Amara Conservation - 2002 - The Mara Count 2002

The Mara Count 2002
The Count That Counts
From the December 2002 Newsletter

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We were quite proud to take part in the massive wildlife count organised by Robin Reid of ILRI (International Livestock Research Institute) and Mike Rainy of Explore Mara Ltd. and Bush Homes.

This may look silly, but these people
are taking part in a technologically
sophisticated wildlife count.

The Serengeti-Mara Ecosystem supports the most diverse migration of grazing mammals on earth, and surveys like this allow for the development of management and policy recommendations to manage these pastoral ecosystems more sustainably.

The Mara Count not only records 23 wild and 5 domestic animal species that are active during the day, it notes water sources, vegetation, shambas, fences, and burns, as well as infrastructure (such as buildings) and vehicles. This is done at an amazing spatial resolution of 333 x 333 metres, by utilising GPS and specialized software installed on PDA's carried by the teams.

Areas covered by the count.
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Teams that don't have PDA units with them log the information on paper and the data is entered when the team can get to a computer & generator.

For More On the 2002 Mara Count:

Visit Their Web Site