Rangers in Shanga Rubu island in Lamu East have recovered a carcass of the endangered dugong — a rare marine mammal - inside a mangrove forest.
Dugongs, commonly referred to as sea cows, are large grey marine mammals belonging to the same scientific class as elephants.
However, unlike other marine animals, dugongs are unique because they give birth to and breastfeed their young on their two teats.
The rare mammal has a whale-like flat tail and flippers that move up and down to enable movement. They feed majorly on sea grass.
The carcass, which was estimated to be two days old, was recovered by ranger Athman Shee Kupi working at the Pate Marine and Community Conservancy.
The dugong weighed approximately 200kg and was about 6.5 feet long.
It is estimated that the remaining population of dugongs in Kenya is less than 10 but an aerial census survey led by KWS in 2017 recorded zero sighting of the marine mammals whose lifespan is up to 70 years and above.
PMCC manager Nadhir Hashim said the recovery was historic as dugongs haven’t been sighted in Kenyan waters for centuries.
He said they are yet to ascertain the cause of death of the animal but suspected it could have been trapped inside the thick mangrove forest as it came out to look for food.
He said it is also possible that it consumed toxic plastic waste as its stomach appeared distended and abnormal.
Hundreds of residents made trips to the area to catch a glimpse of the mammal.
Hashim called for concerted efforts to protect endangered species along the Kenyan Coast and globally.
“It’s so unfortunate that the dugong was already dead when it was recovered otherwise we would have done everything to keep it alive. We need to stop more deaths of endangered species,” he said.
Northern Rangeland Trust Coastal region deputy director Hassan Yussuf said the sighting of the dead dugong was both sad and good news.
“Sad because a vulnerable species has been lost and its population down by one. Good news because the sighting of the carcass gives hope that this species is still around and has found safety in Lamu owing to the increased conservation efforts by the community,” he said.
Fishermen in the region have constantly reported sightings of dugong grazing trails and the recovery of the carcass confirms the anecdotal reports.
Lamu’s senior KWS warden Mathias Mwavita said samples from the carcass have been obtained to test and unravel the cause of death.
Along the Kenyan Coast, dugongs are only found in Kiunga in Lamu, Kilifi county and some parts of South Coast but are still hard to sight.
Mwavita said dugongs continue to be threatened by a myriad of human activities including direct human exploitation, habitat loss and destruction and accidental capture during fishing operations.
They are unique and considered endangered due to their slow reproduction rate.
“We’re saddened to have lost such a rare mammal considering they have a very slow reproduction and growth rate. They always give birth to a single calf at three to seven-year intervals. The death is unclear but experts have already taken samples for investigations,” he said.
Edited by R.Wamochie