SWT/KWS MOBILE VETERINARY UNITS TSAVO, MARA, MERU, AMBO MT KENYA, RIFT VALLEY July – September 2023 Report
Introduction
165 Cases
68 Poaching Cases
59 Elephant Cases
22 Predator Cases
26 HWC Cases
70% Success
July – September 2023 Report for Tsavo, Mara, Meru, Amboseli, Mt Kenya and Rift Valley Units. The Sheldrick Wildlife Trust (SWT), in conjunction with the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) operate six Mobile Veterinary Units. Within the quarter, the Units attended to a total of 165 wildlife cases involving 227 animals. There were 59 elephant, 22 predator, 8 rhino, 35 plains game, 17 giraffes and 10 buffalo cases as well as assessment and habituation of hippos for translocation after they invaded a Sewage Plant and attacked 2 people, whilst another was rescued from a well. Two security dogs were given vaccinations, and a postmortem was carried out on a security horse. In addition, an Aardvark was snared, 19 baboons were collared, a post-mortem was carried out on a civet cat, and 3 Colobus monkeys were relocated from Nanyuki Town and two Ostriches from Mogotio town due to human-wildlife conflict whilst another two were treated for natural causes. 7 honey badgers were also relocated after they continuously attacked bee apiaries. Out of the poaching cases, there were 35 snaring cases, 22 spear, 10 arrow and 1 bullet wound. Of the poaching related injuries, 30 involved elephants including 17 speared, 4 snared, 8 arrow and 1 bullet wound. Of these cases only 4 resulted in death, 2 given a poor prognosis with the others receiving a good prognosis. Other elephant cases included relocation of 2 elephants due to human – wildlife conflict cases and another after it repeatedly attacked a rhino fence compromising security. An elephant was speared and another poisoned due to human – wildlife conflict, an elephant was collared for behavioural studies and a calf was rescued and taken to the Nairobi Nursery. In addition, a rhino calf was also rescued and taken to the Kaluku Stockades. Of the cases there was a 70% success rate and 9% death rate due to poaching or human-wildlife conflict.
Case Details Poaching HWC Natural Causes Postmortem Technical Cases Rescue Relocation Collared Grand Total
Elephant
Predators
30 5 16
3 5 12
5 1 1 1 60
Rhinos Plains Game Giraffe 1 1 2 2 1 1
2 22
8
15 6 10 2
13 1 2
Buffalo
Other
Grand Total
5 2 2
1 6 2 2 2
68 27 47 4 10 3 4 4 167
1 1 2 36
17
10
1 14
165 Cases Attended to by the SWT/KWS Vet Units July - September 2023 80
. 70
60
Other
50
Buffalo Giraffe
40
Plains Game Rhinos
30
Predators Elephant
20
10
0 Poaching
HWC
Natural Causes
Technical Case
Postmortem
Rescue
Relocation
Collared
93 Poaching and HWC Cases Attended to by the SWT/KWS Vet Units July - September 2023 40 35 30
Other Buffalo
25
Giraffe 20
Plains Game Rhinos
15
Predators 10
Elephant
5
Snared Spear Arrow Bullet Wound
Human Wildlife Conflict
Poaching
HWC
Poisoning
Wildlife Invasion
Wildlife Encroachment
Suspected Poisoning
RTA
Manhole
Livestock Predation
Human Items
Fencing
Electrocution
Spear
Relocation
0
Outcomes of Cases Attended to by the SWT/KWS Vet Units July - September 2023
Prognosis Poor 7%
Poaching Death 5%
HWC Death 4%
Successful Cases 70%
Died 12%
Taken to Orphanage 2%
Outcomes of Cases Attended to by the SWT/KWS Vet Units July - September 2023
Rift Valley
32 1
Amboseli
16 1 1
Meru
11
Mt Kenya
2
3 1 1
19
2 1
Tsavo
24
10
5 1
2
4
Mara
5
2
3 1
14
0
3
15
20
5
25
2 1
30
7
35
40
45
Prognosis Poor Death HWC Death Died Taken to Orphanage SWT/KWS MobilePoaching Vet Unit Treatment Locations
Successful Cases
50
Tsavo – Mara – Meru – Amboseli – Mt Kenya – Rift Valley July – September 2023
SWT/KWS TSAVO MOBILE VETERINARY UNIT OVERVIEW July – September 2023
39 Cases
14 Poaching Cases
26 Elephant Cases
The Tsavo Conservation Area didn’t receive any meaningful precipitation in July 2023, and Tsavo was generally drying out and natural water pans began to dry up. Light showers fell in a few areas within Tsavo in August however, many parts of the Tsavo Conservation Area remained dry until the end of September when there were signs of impending rain, and in some areas, rain showers. Poaching has still been fairly common in the area particularly towards elephants, with 2 snared, 5 speared and 3 arrowed. Two rogue elephant bulls involved in separate human-wildlife conflict incidents were also translocated to ensure their safety and that of the community, as well as another elephant that was frequently breaking the rhino sanctuary fence compromising security. An orphan rhino raised at SWT Kaluku HQ nursery was relocated to the newly established Rhino Base Reintegration Centre in Tsavo East as he had outgrown the nursery. 39 Cases Attended to by the SWT/KWS Tsavo Vet Unit July - September 2023 16
