The past two months saw the translocation of zebra, blue wildebeest and impala from Kruger National Park in South Africa to Zinave National Park in Mozambique. The animals were donated by South Africa’s Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) to Mozambique’s Ministry of Land, Environment and Rural Development (MITADER) in a collaborative effort between the governments to further develop key wildlife areas as part of the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Conservation Area, spanning Mozambique, South Africa and Zimbabwe.
“In protecting key natural resources one can no longer have a fortress conservation mentality, and the Great Limpopo Transfrontier treaty is leading the way towards the formulation of a new conservation management plan for Kruger National Park that looks beyond our borders. If we can share our surplus wildlife with our neighbours, and in so doing eventually share our 1.9 million annual visitors into Mozambique, it will not only benefit the people of Mozambique, but contribute to a balanced and sustainable ecotourism system for the whole region”, stated Glenn Philips, Managing Executive, Kruger National Park.
Currently, the animal populations in the Kruger National Park are doing extremely well and the animal numbers of certain species are in sufficient enough numbers that it can be removed from the park without causing any adverse ecological impacts – a testimony to the successful conservation management strategies of South African National Parks (SANParks).
On the other side of the border, the 408,000 ha Zinave National Park is still recovering from a civil war that left it almost devoid of wildlife. In 2016, Mozambique’s National Administration of Conservation Areas (ANAC) and Peace Parks Foundation signed a co-management agreement with the objective to restore the park to its former glory. The agreement sets out a framework whereby the partner organisations agreed on a strategy to rehabilitate and rewild Zinave by investing in anti-poaching, infrastructure development, tourism development and community development interventions.
The end goal will be to attract tourism back to the park that will generate sufficient revenues to sustain the operations of park management – thereby conserving nature for the benefit of people and animals alike.
Through the support received from DEA and SANParks, a total of 291 impala, 153 wildebeest and 85 zebra were moved from Kruger National Park into Zinave this year, with Peace Parks Foundation funding the translocation costs. The overall goal is to reintroduce 7,500 game animals in Zinave over the next five years and to date over 1,300 animals have been rewilded to the Park.
Director General for ANAC, Mr Mateus Mutemba, shared: “Mozambique would like to extend its gratitude to South Africa for its continued support in rewilding Zinave. Gorongosa National Park, in central Mozambique, is a living testimony of how nature is resilient and animal populations can thrive after being nearly depleted. In Gorongosa we saw a ten-fold increase in animal numbers within ten years, and the park is now sharing animals with other protected areas. In the same way, we strongly believe that a decade from now, Zinave will play an important role in the biodiversity economy of the Great Limpopo Transfrontier area, being a source of employment, a source of living, for the children of Zinave, and they will take pride in conserving the region’s nature. Well-protected and existing in harmony with man, wildlife populations will thrive, and soon Zinave will be able to also supply wildlife to other areas in the country. Nature has been taking care of human beings since the dawn of time. As long as we continue protecting it and integrate our people in biodiversity economy-related programs alongside conservation education we can succeed.”
The animals are first released into a 18,600 ha fenced sanctuary where they can acclimatise to their new environment. Each animal plays a critical role in keeping the biodiversity of a conservation area healthy and balanced. Through various translocations over the past couple of years, numerous animal herds can now be seen in the area and are doing very well.
“Collaboration such as this is what developing peace parks is all about. It promotes cross-country collaboration, through which nations have the opportunity to work together on projects that directly impact and promote the well-being of their citizens. The rewilding of Zinave National Park is a vital next step in reconnecting traditional wildlife dispersal areas within the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Conservation Area, and eventually reconnecting the Zinave, Banhine and Limpopo National Parks in Mozambique with Kruger National Park in South Africa and Gonarezhou National Park in Zimbabwe -a vast landscape spanning almost 100,000 square kilometres. Wildlife corridors are essential to enable animals to move naturally along ancient migratory routes, strengthening the significance of maintaining healthy ecosystems which is a cornerstone of transboundary conservation efforts,” says Peace Parks Foundation Chief Executive Officer, Werner Myburgh.
Watch Rewilding Africa from Peace Parks Foundation below
As our plane touched down on a small, remote dirt strip in Selous, Tanzania, a game drive vehicle appeared as if out of nowhere – and Imani, our guide, and Mgoma, the driver, waved and beamed their broad, friendly smiles at us. Welcome to Africa! This fantastic safari for David and I, arranged by Africa Geographic, was during the so-called ‘secret season’ of June when game reserves were virtually empty of other holidaymakers and yet brimming with wildlife – just the way we like it.
