Microsoft word - 2010_pfs_oreintation.doc

Primatology, Wildlife Ecology & Conservation Field School in Kenya
Locations: Laikipia Plateau and Tana River Primate National Reserve, August 1-28, 2010; Rutgers University Study Abroad Program, National Museums of Kenya and Rutgers University and National Museums of Kenya
Primate and Wildlife Ecology Fieldschool 2010

Administrative Co-Directors
Dr. Jack Harris, Professor of Anthropology, Rutgers University & Research Associate, NMK
Dr. Tom Kariuki, Primate Research Institute, National Museums of Kenya
Dr. Samuel Kasiki, Kenya Wildlife Services
Dr. Purity W.Kiura, National Museums of Kenya
Administrative Staff, Nairobi
Emmanuel Ndiema- NMK & Rutgers University

Field Co-Directors
Dr. Leah Domb, Lawrenceville College
Dr. Julie Weiczkowski, Buffalo State University
Instructors
Dr. Alfreda Ibui, National Museums of Kenya
Stan Kivai, Institute of Primate Research, NMK
Luca Morino, Department of Anthropology, Rutgers University

Consultants/Lecturers
Dr. Geoffrey Wahungu, Wildlife Ecologist, Moi University Peter Fundi, Wildlife Ecologist, Mt. Kenya Animal Orphanage Dr. Paul Muoria, Wildlife Ecologist, Africa Wildlife Foundation Dr. Martin Mulama, Coordinator of Sweetwaters Chimpanzee Sanctuary Professor Daniel Rubenstein, Wildlife Ecologist, Princeton University Elaine Matheson, Wildlife Ecologist, Laikipia Carnivore Predator Project

Support Staff
David Mutuse - Driver/Mechanic
Sylvester Musango - Cook
John Muindi - Head Cook John Mwangi – Camp Logistics Coordinator Wycliff M- Driver
Students

Jacqueline Mease
Buffalo State College
Erin Dimech
Drew University
Nicholas Ulecka
Rutgers University
Loni Smith
University of Calgary
Clarissa Vinciguerra Rutgers University
Jacob King
University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
Lainna Tatman
Buffalo State College
University
Nakazawa
University
Katie Rozek
SUNY Buffalo State College
Rachel Herdman
Rutgers University
Alexander Shimm
University of California Davis
University
Shangshang Chen
University of Virginia
University
Hassina Aliane
University of Algiers
Noreen Mutoro
University of Nairobi
Francis Read
University of Edinburgh
Kimani Ndung’u
University of Nairobi
Leswea Silda
University of Nairobi
B. Schedule


August 1:
Arrive Nairobi, assemble at the Sirona Hotel Nairobi/orientation-visit to Kenya Wildlife Services (KWS) & Institute of Primate Research (IPR) Mugie Ranch- Rhino sanctuary, Vegetation, radio collared lions & other animals of African Savanna ecosystem Mpala Research Station-Lectures (Dr. Rubenstein, Margaret Kinnaird) on research on plants, animals & human conflict issues Mt. Kenya Camp Site- Mt. Kenya Conservancy & William Holden Education Centre Travel- Tana River Forest Reserve (study primates) Twiga Camp Site, South Coast (south of Mombasa)- Colobus Trust & FINAL EXAM Return to Nairobi- Farewell dinner at Carnivore Typical Day at Tana River, Lakipia Plateau or Kibwezi Forest. Animals are most active in early morning and late afternoon, so field work is scheduled to maximize viewing of active animals. 7 a.m. – 10 a.m.
field work
tea, lecture, discussions and/or data organization, analysis 2 p.m. – 5 p.m.
field work
Critical Information