14
12
10
Giraffe Plains Game
8
Rhinos Predators
6
Elephant
4
2
0 Poaching
HWC
Natural Causes
Postmortem
Relocation
Outcomes of Cases Attended to by the SWT/KWS Tsavo Vet Unit July - September 2023
Prognosis Poor 13%
Poaching Death 5% HWC Death 3%
Successful Cases 61%
Died 18%
SWT/KWS Tsavo Mobile Vet Unit Treatment Locations July – September 2023
July 2023
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August 2023
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September 2023
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SWT/KWS MARA MOBILE VETERINARY UNIT OVERVIEW July – September 2023
22 Cases
14 Poaching Cases
10 Elephant Cases
Human-wildlife conflict and bushmeat poaching cases have been prevalent throughout the quarter. Predator-prey interactions and territorial conflicts also played out as animals jostled for survival. The Mara Mobile Veterinary Unit attended to 22 Cases over the reporting period including 5 speared and 3 arrowed elephants. Two zebra, one giraffe and an aardvark were also successfully treated for snare injuries. One young lion was treated for a spear injury due to human wildlife conflict and a problematic adult male common zebra and eland were translocated due to crop raiding and attacking farm workers. A young elephant calf was also rescued from the Masai Mara and taken to the SWT Nursery after it was found alone. 22 Cases Attended to by the SWT/KWS Mara Vet Unit July - September 2023 16
14
12
10
Other Giraffe
8
Plains Game Predators
6
Elephant
4
2
0 Poaching
HWC
Natural Causes
Rescue
Outcomes of Cases Attended to by the SWT/KWS Mara Vet Unit July - September 2023
Died 9% Taken to Orphanage 5%
Successful Cases 86%
SWT/KWS Mara Mobile Vet Unit Treatment Locations July – September 2023
July 2023
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August 2023
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September 2023
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SWT/KWS MERU MOBILE VETERINARY UNIT OVERVIEW July – September 2023
17 Cases
4 Poaching Cases
5 Elephant Cases
The weather in the Meru ecosystem in July was marked by dry conditions and a significant increase in daytime temperatures. The harsh weather transformed the once lush and green vegetation into a dry and parched landscape. There was also a noticeable reduction in river flow. The dry season extend its grasp over the Meru Conservation Area through to September, transforming the landscape into a realm of parched earth and wilted foliage. There was a reduction in poaching cases; 2 giraffes were treated for snare wounds and 2 elephants were treated for spear and arrow injuries – all successfully. There were also 4 human – wildlife conflict cases with one elephant dying from poisoning and a giraffe after it was hit by a vehicle. An elephant calf was rescued from a well and a young rhino was freed after it became entangled in fence wire. 17 Cases Attended to by the SWT/KWS Meru Vet Unit July - September 2023 5
. 4
Other
3
Giraffe Rhinos Predators
2
Elephant
1
0 Poaching
HWC
Natural Causes
Technical Case
Postmortem
Outcomes of Cases Attended to by the SWT/KWS Meru Vet Unit July - September 2023
HWC Death 12% Died 17%
Taken to Orphanage 6%
Successful Cases 65%
SWT/KWS Meru Mobile Vet Unit Treatment Locations July – September 2023
July 2023
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August 2023
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September 2023
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SWT/KWS AMBOSELI MOBILE VETERINARY UNIT OVERVIEW July – September 2023
20 Cases
11 Poaching Cases
9 Elephant Cases
The Southern Conservation Area experienced slightly warm weather this quarter and there was plenty of forage for wildlife. However, human – wildlife conflict and poaching cases dominated the veterinary interventions. Sadly a lion died from suspected poisoning due to human-wildlife conflict. In addition, 7 honey badgers were successfully translocated after they repeatedly attacked bee apiaries. Of the 11 poaching cases only one was given a poor prognosis and the rest were successfully treated. These included 4 speared and one arrowed elephant, one speared giraffe, as well as an elephant, buffalo, zebra, giraffe and leopard that were snared. The unit also rescued an abandoned black rhino calf and collared an elephant and 19 baboons.
