On every roof and tree top at Makerere University stands a white and black tall bird. This undertaker bird looks ugly to many while in its lazy standing mode. However, elegance shines when it spreads the large black and white cloak-like wings.
Meet the elegant marabou stocks that have over time become part of the MAKERERE population. At MAK, they are termed as “campusers” because of breeding near the human settlement and not being shy to keep around people. Their name is derived from an arabic word Murabit that stands for ‘quietness.’ This bird
This bird species is believed to have flown into the country during President Iddi Amin’s regime to feed on the dead bodies of the people that were killed and dumped out in the open making it the unofficial national bird.
With Makerere having relatively a large tree cover compared to the rest of the city, it has attracted these birds to become official residents. Their life starts every dry season when 2-3 eggs are laid. The dirty environments of Katanga, Makerere and Bwaise act as their main feeding ground. The presence of a city abattoir in Kalerwe is also a delicacy point for these campusers that feed on littered bones and meat leftovers This makes the bird an environmental cleaner.
Despite being accused of staining smart fellow campusers running for lectures, vehicles, roads and rooftops, these birds are key players in the Makerere Ecosystem. These ‘campusers’ are the shadow unpaid cleaners that pick garbage, scrap and fallen tree branches around the University.
“It’s until they are absent in an environment that we get to appreciate the role they play. They are environmental cleaners around here and without them, we wouldn’t stand the stench, garbage which they pick,” said Dr. Joelia Nasaka a researcher at VET.
They don’t only stop at cleaning the Makerere environment but their white scaly legs have always been a point of research for students. Their white acidic wastes are mystified to be blessings that guarantee graduation once they drop on a student. Albeit other students have a myth that it’s a sure retake once marabou stock wastes drop on a students’ head while on the way to an examination room.
Their edibility also remains a mystery but one thing is for sure, if they were edible, they’d be a reliable source of food to Makerere students. Rumour also has it that they are the disguised big chicken roasted on Kikoni streets.
Sad how these campusers’ life comes to an end in drainage channels, behind faculty buildings, bushy areas bringing a rotten smell around the university. During a strike in 2013, one was brutally killed and used by demonstrating students to express their discontent on the frontline. After a life time’s loyal service to the community, they never receive a decent burial and are left out in the open to rot and decompose.
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