Pamoja and her pup
In the late afternoon on Sunday the 8th of November, Constable Ranger Benson Nampaso and Research Assistant Joel Siololo from The Pangolin Project’s Mara Research team set-off for a grassy plain south of Pollilet Hill in the south of the Maasai mara, Kenya. Their mission: to locate the whereabouts of the resident female pangolin, Pamoja. She had been spotted in the area one week previously, so there was a good chance she was still nearby. Using an antenna tuned to the radio tracking device attached to Pamoja and their trove of experience, it only took the team half an hour to locate her approximate position.
As the grass was exceptionally short, the team spent a short while scanning the neighbouring habitat to try and catch a glimpse of Pamoja; there was a possibility she would have left the safety of her burrow to begin her foraging for the day. After several minutes of scanning without a single glimpse, Benson and Joel guessed that she was in one of the nearby burrows. Pangolins have an excellent sense of hearing and smell that they use to locate food, whilst their eyesight is relatively poor.
Knowing this, the team decided to continue their approach on foot, keeping noise to an absolute minimum, exiting their vehicle and edging closer towards the burrow entrance. They needed to be near enough to confirm with the Radio tracker that Pamoja was indeed within this burrow, whilst preventing any disturbance to Pamoja’s daily routine. At about thirty metres from the burrow, Benson and Joel stopped suddenly in their tracks. Pamoja was just outside the burrow entrance, digging the soil and feasting on ants. Pangolins have to feed for 4-6 hours daily solely on ants or termites in order to fulfil their nutritional needs, so it was important that her undisturbed state continue. The team began to silently and slowly manoeuvre themselves into a ‘downwind’ position, to continue to observe and monitor Pamoja’s foraging habits.
After a short while, Pamoja returned back inside her burrow for twenty minutes or so, whilst the team waited eagerly for another sighting. At 5:40pm Benson and Joel’s patience were rewarded with a second sighting, as Pamoja emerged, this time with her 3 month old pup on her back!
The Pangolin Project has been monitoring pangolins in this area for over a year, and astonishingly, this was the first time any team member had witnessed a mother and pup performing this behaviour in the field. Pangolins transport their young by carrying them on their backs whilst moving them between burrows. The pups spend all their time underground before being weaned, except when being transported.
While the sighting of a pangolin pup was cause for celebration, adult pangolins are equally elusive. These primarily nocturnal mammals have a highly secretive nature; this combined with their diminishing numbers means that observing pangolins in the wild is a rare occurrence for anyone. The vast majority of the Project’s sightings are recorded using camera-traps, installed to take images and videos throughout the day and night. Researchers spend over forty hours every month reviewing footage to gain a better understanding of this highly understudied species. This footage, alongside the extremely infrequent visual observations that Benson and Joel recorded here, add to a growing body of evidence, which is vital for the successful conservation of these endangered and beautifully iconic creatures.
Benson and Joel silently followed the pair downwind, at a safe distance for approximately half an hour. During this time, they noticed that the pup was never static, constantly moving about trying to ensure it had the best position on its mother’s back. It was evident that this was to prevent itself from falling off whilst Pamoja moved around the savannah.
Suddenly, Pamoja became aware of a disturbance in the distance which she deemed a bit too close for comfort. When pangolins feel threatened, they roll themselves into a ball, as their armoured scales are their only line of defence. The team were amazed to witness their first ever sighting of a Pangolin mum performing this behaviour with baby in tow. In a flash she manoeuvred her infant, threw it onto her soft underside and curled up into a tight protective ball, encasing her youngster in an armoured layer, completely out of sight. Prior to this, the ability of pangolin mums to protect their infants was unbeknownst to The Pangolin Project. Benson and Joel were both stunned and grateful to be the first of our researchers to witness and document this novel behaviour.
As the sun was setting and it was no longer safe to continue observing the duo, they left Pamoja and infant with a massive grin on their faces. It was a special day, indeed, for Benson, Joel, and the entire Pangolin Project team.
Constable Ranger Benson Nampaso is the Narok Country Government Ranger based at Keekorok Ranger station and Joel Siololo is a Research Assistant for the Pangolin Project, Kenya. Their mission is to aid in the collection of accurate scientific data, to enable us all to better understand the ecology for this unique species and protect them from extinction. If you would like to support this great work, please donate here. If you would like to know more about Pangolins, please visit our website here.