Soon after arrival at Lake Manze Camp, we found a pride of lions lazing about – spread out on a slab of cool concrete under a thatched roof. We parked the vehicle nearby and watched. A male got up and slowly ambled our way, but he was not interested in us. A few feet from our vehicle he stretched luxuriously up against a tree, scratching the bark with his claws, before lumbering on down the road, an open wound on his leg evidence of the harsh life of a lion in paradise.
Our tented camp overlooked Lake Manze, which only days earlier had risen and flooded the area nearby. From March through to May the rains can be heavy, and life here is not conducive to being on safari. But as the rain subsides, so do the water levels.
On our first full day on safari, we had leopards and wild dogs on our minds and shared our ambitions with Imani. He had an idea where to find wild dogs, and sure enough, after a short search, we were lucky enough to find and spend time with about 15 dogs. But no leopards. We got back to camp only to find out there had been a leopard in a tree in camp!
Late afternoon we took a peaceful boat ride on Lake Manze and enjoyed getting close to a malachite kingfisher and a pair of fish eagles. With plenty of water in the early season, wildlife is more dispersed, but hippos were everywhere. They bobbed and disappeared, then popped up again, exhaling an occasional languid yawn.
Suddenly a large hippo bull charged our boat, and it was gaining on us fast! I forgot that I had my camera and just watched in awe as this immense creature rose out of the water. I thought he would join us in the boat, but then he backed off, and we sped up – each agreeing to part ways peacefully.
My family often asks me, “Aren’t you afraid to be in Africa?” and my response is always no. But for a brief moment, that hippo had me really scared. People say that hippos are the most dangerous animal in Africa, and I now believe them!
As a photographer, you always want to be prepared for moments like this because you don’t usually get a second chance. Well, I blew it on that occasion and did not get a single picture of the hippo charging us. But a few minutes later, I got a second chance. This time I swung around, put my single focus point on the charging hippo and clicked away, capturing the entire charge. Success!
At dinner that night, our camp host Shaun explained that hippos can sink – and run fast on the bottom – because of the high bone density in their legs. Amazing.
The sun was setting, and the sky and water were turning orange. Hippos were moving towards the reflection: a perfect picture and a gorgeous end to our first day on safari in Selous.
Our second stop was Ruaha National Park – the largest national park in Tanzania – in the remote and seldom-visited southwest of this vast country. As we flew in, the Ruaha River sparkled in the afternoon sun, and shades of green dominated the landscape.
David and I had told team Africa Geographic that we wanted to be in the thick of it. He and I had met while taking a class in Kenya five years earlier and were of the same mind – we were in Africa to see wildlife! So Mdonya Old River Camp was perfect for us, and we were up bright and early at 6 am with coffee and out on a game drive by 6:30 – giving us the best possible chance for wildlife sightings and the best photographic lighting.
In our open vehicle, the cool morning breeze brought tears to my eyes as I tried to stay warm under a blanket. I held my camera in anticipation, and the possibilities of a new day excited me.
Kahimba, our guide, had a hunch where he could find lions. Johnny, the young apprentice, spotted them first: three males and one female. Two males soon left, and we followed the remaining pair for a while. Kahimba thought she might have small cubs hiding someplace. The soft morning light was beautiful as we watched the pair disappear into the bush. A great start to the day!
Back on the road, we found a large troop of baboons, backlit and all aglow. After a few shots we drove on, taking in the sounds and smells, smiles etched on our faces, feeling like we had Ruaha all to ourselves.
Suddenly, something large jumped out in front of us! We couldn’t make it out at first with the sun shining directly into our eyes.
“Leopard,” I heard someone say.
In my excitement, I immediately tried taking photos while the vehicle was still moving, but soon gave up and put my camera down. Fortunately, the cat went up a tree, and we were able to pull over and observe.
Kahimba said he knew this cat – he was about a year and a half old and the son of Fundi. You could see that this young leopard was intent on something and ignored us completely, gazing out into the bush for a while before finally relaxing and making eye contact with us. Eventually, he hung all four legs over a large branch and settled in for a nap. We decided to leave him alone in peace.
Leopards and lions in the first hour; that is why you get up early when you’re on safari in Africa!
Eventually, we stopped for breakfast. Kahimba and Johnny laid a cloth over the hood and put out an excellent assortment of foods for us to choose from.
