 million trees are monitored. Q: How is revenue invested back in the community? A: Revenue from the sale of all BCP's carbon offsets is invested back into communities in multiple ways. Revenue helps to build local capacity to protect and sustainably manage natural resources. This ensures communities have access to these essential natural resources for years to come, and helps secure a future for other wildlife related income such as tourism. Income from carbon also creates a more prosperous future through directly supporting sustainable livelihoods and enterprises, and improved access to social services such as education, healthcare and clean water. Revenue is also given as direct payments; since 2020-2021, direct benefits of over $4 million have been paid to over 220,000 households. Q: BCP sells different types of offsets, how is Lion Carbon different? A: Lion Carbon is a premium offset. When you purchase Lion Carbon, additional revenue is invested into conservation activities that monitor, protect and regenerate lions and other wildlife species. REDD+ income is based on the conservation of trees. Although the habitat protection this provides is enough to ensure the survival of many species living in these forests, additional conservation activities are needed to ensure the survival of many others. Lion is the perfect umbrella species for this additional conservation work because they face a wide range of threats, loss of habitat being just one. Healthy lion populations indicate other major threats to wildlife, such as poaching and conflict with people over loss of livestock and life, which have also been successfully addressed. This is why our goal is to ensure REDD+ forests can support lions as well as wider biodiversity and people. There are 3 pillars of community-based activities that ensure a future for wildlife in REDD+ forests: Security - Protect existing wildlife biodiversity through anti-poaching activities Regeneration - Increase wildlife biodiversity through active reintroductions Monitoring - To inform the adaptive management of all wildlife conservation efforts Offsetting with Lion Carbon therefore means you are protecting not just our planet and supporting local Zambian communities, but also directly protecting threatened or endangered wildlife. There is a clear link between protecting forests through Lion Carbon, working with communities, and the increase of wildlife; 2020 was a year of zero encroachment for the REDD + Project in Lower Zambezi! A total of over 1 million hectares of forest have been protected from 2020-2021. Two lions on Camera Trap in the forest of Luangwa, Zambia. Zambia has one of the largest wild lion populations and the Luangwa Valley Ecosystem is a lion stronghold. Q: Is Lion Carbon just for businesses? A: We encourage businesses and organisations like us to offset using Lion Carbon. Individuals can also offset using Lion Carbon themselves. Q: How can I offset using Lion Carbon as an individual? What is your expected price per credit? Lion Landscapes Volunteer Joni Oberbosch offsets her personal emissions using Lion Carbon, here is how: "We have invested in solar panels and other emission-reductions, but I can't get my footprint down to zero. I first calculated my footprint using an online calculator, doubled the amount because I want to be 100% climate positive and then subscribed to buy offsets on BCPs website. BCP follows up with an email and I then asked through email to upgrade to Lion Carbon. Lion Carbon will be available to purchase directly on BCP's new website soon." "I'm offsetting 4 tonnes per month for USD50." Do a ton of good this Earth Day by supporting this initiative and offsetting your emissions using Lion Carbon!

Laikipia is home to a diversity of incredible wildlife species. The Lion Rangers and Researchers of Laikipia are always taking excellent shots of the local wildlife they spot on their field patrols. Here, you can view a selection of our favourites. East African Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus jubatus) Laikipia's Innovative Photographers: The Laikipia Lion Rangers The Laikipia Lion Rangers patrol over a total of 111,250 hectares of Kenya's prime Lion Landscape, helping protect community livelihoods for those sharing the landscape with nearly 300 wild lions.⁠ On their patrols, the Lion Rangers and Lion Landscapes Researchers have bumped into an incredible array of wildlife, capturing some great sightings. Incredibly, the Rangers don't often have cameras, so they use their mobile phones and binoculars to get these incredible close-up wildlife shots surrounded by a black rim. The African Bush Elephant (Loxodonta africana). The largest terrestrial mammal. Waterside Spots by Thomas Mojong, Terrapin turtles and Nile crocodile. Leucistic "blonde" Zebra by Thomas Mojong. This zebra has less black melanin pigmentation than the other normal zebras. Two Defassa waterbuck (Left) and Female Greater Kudu (Right) by Lion Ranger Boniface Lowoi, on Loisaba Conservancy. Oxpecker and Wattled Starling sitting on White Rhino at Lewa Conservancy, by Thomas Mojong. Lioness hiding in the undergrowth at Mugie Conservancy, by Elaine. Lion with zebra kill at Loisaba Conservancy. Lions and Ecosystems Although our conservation work focuses on lions and other large carnivores, their presence will protect and maintain healthy ecosystem functioning. All species are important to ensure the health of an ecosystem but lions are particularly important as apex predators, meaning their decline or removal would lead to ecosystem collapse. If large carnivores disappeared, herd populations would boom and grazers would eat the grass, transforming the savanna as we know it. A Lion Landscape is a landscape that supports a viable population of wild lions, or any other pinnacle carnivore species. To do this it must also support healthy wild prey populations, healthy habitat, and benefit local people. ⁠Our lion conservation and research work focuses on how local communities, their livestock and lions can co-exist in these lion landscapes.⁠ ⁠ By supporting us at Lion Landscapes, you are supporting the maintenance of healthy and biodiverse landscapes. Be sure to follow us and be the first to see any new spots!