DSWT Aerial Surveillance Unit Report June 2015

AERIAL SURVEILLANCE UNIT MONTHLY REPORT

JUNE 2015

AERIAL STATISTICS

JUNE 2015

108.7 HOURS FLOWN

15,279 KMS COVERED

AREAS PATROLLED

Tsavo East and West National Parks, Amboseli NP, Meru NP, Chyulu Hills NP, Taita Ranches and bordering communities and ranches, and Amu Ranch

JUNE 2015

MONTHLY AERIAL ROUTES

In general, June was a relatively quiet month, but we expect incidents of illegal activity to increase in July as vegetation and waterholes continue to dry out. Widespread rain refilled waterholes in many parts of Tsavo on the 1st of June, which carried water through much of the month before starting to dry out. Fresh vegetation in southern parts of Tsavo West and East attracted huge numbers of elephants with congregations of 500 or more in multiple locations.

JUNE 2015

MONTHLY FLYING SYNOPSIS

Unfortunately, 7 elephant carcasses were sighted during the month, two of which were relatively old and were likely poached the previous month. A third was found during an aerial search, instigated by a report of gunshots heard on one of the group ranches bordering the Park. By the time the carcass had been discovered, the poachers had unfortunately made away with the ivory. A fourth carcass was found with ivory intact and it is not known whether the elephant was poached by a poison arrow, which can take several days to take effect or if it had died of natural causes as the body had decayed beyond the point that an autopsy could be performed.

Tragically, another 3 elephants lost their lives when they were struck by a speeding train while trying to migrate between Tsavo East and West. They included two adults and one juvenile, but by the time they were seen by the aerial unit they had been moved off of the railway by rail workers and community members who had stripped off much of the elephants for meat.

On the 5th of June one of the DSWT pilots made an emergency mission to the Ithumba stockades with KWS Veterinary Officer Dr Poghon, who is based in Voi, to treat one of the Trust’s partially independent elephant orphans named Suguta.

Suguta had been escorted back to the stockade by two former orphans with a deep penetrating wound to the rib cage and another near the spinal ridge most probably caused by an arrow. After repeat treatments and the use of an x-ray machine Suguta is showing good signs of improvement.

Some rare sightings during the month included 16 Hirola between Satao and Aruba, a large flock of nesting vultures, and on one occasion, 13 rhinos in one flight. The critically endangered Hirola are thought to number no more than 500 individuals in the wild. They are native to northern Kenya and Somalia but were introduced to Tsavo in 1963.

The vultures were seen on a cliff on the eastern side of the Chyulu Hills where their breeding population has been severely reduced due to lion poisoning. Maasai herders often poison lions whom they blame for the loss of their prized livestock.

When vultures feed on the same poisoned meat and the meat of the dead lions, they perish in huge numbers. The last sighting by the aerial unit reported only 3 vultures on the same cliffs but on this flight, more than 30 were seen perched on the cliff face.