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KENYA
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Kenya Forest Figures
Forest Cover
Total forest area: 3,522,000 ha
% of land area: 6.2%
Primary forest cover: 704,000 ha
% of land area: 1.2%
% total forest area: 20.0%
Deforestation Rates, 2000-2005
Annual change in forest cover: -12,000 ha
Annual deforestation rate: -0.3%
Change in defor. rate since '90s: -1.4%
Total forest loss since 1990: -186,000 ha
Total forest loss since 1990:-5.0%
Primary or "Old-growth" forests
Annual loss of primary forests: -2400 ha
Annual deforestation rate: -0.3%
Change in deforestation rate since '90s: -4.3%
Primary forest loss since 1990: -12,000 ha
Primary forest loss since 1990:-5.1%
Forest Classification
Public: 97.8%
Private: 2.2%
Other: 0%
Use
Production: n.s.%
Protection: 100%
Conservation: n/a
Social services: n/a
Multiple purpose: n/a
None or unknown: n/a
Forest Area Breakdown
Total area: 3,522,000 ha
Primary: 704,000 ha
Modified natural: 2,616,000 ha
Semi-natural: n/a
Production plantation: 202,000 ha
Production plantation: n/a
Plantations
Plantations, 2005: 202,000 ha
% of total forest cover: 5.7%
Annual change rate (00-05): -2,000,000 ha
Carbon storage
Above-ground biomass: 536 M t
Below-ground biomass: 133 M t
Area annually affected by
Fire: 3,000 ha
Insects: n/a
Diseases: n/a
Number of tree species in IUCN red list
Number of native tree species: n/a
Critically endangered: 3
Endangered: 14
Vulnerable: 50
Wood removal 2005
Industrial roundwood: 2,402,000 m3 o.b.
Wood fuel: 24,256,000 m3 o.b.
Value of forest products, 2005
Industrial roundwood: n/a
Wood fuel: n/a
Non-wood forest products (NWFPs): n/a
Total Value: n/a
More forest statistics for Kenya
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Kenya has very little rainforest (mostly montane forest) cover, and these scattered patches are being further degraded for fuelwood and building material. Overall forest loss in Kenya has been moderate over the past generation—5 percent of the country's forest cover was lost between 1990 and 2005. Primary forest cover also fell by 5 percent over the same period and now cover around 700,000 hectares. Deforestation rates have decreased slightly since the end of the 1990s.
Kenya is world famous for its safari wildlife, and 12.3 percent of its land area is currently under some form of protection. The country has 1,103 species of birds, 261 mammals, 407 reptiles, 76 amphibians, and 6,500 species of plants.
The most immediate threats to Kenya's forests are subsistence activities and agricultural expansion. In recent years conflicts between forest squatters and police have escalated as the government tries to crack down on deforestation. In 2005, the government evicted 10,000-50,000 families from the edge of the Mau Forest in the Rift Valley as part of its campaign to protect the country's natural resources.
Recent articles | Kenya news updates | XML
Kenya moves forward to ban the pesticide Furadan after it is used to kill 76 lions
(06/08/2009) After highly-publicized poisonings of lions in Kenya’s national parks, the Kenyan Parliament has begun addressing longstanding concerns regarding the pesticide Furadan. Since 1995 Furadan has been used to illegally kill 76 lions, 15 hyenas, 24 hippos, over 250 vultures, and thousands of other birds in Kenya. These numbers are likely low due to under-reporting, according to Kenya-based conservation organization, Wildlife Direct.
Famous elephant matriarch, Echo, dies from old age
(05/06/2009) Subject of several documentaries, Kenya’s most famous elephant, Echo, died last Sunday from old age, likely exasperated by drought conditions in East Africa.
Huge cache of smuggled ivory represents up to 40 elephants
(04/29/2009) On April 25th two men were pursued by wildlife rangers from the Amboseli-Tsavo Game Scouts Association in Tanzania. The men escaped across the border to southern Kenya where they were caught by police, who had been tipped off by the wildlife scouts. The two men’s SUV contained 1,550 lbs (703 kilograms) of elephant tusks, representing a total of up to forty individuals according to the Kenyan Wildlife Service. This is considered the largest seizure in the region since the ivory smuggling boom of the late 1970s and early 1980s. The ivory is estimated at a value of $750,000 (or 60 million Kenyan shillings).
