Lewa Wildlife Conservancy

The Lewa Wildlife Conservancy (also known as Lewa Downs) is located in northern Kenya. It was formed in 1995 (1995) and is a wildlife sanctuary incorporating the Ngare Ndare Forest covering over 62,000 acres (250 km2). The Conservancy is home to a wide variety of wildlife including the rare and endangered black rhinos, Grevy's zebras and sitatungas. It also includes the big five (lion, leopards, elephants, rhinos and Cape buffaloes). Lewa holds over 12% of Kenya's eastern black rhinoceros population and the largest single population of Grevy's zebras in the world (approximately 350 individuals).

road to Lewa

The Conservancy is also home to the Northern Rangelands Trust, an initiative of Ian Craig and Kenyan politician Francis ole Kaparo. This trust has its fair share of controversy after US based advocacy group The Oakland Institute found in its report serious accusations including the barring of indigenous pastoralists from grazing on their ancestral lands. Lewa has its own education program that helps develop schools and students. Lewa Wildlife Conservancy is located in Meru County, south of Isiolo town but north of Mount Kenya.

History of Lewa
Reticulated giraffe in Lewa

The Craig/Douglas family were allocated the land by the British colonial government in 1922 and managed it as a cattle ranch for over 50 years.

In 1983 the Craigs and Anna Merz – who funded the program – decided to establish the fenced and guarded Ngare Sergoi Rhino Sanctuary at the western end of Lewa Downs. The rhino sanctuary was stocked partly with animals from other reserves and partly by isolated individuals from northern Kenya. There have been allegations of Lewa also having 'captured animals under the false pretence that they were ill and needed treatment'.[1] The black rhino that were caught settled down and bred, and white rhino were added.

After ten years, it was clear that the rhinos needed more space, and the sanctuary was expanded to cover the rest of the ranch, and the adjoining Ngare Ndare Forest Reserve. In 2001 Lewa partnered with Gerald Chamales to change his company's name to Rhinotek Computer Products, when the company began sending part of its annual revenue to support Lewa.[2]

The conservancy is home to Lewa Airport. Annually, the Lewa Marathon is held in the Lewa Conservancy for fundraising purposes. Unlike normal marathons, Lewa Marathon is contested on dirt track.[3]

On 19 October 2010, Prince William of Wales proposed marriage to Catherine Middleton at Lewa. That year, 13% of Kenya's rhinos lived in the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy – 66 white rhinos and 72 black rhinos.[4]

Wildlife and security on Lewa
East African cheetahs.

Lewa was the only wildlife sanctuary in Kenya not to have lost a rhino to poachers in 2014.[4] Lewa's anti-poaching teams have been deployed to other rhino sanctuaries following serious levels of rhino poaching and have effectively reduced rhino poaching as a result. In 2015 Edward Ndiritu, employed at Lewa as head of the Anti-Poaching Unit and the Northern Rangeland Trust, received the Tusk Wildlife Ranger Award from Prince William.[4]

International Collaborations

Teams from the Al Ain Zoo, United Arab Emirates, collaborates in partnership with the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy to support the protection and conservation of wild black and white rhinos. The team together, track each individual rhino to protect them from illegal poachers, monitor their health, and carry out important research.[5]

References
  1. van den Akker, Marlous (2016). Monument of Nature? an Ethnography of the World Heritage of Mt. Kenya. African Studies Centre Leiden. pp. 143–155. ISBN 978-90-5448-153-9.
  2. "Newsletter No. 9" (PDF). Lewa Wildlife Conservacy. March 2009.
  3. Lewa Marathon
  4. Chris Leadbeater (1 August 2015). "Royal Award for rhino protector". The Daily Telegraph. Vol. Travel. London, UK. p. 10. A similar shorter article is also available on the Internet at Chris Leadbeater (31 July 2015). "Prince William honours rhino ranger after Cecil shooting". The Daily Telegraph. London, UK. Retrieved 3 August 2015.
  5. "Al Ain Zoo to further push its rhino conservation efforts". The Brew. 23 September 2021. Retrieved 23 April 2022.

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