In the Nyanza region of western Kenya, a distinctive trapping method has been practised by Luo communities for generations. African harlequin quail (Coturnix delegorguei delegorguei), known locally as aluru, are caught, tamed, and kept in small woven baskets that are strung up on a tall bamboo pole. Their birdsong lures wild quail into maze-like runs formed by living fences, where the wild birds are caught in fine-thread snares. The baskets, poles, and snares, together with the routines of care for captive birds and the skill of shaping and cultivating fences, form a material knowledge system that brings together craft skills, local ecology, and cultural meaning.
The practice is widely remembered through oral histories and is described as widespread in early twentieth-century colonial accounts. While quail trapping continues in some locations today, it is in rapid decline and has completely disappeared in some places. The impact of climate change on rainfall patterns and quail migration, the loss of grassland habitats as cultivation expands, and broader changes in rural livelihoods have all reduced opportunities for trapping. Fewer young people are learning the associated skills, while the growth of quail farming and increasing regulation have further contributed to the practice’s decline. As the number of active practitioners falls, the material knowledge and related vocabulary are becoming increasingly hard to pass on.
In Ndhiwa, Homa Bay County, there were once hundreds of people trapping quail, but today there are only a handful. Working in collaboration with local practitioners and research assistants, The Caged Bird Sings will create a detailed record of this at-risk practice. Through photography, video, sound recording, interviews, and community mapping, this project will document the full process of making, maintaining, and setting up this trapping system. It will create an audiovisual record of the gathering and preparation of materials; the manufacture, use, and repair of bird baskets; the making of cordage, snares, and poles; and the shaping and cultivation of living fences. Interviews and discussions centred on baskets, tools, and other objects will record oral histories, personal memories, and the technical vocabulary associated with the practice. Community-led walks will also map remembered trapping sites to give a sense of how the practice has changed and contracted in living memory.
This contemporary documentation will be combined with research into museum collections and photographic archives in Nairobi and Oxford. Together, these materials will create a lasting visual, oral, and spatial record of Luo quail trapping and contribute to a wider understanding of the relationships between materials, environments, and identity.
PI: Campbell Martin
Research Location: Ndhiwa, Homa Bay County, Kenya
Host Institution: University of Oxford
Top Banner Image: Several woven bird baskets hanging from a bamboo pole. Photo credit: Campbell Martin, 2023.