These little hippos are on the edge of extinction – just 2,000 are left in the wild
Small, shy, and secretive – the timid pygmy hippo prefers to flee rather than fight. But they cannot escape the enormous dangers imposed by humans day after day after day.
Pygmy hippos are officially recognised as endangered, and unless we act now, there is an imminent threat that we could soon lose them forever.
Please donate today and help save pygmy hippos. With your support, we can give these incredible little creatures a safe future in their wild homes.
What is the biggest threat to pygmy hippos?
Logging and agricultural expansion is seeing their forest home rapidly ripped apart. As trees are torn down and mining makes ever-larger holes in their habitat, their populations are becoming fragmented, and they are rapidly running out of safe hiding spots.
Hunting as a source of meat by local people is another major threat to these little hippos. As the forests are fragmented, they are forced into close proximity with humans, putting them in even greater danger of being hunted.
Baby pygmy hippo. © Cyril Ruoso / Nature Picture Library
Pygmy hippos are officially recognised as endangered. We must act quickly to save their species.
What is Fauna & Flora doing to save pygmy hippos?
Fauna & Flora has been working tirelessly to help save the pygmy hippos’ last remaining strongholds. Teams working in Liberia have been using state-of-the-art eDNA surveys and camera traps to pinpoint where these secretive animals are found.
And – now we have found them – we can save them.
We need your support to train and equip dedicated community wardens, so they can carry out patrols to help protect this special species.
The dense forests of Liberia offer a massive challenge for carrying out this crucial work, putting immense strain on the rangers and their equipment.
Our reconnaissance work has gathered crucial data in what may be the pygmy hippo’s last remaining strongholds. We must put the resources in place to protect these safe havens.
What do rangers need?
Wardens need boots, packs, protective equipment and rations to help them carry out their vital work to protect pygmy hippos, replacing items worn down by weeks of patrolling through thick foliage.
In addition, camera traps are a crucial piece of equipment for recording and monitoring such elusive creatures as the pygmy hippo.
GPS units are another vital piece of gear, enabling wardens to navigate through unfamiliar terrain.
What your gift could do
£87
could help pay for a GPS unit, enabling wardens to navigate through unfamiliar terrain.
£48
could help pay for a camera trap, which would be crucial for recording and monitoring such elusive creatures as the pygmy hippo.
£29
could pay for crucial equipment for one warden, including rations, packs, protective equipment and boots, which are easily worn down by weeks of patrolling through thick foliage.
How could my donation save pygmy hippos?
Our crucial reconnaissance work to gather data on pygmy hippos has allowed us to put together an action plan designed to protect pygmy hippos and their homes. We urgently require donations in order to put the resources in place to implement these plans.
Through your donation, we could train and equip new rangers, providing them with rucksacks, protective equipment and GPS units essential to patrolling Liberia’s forests. Your donation could also help purchase camera traps that allow us to keep a close eye on the secretive pygmy hippo, allowing us to understand them better and maximising the impact of our efforts.
Pygmy hippo. © Fauna & Flora / Bucknell University
Donations are crucial to help us gather data on the elusive pygmy hippo, allowing us to put together an action plan.
Why Fauna & Flora?
Fauna & Flora is the world’s oldest international conservation organisation. In Africa alone, we have over 100 years of experience working to save threatened wildlife in challenging regions including Liberia.
In order to save pygmy hippos, it is so important to have our wealth of knowledge and experience to draw upon. We know what needs to be done, but it is only through your support that we are able to put the essential resources in place to carry out this work.
Please donate now, and together we could save pygmy hippos.
“If you value the natural world – if you think it should be protected for its own sake as well as humanity’s – then please support Fauna & Flora.”
Sir David Attenborough, Fauna & Flora Vice President