“Wildlife corridors” encourage to support the Kenya recovery of the animal population

Lewa, Kenya – As a nation World Wildlife DayConservators in Kenya warn of collecting space for wild animals in the East African country that creates significant revenue from wild animal tourism.

Although in the last two decades have led to recovery of many vulnerable species, animals lose wide habitat protection due to threats arising from climate change and destructive human behavior, activists warn.

But they also allege an opportunity in what are known as the hallways for wild animals – strips of land surfaces that would otherwise separate human activities. Allowing the free movement of animals and reduce conflict incidents on human-wildlife, such corridors support the growth of wildlife population.

One group of preservation that tries to create such corridors is conservatory is Lewa wild animals, located about 260 kilometers (160 miles) north of the Nairobi, Kenya capital. Lewa is owned by a non-profit network that has acquired more land in recent years in the offer for the connection of forest reserves for Kenyo Mountain in Rangeland in northern Kenya. The shrine is a home of 14% of Kenyan’s remaining black rhino, in addition to other types of mammals ranging from lions to zebras.

Annual list of wild animals is in progress when AP visited Lewa, where animal numbers crossed over the years. The list included manually counting each animal, with ground rangers and air teams that participated in the following efforts.

“It’s all an effort to ensure that we take the accounting of any kind that are located on Lewa, especially the fastest endangered and threatening”, at the forefront of preservation and wildlife in Lew. “We look at the full census.”

Lewano elephant’s population increased from 350 individuals in 2014. at more than 450 years in 2024, according to the data provided by the preservative. A similar growth was seen among white and black rhinos, the main drawing for visitors.

But the growing wildness of the population on strain ecosystems and should match stronger efforts to protect the habitats and creating new corridors, Maringa said.

“As a conservatory, you need to watch these trends, to relate them to climate change, relate them with people and conflict in human wilderness,” he said. “You may enjoy seeing a lot of elephants or buffaloes. What does that mean?” You need to make sure you think of the population. “

Kenyan authorities report to the trends of growth of wildlife population across the country. Data from the authority of wild animals show that elephants have grown from about 16,000 in the late 1980s to almost 37,000 in 2024. years. Years. Black rhinos increased from less than 400 in the 1990s today at more than 1000. They are critically endangered Gravljački zebra now number over 2,000, while the lions grew at approximately 2,600.

But that success threatens in some areas of growing human population: Kenya rose from 22 million in 1989. to over 55 million in 2025. Years. Years.

Kenya service of wild animals or KWS, conservations are encouraged like Lew and private landowners to open wildlife corridors for free movement of animals, with Efforts in transition also in progress Redistribute animals from crowded ecosystems in less populated surfaces.

The KWS, in a recent statement, cited the ecosystem of the Tsavo-amboseli, the expansive protected area on South Kenya hosting key migration elephants, as “all under pressure due to human activities that affect the free movement of wild animals.”

Similarly, the corridor of wild animals known as Kitengel, connecting Nairobi National Park to the lawns of Southern Kenya, faced fragmentation due to human settlements and infrastructure development.

In addition to climate change, fast urbanization driven by the growth of the population is the main factor in the collection of wildlife corridors, according to the KWS.

There is an additional fire problem, and the Kenya Forest Service reports over 180 fires that have damaged more than 1,358 hectares of vegetation at the beginning of this year.