Kenya has received 17 rare mountain bongos from a US conservation center.
These antelopes are the third-generation offspring of mountain bongos originally taken from Kenya in the 1960s.
As per BBC, the return of these critically endangered mountain bongos from the Rare Species Conservation Foundation in Florida is seen as a major achievement for Kenya’s conservation efforts.
Their population has drastically declined from about 500 in the 1970s to fewer than 100 in the wild today.
The Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) attributed the decline of mountain bongos to habitat loss, poaching, illegal activities, disease and their small populations.
Tourism Minister Rebecca Miano described their arrival at Kenya’s airport as an emotional and exciting moment.
Rebecca said the mountain bongo, "a species originally only found in Kenya, has suffered untold grief over the decades... dwindling to alarming proportions".
The mountain bongos were transported to wildlife sanctuaries in Meru County, near Mount Kenya where they will be cared for and gradually released into the wild.
As per KWS, the mountain bongo is the largest antelope that lives in African forests and it has a bright chestnut-red coat with narrow white strips.
Rebecca said that the plan was to grow the population to 700 by 2050.
