Tuesday November 10, 2009
Local News

Pangolin 'the fortune teller' sighted in Karatu

DAILY NEWS Reporter in Arusha, 10th November 2009 @ 07:10, Total Comments: 0, Hits: 47

IT was all excitement in Mangola Village, Karatu District, when local residents discovered the rare pangolin an animal believed to cause fortune including rain.

But the last Monday afternoon incident almost caused chaos when hundreds of people tried to prevent wildlife rangers from taking away the creature.

The villagers argued that the move would also 'take away' the luck that the pangolin, could have brought to their community.

The local police had to intervene and briefly kept the pangolin until Ngorongoro Conservation Area Authority (NCAA) officials arrived and took it away.

Mang'ola village is famous for its bumper onion and other vegetable harvests. The residents said shortly after the animal appeared in the vicinity, heavy rains poured, signaling 'blessings.'

The area that the pangolin was discovered happens to be bordering the reserved forest under NCAA.

NCAA officials had sent their rangers down to the village in order to take the animal back to the park.

The in-charge of the NCAA Conservation Services Department Mr Amiyo T. Amiyo, said here that some good Samaritans in the village informed the department of the sighting of the pangolin in the neighbourhood and went there to collect the mammal.

"I have been a conservationist with the NCAA for almost 20 years now but throughout this period I have never encountered a pangolin.

"I think this is the first such animal to be seen in the neighborhood," the conservationist said.

According to Mr Amiyo, pangolins are endangered species.

"They are very few and only come out to feed at night." he added.

As for the superstitious beliefs the NCAA communications officer Mr Adam Akyoo said the villagers placed the usual stuff, maize flour, water and farming tools before the pangolin.

"The locals say the pangolin chose maize flour (or at least it moved near where the flour was placed) and people cheered that the animal had predicted bumper harvest and abundance food production," he said.

And the fact that it rained shortly after, their belief couldn't have been more reinforced.