The secret behind the strange Acacia "fruit"

Strange acacia fruit

Further North, beyond the shadow of Mount Kenya, towards Samburu, the land was drier and savannahs covered with elephant grass, giant ant hills and sparsely populated with Acacia trees.  Many of the funnel-like Acacias in Kenya had little bulbuous appendages hanging from their branches.  John, our guide, explained that the tidy, globe-like objects were not fruit but Weaver bird nests with just one entrance at the bottom and that it was the male bird that wove the tightly woven nests from grass to attract the female.  When finished, the female bird inspects the newly built nest and if unsatisfied with the quality, does not roost in it and both birds abandon the nest, never to be used again!

Giant ant hills

When we stopped for a comfort break near one of these acacia trees festooned with nests, all the nests looked to us as perfectly formed ornaments, however the female birds must have been very fussy at this tree to encourage such frantic productivity from the males. All the comfort breaks during our travel were at shops by the side of the road selling all types of local art and craft and also offered neccessary facilities for tourists in exchange for their visit to browse and buy their wares.


Tall Elephant grass

Fortunately none of the selling was pressured.  Some of the products were made at the back of the shop where craftsmen, wearing British football club T-shirts, toiled to create pieces to be sold in the shop.  Apparently canny British tourists barter the much sought after foot-ball club T-shirts and posters for art and craft pieces make by the poor workmen.