Bristol Zoological Society steps in to help threatened giraffe

Conservationists at Bristol Zoological Society have stepped in to protect one of the world’s most threatened types of giraffe.

They have paid for patrols in Cameroon to help safeguard Kordofan giraffe from illegal hunting.

The move came after a desperate plea from officials at the Bénoué National Park following the discovery of a Kordofan giraffe that was killed for its meat and hide. 

Bristol Zoological Society provided funds for nine days of emergency patrols in the park involving almost 60 people.

Dr Caspian Johnson, Programme Lead of Bristol Zoological Society’s Giraffe Conservation Programme, said, said: “As a result of these patrols more than 100 people were removed from the park for illegal activities.”

He said a total of six gold mining camps were found which often result in small settlements growing up leading to illegal hunting of wildlife. These were all dismantled.

But he said the situation facing Kordofan giraffe was grave with only around 40 left in the national park and only 2,000 in the wild.

Dr Grainne McCabe, Head of Field Conservation and Science at the Society, said: “We are reaching the stage of a major ecological crisis. If the factors causing the decline of Kordofan giraffes aren’t abated, with the current low population size, there is a risk that the subspecies could be lost in the wild in the next few decades.”

Bristol Zoological Society has been working in Bénoué National Park along with local NGO Sekakoh, since 2016.

Dr Johnson said: “We are conducting  extensive wildlife surveys to better understand what is happening with the giraffe and other large mammal populations, as well as the impact of illegal hunting.

“African wildog dogs, cheetah and black rhino have all gone locally extinct from the park, we can’t afford to also lose the Kordofan giraffe .”

 With support from the National Geographic Society and the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, the team at Bristol Zoological Society are implementing workshops for the eco-guards, which train them in novel technologies to record illegal activity,  and to help them more effectively patrol the park. 

Bristol Zoo Project is home to three male giraffe. The trio plays an important role in the future for their species and raise awareness of the plight the species face in the wild.