Shots: Obtain all the immunizations and malaria prevention medication that you need as
described in the acceptance letter and in consultation with your doctor. In particular, your
routine vaccinations should be up to date, and vaccinations for Yellow Fever, Hepatitis A and B,
and meningitis are recommended. Some of these should to be done in advance so do not wait
until the last minute! You will also need to discuss which Malaria prophylactic you will be using
and make sure that you bring your medicine with you and start the treatment as your doctor
prescribes.
Visas: It is not necessary to get your visa before you depart for Kenya. On arrival into the
airport in Nairobi, there will be a checkpoint where you will be able to get your visa. If you
travel internationally often, make sure there is a completely blank page in your passport. There
will be a form for you to fill out (usually given to you on the plane before it lands) and the visa
fee ($50 US Dollars) must be paid in cash. They will not accept checks or credit cards.
Money:
The current exchange rate for Kenyan Shillings is about 75 Ksh/= 1US$. You
should bring enough cash with you for the summer. You will need $25 for your Visa
at airport, $50 for paying sodas, snacks, and goodies to bring in the field, $50 while
you are traveling for incidentals, and money for gifts and items that you want to bring
home (more or less $200 should do). You should also bring an ATM card that you
can access cash from in Nairobi. Make sure that you notify your bank that you will be
traveling internationally before you go. You should also have a credit card just in
case. Travelers Checks are much less useful now then in the past as you can only
cash them at banks and exchange places while you can access ATM machines and
change cash in many locations and at many times of the day or night.

What to bring: It is important to bring what you need and to not bring too much. You will find that
camping equipment is expensive and difficult to find in Kenya. Do not forget your tent. Bring sturdy
clothes that you do not mind if they suffer wear and tear. Bring one nice outfit that is easy to
carry and limit the rest of your clothing to things that are appropriate for the field. Do not
bring laptops, things that plug in etc. unless you are prepared to leave them in Nairobi.
Tent, sleeping bag, sleeping pad, & sheet Field notebook, preferably with hard covers; notebook for rough notes Flashlight, extra bulb, and enough batteries to run it for 6 weeks (warning: Many students underestimate the # of batteries needed!) 2 water bottles with a carrying strap or belt Personal medical kit: e.g. strong sunscreen, chapstick, insect repellent, anti-itch lotion, aloe (for sunburn), antibiotics, antibiotic cream (Neosporin), band-aides, aspirin/ibuprofen, antihistamine, vitamin supplements, anti-diarrheal, laxatives, tampons, yeast infection treatment, etc. NOTE: If you are bringing any prescription medication, bring extra, as you may have difficulty replacing it if any gets lost or ruined, especially at Koobi Fora Personal hygiene kit: toothbrush, toothpaste, towel, shampoo, conditioner, soap, comb, nail clippers/file, tweezers, small mirror (for shaving), Q-tips, Visine, hand-wipes, anti-bacterial hand lotion etc. Anti-malarial medication: Malarone, Doxycycline or Lariam are prescribed in the
US by doctors as anti-malaria pills. We have found that some students are
susceptible to side effects from Doxycycline (sun sensitivity, acid reflex) and
Lariam (vivid dreams, paranoia). We strongly recommend that if possible,
students take Malarone, which has very few side effects.
Camera –with extra battery and twice as much film as you expect to use NOTE: If you are bringing a digital camera, make sure you have a lot of batteries (not rechargeable, but disposable) and a large memory card, as you will not have the opportunity to download any photos onto a computer Sunglasses (contacts are not recommended - very windy and dusty conditions) The Coleman Sundome 7ft. by 5ft. is a tent that is a good size and is reasonably inexpensive and can be purchased through Campmor (www.campmor.com) NOTE: At Koobi Fora we do not have dependable access to electricity, so hairdryers, computers, rechargeable batteries, etc are useless and will be left in Nairobi Walkman/Discman (also bring batteries for this!) (3) One or two paperbacks (4) Small pillow (5) Field Guide on East African ecology/mammals- see list later in the packet. (6) Playing cards, travel games (7) Candy, gum, Power Bar-type snacks, packets of powdered drink mix (8) Clipboard (9) Compass (any cheap one will do) Flights and Arrival in Nairobi
We request that you arrive in Nairobi no later than August 1st and depart no earlier than August 28th. When booking your flights, be sure that your arrival point is Jomo Kenyatta Airport, Nairobi, Kenya. The airport code for Nairobi is NBO. You will want to check Virgin Atlantic (virginatlantic.com) British Airways (ba.com) or KLM (klm.com). Expedia.com and other multi-airline search utilities can be useful. Tickets
should be approximately $1500. Also, when searching for flights, make sure your arrival date in
Kenya is August 1st. Depending on the airline, you will either have to book your ticket
departing from your home city on July 30th or 31st.
Booking early is advised, as excessive delay in acquiring your flight can make the costs prohibitive. We request that you send your itinerary to us after you book your flight so that we
can make arrangements for you to be picked up from the airport. When booking your flight, we
advise that any layovers you have be no shorter than 3 hours. Many times when we’re booking
staff member tickets, we aim for a 4 hour layover. We do this mostly so that if there are any
delays on part of the trip, there is no worry about missing connecting flights or luggage not
making it to the final destination on the same flight we’re on.


