Kenya finalizes rescue of rare giraffe from sinking island
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E-mail Xinhua, April 12, 2021
NAIROBI, April 12 (Xinhua) -- Kenya's wildlife agencies said Monday the rescue of the last remaining Rothschild's Giraffe from a sinking island in Lake Baringo had been accomplished as efforts to conserve the iconic land mammal gathered steam.
Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) and conservation partners said the female giraffe that was the last in a group of nine to be rescued from the disappearing island, will be sheltered at a community-run conservancy on the mainland.
"Her steps marked the successful conclusion of an ambitious rescue effort, started in December 2020, ending on Friday, 9th April 2021 and led by the local community, that saved nine Rothschild's Giraffes from a disappearing island in Kenya's Rift Valley," KWS and Northern Rangeland Trust said in a joint statement issued in Nairobi.
Kenya is home to 800 out of an estimated 3,000 Rothschild's giraffes that roam African jungles but are grappling with a host of threats including habitat loss and poaching for game meat.
The rare giraffe species was reintroduced at a conservancy in the north-western Kenyan county of Baringo in 2011 to enhance their survival in a natural habitat.
KWS in partnership with Northern Rangeland Trust, Save Giraffes Now and Ruko Community Wildlife Conservancy in early December 2020 rescued an adult and juvenile female Rothschild's giraffes called Asiwa and Pasaka respectively from the sinking Longicharo Island in Lake Baringo to the mainland.
"We are happy to have been part of joint efforts to rescue the Rothschild's giraffes that are declining in number due to poaching for bush meat, climate change, and shrinking space," Patrick Omondi, KWS director of biodiversity research and planning told Xinhua during an interview in December 2020.
He said that moving the Rothschild's giraffes to the mainland sanctuary will shield them from predators and enhance their ability to breed without interruption.
Isaac Lekolool, senior veterinary officer at KWS said that all the nine Rothschild's Giraffes that had been rescued from the sinking island were thriving at the mainland sanctuary amid plenty of pasture and minimal threat of poaching.
"KWS is keen to grow the numbers of Rothschild's Giraffe in the country," said Lekolool adding that local communities have been incorporated in efforts to protect the rare giraffe species. Enditem
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