Kenya's Election Crisis - A Poaching Epidemic

Mass killings, people being burned to death in a church, riots and other horrible mayhem in Kenya will keep tourists away from exploring the rich wildlife of the Maasai Mara.

Tourism is Kenya's main source of income giving locals many jobs such as working at hotels, restaurants, and as tour guides and other tourist trade occupations. With the recent month-long political unrest, riots, and mass murders in Kenya, many are without jobs and are hungry.

Meat from wild animals also known as "bush meat" is significantly cheaper than beef or livestock meat. With poverty at its peak in this country and tourism almost completely non existent, many endangered animals and all in between will be killed rapidly and in higher numbers.

Increased snaring is posing a big threat on many wild animals - big and small such as giraffes, zebras, buffalo, gazelle, rabbit and even monkey. These animals rarely have a chance of escaping the metal noose that tightens every time they struggle to get free. As many as one million animals are suffereing and dying in these snares each year. They are cheap and effective killing trap that are scattered all over thousands of acres of land where many wild animals roam.

Environmental NGO wildlifedirect.org warned that the world-renowned Maasai Mara Game Reserve

"is under severe threat from widespread poaching following the collapse of tourism in Kenya's post-election crisis."

"Wildlife is going to be hit hard," Brian Heath, head of the Mara Conservancy Trust, was quoted as saying in a statement.

Thankfully despite all thats going on there is anti-poaching teams in Kenya that fight hard to protect wild animals from poachers. The Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) depends almost solely on tourism revenue to fund its conservation and wildlife protection activities. But with KWS coffers empty, patrols have all but come to a halt, leaving wildlife exposed and an easy target.

The Mara is home to the worlds most famous wildlife spectacle, losing it because of political unrest in Kenya would be a global tragedy.

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Written by Angie

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