TSAVO POACHERS BACK
KILLING OUR ELEPHANTS - Source http://www.coastweek.com/3209-03.htm
BUTCHERED BODIES WERE FOUND ON
GALANA, KULALU AND TAITA RANCHES
NAIROBI , (Xinhua) -- Poachers seeking ivory have killed five elephants in south eastern Kenya in the past six weeks, according an international wildlife conservation body.
A statement from the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) Regional office for East Africa said the elephants - whose tusks had been hacked off - were found in Galana, Kulalu and Taita Ranches which are part of the Tsavo ecosystem.
The statement said the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) rangers arrested two suspected poachers and one middleman from their hideout in Galana, and recovered two AK-47 rifles and 38 rounds of ammunition.
The middleman had already sold off the tusks to other dealers in the illegal ivory trade network.
An elephant carcass was found close by.
The other elephants are suspected to have succumbed to poisoned arrow wounds.
"Since the one-off ivory sales from Southern Africa countries late last year, we have noted an unprecedented rise of elephant poaching incidents in Tsavo.
"Our security team is on full alert, and is going full force to ensure that the poachers are deterred," said Jonathan Kirui, Tsavo Assistant Director.
"We have information that a kilo of ivory is going for as low as U.S. $ 37.50 dollars from local middlemen to other dealers, and this could be an incentive to local people who were not involved in the illegal trade in previous years," he added.
A kilo of ivory in the international black market fetches more than U.S. $ 850 dollars.
James Isiche, Director of IFAW's Regional Office in East Africa , is concerned that the poaching incident could portend a return to the elephant poaching era of 1970s and 1980s.
"Our concern is that the situation may be worse in other elephant range states which face more serious law enforcement capacity challenges as compared to Kenya or some of the Southern Africa countries.
"We strongly maintain that ivory trade anywhere is a threat to elephants everywhere," said Isiche.
Only last week, a leading elephant researcher Dr. Cynthia Moss released a report indicating that an elaborate poaching syndicate had led to an upsurge in elephant killings in Amboseli National Park in southern Kenya.
According to unnamed sources in KWS, elephant poaching in Kenya rose by over 60 percent in 2008 as compared to 2007.
Tsavo is home to Kenya 's largest single elephant population of about 11,700.
Since 2005, IFAW has been involved in a five-year collaborative project with KWS worth U.S. $ 1.25 million dollars to enhance management operations in law enforcement and anti-poaching efforts, park infrastructure support, human wildlife conflict, research, community conservation and education in the Parks.
The U.N. Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, or CITES, imposed a global ban on the ivory trade in 1989 and Kenya reformed its wildlife conservation department to form the current Kenya Wildlife Service, helping to reduce poaching.
But the current estimated population of 30,000 is still less than a fifth of the 1973 estimate of 167,000.
