Poachers move in as virus impact stretches rangers

Poachers are taking advantage of the pandemic to step up their activities across Africa as budget cuts stretch the depleted ranks of wildlife rangers.

The upsurge is worrying conservationists and those tasked with protecting the animals and forests, with a recent report adding to their concerns.

A survey conducted by conservation charity Tusk and Natural State, an organization that implements restoration projects, found that rangers see no sign of relief as the disruptions brought by COVID-19 hurt the battle to safeguard Africa's wildlife. The groups questioned 60 field organizations across 19 countries.

Cuts to resources and a reduced number of rangers were identified as factors helping to drive the rise in poaching.

The Conservation and Wildlife Fund at Zimbabwe's Hwange National Park said it had seen an 8,000 percent increase in the number of traps and snares set by poachers between May and July 2020.

"There has been an alarming spike in the rate of ivory-related arrests made by our team over the last year," said Nyaradzo Hoto, a sergeant at the International Anti-Poaching Foundation in Zimbabwe. "The poachers will not rest despite the pandemic, so it is up to us to maintain operations and the moral high ground by protecting and caring for our teams.

"We stand strong in our commitment to patrol the vast wilderness areas we are entrusted with, and protect those that can't fend for themselves against poachers."

The International Journal of Protected Areas and Conservation found that 78.5 percent of surveyed African countries reported that COVID-19 had affected their ability to monitor the illegal wildlife trade, and 53 percent reported a high level of impact from the pandemic on the ability to mitigate conflict between people and wildlife.

Vigilance needed

Edwin Kinyanjui, a senior wildlife community officer at the Mount Kenya Trust in the East African country, said rangers needed to be more vigilant over the past year.

"Illegal activity due to widespread loss of income is on the rise and while combating this activity, rangers are at risk of contracting COVID-19, "Kinyanjui said. "Poaching methods are also increasingly becoming sophisticated and the justice system overstretched. We keep going because we understand that what we are fighting for is bigger than us."

Essential funding for wildlife tourism has also been in crisis due to the pandemic. A spokesperson for the Frankfurt Zoological Society in Germany said the impact of COVID-19 is being felt in the Nsumbu National Park in Zambia.

"This reduced tourism has impacted jobs and related livelihoods and provided a challenge in linking the value of nature with the value to human life," the spokesperson said.