As COP15 talks biodiversity, Kenya drought kills wildlife, including elephants, zebras, wildebeests
- A drought made worse by climate change has led to the death of hundreds of animals, while survivors are increasingly seen in villages looking for food
- Many die then become food themselves for herders; nations currently meeting in Montreal hope to find better ways to protect nature in the coming years
In Kenya’s sweltering northern Samburu county, a destructive drought exacerbated by climate change is wreaking havoc on people and wildlife.
After four consecutive years of failed rains causing some of the worst conditions in 40 years, wild animals have become commonplace in the county’s villages as they search for food. Many do not survive, providing herders an unfortunate lifeline as they cut chunks of meat from their carcasses.
“I have suffered from hunger for a long time,” said 37-year-old Samburu resident Frank Aule. “If I run into such a carcass I would not think twice about eating it as I have to eat to survive.”
Kenyan authorities say the drought has killed over 200 elephants, nearly 400 common zebras and more than 500 wildebeests among several other species in the past nine months. Many of those that survive are starving, weak and frequently coming into contact with people.
How to better protect fragile ecosystems from a warming climate, including Kenya’s savannah grasslands, will form part of discussions at this week’s United Nations biodiversity conference – known as COP15 – in Montreal in Canada. Governments are working to come up with a framework of how the world should protect nature and aim to set goals for the next decade. Conservation groups say current programmes are not working.
The Kenyan government has provided some relief supplies like water, forage, hay and salt licks for wildlife in the region, but animals are still forced to travel further into residential areas in their search for sustenance.