00:01The first tentative steps back to freedom.
00:04It's moments like this that animal rights activist Mozesari Naitwe lives for.
00:11Protecting pangolins is his great passion.
00:14This pangolin is a white buried tree pangolin.
00:20He and his team rescued the animal from poachers.
00:24The tiny pangolins are prized for their meat and scales.
00:29In fact, they are one of the most sought after contraband items worldwide.
00:35In traditional Chinese medicine, their scales and blood are considered to have antiseptic properties.
00:41But pangolin scales are made entirely of keratin, just like our fingernails.
00:46Pangolins are among the least researched mammals on earth.
00:50Shy and reclusive. Studying them in the wild is not easy.
00:54By bringing them out like this also gives us some knowledge about them.
01:01Like what they prefer, how much they move and how much they climb the trees.
01:07So it helps us to get some information out of these pangolins.
01:11The more they know about the animals, the more he and his team can raise awareness among others.
01:18For the local population, pangolins are still primarily one thing, bush meat.
01:24Moses Arinaito has worked hard to persuade residents to switch to other forms of meat.
01:30By keeping pigs, for example.
01:37We were poachers armed with dogs and spears.
01:41But he transformed us and he set up this project for us.
01:45We get meat to eat, we no longer poach and we also get money.
01:5210 full-time and 55 part-time workers are employed at the rescue center.
01:57They earn between 35 euros and 60 euros per month.
02:02While not a huge amount, it does mean that poaching is no longer necessary.
02:07And many have grown to love the pangolins.
02:11Some seasons we rescue many pangolins, like six, and so we don't have much space.
02:18And some are in poor health when they are rescued, so we care for them
02:23and make sure they are in good health again before we release them back into the wild.
02:29The most important factor in preventing poaching is to create alternative sources of income.
02:35Beekeeping is one option. These beehives were purchased with donations
02:40and were made available to former poachers.
02:44I'm one of the reformed poachers.
02:46So we have this project of beehives.
02:50We have 14 here. Some are active, others are not active.
02:55So when others are active, we distribute it to other members outside in the communities.
03:01Another project is growing mushrooms.
03:03Ideal for those who are afraid of bees.
03:07Charity, Arinaitue, makes sure the mushrooms stay moist.
03:11The oyster mushrooms grow in wooden huts, saving space and making them easy to harvest.
03:20Our mission to grow mushrooms is to reduce pressure on pangolin habitats.
03:24We now depend on mushrooms and we don't cut down the forest or disturb the animals anymore.
03:34We get food from this project.
03:37It also pays the school fees for our children and our husbands benefit too.
03:42So this mushroom garden is helping entire families and providing a stable income.
03:53The two projects have been running for over 12 years now.
03:57Moses Arinaitue has raised 8,500 euros for the work with the pangolins, mainly through social media.
04:04Around 200 village people are involved in the projects.
04:08Almost no pangolins are now killed by humans here.
04:12Mostly we emphasize that we let community members know that pangolins are harmless and are very important to the ecosystem.
04:21Because when they go for example in somebody's garden, they fertilize.
04:29Because when they pupu in the garden, their pupu has a lot of nutrients for the crops.
04:38But also the pangolins help to reduce the number of insects and termites in that very garden.
04:46He has now convinced around 20 communities to protect pangolins.
04:50Farmers even bring sick or injured animals to the rescue center, where they are nursed back to health with termites.
04:59Protecting them is essential for maintaining healthy forests, not only in Uganda.
05:05Besides, the insect voles are extremely cute.
05:10Protecting the pangolins in a community that is bordering the national park has not been an easy task for these
05:17conservationists.
05:18One other thing that caught my attention is that these guardians take out the pangolins for a walk every morning
05:26and every evening.
05:27To feed on insects, get relief from stress, especially after getting into contact with the locals here.
05:33But also get used to its wild habitat.
05:39Elsie´sbehackie
05:39Like an oceanic
05:41A form of the mar Deus
05:41With thearies
05:41Diggaet
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