20 Cases Attended to by the SWT/KWS Amboseli Vet Unit July - September 2023 12 11 10 9 Other
8
Buffalo
7
Giraffe 6
Plains Game
5
Rhinos
4
Predators Elephant
3 2 1 0 Poaching
HWC
Natural Causes
Postmortem
Rescue
Collared
Outcomes of Cases Attended to by the SWT/KWS Amboseli Vet Unit July - September 2023 Prognosis Poor 5% HWC Death 5%
Died 10% Successful Cases 80%
SWT/KWS Amboseli Mobile Vet Unit Treatment Locations July – September 2023
July 2023
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August 2023
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September 2023
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SWT/KWS MT KENYA MOBILE VETERINARY UNIT OVERVIEW July – September 2023
23 Cases
8 Elephant Cases
6 Poaching Cases
The Mt. Kenya Mobile Veterinary Unit, attended to 23 wildlife veterinary emergencies in the greater Laikipia, Mt Kenya, Meru and Tsavo Conservation Areas between July - September. The rainfall in July was a welcome relief in the Mt. Kenya and Laikipia ecosystem, the subsequent abundance of forage and water for wildlife and livestock resulted in fewer human – wildlife conflict cases and a reduction in the clinical case load. The Mt. Kenya and Laikipia region experienced light showers in September which provided some respite from the prevailing dry conditions, although the rain was insufficient. There were only 6 poaching cases, though sadly there were 3 deaths including a speared eland, snared zebra and an elephant with a bullet wound. .
23 Cases Attended to by the SWT/KWS Mount Kenya Vet Unit July - September 2023 9 8 7 6 Other 5
Plains Game Rhinos
4
Predators Elephant
3 2 1 0 Poaching
HWC
Natural Causes
Postmortem
Relocation
Collared
Outcomes of Cases Attended to by the SWT/KWS Mount Kenya Vet Unit July - September 2023
Prognosis Poor 18% Poaching Death 13% HWC Death 4% Died 4%
Successful Cases 61%
SWT/KWS Mt Kenya Mobile Vet Unit Treatment Locations July – September 2023
July 2023
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August 2023
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September 2023
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SWT/KWS RIFT VALLEY MOBILE VETERINARY UNIT OVERVIEW July – September 2023
44 Cases
18 Poaching Cases
17 Plains Game Cases
Over the reporting period, the Lake Naivasha Area and the Central Rift Conservation Area in general experienced a dry spell. The Unit continue to treat a range of species for various ailments with human – wildlife conflict and poaching being the most common causes of interventions. There were 16 snaring and 2 spearing incidents. Sadly a buffalo and leopard were killed by electric fences, a hippo was rescued from a well and another 5 are in the process of habituation for translocation after invading the Naivasha Sewage Treatment Plant and attacking 2 people. Two ostriches were relocated due to proximity to the community. A buffalo calf was also rescued after becoming confined by a chain link fence and reunited with its herd. 44 Cases Attended to by the SWT/KWS Rift Valley Vet Unit July - September 2023 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
Other Buffalo Giraffe Plains Game Rhinos Predators Elephant
Poaching
HWC
Natural Causes
Technical Case
Postmortem
Rescue
Outcomes of Cases Attended to by the SWT/KWS Rift Valley Vet Unit July - September 2023 Prognosis Poor 2%
Poaching Death 7% HWC Death 5%
Died 11%
Successful Cases 73%
Taken to Orphanage 2%
SWT/KWS Rift Valley Mobile Vet Unit Treatment Locations July - September 2023
July 2023
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August 2023
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September 2023
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