1.1 Introduction
Globally, an average of 69% decline in the relative abundance of
monitored wildlife populations around the world between 1970 and 2018
has been reported [1]. Wildlife populations decline of 68% between
1977 and 2016 have been reported in Kenya’s rangelands [2]. The
declines have been attributed to rapid growth in human population and
associated pressures on resources, institutional and market failures,
impacts of climate change and variability, lack of development in the
rangelands and ineffective wildlife conservation policies, strategies
and practices in Kenya [2, 3]. World Bank report of 2019 listed
Baringo County among the few counties in Kenya that experienced over
85% wildlife loss in the last four decades [4]. As one of the most
important tourist attractions in Baringo County, there is a growing
concern over the future of the Greater Kudu owing to the immense
pressure on its habitat that is limited to the Lake Bogoria National
Reserve (LBNR) as well as the adjacent farmlands and community grazing
lands. The Kudu with its magnificent spiraled horns is one of Africa’s
most gracious and handsome antelope [5]. Greater Kudu is endemic
within Lake Bogoria landscape in Baringo County, in Kenya [6].
Besides being a major tourist attraction for Baringo County
necessitating use of its photo on the County’s logo and thus a flagship
species, its direct and indirect contribution to food and environmental
security cannot be underestimated. It is indicated that 92% of all the
County’s tourists visited LBNR in the year 2017 [7] and thus a huge
revenue base.
The Greater Kudu dispersal areas are within the Lake Bogoria Landscape
(LBL) that hosts Lake Bogoria National Reserve (LBNR), a World Heritage
Site, a Ramsar Site and an Important Bird Area. Lake Bogoria National
Reserve (LBNR) is known locally, nationally and regionally, for
important wildlife species, including the flamingo and the Greater Kudu.
The Reserve has unique physiographic features and geothermal
manifestations due to its geological history that portend well for
tourism. The combination of landforms, biodiversity content,
availability of water and forage makes it a preferred Kudu habitat and
an important site at community, national and global levels [6].
Whereas Greater Kudu in IUCN Red List of 2020 is under the category of
Least Concern species, it is endangered in Uganda and Somalia and is
thought to be vulnerable in Chad and Kenya [8]. Greater Kudu in the
Lake Bogoria National Reserve’s Integrated Management Plan (IMP) has
been listed as threatened and rare [9, 7] and thus the need for
consolidated efforts towards its conservation.
The growth in human population in the Lake Bogoria landscape coupled
with increased number of livestock and heightened agricultural expansion
explains the landscape transformation and to some extent, the observed
land degradation in the region [7, 9]. Human-induced changes in an
ecosystem may influence spatio-temporal dispersal changes of herbivore
wildlife species by affecting forage abundance and nutritional quality,
exposure to predators [10], modification of habitats and breeding
areas [11]. Sinclair et al. (2007) found that abiotic events, such
as droughts and floods, created disturbances that affected survivorship
of ungulates of the Serengeti-Mara Ecosystem [12]. Spatial and
temporal heterogeneity in the quality and quantity of food in savanna
landscapes affected the distribution of native large herbivore [13].
Understanding spatio-temporal dispersal changes in a landscape will help
in evaluating species interaction within their ecosystems and how these
interactions are affected by climate and anthropogenic activities [12,
14]. This promotes coexistence of people and wildlife around protected
areas, and by extension enhances wildlife conservation, food and
environmental security.
It has been demonstrated that in a world with limited dispersal
opportunities, the range size occupied by species is crucial for their
survival and is responsible for their extinction than any other factor
[15]. There is limited information and data on spatio-temporal
dispersal changes of Greater Kudu and in LBNR landscape to support
management interventions. It is against this background that a study was
carried out to assess spatio-temporal change of dispersal areas of
Greater Kudu (Tragelaphus strepsiceros) in Lake Bogoria landscape
in the last four years for enhanced conservation and improved
livelihoods.