The world’s last white giraffe has been equipped with a GPS tracker to protect it from poachers in northeastern Kenya.
The female giraffe is the only white giraffe known to exist in the world after the other two became victims of poaching, last March.
With the help of a GPS tracker, it will work by giving ping signals every hour to know the location of the animal. The device was fitted on one of the giraffe’s horns, on November 8.
“It’s killing is a blow to tremendous steps taken by the community to conserve rare and unique species and a wake-up call for continued support to conservation efforts,” said Mohammed Ahmednoor, the manager of Kenya’s Ishaqbini Hirola Community Conservancy.
“This is a long-term loss given that genetics studies and research which were significant investment into the area by researchers has now gone to the drain,” he said.
“Further to this, the white giraffe was a big boost to tourism in the area,” he added.
The animal has a genetic disorder called Leucism that causes it to suffer from pigmentation loss.
White giraffes were first found in Kenya in March 2016, about two months after they were spotted in neighboring Tanzania.
In 2017, white giraffes became the focus again after a mother and child were spotted on camera in Kenya’s Garissa County.
Source: BBC, Daily Star