Heartbreaking Pics Show Impact Of Kenya's Drought On Its Giraffe Population

Much of Kenya's north has received less than 30 percent of normal rainfall since September

Heartbreaking photos have captured the impact of Kenya's drought on the country's giraffe population. One photo, in particular, has been widely shared online - it shows six giraffes lying dead inside Sabuli Wildlife Conservancy in Wajir. The photo was reportedly taken after the giraffes, weak from lack of food and water, died after they "got stuck in mud as they tried to drink from a nearly dried-up reservoir nearby."

Their bodies were moved to a different location where the photograph was taken. The bodies were moved to prevent contamination of reservoir water.

According to Al Jazeera, much of Kenya's north has received less than 30 percent of normal rainfall since September, leading to an intense drought in the region. The lack of rainfall has had a devastating impact on the region's wildlife and exacerbated food and water shortages, besides pushing pastoralist communities and their livestock to the brink.

But Ibrahim Ali, from the Bour-Algi giraffe sanctuary, says that wild animals are most at risk. "Domesticated animals were being assisted but not wildlife, and now they are suffering," Mr Ali told local news website The Star.