African Genesis

The ancestors of all humanity evolved in Africa. The earliest evidence of their existence has been found at sites in East Africa at locations scattered north and south of the equator. Our modern human species, Homo sapiens, with a large brain and talent for innovation, evolved from this ancestral stock in Africa. Today, Kenya's remote villages shelter the Samburu and Maasai people, who still live by traditions that our primordial ancestors might well have recognized. These nomadic pastoralists subsist on a diet of cow's blood and fermented milk while building cooking fires with basic tools. These folk have austere yet exuberant lifestyles.

Michael Fairchild's newest video, "African Genesis," shares the heartwarming story of Daphne Sheldrake's successful baby elephant orphanage on the outskirts of Nairobi. Here, traumatized young elephants get a second chance at life after ivory poachers have slaughtered their families. Africa's wild elephants are documented with stunning footage from Amboseli National Park in the shadow of Mount Kilimanjaro, as well as the arid scrublands of central Kenya's Samburu game reserve. Lions, baboons, and endangered wild dogs are among the creatures that are captured by Fairchild's camera in "African Genesis."

Motion is life for all creatures, Fairchild's video evocatively affirms. The annual 1800-mile wildebeest migration, which sweeps through Kenya's Maasai Mara in early August, is one of nature's greatest spectacles. The triumph and tragedy of 40,000 wildebeests and zebras struggling across the crocodile infested Mara River on their perilous journey to greener pastures is a timeless tale of survival amidst great dangers. This fascinating video program celebrates the miracle of the struggle for survival in the vast game parks of East Africa and this will captivate audiences of all ages.

Time-Life, Nikon, Kodak, Audubon, Sierra Club, and National Geographic have published Michael Fairchild's photographs.