THE WILD FAUNA OF THE EMPIEE 



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seems every reason why an effort should be made to turn them 

 to useful account. 



In the Nile Province there are a few elands left ; unless the 

 natives can be made to spare the small remainder, there will be none. 

 In the neighbourhood of the Kagera Eiver there are a few herds 

 of elands on the British side of the river, amounting to about two 

 hundred individuals at the present time. It seems highly desirable 

 to protect these absolutely. At present they are Being cruelly 

 thinned out by natives on the British side, and by others from the 

 German side, who, unfortunately, are frequently armed with rifles. 

 If this herd could be preserved intact, in a few years' time there 

 should be a splendid stock of elands which would spread over 

 Ankole and Southern Uganda. 



Buffaloes throughout the Uganda Protectorate were nearly 

 exterminated by the visitation of rinderpest in the early 'nineties. 

 They are, however, recovering with great rapidity. In the Nile 

 Province, near Gondokoro, there are several herds of the common 

 African type. There are similar herds on the Aswa Eiver, and in 

 a dense area of forest on the Jokka Eiver. There is another herd 

 m Magungu, on the eastern shore of Lake Albert. These herds 

 together number now several hundred individuals. 



In Southern Ankole and Buddu there are three or four herds 

 of a very large new variety of buffalo (Bubalis Kaffir Radcliffei), 

 which have their chief habitat in the dense patches of virgin forest 

 near the left bank of the Kagera. All of these herds of buffaloes, 

 together with many others not mentioned, are increasing in 

 numbers with great rapidity. As they are very little molested 

 by natives, and as they can protect themselves very well from all 

 enemies except white men armed with rifles, there is little fear of 

 their extermination except by some such scourge as the rinderpest. 

 It therefore seems fair that a game licence should carry the right 

 to secure more than one or two of the splendid trophies which 

 buffaloes' heads are. Four or six bull buffaloes on each licence 

 Ought not be too many, especially when it is remembered that the 

 nerds of buffalo live in very inaccessible forest and the oppor- 

 tunities for shooting them occur very rarely. 



The zebras are very common in the northern part of the Nile 

 Province, and during the dry season come down to the Nile, north 

 of Gondokoro, in the same manner as the elephants and buffaloes. 

 In Southern Ankole, near the Kagera Eiver, as well as in other 

 parts of the Uganda Protectorate, there are also large numbers of 

 Zebras. Zebras are animals which require protection from the 

 natives as much as any. They are very easy to kill, and in the 

 Nile Province are speared, caught in pitfalls and trapped with the 

 toot-rings of thorns commonly used by the Acholi and Bari natives. 

 They are sufficiently protected against Europeans by the existing 

 Game Eegulations. 



In Uganda Proper the natives do not interfere very much with 

 tbo zebras, as the Baganda do not eat the meat. 



There are two varieties of roan antelope within the limits 



