•The baby, who has been named Fanaka, meaning ‘achievement’ in Swahili, was born on July 12, 2022, at the Mawingu Mountain Bongo Sanctuary.
•The elusive, reddish-brown coloured species were reintroduced in March of this year.
Image: FILE
The birth of a mountain bongo after an 18-year conservation programme is a major boost to one of the world’s most critically endangered antelopes.
The event was captured on camera.
The baby, who has been named Fanaka, meaning ‘achievement’ in Swahili, was born on July 12, 2022, at the Mawingu Mountain Bongo Sanctuary.
The elusive, reddish-brown coloured species were reintroduced in March.
Mawingu sanctuary is managed by Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy.
Fanaka was first spotted on July 12, 2022, by MKWC's head of conservancy Dr Robert Aruho.
Since then, she has been photographed and is believed to be doing well, staying close to her mother, Kavu.
Kavu was one of the first five bongos released into the Mawingu Mountain Bongo Sanctuary on March 9, 2022.
Her newborn is her first calf, and the first Mountain Bongo to be born in this wild sanctuary.
Born on March 2, 2018, Kavu is a female Mountain Bongo with many firsts to her name.
She was the first calf sired by Riziki (one of the older male Bongos at the conservancy).
The first female Bongo introduced to the Mawingu Sanctuary and now she has given birth to the first Mountain Bongo in the wild.
Kavu is very shy and wary of approach and her distinguishing feature is the downward curve of her left ear, almost as if she has a direct line to hearing Mother Nature's whispers.
From most recent sightings, we know she will be a protective and caring mother to her new baby.
In a bid to save the Bongo from extinction, MKWC, a not-for-profit organisation was established in 2004, to start the breeding and rewilding programme.
The programme started with the importation of 18 Mountain Bongos from several zoos across North America, and this calf is a direct descendant of the bongos that were repatriated to Kenya.
This birth is an important milestone as it means that the bongos that were initially imported 18 years ago have successfully bred and adapted to the environment of Mount Kenya.
Currently, there are less than 100 mountain bongos living in the wild.
Decades of poaching, live trade, predation and disease, have pushed this antelope to the verge of extinction according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
IUCN has the sub-species listed as critically endangered on the red list of threatened species.
Without further action, the IUCN predicts that the number of Mountain Bongo is likely to continue to decline unless deliberate actions are put in place.
Breeding and rewilding of the Mountain Bongo through the Mawingu sanctuary provides a catalyst for the recovery of the population of this majestic shy antelope.
Tourism Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala officially opened the 776-acre sanctuary earlier this year, alongside Kenya Wildlife Service, Kenya Forest Service and partners.
Dr Aruho says he spent many hours and sleepless nights tracking Fanaka’s mother when she went into hiding to give birth.
“I eventually picked up not one, but two sets of footprints, one of which was a lot smaller than the other. After tracking the footprints deeper into the forest and over a cliff, I finally laid eyes on the newborn calf," he said.
"My heart almost skipped a beat, and I was tingling with joy. The calf gave me a small stare, carefully flapping the ears. I was overjoyed and my hands were shaking.
“Getting a glimpse of baby Fanaka has meant that the last 18 years of dedication were all worth it. I could not be prouder of the team at MKWC and more thankful to all our supporters, including the government, KFS and KWS for making the sanctuary a reality.”
The sanctuary is an important achievement in the implementation of the Kenya National Recovery and Action Plan for the Bongo (2019-23), whose long-term vision is to achieve a metapopulation of 750 Bongos by 2050.
The sanctuary aims to sustain an annual birth rate of 12 Mountain Bongo calves per year.
Reaching the targeted numbers will require an estimated $200,000(Sh20,000,000 million) annually which can only be achieved with the generous support of the general public and corporate partners.
The chairperson of MWKC Nyawira Kariuki said they hope the birth of Fanaka will bring a smile to the faces of Kenyans and animal lovers around the world.
"The birth of an animal that sits on the brink of extinction is a genuine watershed moment that we should all celebrate and cherish," Nyawira said.
“Fanaka represents the start of the fightback for this majestic animal. We look forward to continuing to work hand-in-hand with our supporters and partners to realise our ambitious plans to have 70 fully rewilded Mountain Bongo in our Mawingu Sanctuary by 2025.”
(Edited by Tabnacha O)