Sao Viet

In 2020, poachers killed a rare white female giraffe and her calf in Kenya’s Ishaqbini Hirola Conservancy. With their deaths, only one remained. A single white male giraffe. He is not albino, but born with leucism, a condition that gives him his ghost-like pale coat while keeping his eyes dark. It also makes it impossible for him to hide. In the wild, that makes him a target. So conservationists made sure he would not disappear like the others. They fitted a GPS tracker onto his horn, allowing rangers to monitor his location in real time and protect him from poachers. Local communities now help watch over him, treating him not just as an animal, but as something rare, fragile, and worth protecting. He walks the same land where his family once did. But now, he walks alone. A living reminder of what has already been lost. And what we still have a chance to save.

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by

Binh
in

Poachers kill world’s only female white giraffe and calf

Conservationists say the killings are a “blow to tremendous steps taken by the community to conserve rare and unique species”.

Wednesday 11 March 2020 07:52, UK

The giraffes' white appearance is due to a rare condition called leucism
Image:The giraffes’ white appearance is due to a rare condition called leucism

The only female white giraffe in the world and her calf have been killed by poachers in northeastern Kenya.

Rangers have confirmed they found the carcasses in a village in Garissa County.

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A third white giraffe – a lone male borne by the same slaughtered female – is believed to be the only remaining one in the world.

“This is a very sad day for the community of Ijara and Kenya as a whole,” said Mohammed Ahmednoor, manager of the reserve.

Rangers confirmed they found the carcasses in a village in Garissa County
Image:Rangers confirmed they found the carcasses in a village in Garissa County

“We are the only community in the world who are custodians of the white giraffes.”

The killing has been described as “a blow to tremendous steps taken by the community to conserve rare and unique species” as well as “a wake-up call for continued support to conservation efforts”.

“This is a long-term loss given that genetics studies and research which were significant investment into the area by researchers, has now gone to the drain,” Mr Ahmednoor added.

 

“Further to this the white giraffe was a big boost to tourism in the area.”

Their white appearance is due to a rare condition called leucism, which causes skin cells to have no pigmentation.