Later in the day, we stopped, and Kahimba began making a whistling noise. He pointed to a bush, but I could not see anything. With some guidance, I spotted a diminutive pearl-spotted owlet, wide-eyed and looking our way. Kahimba called again, and it flew towards us – in fact, it was flying directly at my head, and it felt like I would have been impaled had I not ducked!
Around every turn, we scared up doves, guineafowl, francolins, hornbills, and many other birds. We stopped to scan for wildlife on the ledges and outcroppings, often seeing lizards and hyrax (rock rabbits).
As the sun went down, we drove through pockets of cool air, flushing nightjars from the dirt road. A pair of black-backed jackals appeared in front of us – my grainy, low-light photo later revealed that the prize possession one of them had in its mouth was a 6-8″ length of vertebrae.
The landscape in this part of Ruaha is incredibly diverse. Significant elevational relief provides views of shrubby grasslands, open woodlands and baobab trees scattered in all directions. On day two, we were hoping to see cheetahs, but we were not optimistic. The grass was high in the early season, making it difficult to spot this cat.
Our first sighting of the day was of a black-shouldered kite mobbing a martial eagle. A little later on, we watched two large tuskers sparring in the Ruaha River.
It was during lunch when Kahimba got a call: Another vehicle had found four cheetahs. Lunch was over!
We arrived to see four cheetahs – two-year-old siblings – hunting impala. We sat quietly and watched as they surrounded their prey and set up an ambush. I could see one of the cats hidden behind a shrub. An impala moved closer. The cat waited…
With a sudden burst of breathtaking speed, the cheetah attacked. There was a brief chase; then, the cheetah abruptly pulled up. It had been too impatient, and the hunt was over. Kahimba said they showed their inexperience by not waiting for the impala to get closer.
Every day brought something new and exciting, as did every night because when you sleep in the bush, the sounds of wildlife surround your tent. Our time in Tanzania had been amazing, but David was now off to enjoy the World Cup Soccer in Russia, and I still had one more safari destination…
Whereas in the rolling terrain of Ruaha you could often not see over the next hill or beyond the next bend in the road, the Maasai Mara in Kenya offered views to the horizon from almost everywhere – and at this time of year, it was cheaper than being in Tanzania’s Serengeti. That level of advice is what makes a safari with Africa Geographic so rewarding.
We were out on a game drive at 6:30 am on my first full day at Sentinel Mara Camp – just Jackson (my driver) and I. We enjoyed a fantastic sunrise, accompanied by silhouetted elephants on a dew-covered savannah, lit up in a red-orange glow. Golden hour!
Further along, we found a male lion sitting majestically, looking out over his kingdom, with grassland as far as you could see in the background. Jackson told me that soon the wildebeest would arrive and darken the landscape, but for now, they were still south of here on their migration path.
I imagine the scene to be something like the Great Plains in North America before a herd of buffalo moved through. The savannah was lush; the table was set for the zebra and wildebeest. But there was still food for predators – impala and Thompson’s gazelle were plentiful – so finding big cats was not difficult.
We headed towards a river where the vegetation favoured leopards. Just as we were approaching the area, Jackson got the call that a leopard mom with two cubs had been spotted. When we arrived, the mom was up in a tree, but soon came down, and we saw her walking with one of her young.
Jackson followed the stream, anticipating beautifully where they would come out. We watched them cross the river and disappear into a thicket. According to Jackson, the mother had brought her cub to feast on a Thompson’s gazelle she had dragged up a tree.
That afternoon brought a cheetah mother with a cub. From a distance, we could see the mom on her back and the cub jumping on her. They played for quite a while before disappearing under some bushes.
This is the animal I most wanted to see on my third trip to Africa, and now I had had two amazing encounters.
We were back at camp by late morning for lunch and would go out again around 4 pm when the day had cooled off. Minnie was waiting to greet us, and the staff offered cool towels and refreshing juice. Sentinel Camp made this country boy feel like royalty.
The meals were excellent at all of the camps, but Sentinel food – “international cuisine” as Minnie put it – was especially amazing. The red snapper was just one of many highlights for me.
We shared stories at lunch with the other guests. One couple had seen a serval – we were all jealous. Not to be outdone, the next morning I had a close up look at an African wildcat. Within less than 24 hours, all the cats you could have seen in this part of Kenya had been spotted close to Sentinel Camp.
