Starting in December 2020, Vetinwild was part of a mission to rescue eight Rothschild’s giraffes trapped in Longicharo Island on the shores of Lake Baringo.
Over the years, water levels in Lake Baringo have been constantly rising, inhibiting plant growth and thus threatening the survival of the critically endangered Rothschild’s giraffe.
There are fewer than 3,000 Rothschild’s giraffes left in the wild, making them one of the most endangered of the nine subspecies of giraffes.
The critically endangered Rothschild giraffe (also known as the Baringo giraffe) was translocated from Soysambu Conservancy into Baringo in 2011 to reintroduce them back to their endemic range.
The rocky terrain of the region, in addition to the rising water levels, made the rescue a difficult and risky undertaking for the giraffes.
The rescue, which started with moving one giraffe first and then gradually translocating the rest of the seven, was a partnership among several organisations, including the Kenya Wildlife Services, Northern Rangelands Trust, the County Government of Baringo, Ruko Community Conservancy and San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance among others.
By the end of April 2021, all eight giraffes had successfully been rescued and moved to the mainland where there were plenty of feed resources.