Right now the flights on Continental Airlines are tcheapest PFS 2010 Flight Schedules
~$1,561 (roundtrip) from Expedia.com ~$1,776 (roundtrip) from Orbitz.com ~$1,591 (roundtrip) from Kayak.com *Prices fluctuate throughout the week Please make sure that whatever flight you take that you arrive in Nairobi by August 1st.
Remember some flights may take two days to go from Newark to Nairobi so check your
arrival days and times very carefully. The VA flight that leaves from Newark in the
morning has only a one hour layover in Heathrow. You would be better off taking the
evening flight on the 30th of July and spending the day in the airport in London. This is two
overnight flights Newark to London, 13 hour layover, and London to Nairobi the second
overnight flight. This is a rough schedule but this maybe the best.
EWR to NBO:
8:00 am Depart from Newark (EWR)
July 31th, 2010
Virgin Atlantic 18/671Connect in London (LHR)
7:50 am Arrive in Nairobi (NBO)
9:00 pm Depart from Newark (EWR)
July 30st, 2010
Virgin Atlantic 18/671
Connect in London (LHR)
7:50 am Arrive in Nairobi (NBO)
6:35 pm Depart from Newark (EWR)
July 31st, 2010
Continental Airlines 70
Connect in Amsterdam (AMS)
6:35 pm Arrive in Nairobi (NBO)
5:30 pm Depart from Newark (EWR)
July 31th, 2010
Continental Airlines 102
Connect in Amsterdam (AMS)
7:00 am Arrive in Nairobi (NBO
Phone:
You can make outgoing calls from Kenya, using a local calling card or from telephone bureaus. The cost of international phone calls from Kenya is high. The best option if you need to talk to your parents or friends is to have them call you, or quickly call them and have them call you back. For emergencies Field School staff Field School Staff Members’ emails are as follows: Checklist:
Check your passport: make sure it is up-to-date (good for six months AFTER returning from Kenya – through February 2011). Obtain one if you don’t have one yet. Make multiple photocopies of the first page and keep them separated in different pieces of luggage, just in case. Obtain all the immunizations and malaria prevention medication that you need as described in the acceptance letter and in consultation with your doctor. In particular, your routine vaccinations should be up to date, and vaccinations for Yellow Fever, Hepatitis A and B, and meningitis are recommended. Fill out the flight information form and return it to the Rutgers Study Abroad office. Also e-mail your flight itinerary (arrival in and departure from Nairobi) to Dr. Jack
Harris ([email protected]) with flight date, time (am/pm), airline, and
flight number.
Fill out and return the Visa and Emergency Information Form. Sign and return the Informed Consent/Waiver.
[ ]
Insurance: See pages at end of handbook.
Purchase items that you will take with you to Kenya (see lists above). Complete the Program Workbook and return to Rutgers University Study Abroad Office.

Source: http://primate.rutgers.edu/pfscp/2010_PFS_O.pdf