Famous Kenyan park experiencing large declines in wildlife
(04/21/2009) In Masai Mara, one of Africa’s most treasured parks, researchers have found significant, in some cases catastrophic, declines of wild grazing animals. In fifteen years six of seven hoofed animals—giraffes, warthogs, hartebeest, impala, topis and waterbucks—showed declines. The study published in the British Journal of Zoology confirms what has long been expected: wildlife populations in Masai Mara are plummeting due to increased competition with humans and livestock.
Kenya signs its first REDD deal to conserve forests
(04/16/2009) Kenya has signed its first carbon deal to reduce emissions from deforestation and degradation (REDD).
Fire in Kenya threatens some of the world's most beloved parks
(03/24/2009) Started by arsonists, fires have swept through Kenya's Great Rift valley, home of some of the world's most treasured parks and ten million Kenyans already suffering from long-term drought.
All about giraffes: an interview with a giraffe expert
(03/09/2009) Dr. Julian Fennessy probably knows the giraffe better than anyone. Trekking across savannah, forest, and the deserts of Africa, Fennessy is collecting genetic samples of distinct giraffe populations and overturning common wisdom regarding their taxonomies. It had long been accepted knowledge that the giraffe was made up of one species and several subspecies, however with Fennessy's work it now appears that several of the subspecies may in fact be distinct species. Such discoveries could have large conservation impacts, since conservation funds and efforts are largely devoted to species. The giraffe has suffered significant declines in the past decade with the total population dropping some 30 percent across Africa.
How youth in Kenya's largest slum created an organic farm
(12/09/2008) Kibera is one of the world's largest slums, containing over a million people and 60 percent of Nairobi's population. With extremely crowded conditions, little sanitation, and an unemployment rate at 50 percent, residents of Kibera face not only abject poverty but also a large number of social ills, including drugs, alcoholism, rape, AIDS, water-borne diseases, and tensions between various Kenyan tribes.
IP laws not helping indigenous people protect traditional knowledge (repost)
(11/13/2008) Promoting capacity for self-governance rather than using conventional systems governing intellectual property rights may be a more effective way to safeguard traditional knowledge of indigenous groups, argues a new report published by an international team of IP experts. Released at an IP conference convened by Sciences Po, a French research institute, and The Innovation Partnership, a Canadian NGO, the report details how traditional knowledge is treated in Brazil, Kenya and Northern Canada. It finds significant differences in the effectiveness of IP laws and policies in protecting the wisdom and knowledge accumulated by indigenous communities.
First captive black rhinos released into the wild in 25 years
(10/03/2008) Fifteen critically-endangered black rhinos have been released at an undisclosed location in Kenya with hopes that this pioneer group will breed naturally, repopulating an area they once roamed abundantly. The release is the first time in 25 years that captive rhinos have been returned to the wild.
Cheetah population stabilizes in Namibia with support from farmers
(10/02/2008) Viewing the world's fastest land animal as a threat to their livestock, in the 1980s farmers killed half of Namibia's cheetah population. The trend continued into the early 1990s, when the population was diminished again by nearly half, leaving less than 2,500 cheetah in the southern African country. Today cheetah populations have stabilized due, in large part, to the efforts of the Cheetah Conservation Fund, an organization founded by Dr. Laurie Marker.
Kenyan community displaced by nature reserve seeks justice
(09/22/2008) Lake Bogoria is a fascinating nature reserve in Kenya's Rift Valley. Set in a strange arid landscape, the lake attracts tens of thousands of flamingos. The multitudes of bright pink birds contrast with the grayish-blue landscape. The lake itself is shallow and saline; boiling hot springs and geysers can be found along its western shore. Fish eagles and marabou storks haunt the waters, seeking out flamingo for dinner. Antelope, even the greater kudu, can sometimes be seen, while hyraxes make their homes in the surrounding bare rock. However, the strange beauty of this reserve comes with a grim reality not shown to tourists.
Group takes "venture capital" approach to conservation
(09/16/2008) An innovative group is using a venture capital model to save some of the world's most endangered species, while at the same time working to ensure that local communities benefit from conservation efforts. The Wildlife Conservation Network (WCN), an organization based in Los Altos, California, works to protect threatened species by focusing on what it terms "conservation entrepreneurs" -- people who are passionate about saving wildlife and have creative ideas for dong so. After a rigorous review process to identify and select projects that will have the greatest impact on conservation in developing countries, WCN provides the conservationist with fund-raising and back-office support, technology, and access to its network of people and resources.
