Local farmers deny any role in elephants death in Kenya
Farmers strongly rejected any cyanide use after wildlife authorities suspected 15 elephants died from the poison in a national park in Kenya, Africanews via AP report on August 7th.
Traces of cyanide were found by preliminary laboratory tests of the animals. The Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) is now investigating the deaths.
Farmers whose land borders the Amboseli National Park – where all 15 elephants died – deny using cyanide on their crops. Many insist that they have never used the poison in farming and assert that tomatoes are given to livestock frequently and there are no medical consequences.
Postmortem examinations found watermelons and tomatoes in the elephant’s stomachs and lesions in their heart and lungs according to veterinary staff. Investigators are currently waiting for the results of further quantitative tests before coming to their final determination of cause of death.
As these farmers have worked the land alongside elephants and other animals for decades, they question why “elephants were the only species” affected, if the deaths and chemicals involved were linked to standard farming practices that have been in place for years.
In Kenya, cyanide is regulated for specific industries including mining but so far no evidence has been found by wildlife authorities that illegal mining operations were using the poison inside the park.
Tomatoes, French beans and onions are all produced for nationwide usage in Kenya by farmers in Kimana, a farming region that borders Amboseli National Park.
The recent deaths on the park have reopened conversations about the effects of agricultural farming on the natural world. As land used for farming is expanding upon protected areas the conflict between humans and wildlife is increasing.
Through many anti-poaching campaigns conducted by authorities, the elephant population in Kenya has risen to more than 36,000. One such initiative trains reformed poachers to protect wildlife and has heavily reduced illegal hunting in regions of northern Kenya according to VOA.
After poaching, the second leading reason for an elephant’s death is frequent contact with humans, Kenya’s National Elephant Plan stated.
Africanews via AP, VOA, Maghrebi.org
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