Samburu

A cloud of red dust rises behind our car as we follow the winding tracks through Samburu National Reserve. The landscape spreads before us like a giant woven tapestry. Threads of green acacias, desert dates and Commiphora trees intertwine with the golden-brown of dry grass and the vibrant patterns of wildlife. The Ewaso Nyiro River winds through the landscape and, to the north, we see the blueish peaks of the Matthews mountain range and the flat-topped Ololokwe mountain.

Samburu is a place where life is deeply interconnected—each plant and animal adding a strand to the delicate fabric of survival. In the dry riverbed, a group of elephants dig holes in the sand, using their trunks to suck up the water that flows below the surface.  A herd of Grevy’s zebra graze on the plain and a gerenuk stretches up on its hind legs, using its long neck to reach the leaves of an acacia tree. In this dry environment, trees stay green longer than other plants and are an important source of food for browsing animals. To avoid being eaten completely, many trees here have developed sharp thorns or hard, bitter leaves.

Along the riverbank we spot a tree with an unusual shape. It looks like a palm tree, but unlike most palms, which grow straight and tall, this one branches in twos, creating a series of forked trunks.

It is the Doum Palm, a tree that - like the Grevy’s zebra and the gerenuk—is well adapted to the dry environments of northern Kenya. It usually grows along riverbanks and has deep, extensive roots which, like the elephants, can draw water from deep underground. This allows it to survive even by rivers that dry up for much of the year.  

The Doum Palm does not have thorns to protect itself from grazers, but its tough, fibrous leaves are unappealing to most animals. Its sturdy trunk can withstand elephants pushing against it. And if it does fall, the tree is able to sprout new leaves straight up from the ground. Its resilience and adaptability have made it a key part of Samburu’s unique ecosystem.

Like most palm trees, Doum Palms are dioecious—meaning that they have separate male and female trees. Both the male and female trees produce flowers but only the females bear fruit: it is reddish-brown and about the size of an apple. These fruits are a favourite snack for elephants, whose role in the palm’s survival is vital. As the seeds pass through an elephant’s digestive system, their tough coats are scratched, helping trigger germination. The seeds are then deposited in a pile of nutrient-rich dung, giving them a strong start in life.