Door Beekse Bergen gefinancierde Northern Corridor wordt geopend

We did it! Last year we had expressed our desire to raise 60,000 euros to fund a special Wildlife Corridor in Kenya. Not only did we succeed in raising the amount, but this special strip of nature connecting two nature reserves has now been constructed. Next week is the official opening.

A Wildlife Corridor ensures that African elephants, like many other wild animals, can safely travel long distances in Kenya without encountering villages and agricultural areas. The corridor is of great importance to African elephants and other wildlife. With the growth of Africa's population, the habitat of wild elephants, and other animals, has become increasingly fragmented, resulting in human-animal conflicts. In their search for food, the animals come (too) close to villages, destroying crops, buildings and farmland. In addition, the fragmentation also makes it increasingly difficult to find suitable mates to breed with. The Northern Corridors project, which was created by Save the Elephants, aims to counter this and thus help the animals and the local population.

Giving space
Because of the expansion of the elephant herd and elephant plains in the Safaripark, Beekse Bergen, together with Stichting Wildlife, wanted to give more back to the African elephants in the wild. Because the animals have been given more space with us, we thought it would be very fitting to contribute to a Wildlife Corridor in Kenya, which would also literally give the animals there more room to move. A corridor costs 60,000 euros. Half of the required amount was raised through an adoption plan of the young elephants. The rest of the amount through other initiatives.

Yvonne Vogels, head zookeeper at the elephants and Klaas-Jan Leinenga, head of education and conservation and board member of Stichting Wildlife, will visit the new corridor and be present at the opening. They will also visit previously constructed wildlife corridors to see the impact and how they have helped the lives of animals and local people. Their trip report can be followed on this website.