Leaving was tough. In a short period, the Sentinel staff had made this feel like home, and I admired their eco-efforts: no plastic bottles (they supplied a glass water bottle for everyone); water was heated exclusively by solar, and there was no plumbing – you received just the amount of water you needed when you needed it.
At Sentinel Camp you get the best of both worlds: the feeling of wilderness, sitting next to the Mara River watching hippos; but with a cool drink as a pleasant reminder that you are safe and in good hands.
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LAKE MANZE TENTED CAMP
Lake Manze Tented Camp is situated deep inside the vast Selous Game Reserve in southern Tanzania, on the banks of Lake Manze. The authentic tented camp shelters under huge doum palms and is perfectly positioned to enjoy the daily ritual of elephants trampling the old, well-worn path that runs in front of the camp. The camp has 12 Meru style walk-in tents with stunning views across the lake, each with twin or double beds, flush toilet, outdoor shower and private veranda. There is a large thatched communal area above a sand floor, with armchairs and sofas for lounging with a drink to watch the animals come and go.
MDONYA OLD RIVER CAMP
Mdonya Old River Camp is situated deep inside the remote Ruaha National Park in southern Tanzania. This rustic, authentic tented camp languishes in the shade of gigantic sycamore fig and winter thorn trees, on the winding banks of the scenic Mdonya sand river. The camp has 12 traditional safari tents spaced out along the river, each comfortably furnished and featuring verandahs, en-suite bathrooms with dressing room, open-roofed solar-heated shower and separate flush toilets. The large verandahs are ideal for relaxing and viewing the passing wildlife.
SENTINEL MARA CAMP Sentinel Mara Camp is a non-permanent tented safari camp set up each season in a forest along the banks of the Mara River in one of the prime areas of the renowned Maasai Mara National Reserve in Kenya. Accommodation consists of seven large en-suite tents, sheltering under large trees, each with excellent views of the Mara River. Each tent is tastefully furnished with campaign furniture to capture the romance and adventure of a bygone era.
MarkPaul is a former high school biology and environmental science teacher who loves to travel and share his passion for the outdoors with others. When he is not immersed in nature, he loves to play acoustic guitar and electric bass, bike, hike and swim. Mark is now a freelance photographer, writer and videographer living in Starksboro, VT, USA with his wife and three dogs.
This is possibly the most exciting photographic safari to Kenya’s Maasai Mara that we have seen in a while. Award-winning photographer Arnfinn Johansen will host four lucky Africa Geographic guests for nine days / eight nights, making use of a specially-adapted vehicle and an off-road driving permit to secure epic wildlife images.
The Maasai Mara is renowned for the large numbers of resident big cats and, of course, for the Great Wildebeest Migration. A little-known secret about the Mara is that the best time to see and photograph the big cats is during the so-called ‘Secret Season’ when you get to encounter the cats without the crowds of tourists that follow the migration. Our July 2019 safari with Arnfinn is timed to avoid the crowds that arrive a month later and to give you the best chance of taking epic photos.
Arnfinn will ensure that you get up close and personal with Mara’s fantastic wildlife, and find those unique angles and light conditions that make the difference between good photos and truly amazing photos.
Before you read the details of this superb safari here, scroll down to see some incredible photos taken by Arnfinn in the Maasai Mara.
“The open grassland savannah of the Maasai Mara suits cheetahs, making this one of the best places to find and photograph these elegant cats. Composition is important, and sometimes open landscapes without distractions are the best way to emphasise the essence of the subject.”
“These mating lions were photographed using a remote-controlled buggy with wifi control for the camera. Before dispatching the buggy, we always make sure that it will not intrude or scare the lions. We often make use of early morning and late night light, which we enhance with special torches that add a soft and warm dimension – resulting in images that are very different to those taken in broad daylight.”
“Some view the serval as our most elegant cat, and a sighting is never guaranteed. This exquisite portrait was taken in fading light, again from the low angle of the specially-adapted game drive vehicle. Our drivers/guides are extremely skilled regarding the positioning of the vehicle, and we often position ourselves and wait for shy species like this to approach us – making for relaxed subjects and natural images.”
“The camp we stay at is located near Oltepesi Village, which is a genuine Maasai village. This close proximity to the village provides a unique opportunity to learn about the Maasai way of living, adding an authentic cultural experience to the journey. The villagers are our partners, and we have permission to photograph and film without asking for permission. Also, guests can choose to spend a night in a traditional Maasai house.”
