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Photos: Northern Rangelands Trust
The remarkable rescue operation ended yesterday when the last of nine endangered Rothschild giraffes were safely removed from the flooded island of Kenya. Save the giraffes now and its conservation partners.
Little Noel, a baby giraffe born on Christmas 2020, and her mother Ngarikoni were the last to board a purpose-built barge due to the extra care needed to move such a young giraffe. The rescue team was relieved and delighted when little Noelle confidently stepped off the barge onto land, accompanied by her mother, marking the successful completion of this ambitious rescue.
The project took about 15 months to complete, including planning and rescuing the giraffes from their shrinking island in Lake Baringo. In early 2020, Save the giraffes now in partnership with local Ruko Community Conservancy, Northern Pasture Trust, as well as Kenya Wildlife Service, what made this important mission possible. This incredible achievement included the sketching of an innovative rescue method, from the design and construction of a barge called “GiRaft” to the creation of a 4,400-acre mainland animal sanctuary.
“We felt an urgent need to complete this rescue,” said David O’Connor, president of Save the Giraffes Now, which is working on more than 20 giraffe conservation projects in nine African countries. statement. “With a giraffe undergoing silent extinction, we can protect everyone, making this rescue an important step in keeping this species alive.”
Ruko Rangers have worked hard to make sure that each animal is used on the barge ahead of time, leaving their favorite treats on board every day, so they will comfortably get on and off the ship voluntarily.
Each giraffe boarded a steel barge, which then walked approximately one mile to the 4,400-acre fenced-in sanctuary within the 44,000-acre Ruko Sanctuary. The community-built steel barge was designed specifically to carry a tall and heavy giraffe. For buoyancy, she floats on 60 empty drums with reinforced sides that held the giraffe inside while the barge was carefully dragged by boats.
The water level in Lake Baringo has been rising for some time, but in 2020 this rate has increased – flooding of houses, businesses on the lake and the threat to the lives of a small group of Rothschild giraffes on Longicharo Island, in the Ruco Nature Reserve.
“Ruko is an example of how the world is connected to everything else – conservation, livelihoods, business, gender equality, governance. It all starts with the world, ”said Rebbie Sebei, manager of Ruko Community Conservancy.
Their peacebuilding efforts were so successful that in 2011 the Kenya Wildlife Service authorized the relocation of eight Rothschild giraffes to Ruko as part of a community-led conservation initiative – the first of its kind for giraffes in Kenya.
But as rising water levels separated their peninsula home from the mainland, Ruko’s rangers had to supplement the giraffe’s food as natural viewing became a rarity. Not only was it financially disadvantageous for Ruko, experts feared that nutritional deficiencies were affecting the animals’ immune defenses and overall health.
Realizing that a rescue operation was imminent, the community allocated land to build a new giraffe sanctuary on the mainland. The construction of the sanctuary has provided employment for many local workers, and special sanctuary caretakers will be employed to watch the giraffes.
Permission to move giraffes has been granted Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS),and the first giraffe, Asiva, was transported in December without incident. This set the tone for all other movements, and one by one the giraffes flew away to safety.
“KWS is committed to increasing the number of Rothschild giraffes in the country,” said Dr. Isaac Lekolool, senior veterinarian with the Kenya Wildlife Service. “The management of Ruko Reserve, in collaboration with the local community, has done a commendable job of conserving this rare species. Really, Shrine of Rukoit is an exemplary conservation initiative worth repeating elsewhere. ”
The long-term plan is to bring other Rothschild giraffes from elsewhere in Kenya to create a genetically healthy population of giraffes in the reserve, which can eventually be released into the larger Rift Valley ecosystem.
“This groundbreaking project not only saved these giraffes, but also marks their return to the mainland for the first time in 70 years,” concluded O’Connor. “This rescue is a significant success for both of these reasons.”
The (Nubian) Rothschild giraffe is a shrinking subspecies of the northern giraffe that once roamed the entire western rift valley in Kenya and Uganda. Less than today 3,000 stayed in Africa,only with 800 remaining in Kenya.
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The message is breaking! The endangered giraffe and Rothschild mother’s cub rescued during a heroic rescue from a flooded island in Kenya first appeared in World Animal News.
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