Conservationist lands global role protecting 90 antelope species

Dr Robert Aruho, Head of Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy.

A captive breeding programme for critically endangered Mountain Bongo antelopes has grown into the largest population of the subspecies anywhere in the world, now numbering more than 100 individuals.

Dr Robert Aruho, Head of Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy (MKWC) in Nanyuki, runs the programme, placing the small conservancy ahead of larger zoos and breeding centres across Europe and North America in efforts to secure the subspecies' survival.

In April, Aruho led the repatriation of four male Mountain Bongos from European zoos to strengthen genetic diversity within the conservancy's breeding stock.

Mountain Bongos face pressure from habitat loss, climate change, poaching and conflict with humans. Wild populations have fallen sharply in recent decades, prompting conservationists to rely on captive breeding as the main route back to a stable population.

Aruho was appointed Co-Chair of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Species Survival Commission Antelope Specialist Group, a global role overseeing recovery efforts for more than 90 antelope species and their habitats. The role puts him alongside Violeta Barrios, Chief Operating Officer of Sahara Conservation, and a network of scientists guiding research and conservation planning worldwide.

Humphrey Kariuki, IUCN Patron of Nature and Patron of MKWC, said Aruho's leadership had transformed the Mountain Bongo recovery programme into one of Africa's leading conservation success stories.

"Under his leadership, the Mountain Bongo recovery programme has become one of Africa's leading conservation success stories, demonstrating what can be achieved through long term investment in science, partnerships and species recovery," noted Kariuki.

Aruho said global cooperation now determines whether species such as the Mountain Bongo survive.

"Conservation challenges have become increasingly global, requiring stronger collaboration across governments, scientists and conservation organisations," explained Aruho.

He spent more than two decades as a wildlife veterinarian before joining MKWC, previously serving as Senior Wildlife Veterinarian and Head of Species Programmes at the Uganda Wildlife Authority, where he led translocations and health interventions for threatened species across East Africa.

Aruho's new global role is expected to open opportunities for research partnerships and knowledge exchange that could accelerate the return of Mountain Bongos to protected forest habitat on Mount Kenya.