Critically endangered antelopes return to Kenya from Czech zoo

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Four critically endangered upland bongos arrived successful Kenya connected their mode to their autochthonal forests aft years successful the attraction of a zoo successful the Czech Republic

ByEVELYNE MUSAMBI Associated Press

NAIROBI, Kenya -- Four critically endangered upland bongos arrived successful Kenya connected their mode to their autochthonal forests aft years successful the attraction of a zoo successful the Czech Republic.

Bongos, uncommon antelopes known for their striking stripes, person been declared critically endangered owed to poaching and diseases. There are little than 100 upland bongos near successful the wild, according to the Kenyan government. Many were sent to Europe successful the 1980s aft a large rinderpest illness outbreak killed thousands.

The 4 returnees arrived from Dvur Kralove Zoo packed successful woody crates astatine Kenya’s main airdrome aboard a KLM cargo formation and were received by the country’s Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi and Tourism Minister Rebecca Miano, who hailed it arsenic a “homecoming of the majestic bongos.”

It's the 3rd specified instrumentality successful caller years, past 1 being successful Feb. 2025. After a play of quarantine and acclimatization, the bongos volition beryllium sent to the Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy, which houses 102 bongos, for a enactment earlier being released into the wild.

The conservancy runs a National Recovery and Action Plan for the Mountain Bongo successful collaboration with the authorities and plans to usage the 4 caller bongos to interbreed and fortify the cistron pool.

Kenyan-raised quality explorers and filmmakers Jahawi and Elke Bertolli told The Associated Press that the caller bongos volition bring familial saltation that is captious for their conservation, adding that the taxon plays a cardinal relation successful protecting the forests that are captious to Kenya’s h2o supply.

Czech Republic Ambassador Nicol Adamcova said the relocation reflects a long-standing concern betwixt the Czech Republic and Kenya successful conservation and a shared committedness to protecting endangered species.

Mudavadi said specified milestones amusement what tin beryllium achieved erstwhile policy, science, and collaboration travel unneurotic successful pursuit of a shared conservation goal.

“I commend each stakeholders progressive and guarantee you of Government’s unwavering enactment successful strengthening conservation frameworks and ensuring that Kenya’s biodiversity continues to thrive,” helium said.

Miano said that bringing successful genetically divers bongos is simply a captious measurement to fortify the species' breeding resilience.