Cactus Kills Hundreds of Farm Animals in Northern Kenya | Power-Up 100%

Maybe for some of us prickly cactus is an economical plant that has a selling value. However, for the people living in Laikipia Northern Kenya, Cactus is a "killer plant" that must be exterminated.

The thorns and sap of the cactus plant whose Latin name is Opuntia Stricta is the cause of the death of thousands of livestock residents of Laikipia. Cattle that eat the cactus will experience mouth sores, intestinal blockage, blindness and then face death.

Prickly Pear Cactus which grows very fast, even in the dry season, has caused land that was once a communal pasture to become a sprawling cactus field. There is almost no grass there. No grass, no cattle. Which means the threat of starvation will continue to haunt the population.

There is one hope to stop the cactus from moving, which is to increase the number of cochineal insects (Dactylopius opuntiae). Insects imported from South Africa will only eat the Opuntia Stricta vegetation. So it is considered to be able to eradicate this one cactus, so it leaves Kenya.

If the cacti can be eliminated, the grass will grow back and become a grazing land for the local people's livestock. The obstacle faced to regenerate grasslands is drought. Cactus can grow, even though it is hit by the dry season. However, grass is not. Grass needs more water to grow.

Hopefully the struggle of some Kenyans to destroy the "killer" thorn cactus is successful and the threat of famine can be overcome.

To find out what Northern Kenyans are facing, about the drought and livestock deaths caused by the Prickly Pear Cactus, you can read this news.

Bug v killer cactus: Kenyan herders fight to stop a plant destroying their way of life

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There will be no grass with opuntia. No grass means no livestock. With no livestock, we cannot feed our children Priscilla Kilua.
Here in Laikipia county, some studies indicate the cactus has taken over 50-75% of communal grazing fields. It is listed among the 100 worst invasive alien species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

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What can we do to help them?
Let's be in solidarity