AfriGadget does more than blog about solving everyday problems in clever ways — the site’s founders offer a clever solution of their own.: the FLAP Bag.

FLAP stands for Flexible Light And Power. The flap on the messenger bag has the single solar panel on it, connected to the tech tray, which has an on/off switch, an LED light and a USB connection. So, in concept, the bag can be used as a portable lighting and power supply unit for anyone.

via Anouk’s Africa Travel Blog.

Northern White Rhinos were pushed to the edge of extinction by poachers. These four represent half of the world’s known remaining individuals. Experts from the Kenya Wildlife Service hope that the rhinos’ return to their native environment will trigger hormonal reactions which may promote more successful breeding attempts. In 24 years of captivity, the rhinos have failed to bear any offspring. If the program succeeds, White Rhinos eventually could be returned to their historic ranges in southern Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Cameroon.

The density of wildlife at Ol Pejeta, along with its relaxed rules and the quality of its accommodations, make it a popular safari destination. The opportunity to witness the revival of the rhinos — and to contribute to that revival through funds generated by the visit — make a stop at Ol Pejeta even more compelling.

Secretary Bird, Serengeti National Park, Tanzania. Photo by D. Gordon E. Robertson.

The Secretary Bird (Sagittarius serpentarius) is a mostly terrestrial bird of prey found throughout sub-Saharan Africa. Secretary Birds can stand as tall as four feet high, much of that height taken up by their long, crane-like legs. They are determined predators and they use their legs and claws to stamp and tear at their prey — snakes and other reptiles, rodents and other small mammals. While they spend much of their time on the ground, scrabbling for prey, they roost up in acacia trees and will occasionally take to the air to find alternate hunting grounds.

The Secretary Bird’s common name is sometimes thought to derive from the quill-like feathers poking out from behind its ears, which are not unlike the pencils or pens that might poke out from behind a real secretary’s ears. The more likely explanation is that the name is derived from a French corruption of the Arabic word for “hunter-bird” (saqr-et-tair). As for the scientific name, “Sagittarius” apparently does refer to the bird’s quills, which kinda sorta do resemble a quiver of arrows, and “serpentarius” reminds us of the bird’s favorite meal.

Birders and others looking to catch a glimpse of the Secretary Bird should head for the drier areas of East Africa’s grasslands. The Kenya Wildlife Service suggests Aberdare National Park, Nairobi National Park, Tsavo East and West National Parks, and Mt Kenya National Park. For its part, the UK based birding group Kenya Birds suggests Samburu National Park as the best place to strike the Secretary Bird from one’s list.

The growth in Western Circuit visits accompanies tourism growth throughout Kenya. Visits to Kenya are up ninety percent over the year. Continued growth of the Western Circuit should help Kenya’s tourism sector keep the momentum.

The Northern Acacia-Commiphora Bushlands and Thickets cover much of Kenya.

Continuing our survey of East Africa’s ecoregions, we now turn our attention to the Northern Acacia-Commiphora bushlands and thickets ecoregion. The ecoregion is bordered on the south by the wetter Southern Acacia-Commiphora bushlands and thickets ecoregion and on the north by the drier Somali Acacia-Commiphora bushlands and thickets ecoregion. As such it hosts many of the species of plant and animal found in both. However, it’s not wet enough to support the large migratory herds that roam the Southern ecoregion, but it’s too wet for species adapted to the drier climate of the Somali ecoregion. Large tracts of the region are protected within Kenya’s system of parks and reserves (ie, Amboseli, Tsavo East and West, Nairobi NP, Samburu).

Mammalian diversity and density are both high in the protected areas. In fact, the familiar grasslands predominate because the big mammals, particularly the elephants, control the growth of trees. Without the steady attention of these grazers, the trees would soon transform the landscape into woodland. Species endemism is low however, limited to a few gerbils among the mammals and several birds and reptiles.

Species that once thrived in the region have diminished in number as a result of the usual suspects — diminishing range, competition for water and forage from domesticated animals, poaching. Black Rhinos have been especially hard hit. Wild dogs, which once roamed the breadth of sub-Saharan East Africa, are rare even in the protected areas. Some conservation efforts, in contrast, have succeeded too well. There is some evidence that the growing population of big grazers in Amboseli National Park have altered the mix of both plants and predators. How? Competition from nomadic Masaai cattle — now banned from the park — probably played a role in the evolution of the region’s familiar blend of plant and animal. An ecoregion is not simply a plot of earth upon which certain plants and animals exist. It is a complex system of interactions among landscape, climate, flora, and fauna. Each participant contributes to the creation of the whole. Changes to one necessitate changes among the rest.

