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Kenya to hold meeting on combating wildlife poisoning

Xinhua, November 15, 2016 Adjust font size:

A group of conservation bodies are set to meet in Kenya this week for the first ever meeting aimed at fighting wildlife poisoning, organizers said Monday.

BirdLife International's regional director for Africa, Julius Arinaitwe, said the two-day meeting to begin on Tuesday at the Masai Mara Game Reserve will be attended by government officials, wildlife veterinarians, scientists and conservationists.

Arinaitwe said in a statement that the meeting will focus on identifying signs and symptoms of wildlife poisoning, prompt reporting, incident scene treatment, collection of good information and sterilizing the scene to prevent further poisoning.

Arinaitwe said that as nature's most important clean-up crew, vultures are hit hardest by indiscriminate poisoning, which typically targets predators, such as lions and hyenas.

He said one poisoned elephant carcass could cause the death of up to 500 critically endangered vultures drawn from tens of kilometres away.

Lucy Morgan, CEO of Kenya Wildlife Trust, said lions are also victims of poisoning.

"Lions are frequently a threat to local livelihoods as they kill livestock, and sometimes in return, people kill lions," Morgan said. Endit