Giraffes, we know them, and we love them.
Their beautiful spots and quirky personalities stole our hearts at an early age.
Simply put, we would do anything for these gentle giants.
In Western Kenya’s Longicharo Island, eight giraffes have inhabited a shrinking island since their initial arrival in 2011.
The land, however, has been continually cut off from the mainland.
With each passing storm, this island has become more and more insufficient to meet the demands of such large creatures.
These particular giraffes belong to the Rothschild subspecies, which currently ranks as one of the most endangered groups of giraffes in the world.
It is estimated that under 1,700 of these creatures remain, making this mission all the more critical.
After conditions on the island worsened to an irreversible point, conservationists agreed that the time had come to move these animals off the island and back toward the mainland.
This task, however, was quite daunting!
The water separating the island from the reservation is home to a vast quantity of crocodiles!
The entire Ruko community came together to overcome this challenge, and the results are nothing short of heartwarming.
This is the story of Asiwa, the most at risk of the eight giraffes still on the island.
In order to ensure the safety of Asiwa and her friends, a raft had to be engineered to meet both the animals’ weight and height requirements!
At a staggering height of 20 feet and a weight of over 1 ton, these gentle giants are nothing short of spectacular.
They’re so majestic!
After months of careful research and planning, a “giraffe-raft” was finally produced to meet the group’s needs.
Before the river voyage, numerous practice attempts were performed on land.
The repetition helped to acclimate the giant animals to the new device.
When moving day finally arrived, Asiwa was sedated and blindfolded on her journey to her new home.
Giraffes are easily spooked by crocodiles, so both the sedation and eye coverings were crucial to the mission’s success.
For such a critical subspecies, each risk had to be carefully evaluated with each solution meticulously developed.
The photo shows Asiwa peacefully enjoying her trip while surrounded by numerous conservationists, and it is just about the cutest thing that we have seen.
The “giraffe-raft” was a success!
Asiwa is currently enjoying her new home while patiently waiting for her giraffe-friends to make their own voyages across the water.
Their new home consists of over 4000 fenced-in acres of pure African savanna.
The large-scaled fence was designed specifically with the task of keeping out poachers and predatory species, such as lions and hyenas.
With minimal threats of predation and insufficient habitat, Asiwa is now free to roam and eat to her heart’s content.
She no longer has to fear the scarcity of both food and land.
Well, we’re almost there, folks.
2020 is coming to a close. This has been the year of murder hornets, social isolation, and way too many bad things to name.
Despite all the rough times, we wanted to focus this particular piece on some of the good in 2020.
What could be more cheerful than giraffes?
When we found this inspiring wildlife story, we just had to share it!
These “giraffe-rafts” are proof enough that this year hasn’t been all bad, so let’s spend our final weeks reflecting on the positives.
And to continue following the story of Asiwa and her friends, be sure to check out the link below!
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