Threatened forest in Kenya home to a diversity of bird life
(09/15/2008) The Tana River forest in coastal Kenya is home to a diverse array of bird species but is increasingly under threat from logging, agricultural expansion, and unsustainable harvesting of some bird species, reports a new study published in the open-access journal Tropical Conservation Science.
NASA study shows global warming will diminish rainfall in East Africa, worsening hunger
(08/06/2008) A new NASA-backed study has found a link between a warming Indian Ocean and reduced rainfall in eastern and southern Africa. The results suggest that rising sea temperatures could exacerbate food problems in some of the continent's most famine-prone regions.
14 countries win REDD funding to protect tropical forests
(07/24/2008) Fourteen countries have been selected by the World Bank to receive funds for conserving their tropical forests under an innovative carbon finance scheme.
Kenya to convert 20,000 ha of key wetland for ethanol production
(06/25/2008) AThe Kenyan government will allow more than 20,000 ha (50,000) of ecologically-sensitive wetland to be converted into a sugar cane plantation for biofuel production, reports The Guardian. Environmentalists were "shocked" by the decision.
Africa's lions are disappearing
(03/25/2008) The lion is Africa's best known carnivore. Once widely abundant across the continent, recent surveys show that lion populations have plunged from over 100,000 individuals to around 23,000 over the past century. The reason? Lions are poisoned, shot, and speared by locals who see them as a threat to livestock. While lion populations in protected areas remain relatively healthy, conservationists say that without urgent measures, lions may disappear completely from unprotected areas. The Kilimanjaro Lion conservation Project is working to avoid this fate by developing practical measures to encourage coexistence between people, livestock and predators. Key to the effort is reducing livestock losses to lions. Leela Hazzah, a field researcher with the project, says the "Lion Guardians" program at Mbirikani Ranch in Kenya has proved remarkably successful: not a single lion has been killed since its inception in November 2006. The program employs Maasai warriors to monitor lions and help local communities prevent attacks on livestock.
Disappearance of elephants, giraffes causes ecological chain reaction
(01/10/2008) The disappearance of elephants, giraffes and other grazing animals from the eastern African savanna could send ecological ripple effects all the way to the savanna's ants and the acacia trees they inhabit, warns a new study published in the journal Science.
World's largest spitting cobra discovered in Kenya
(12/09/2007) The world's largest spitting cobra has been discovered in Kenya, according to WildlifeDirect, a conservation group.
Biodiversity conservation will only work if local people benefit
(11/19/2007) Biodiversity loss is already having an economic impact in Africa according to a 7-year monitoring project underwritten by Europeans and African governments. The project, known as the Biodiversity Monitoring Transect Analysis in Africa (BIOTA), relies on a network of biodiversity observatories equipped with weather stations, sensors and a monitoring program that includes remote sensing, data on soil fertility and agricultural indicators. Dr. Nina Farwig, a scientist at the Johannes Gutenberg-University of Mainz and a participating member of BIOTA-East Africa, says that conservation efforts in the tropics will only be effective if the local people benefit. Her work with BIOTA shows that even in the absence of extensive forest cover, a patchwork of agricultural landscapes can contribute to the biodiversity conservation.
Missing link between humans and apes possibly discovered
(11/12/2007) A 10 million-year-old jawbone discovered in Kenya may represent a new species very close to the last common ancestor of gorillas, chimpanzees, and humans, report researchers writing in the current issue of the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).
Climbing Africa's second highest mountain
(11/05/2007) Mount Kenya, Africa's second highest mountain, is said to be one of the continent's most beautiful hikes. Located less than three hours' drive from Nairobi, Mount Kenya is accessible and makes for a great add-on for fit travelers looking to do more than the standard safari in Kenya.
How long does it take reef fish to recover from overfishing?
(07/11/2007) Recovery of fish populations from overfishing can take decades, reports a new study based on 37 years of observations.
Alien water weed re-invades Lake Victoria
(02/27/2007) Water hyacinth has re-invaded Lake Victoria, choking thousands of acres (hectares) of the lake's surface in Kenya, according to satellite pictures released by NASA.
Suggested reading - Books
Unless otherwise specified, this article was written by Rhett A. Butler [Bibliographic citation for this page]
Other resources
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World Resources Institute
Last updated: 4 Feb 2006 |
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