Critically endangered Mountain Bongo returned to Kenyan forests from Czech zoo

Four mountain bongos, a critically endangered antelope species, have been brought back to Kenya from the Czech Republic as part of conservation and reintroduction efforts. 

About Mountain Bongo  

• Scientific identity: Subspecies of the Bongo
• Two subspecies:
  • Mountain (Eastern) Bongo – critically endangered
  • Lowland (Western) Bongo – relatively more common
• Habitat: Dense highland forests of Kenya
• Physical features:
  • Large chestnut/auburn coat
  • 10–15 white vertical stripes
  • Long spiral horns
• Notable fact: Largest and most colourful African forest antelope.

Conservation Status

• Classified as Critically Endangered
• Fewer than 100 individuals remain in the wild (Kenya government estimate)

Reasons for Decline

• Poaching
• Habitat loss and fragmentation
• Diseases, especially Rinderpest outbreak in the 1980s

Historical relocation: Many individuals were moved to Europe for conservation breeding.