South Sudan has unveiled the findings of its inaugural comprehensive aerial wildlife survey, identifying approximately 6 million antelopes, marking the world’s largest land mammal migration.
Conducted between April 2023 and January 2024 across Badingilo, Boma, and Jonglei National Parks and surrounding areas, the survey utilized airplanes with spotters, captured nearly 60,000 photos, and tracked over a hundred collared animals across 46,000 square miles (120,000 square kilometers).
The estimate, conducted by non-profit African Parks in collaboration with the government, surpasses other major migrations, such as the 1.36 million wildebeests surveyed last year in the Serengeti spanning Tanzania and Kenya.
South Sudan has six national parks and a dozen game reserves covering more than 13% of the terrain. The migration stretches from east of the Nile in Badingilo and Boma parks into neighboring Ethiopia.
President Salva Kiir Mayardit, speaking at the survey’s unveiling in Juba on Tuesday, highlighted the significance of the findings: “The total wildlife population in South Sudan is estimated at 5.8 million. Congratulations on this achievement. You must keep increasing them, not decreasing the number of the animals. In 2006, a certain white man asked me in Juba, because as he was flying across South Sudan, he got herds of elephants moving together. Maybe one herd has over 300,” Kiir said.
“He came and asked me, how did you protect your animals when you were fighting the government of Sudan? I responded to him that we did not protect the animals in the way we had wanted because many people had guns and they would just go into the forest and kill the animals. But we had a law that if you killed certain specific animals, you would be killed too,” Kiir narrated.
Rizik Zakaria Hassan, Minister of Wildlife, Conservation, and Tourism, highlighted the results of a survey conducted from April 2023 to January 2024, emphasizing significant findings in South Sudan’s wildlife population and its diverse migratory and indigenous species.
“From April 2023 to January 2024, the Ministry of Wildlife Conservation, in collaboration with the South Sudan African Parks Network, conducted extensive aerial surveys spanning Boma, Badingilo, and the Jonglei Landscape, reaching northeast toward the Sobat River. This survey revealed a substantial increase in wildlife population, including diverse migratory and indigenous species. The census estimates indicate that Boma, Badingilo, and the Jonglei Landscape host the largest global migration of antelopes,” said Minister Hassan.
Charles Wells, Chief Operating Officer of African Parks Networks, reaffirmed their commitment to collaborating with the South Sudanese government and local communities to protect this crucial ecosystem for the nation’s benefit.
“At African Parks, we are dedicated to partnering with the Government of South Sudan and local communities to safeguard this vital ecosystem. As this migration also extends into Ethiopia, it’s essential to coordinate efforts regionally to protect these shared national assets. Local communities traditionally sustainably harvest antelope species migrating through these areas for their own needs,” Charles explained.