The
population of northern white and eastern black rhinos, that was
wiped out in the early 1980s by people hunting for their horns,
has grown back to 32 since a charity brought in four in 2005,
the Uganda Wildlife Authority said.
Thanks to increased conservation efforts, the number of buffalos
increased 77% to 44,163 between 1983 and 2021, while elephants
surged nearly 300% to 7,975 over the same period, the authority
added.
The East African country suffered massive declines in some
species between the 1960s and 1980s as political conflict and
lawlessness allowed poaching, trafficking and encroachment on
wildlife areas to thrive.
Since then, the government has brought in a string of
conservation policies, including lengthy jail terms for
violations.
"Wildlife populations are on a steady recovery," the authority
said.
There has also been an increase in the number of mountain
gorillas in dense forests in the southwest, it added, a boost to
the tourism industry.
(Reporting by Elias Biryabarema; Editing by George Obulutsa and
Andrew Heavens)
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