Kenya is home to nearly 400 species of mammals(哺乳动物). Officials say it is getting more difficult to protect them, as climate change and human activities damage their natural environments.
Kenya’s wildlife officials have made a free mobile phone app to help track wild animals in the country. They plan to use information from the app to help protect the animals. The Mammal Atlas Kenya, or Makenya, lets any user who sees a wild mammal identify it and give its location. Users can also give other details.
Dr. Simon Musila, a researcher at the National Museums of Kenya, said there is a need to have many people use the app to get more information about the animals. This can help the small number of mammal specialists in Kenya. The specialists have kept records of the animals’ changing environments and survival conditions. Many people, including safari guides, visitors, students, or anyone who goes out and sees the animals, could use the app, Musila added. They can upload(上传) images and add details, such as the number of mammals and their exact locations.
Experts say that while Africa is not the cause of much climate change, it is badly affected by it. Dr. Philip Muruthi, vice president of the African Wildlife Foundation, said that the birth rate of rare mammals and the survival rate of young ones are dropping.
“It is very hard to benefit or manage what you don’t know,” he said. “That is why this is so important. It is going to tell us which species we have, where they are, and maybe which ones are highly endangered, what we need to do about them. And especially not just the big things but also the small things.”
Wildlife officials say Kenya is home to at least a third of the mammal species in Africa and are hopeful that app users will help protect them.
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