Dave Taylor's African Safari: Ngorongoro July 8: A Day in the Life of an African Eden - 13:00-13:40 Baboons

Ngorongoro July 8: A Day in the Life of an African Eden
13:00-13:40 Baboons
Page 20

The baboon troop pays us little heed; indeed they stop traffic as they amble along the road. I like baboons. They are a reminder of the time when our ancestors first came to the savanna to live. They, like the baboons, faced a hostile world. Three million years ago, there were lions, leopards and hyenas on those plains as there are today. There were also saber-toothed cats and a variety of other predators to contend with.

Our ancestors probably lived a life not unlike these baboons. Groups, protected by larger males, wandered the plains in search of food. Most of that food came from plants, but some came from animals.

The baboons I am watching, climb up into a tree and begin feeding on some sort of fruit. I know that they will also eat meat. Studies have recorded them hunting Thomson's gazelle fawns or young vervet monkeys. They are opportunists, able to exploit whatever the environment offers them.

Safety for the troop lies in the trees and it is to these trees that they retreat each night. (In some places, they roost in cliffs.) Our ancestors probably did the same thing.

These baboons are olive baboons and they are the most successful of all Africa's baboons.

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