Tony Fitzjohn
In 1975, one of the wild lions near George Adamson's camp inexplicably attacked Tony Fitzjohn, biting him in the throat. The lion was driven off and the badly mauled Fitzjohn was carried back to camp, bleeding heavily. "Am I dying?" he asked when he regained consciousness. "I think you probably are but I'll do my best," George Adamson replied.

Hitchhiking
Fortunately for African wildlife conservation, Fitzjohn survived. Clearly, it would take more than a rogue lion to see off this extraordinarily tough and determined Englishman. Tony Fitzjohn does not fit comfortably into our modern world. He is an adventurer born out of his time, a restless spirit driven by a lifelong passion for the wild. At the age of 22, he left yet another dead-end job and hitchhiked to Kenya. His only ambition was to work with animals and, as luck would have it, he pitched up one day at George Adamson's camp at Kora.

Knowledge and expertise
The Adamson years proved an invaluable learning experience for the young apprentice, Tony Fitzjohn. It was at Kora that he gained the knowledge and expertise that he now brings to Mkomazi. Kora was a tough school, but it made Tony an expert in capturing, collaring and radio-tracking Africa's top predators, as well as raising and returning them to the wild.

Challenging
The challenge facing him at Mkomazi demanded all these skills, and more. It required someone who was an experienced wildlife manager, fluent in Swahili, a bush pilot, a skilled engineer and mechanic who could build roads, cut boundaries, strip down and re-assemble 4WD vehicles and plant machinery, set up two-way radio networks, construct and de-silt dams, maintain electrical and power equipment, organize anti-poaching patrols, deal with the bureaucracy, and keep a remote camp supplied. All this, and the ability to establish breeding programs for highly endangered species whilst constructing and repairing schools in the villages around Mkomazi Game Reserve, helping with medical dispensaries and maintaining friendly relations with the local communities.

Committed to conservation
Fortunately, having spent the last 30 years living in the African bush, Tony Fitzjohn is eminently qualified for all of these tasks. The modern-day requirements of an operation such as this, staffed only by volunteers, mean that Tony has to spend a lot of time traveling in order to raise funds and generate publicity for the project. He lectures at the Royal Geographical Society, schools, zoos, wildlife parks, and talks to diverse groups of supporters. He has also testified on wildlife issues on behalf of the Tanzanian government at a Congressional Sub-Committee hearing in Washington, DC. Having spent his life committed to the conservation of East Africa, he believes that Tanzania can provide the perfect refuge for some of the continent’s most endangered animals.

Track record
- Established and stocked the first successful Rhino sanctuary in Tanzania.
- 30 years of successful rehabilitation of zoo animals into the wild.
- Gained National Park status for two game reserves.
- Completed the construction of a new secondary school for 400 children.
- Provided local communities with clean water supply, dispensary and Flying Doctor service.
- First successful captive breeding program for endangered African Hunting Dog in East Africa.
- Ground-breaking veterinary research into disease of endangered species.
- 20 years of developing and supporting Anti-Poaching Units.