Mnyama, Mnyama!

That means animal, animal. It is the phrase that you may have heard several times in The song Circle of Life from the Lion King. I feel that this post is long overdue about the animals that I experience here.

The commonly raised animals are punda (donkeys: used for transporting water from the community water points), ng'ombe (cows: their milk is a big part of my nutrition), mbuzi (goat: local meat of choice), and kuku (chicken: both for meat and eggs). I have also seen ducks, although I am not sure the kiswahili word, or what people do with them. People also keep paka (cats: to chase away rats/mice) and mbwa (dogs: to chase away thieves). There are bees also, and I am investigating honey-related projects.

In terms of wild animals, I see ferrets scurrying in my area from time to time. At least I think they're ferrets. We have jumbo (elephants! Isn't that a great name for them?), but I haven't met them in the village yet, I think they come out at night. Their scat is definitely unmistakable. There is also the dikidiki (a small deer-like animal that people enjoy as bushmeat), which periodically scurry across the roads. The birds come in all manner of colors and sizes and are really delightful. Most importantly, let's not forget the lizards that come into my room and help control the insect population

Then there are the ones that I would call less pleasant animals. I have mentioned the cockroaches and termites in earlier posts. The bats are not actually unpleasant, they just have a habit of catching me off guard and flying very close to my head. Mice and rats seem fairly sparse. I think that means that the cats are doing their job. I have seen relatively few snakes and scorpions, and I hope to keep that streak alive. Then there is the nest of wasps next to my bafu. We usually have an understanding that I will stay away from them, and they will stay away from me, but sometimes, when I open the door, they think I am breaking our truce, which leads to some anger from them and from me. Only one sting so far. The moths love to visit me at night, since I have a light. I am grateful that they don't bite, but they are still rather pesky. In terms of biting, the flies and mosquitoes are everywhere. Everywhere. Good thing I have hydrocortisone.

During various parts of my time here, I have also seen lions, elephants, camels, zebras, gazelles, giraffes and buffalo. It's absolutely amazing!