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February 19, 2008

The Last Wild Giraffes of West Africa

I have just got back from Niamey, the capital of Niger, where we had our annual Horizons-Sahel conference. The conference went well, but unfortunately I didn’t get time to get around town to take photos. This is a shame, because Niamey is very different from Ouagadougou, the Burkina capital. Niamey is less developed, and more sahelian and picturesque. It is actually more like a giant sprawling Gorom-Gorom – with many sandy roads, lots of Tuareg and Fulani and Songhai, and camels being part of the daily downtown traffic. Also, of course, a river runs through it, the Niger, with the river traffic and rice-growing adding to the fascinating cultural mix.

I did put off my return to Burkina for one day to get the chance to have a quick visit to see the last wild giraffes of West Africa – about 60km from Niamey. The giraffe of West Africa are apparently lighter and less yellow than those in East Africa. Here are a few photos:

We could walk almost right up to the giraffe. Here is Charlie, Steve's wife taking a photo.

Look this way, please!

I find it amazing how something as big as a giraffe can be so well hdden. I like this photo because it shows how well their camouflaging works.

Tags: africa sahel niger niamey photos giraffe travel

Posted by Keith at February 19, 2008 10:42 AM