KWS has begun a massive water tracking exercise to rescue thousands of wild animals affected by drought.
The service has also embarked on operations to rescue more than 100 hippos stuck in mud at
water sources that are drying up.
The sources include Lake Kenyatta, Lake Chomo and Mkunumbi dam.
At least 60 are stuck at Lake Kenyatta in Mpeketoni and 50 at Mkunumbi dam.
At Lake Chomo,
at least 20 hippos and their young are struggling to get out of the muddy areas while an unknown number have died.
Kenya Wildlife Service records state that more than 50 hippos have died after getting stuck in the mud. But senior warden Jacob Orale said they were working hard to ensure no more cases are reported.
Orale said at his office in Lamu that they will drag the animals out.
He said the water tracking - spraying water in areas where the hippos are stuck - will keep them hydrated, considering the nature of their skin and loosen the consistency of the mud for them to walk away.
A KWS water boozer supplies water at Lake Chomo to keep stuck hippos hydrated. /CHETI PRAXIDES
Orale said KWS was also filling up water points used by wildlife in Lamu to keep them from dying amid the drought.
He said many have left their habitats and moved closer to placed where people live in search of food and water.
"We have to save some of the animals because at the end of the day, if their numbers dwindle, the balance of the ecosystem will be affected. This will definitely not do our tourism industry any good," he said.
"We are also putting up water pans all over the wild for wildlife to drink."
The commander said the water tracking exercise will also cut short or
reduce the number of trip animals make in search of water.
The service had expressed fears that many wild animals would die as they have been forced to drink highly
saline ocean water, which is not good their health. All fresh water points have dried up due to the drought.
"We believe the water tracking exercise will reduce deaths and encounters between humans and wildlife. But we are mainly doing this to keep the wildlife alive, hopefully until the drought passes,” said Orale.
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