Eight out of 14 critically endangered black rhinos have died after being moved from the Nairobi and Lake Nakuru national parks to a new sanctuary created in Tsavo East national park. The translocation[1] program jointly conducted by Kenya Wildlife Services (KWS) and World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) at a cost of shs 100 million was intended to provide a more conducive breeding environment.
Reacting to these developments, Greenpeace Africa’s Executive Director, Njeri Kabeberi has said:
“ Losing 8 black rhinos in a translocation exercise is a major conservation tragedy. Relocation of endangered animals carries a lot of risks but loss of more than half of them is highly unusual. Greenpeace Africa demands a thorough investigation into what exactly transpired and the findings to be made public. The people involved in this exercise should take responsibility.
This is another major setback for conservation, happening only a few months after the last remaining male northern white rhino on the planet died in March in Kenya. KWS and WWF need to learn from this disaster and put in place measures and best practices to prevent this from recurring. With Kenya’s black rhino population standing at 745, this calls for major efforts to be put in place to save these endangered species.”
[1] The relocation of endangered animals – known as translocation – involves putting them to sleep for the journey and then reviving them in a process that carries a lot of risks.
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