“Positioning a remote-controlled camera near a carcass will often produce excellent results for the patient photographer. Patiently staking out a kill site gives us time to plan photographs and understand the ebb and flow of life and death on the plains.”
“Some photographers want their subjects to walk into full view; others capture each moment for what it is. This resting leopard provided the ideal opportunity to exploit the gaps in the vegetation to take close-ups and emphasise the animal’s habitat.”
“This image of two topi sparring against a bruised and moody early morning sky was taken on foot, which we do as often as possible to achieve freedom of movement.”
“Moments such as this cheetah hunting a newborn Thomson’s gazelle are rarely captured from this perspective. The young cheetahs played with the calf for almost 45 minutes before finishing it off. We were caught in the middle of the drama, and although we felt sorry for the victim, we also felt privileged to have witnessed this life and death struggle.”
“The tiny Kirk’s dik-dik is a common resident of the Maasai Mara. Understanding the habits of animals can be crucial to taking great photos. The shy dik-dik will usually run away from vehicles, but in this case, it had sensed a leopard and was standing still to avoid detection. We used the opportunity to observe and take fantastic photos of this reclusive species.”
“Wide-angle photography of lions with a specially built remote-controlled buggy with wifi control for the camera provides a different perspective. One has to be sensitive to the lion’s behaviour and make sure not to intrude or scare them.”
“Craggy buffalo males make for excellent photographic subjects, especially when covered in mud. This photograph was taken in harsh light, and zooming in allowed me to avoid the bright background, and I edited out the harsh glare.”
“Good photographers make use of ‘bad’ weather to capture intimate moments, often set against dramatic skies and the movement of driving rain. When shooting in the rain, you should choose a longer shutter speed than usual, depending on how hard the rain is. Use of a wide aperture provides the blurred foreground and background and enhances the sense of drama.”
“The expansive Maasai Mara is the perfect canvas for herds of elephants set against dramatic, threatening skies. Photographing in silhouette emphasises the animals’ characteristics, and we actively seek out opportunities such as this during the early morning and late evening light.”
“Lions are curious creatures, and will often approach strange-looking objects to investigate. A low perspective is the alpha and omega, for both telephoto and wide-angle photography. Our safari vehicle is specially designed for low-angle photography.”
“This tender moment between a cheetah mother and her kitten is cropped tightly to enhance the feeling of intimacy. Catching interactions like this takes great patience, with moments like this often occurring unexpectedly and without warning. Having an off-road permit is crucial in that it gives us the freedom to spend time with the subject without the disturbance of other vehicles.”
“The ground-level perspective and subtle lighting against a moody backdrop enhance the sense of drama in this photo of a relaxed lion. The use of suitably angled torch light fills in the dark spots and adds a degree of drama.”
Arnfinn’s game drive vehicle is custom-built for photographers. The vehicle is spacious, with eight seats for four guests – allowing you to move around easily. The sides of the vehicle have no window glass, and low frames – for better panning and action photography. The roof is removable, allowing you to photograph from a high perspective.
It is also possible to remove one row of seats, to permit the lowest possible shooting angle. The vehicle has canvas instead of a back door, for photography at animal eye level. There are 230-volt power outlets for charging of batteries. The vehicle design also makes for easy use of tripods, monopods and bean bags. Beans bags of various sizes are provided.
A guest demonstrates how Arnfinn’s specially-adapted game drive vehicle, with a safe ground-level vantage point, delivers angles and perspectives for epic photos and wonderfully intimate wildlife encounters.
Your accommodation is in large canvas safari tents, with en-suite bathroom facilities (including shower and flush toilet) and plenty of room to organise your camera equipment for each day’s adventure.
Your basecamp is on the outskirts of a Maasai village bordering the Maasai Mara, with daily game drives in the reserve. This unique positioning offers a unique and authentic insight (and excellent photographic opportunities) into the traditional lives of these pastoral herdsmen. This unique safari provides genuine empowerment to local people who live amongst the Maasai Mara wildlife, there being no fences to restrict the movement of wildlife.
Landscape photography is regarded as the art of capturing an image of nature and the outdoors in a way that allows the viewer to be absorbed into the scene and witness the incredible beauty for themselves. It’s about bridging that connection between the viewer, the photographer, and the landscape, allowing the chance for the viewer to feel those same emotions that the photographer felt when taking the photo. From sparse deserts to lush, green deltas, landscape photography highlights the best nature has to offer, and today we share some of those incredible scenes with you to admire and appreciate.
