Nature conservation rangers in Garissa County, Kenya have discovered the bones of two rare white giraffes that have been missing for several months.
According to a statement on the Twitter account, the carcasses belong to the mother and her 7-month-old calf – two of only three white giraffes living in the Ishaqbini Hirola Conservation Community – and were apparently massacred four months ago. All signs indicate that the perpetrators were poachers.
«This is a very sad day for the community … and Kenya as a whole. We are the only community in the world that guards the white giraffe, “said Mohammed Ahmednoor, manager of the Northern Rangelands Trust (NRT) in the African country.
The hunters have not been identified and their motives are unclear. The Kenyan Wildlife Service, the highest authority on the subject, is currently investigating the case.
SAD NEWS?: @IshaqbiniHirola Community Conservancy, Garissa County loses two famous white giraffes to poachers.
For more info, here’s the press release. @KWS @USAIDKenya @EUinKenya @denmarkinkenya @Nature_Africa @KWCAKenya @africa_ci @SwedeninKE pic.twitter.com/Nwp1F0VexF
– @nrt_kenya (@NRT_Kenya) March 10, 2020
One of the white giraffes, an adult male and probably the last of its kind in the world, still remains in the park.
White giraffes are not albino, but have a condition called leucism: a genetic peculiarity due to a recessive gene, which gives the coat a white color (but the eyes, mane, and tail hair maintain their normal color). Also, unlike albinism, leucistic animals are not more sensitive to the sun than the rest. On the contrary, they can be even slightly more resistant since having the white color a high albedo protects more from the heat.
And although leucism can affect many animals, it is extremely rare in giraffes. Out of this family in Kenya, only one white giraffe has been sighted in Africa; It was last seen in Tanzania’s Tarangire National Park in January 2016, according to NRT Kenya.
White or not, all reticulated giraffes (Giraffa reticulata), like those found in northern Kenya, are considered an endangered species. About 15,780 specimens remain in the wild, according to an estimate by the Foundation for the Conservation of Nature (GCF). That represents a 56% decrease from the 36,000 that existed 30 years ago.
The main threat to these animals is the loss of their natural habitat (at the hands of man) and poaching.
Source: Live Science.