Scientists in Kenya use hi-tech collars to prevent human-lion conflict near Nairobi park | iNFOnews | Thompson-Okanagan's News Source
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Scientists in Kenya use hi-tech collars to prevent human-lion conflict near Nairobi park

In this photo taken Saturday, Jan. 25, 2014, a team led by the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) fits a GPS-tracking collar to a tranquilized male lion, in Nairobi National Park in Kenya. Kenyan wildlife authorities are fitting livestock-raiding lions with a GPS collar that alerts rangers by text message when the predators venture out of Nairobi National Park, enabling the rangers to quickly move to the areas where the lions have encroached and return the animals to the park. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

NAIROBI, Kenya - Kenyan wildlife authorities are fitting livestock-raiding lions with a collar that alerts rangers when the predators venture out of Nairobi National Park.

Livestock farmers, especially Maasai herdsmen, track and kill lions to avenge the loss of animals, threatening the existence of 35 to 40 lions at the park on the outskirts of the Kenyan capital.

Spokesman Paul Muya of the Kenya Wildlife Service, said Monday rangers will be able to move to areas where the lion have encroached using co-ordinates sent by the collars and return the animals to the park. The collars send GPS co-ordinates by text messages to a rangers' cellphones.

Two lions were fitted with collars Saturday, Muya said. Collars will be fitted to 10 lions from different prides.

News from © The Associated Press, 2014
The Associated Press

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