By Lake Zone Watch Writer
The Frankfurt Zoological Society (FZS) de-snaring project is showing positive results in the world-famous Serengeti National Park.
Latest figures indicate that a total of 2,383 wild animals have been rescued from the poachers’ snares, in Tanzania’s third largest national park.
The Head of Security Department at Serengeti National Park, Mr David Mushi told a crucial conservation stakeholders’ workshop in Mugumu recently that the wild animals were rescued from 2017 when the special project began, to date.
A total of 93,116 snares were confiscated in the park during the nearly seven-year period, he said.
The patrols being conducted to remove snares under the project, involve community members, including former poachers from the villages adjacent the park.
“The majority of wild animals rescued were wildebeest, followed by zebras,” Mr Mushi told the two-day workshop organized by FZS to evaluate its ambitious project dubbed Anti-human/Wildlife Conflicts focusing on villages of Serengeti district that are prone to destructive elephants.
The project also helps to prevent livestock keepers from turning the park into a grazing area.
Speaking on the same occasion earlier, the FZS- Serengeti Project Manager, Mr Masegeri Rurai commended the Tanzania National Parks (TANAPA) for involving the local communities drawn from Village Conservation Banks (COCOBA), and teaming up with its rangers to deal with poachers who have been using snares.
“We congratulate TANAPA for involving the community to prevent illegal hunting and livestock from entering the park,’’ Mr Masegeri said.
For almost 60 years now, FZS has been supporting the government of Tanzania on wildlife conservation matters, by ensuring that the Serengeti ecology remains intact, as well as improving the lives of local communities, among other things.