SNARES COLLECTED 433

Area of Operation

Areas of operation for this month include Irima, Ndii, Marivenji, Sagalla and Mgeno ranch.

Findings

During this operation the team was based at the stockades in Voi and moved on foot from there at the start of the month and later moved onto Mgeno ranch and camped there for the remainder of the operation. The total amount of snares collected this month was 433, 80% of which were designed to capture medium to larger mammals where as the rest were set to trap the smaller animals. At Kanjire there were signs of mass charcoal burning as well as logging. At Mgeno we collected the majority of the snares, 40% altogether were in this area alone. Most of the poachers in this area are from Kamtonga village which borders the ranch and thus provides easy access in and out of the park. Members of the community who are anti-snaring state that a large amount of meat that can be found in the market is game meat brought in by some of the villagers as well as outsiders. Poaching at night using panga’s and torches is on the increase, as it is in all the areas that the teams have covered this month. On a nearby ranch people are paid up to 300/-to kill a baboon or a Vervet monkey (both seen as pests to farmers) by ranch owners. Unfortunately the snares not only catch the monkeys but also other innocent animals which are not a pest in any way. Next month we plan to operate at night for some of the operation. Compiled by David Njoroge