'Homecoming': Critically endangered antelopes returned to Kenyan forests from Czech zoo
Key takeaways
- Four mountain bongos have arrived in Kenya after being returned from a Czech zoo in a bid to bolster numbers of the critically endangered species of which there are less that 100 left in the wild.
- By: FRANCE 24 A young bongo antelope stands next to his mother at the zoo in Berlin, Germany on August 28, 2012.
- Bongos, rare antelopes known for their striking stripes, have been declared critically endangered due to poaching and diseases.
Why this matters: an international story with cross-border implications worth tracking.
Four mountain bongos have arrived in Kenya after being returned from a Czech zoo in a bid to bolster numbers of the critically endangered species of which there are less that 100 left in the wild. Kenyan officials hailed the return as a “homecoming of the majestic bongos".
By: FRANCE 24 A young bongo antelope stands next to his mother at the zoo in Berlin, Germany on August 28, 2012. © Florian Schuh, AFP Four critically endangered mountain bongos arrived in Kenya on their way to their native forests after years in the care of a zoo in the Czech Republic.
Bongos, rare antelopes known for their striking stripes, have been declared critically endangered due to poaching and diseases. There are less than 100 mountain bongos left in the wild, according to the Kenyan government. Many were sent to Europe in the 1980s after a major rinderpest disease outbreak killed thousands.