Category: An Urgent Appeal, Cattle Rustlers | Date: May 20 2008 | By: Kimojino

Despite a period of silence, all the activities pertaining conservation in the Mara Triangle are on. Our Ranger Anti-poaching teams have been carrying out patrols regularly but no arrest made in the park, since the last arrest of the six poachers who killed the 37 Thomson gazelles.

The night patrols have been strenghtened along the Kenya-Tanzania border to protect the Thomson gazelles at moonless nights. This is alternated with day patrols and luckily on the night of 12.5.08, our Rangers successfully helped to retrieve the community cattle from the rustlers around midnight along the border. There was an exchange of fire but thankfully nobody was injured. Some standing observation patrols were temporarily established at the salt-lick ridges and have been running for a week now.

Ranger Teams on Patrol

On 18.5.08, Oloololo team with the Ann Kent Taylor Fund(A.K.T.F) scouts while on patrol along the escarpment arrested one Kipsigis, who was found to have killed a male Bushbuck. He was with a company of five others who managed to escape. The arrested man was handed to Lolgorian Police station for further actions.

On the 19.5.08, all the patrol teams from Serena, Ngiro-are and Oloololo jointly carried out a day long patrol at the Mara river riverine forest, which was so difficult this time round due to the heavy presence of elephants. They managed to walked through the forest and in some sections they were forced to cross the river by charging elephants. No poaching activities were detected and they will repeat the patrol, in two days time, just to be very sure.

Mara Triangle Patrol Teams

The tourists visiting the park at the moment are still very low and we are eagerly waiting the high season which is a month away from now. I hope to see many coming and the Mara alive again with visitors.

Once again on behalf of the Management and staff of Mara Conservancy, I wish to thank all of you for supporting us through this critical period, where we’re faced with an acute shortage of funds to finance our operations. It is only with your tremendous and generous donations we’ve come this far. Thank you so much!!

Giraffes necking in front of the escarpment.

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