Constable Daniel Kutata loves elephants.

Spending time with him, it doesn’t take long to see why. His knowledge of their behaviour is extraordinary, and he can even identify some individuals by their footprints.

Daniel’s life is inextricably linked with Amboseli’s elephants. He grew up watching them on his literal doorstep in Namelok, a farming settlement close to Amboseli National Park. This has given him an intimate understanding of the good and the bad sides to coexisting with them.

“Elephants are so clever. They can raid a farm and see the crops are not ripe yet and will come back weeks later exactly when it is time to harvest. This is terrible for farmers, but you have to admire how intelligent they are.”

Since Daniel joined Big Life as a ranger in 2018, he has become of our leading specialists in human-elephant conflict, and he credits his father for guiding his boyhood passion towards a career:

“My dad was a verification officer for Big Life’s Predator Compensation Program, and he would always come home and tell me stories about the wildlife he saw, how his job helps prevent conflict with lions, and the importance of protecting wildlife. I learned that you could earn a living by protecting wildlife.”

Now that he is a father to his own children, “I see it as my duty to pass the message to my kids that we must keep wild land, wild. I don’t want my boys to grow up in a world that only has stories about elephants.”

In the coming weeks, we'll be sharing more of Daniel's story and the work he and his fellow rangers do every day on the front-line of human-elephant conflict. If you'd like a behind-the-scenes look at their work, please consider joining our Ranger Club as a monthly donor.

📸: Joshua Clay