State unveils bold plan to rescue pancake tortoise

Kenya Wildlife Service Director General Erustus Kanga during the launch of a 10-year conservation plan for the pancake tortoise in Ciakariga, Tharaka-Nithi, on May 19, 2025. [Jayne Rose Gacheri, Standard]

With fewer than 10,000 pancake tortoises (Malacochersus tornieri) left in the wild, the government has launched a 10-year National Pancake Tortoise Recovery Plan (2025-2035) to prevent extinction.

Unveiled on World Endangered Species Day, the initiative affirms Kenya's biodiversity leadership.

Nicknamed kobe kama chapati for its flat, flexible shell, the tortoise hides in rock crevices but remains highly vulnerable to illegal pet trade.

More than 95 per cent of the remaining population is found in Kitui, Embu, Meru, Tharaka-Nithi, Laikipia, Samburu, Isiolo, Marsabit, and Tana River counties, while smaller populations exist in Tanzania and Zambia..

Speaking at the Chiakariga launch, Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) Director General Erastus Kanga emphasised the urgency of intervention, saying, "this isn't just about saving a tortoise. It is about protecting an ecological balance. With a reproductive rate of just one egg per year, every individual is critical to the species' survival."

Prof Kanga said the plan has been two decades in the making, involving in-depth research by KWS, the National Museums of Kenya, and conservation partners like Lewa Wildlife Conservancy

The plan includes habitat protection, scientific monitoring, community-led conservation, anti-trafficking enforcement and sustainable livelihoods.

Prof Kanga cited the success of leopard tortoise farming in Baringo as a model for local action, proving that community-driven conservation can thrive alongside science and policy.

Habitat protection and restoration. This involves securing natural environments to prevent further decline, scientific monitoring and research, tracking population trends and reproductive patterns, community-led conservation programs, empowering locals as custodians of endangered species, anti-trafficking enforcement, curbing illegal trade through stricter wildlife laws, sustainable livelihoods, and introducing alternative income sources to reduce poaching pressures.

Tharaka-Nithi County Deputy Governor, Nyaga Muisraeli, pledged support, calling conservation "a generational responsibility."

KWS Board of Trustees member, Chachu Ganya, announced that Marsabit County will expand protected areas to safeguard the tortoise, urging Kenyans to become active custodians.

Tharaka University Vice Chancellor Peter Muriungi unveiled a new KWS-licensed conservancy to host pancake tortoises, ostriches, and a future snake park for venom research. The university will also host Kenya's World Environment Day celebrations on June 5, reinforcing its role as a conservation hub.

The plan has received technical and financial backing from: Turtle Survival Alliance, Turtle Conservation, Re: wild, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, Lewa Wildlife Conservancy, IUCN, Tortoise & Freshwater, and Turtle Specialist Group.

"We call on all Kenyans to join this fight-report sightings, reject illegal trade, and help turn this species, once considered doomed, into a conservation success story," urged Prof Kanga.

As Kenya mobilises science, policy, and grassroots action, the pancake tortoise, once slipping toward extinction, now stands as a symbol of resilience. This initiative proves that even the most specialized creatures can thrive when humans and nature work together.