'Historic homecoming' as endangered antelopes flown to Kenya from Czech Republic zoo

The mountain bongo is a rare antelope endemic to Kenyan highland forests, with less than 100 in the wild. Kenya welcomes four critically endangered mountain bongos from Prague zoo Copyright current_year BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking. Copyright current_year BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking. 'Historic homecoming' as endangered antelopes flown to Kenya from Czech Republic zoo The mountain bongos sent from the Czech Republic will spend time building up their immunity before being introduced to the wild Four mountain bongos, a rare type of antelope native to Kenya's highland forests, have arrived in Kenya after being sent from a zoo in the Czech Republic. The male antelopes arrived in the country on Tuesday night and were welcomed at Nairobi's main airport by Kenya's foreign and tourism ministers, along with other officials. They have since been moved to a private wildlife reserve in central Kenya. The Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) hailed the "historic homecoming" of the antelopes as a "meaningful step" to their recovery in the wild. From about 500 in the 1970s, less than 100 are estimated to remain in the wild – fewer than are in zoos around the world, according to KWS. KWS director-general Erustus Kanga described Tuesday's arrival of the bongos as a "moment of hope, responsibility, and renewed commitment to securing the future of one of the world's rarest large mammals". The mountain bongo is a large, chestnut-red antelope with narrow white vertical stripes and long spiral horns. The KWS and conservation partners have been working to breed the animals and introduce them into the wild in a bid to restore the populations. The KWS and conservation partners have been working to breed the animals and introduce them into the wild in a bid to restore the populations. Watch: On the trail of rare Kenyan antelope Last year, about 17 mountain bongos were repatriated from the Rare Species Conservation Foundation in Florida. The first repatriation to Kenya was in 2004 when 18 mountain bongos were flown into the country. about 17 mountain bongos were repatriated from the Rare Species Conservation Foundation in Florida . The first repatriation to Kenya was in 2004 when 18 mountain bongos were flown into the country. According to the foundation, about 400 mountain bongos live in captivity in North America. Others are held in European zoos. Before being introduced to the wild from captivity, the bongos go through a series of adaptation phases for them to build the immunity needed to survive. Ahead of their repatriation to Kenya, Prague Zoo said each animal would undergo "acclimatisation and detailed monitoring before being gradually integrated" at the Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy (MKWC)'s breeding programme. It said they would help strengthen the population's genetic value. On Wednesday morning, KWS posted images of the antelopes, saying they had arrived safely at the conservancy at the foot of Mount Kenya, and were "now settling in under close care". "This marks a quiet but vital step in strengthening their population and securing their future," it added. In 2022, the conservancy told local media that some mountain bongos previously repatriated had successfully been integrated into the wild and started breeding. Others, however, had died from tick-borne diseases. Kenya aims to raise the mountain bongo's wild population to about 700 by 2050, through a national recovery plan led by the KWS. Rare Kenyan giraffes killed by low power lines The cheetah cub standing next to the family which adopted it. 'It became one of the children' - Kenyan family on adopting orphaned cheetah cub Tourist pouring beer down elephant's trunk in Kenya sparks anger A woman looking at her mobile phone and the graphic BBC News Africa Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent. for more news from the African continent. Follow us on Twitter @BBCAfrica, on Facebook at BBC Africa or on Instagram at bbcafrica The annual celebration of the Isle of Man's natural environment and wildlife gets under way. It is the third year in a row female Osprey CJ7 has laid a clutch of four eggs at the site in Wareham. Safe havens for insects and small animals have been installed near Burley Park Station in Leeds. The military came to power to bolster security but the weekend's attacks have brought that into question. Diezani Alison-Madueke is accused of being treated to luxury home stays and lavish spending sprees in the UK, which she denies. South Africa's president says people's concerns should not "breed... hatred towards fellow Africans". Authorities say the militants raided a football pitch where people had been gathering and opened fire at random. He says his words were intended to be a private conversation and were "taken out of context".