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PORT CLINTON, Ohio, July 19, 2024 — The animal care team at African Safari Wildlife Park is celebrating the arrival of a male Mountain Bongo.
The calf was born to mother Maleficent on June 13 and named Mpenzi, which means “love” in Swahili. He is the fourth Mountain Bongo born at the Park since 2022.
Mountain Bongo are large antelope native to montane forests in Kenya, where their oversized ears help them detect would-be predators lurking nearby. Habitat loss and poaching have reduced the wild population to roughly 100 individuals, and the animals are listed as “critically endangered” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
“Mountain Bongo have been at the Park for many, many years, and they are near and dear to our hearts,” said Park director Kelsey Keller.
In 2004, the Park provided logistical and financial support for the translocation of 18 captive-born mountain bongo from North America to Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy for a “rewilding” program. The Conservancy’s population has multiplied to 63 individuals in a semi-wild environment, and a 776-acre sanctuary was established in 2022 in partnership with the Kenyan government.
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