News & Updates

Wildlife conservation in Kenya, as is likely the case in many other countries, is a political kiln and minefield. The sector is rich in resources – both land and biodiversity – and given that they are not isolated from people, the sector is quite emotive and can be explosive.

For the first two weeks of this month, it has been a hive of activities in Amboseli. Despite the much-awaited rainfall we received last month that affected our work at some points and inaccessibility in some areas due to bad weather, we pushed through to accomplish our mission before the year end.

On 16th December 2016 the government revealed that during Autumn, 10,886 badgers were killed across 10 licensed cull zones in 6 counties in the West and South West of England, bringing the total numbers of badgers killed under license in England to almost 15,000 since culling began in 2013.

Intensive monitoring of Ethiopian wolves by the EWCP (Ethiopian Wolf Conservation Programme) in core areas of the Bale Mountains National Park (BMNP) permitted early detection of a rabies outbreak in the Web Valley, prompting an emergency intervention to curtail the spread of the disease.

The latest Big Cat updates from Shamwari

Attenborough and The Giant Elephant (BBC1 9pm Sunday 10th December) recalls the tortured existence of an animal who was incarcerated in zoos and travelling circuses, and whose miserable life ended following a collision with a train.

The Born Free Foundation is urging the European Commission to take bold action and shut down the ivory trade across the European Union.

Born Free is appalled to hear that a tiger has escaped from a circus in Paris and subsequently been shot dead.

Over the last month the team have travelled 3,500km and undertaken a whole host of activities including de-snaring, collar removal and consultations.

Counting elephants and other large mammals like buffalo, reticulated giraffe and Grevy’s zebra over a 65,000km2 – half the size of England - is a gargantuan task. It takes time, funds, sweat and various technical experts to achieve results.