The AWF and Starbucks have recently announced the creation of the Coffee-Quality Laboratory on the campus of Kimathi University College of Technology in central Kenya. The Lab will allow farmers to taste the coffee they produce, many for the first time. More importantly, the Lab will introduce local growers to the latest coffee growing practices and techniques.

Most Kenyan coffee is grown in the Central Highlands region, near Mt. Kenya and Aberdares Forest National Parks. Travelers to Central Kenya cannot yet easily add a Kenyan coffee plantation to their itineraries. That should change soon, as the Kenya Heartland Coffee Project and the Kenya Wildlife Service are currently developing jointly operated tourism facilities.

The Kenyan Government plans to build a Sh112 million ($1.4M) cultural centre in honour of US President Barack Obama at his ancestral home in Kogelo…The Culture and National Heritage ministry had announced early this year that it had proposed a cultural centre comprised of a museum, a gallery, a library and a leadership centre to be created in Kogelo.

The residents of Kogelo have already benefited from President Obama’s connection to the village in western Kenya, including improvements to the central marketplace and the town’s key roads and wider access to electricity. An Obama themed cultural center and museum should cement the town as a popular stop for travelers exploring Kenya’s Western Circuit (Lake Victoria, Mt Elgon, Kisumu).

The map is presented as a Google Earth Layer and is available through Google Earth’s Outreach Showcase. The layer includes geographic data such as park locations, including gate and lodge locations, links to geographically tagged photographs, geographically relevant blog entries from wildlife conservationists, and photographs, video and details about the wildlife protected in each area via hyperlink to ARKive. Google Earth, available for free, is required to view the data.

The layer is a wonderful resource for anyone interested in conservation, and it’s a terrific tool for those considering a visit to East Africa.

Maasai cricket players. Photo by Jen Douthwaite, UNBP.

Cricket coach and baboon conservationist Aliya Bauer is leading an effort to introduce the sport to Maasai pastoralists in north-central Kenya. Bauer is the Deputy Director of the Uaso Ngiro Baboon Project, with which she has worked for the past five years. She competed in cricket at the provincial level in her native South Africa. The cricket initiative is one of the more unusual manifestations of the UNBP’s community outreach program.

“It is very encouraging for me as there are already well over 100 people who turn out for practices at venues around the area,” said Bauer. “This includes children as well as older Morans who are very keen and enthusiastic about the game.”

While the new cricketeers may be enthusiastic, Bauer worries that lack of resources prevents more Maasai from participating. “Without sufficient funds to cover transportation, accommodation and organizational costs, the development of the sport will remain stagnant,” she said.

And as for baboons, the Uaso Ngiro Baboon Project studies the behavior of the primates and works with local people to develop ways to overcome human-wildlife conflict. Overcoming that conflict requires modifying some baboon behavior (such as discouraging food crop pilferage through taste aversion), and it requires modifying some human behavior (such as recognizing baboons and wildlife as a resource worth protecting). Since its founding the UNBP has included locals in its scientific activities and has developed educational and entrepreneurial initiatives. Several years ago the group made a big push into ecotourism, and today they offer, among other experiences, baboon walks and Maasai livestock walks, during which a local Maasai herdsman leads hikers — and livestock — while sharing knowledge of the landscape and the flora and fauna.

The UNBP’s ecotourism facilities are located at the Twala Cultural Manyatta, near the village of Il Polei, about 60 miles north of Mount Kenya. Safari travelers already planning to visit Mount Kenya, or Sweetwaters, or even Samburu, might consider adding baboons to the itinerary. And maybe a Maasai cricket match.

Hatton perhaps best exemplifies the romantic era of 1920s East Africa. Finch Hattons Camp in Kenya’s Tsavo West National Park perhaps best captures the romance and elegance of the era.

While Hatton contributed to the romantic iconography of East Africa and safari travel, he also played a role in the development of Kenya’s national parks and conservation areas. Shortly before his death, he lobbied the English Parliament to ban hunting from vehicles in its East African colony and to establish wildlife preserves there. Hatton died in a plane crash at the age of 44.