Status and population trend of the common eland in the Kenya Tanzania borderland: 2010 and 2013 survey analysis

The common eland is a highly adaptable species and can survive in landscapes where water is scarce. It is listed by International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as a species of “Least Concern” implying its population is considered to be relatively stable but due to environmental factors changes decline in some populations in range have been documented. In Kenya and Tanzania hunting, habitat loss and fragmentation are key factors contributing to eland population decline but this is exuberated by climate change and wildlife disease. Consequently, this study examined the population status, trend and distribution in the Tanzania-Kenya borderland which experienced a severe and long drought from 2007 to 2009. Eland was common in the entire study area but the Amboseli region had the highest number and density of elands (1,348.50 ± 729.10 individuals; 0.15 ± 0.08 individuals/km2), followed by Magadi -Namanga area (346.80 ± 220.10 individuals; 0.06 ± 0.03 individuals/km2), and the least was in West Kilimanjaro (70.80 ± 39.30 individuals; 0.02 ± 0.01 individuals/km2). In Amboseli and Lake Natron areas, eland density and distribution in landscapes changed more during the wet season; while in Magadi-Namanga and West Kilimanjaro, this was more during the dry season. West Kilimanjaro had the highest percentage increase in eland density (+1850.53) followed by Magadi-Namanga area (+667.76 ± 429.34), and lowest in Amboseli (+88.29 ± 6.19). After the year 2009, the eland population increased more during the wet season in most landscapes except in Lake Natron where they decreased in the dry season. Although the eland was affected by drought, it did not experience a huge decline in its population possibly because of its ecological and behavioral attributes that cushions it from the adverse drought effects. Key words: borderland, Kenya, population trend and status, Tanzania, Common eland.