Experts are now calling for immediate provision of hay to Grevy’s zebra in Northern Kenya over the next two months as drought continues to bite.
The report, ‘The impacts of the current drought on wildlife in Kenya’ released on Friday shows that 49 Grevy’s zebras have died due to the ongoing drought in several parts of the country.
According to Grevy’s zebra Trust, only an estimated 3,000 endangered Grevy’s zebra remain in the wild where less than one per cent of their range is formally protected, with more than 90 per cent of the population found in Kenya.
They are categorised as Endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List.
“We recommend urgent and immediate provision of water and salt licks, in the most affected ecosystems in Amboseli, Tsavo, Laikipia-Samburu,” the report reads.
The study examined the effects of the current drought on wildlife in Kenya’s protected areas and surrounding areas.
This is after the country experienced below-average rainfall in the last two rain seasons of October –December 2021 and March-May.
Various agencies collected mortality data to monitor the impacts of the current drought on wildlife.
They include the Kenya Wildlife Service Rangers, Community Scouts and Research Teams from Wildlife Research and Training Institute and NGOs operating in the eight conservation areas as defined by Kenya Wildlife Service.
The report calls for an urgent total aerial census of wildlife in the Amboseli ecosystem before the next rainy season to determine and evaluate the impact of the current drought on wildlife.
“The National Treasury should allocate funds to support the next National Wildlife Census in 2024 to establish the impact of the current drought on wildlife populations in all the affected ecosystems,” it reads.
According to the report, 512 Wildebeests, 381 common Zebras, 205 Elephants and 51 Buffalos have died due to drought.
