The Kenya Wildlife Service and other agencies have counted the deaths of 205 elephants, 512 wildebeests, 381 common zebras, 51 buffaloes, 49 Grevy’s zebras and 12 giraffes in the past nine months, the report said. Parts of Kenya have experienced four consecutive seasons of insufficient rainfall in the past two years, with dire consequences for people and animals, including livestock. According to the report’s authors, the most affected ecosystems are home to some of Kenya’s most popular national parks, game reserves and reserves, including the Amboseli, Tsavo and Laikipia-Samburu regions. They called for an urgent aerial census of wildlife in Amboseli to get a wider picture of the effects of the drought on wildlife there. Other experts have recommended the immediate supply of water and salt to the affected areas. Elephants, for example, drink 240 liters of water a day, according to Jim Justus Nyamu, executive director of the Elephant Neighbors Center. For Grevy’s zebras, experts are urging increased hay supplies.