In this gallery, Celebrating Africa’s Landscapes, we are taking a look at some incredible scenes from around Africa, through the lens of some incredibly talented photographers who entered our Photographer of the Year 2016, 2017 and 2018 competitions. Please take your time and enjoy this stunning gallery with us.
“An aerial view above Sossusvlei just before sunset presents the perfect specimen of Namibia’s unspoilt desert beauty. Probably one of the most spectacular places in Namibia, the way the sunset plays on the ancient dunes transforms them into a stunning red and orange masterpiece.” ~ Panos Laskarakis
“In Africa, the most famous waterfalls are Victoria Falls, where Dr David Livingstone was quoted as saying ‘they are so beautiful angels must have flown here’. I can only say that the angels must have flown via Epupa! I fumbled around in the dark with a head torch trying to find safe ground to place my tripod, the roar of the Falls in the background. There were a few hairy moments as I slipped and skidded on the wet rocks to take up my position, but it was well worth the effort; I think it added something to the drama of the moment!” ~ Charlie Lynam
“The Madonna and her Worshippers is a massive outcrop in the northern Drakensberg, South Africa. It is a long two-day hike up Fangs pass to get there. The epic light, followed by a huge storm, was worth the suffering though.” ~ Carl Smorenburg
“We were on the way to Lake Bunyonyi, having left Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in the early morning. Along the way, we stopped at the edge of the forest, and this incredible view presented itself of the misty mountains of Uganda.” ~ Thorsten Hanewald
“My wife, Anne, and I hiked up Lions Head before sunrise to get this photograph of Table Mountain, complete with the tablecloth. To the left lies Cape Town city bowl, the harbour and Signal Hill. On the right is Bakoven, Camps Bay and Clifton, and of course that fantastic rainbow. Capturing such a photograph made it worth getting up early.” ~ Denis Roschlau
“I just love it when a place exceeds my expectations once I actually experience it in person, even though I have looked at thousands of images before. The Allée des Baobabs in Madagascar will forever stand out as one of those places.” ~ Pedro Ferreira do Amaral
“The White Desert in Egypt is a small but spectacular part of the eastern Sahara. The best time to take photographs in the desert is in the early morning and late afternoon when the sun creates magnificent effects with shadows and light.” ~ Sepp Friedhuber
Stories are doing the rounds about the discovery of at least 87 elephant carcasses in Botswana, sparking an international outcry over what is being called the largest scale of elephant poaching to date.
The following is a letter from the Botswana government in response to the elephant poaching statistics:
The Government of Botswana has noted with concern unsubstantiated and sensational media reports on elephant poaching statistics in Botswana carried by some local and international media attributed to Elephants Without Borders (EWB), a non-governmental organisation contracted by the Botswana Government to carry out the dry season aerial survey of elephants and wildlife in northern Botswana covering Chobe, Okavango, Ngamiland and North Central District. The stories allege that about 90 elephants have been indiscriminately killed recently.
To this end, the Government of Botswana wishes to inform members of the public and other key stakeholders that these statistics are false and misleading. At no point in the last months or recently were 87 or 90 elephants killed in one incident in any place in Botswana.
The Government of Botswana wishes to further inform that the survey conducted by EWB started on 5th July 2018 and is expected to end by 30th September 2018.
During the conduct of the survey from 5th July up to 1st August 2018, EWB reported that they had come across 53 elephant carcasses which were incidents that had already been cumulatively reported officially to the Government as early as July and August of this year.
Of the aforementioned 53 reported, a verification mission between July and August established that the majority were not poached but rather died from natural causes and retaliatory killings as a result of human and wildlife conflicts.
The Government of Botswana wishes to state that it is unfortunate that some media reports attribute the rise in elephant poaching primarily to the withdrawal of weapons from the Department of Wildlife and National Parks (DWNP) anti-poaching unit. The fact of the matter is that the withdrawal of such weapons from DWNP, did not in any way affect the effectiveness and operations of the anti-poaching units.
It should be noted that the Government of Botswana has from the 1980s directed all security agencies to commit resources towards anti-poaching, a practice that continues to this date. Therefore the withdrawal of weapons from DWNP has not created any vacuum in anti-poaching operations as the anti-poaching unit in DWNP continues to play a pivotal role in combating wildlife crime through other strategic interventions.
Furthermore the public is informed that withdrawing weapons from DWNP is in line with the existing legislation which does not allow the Department of Wildlife and National Parks to own such weapons. This action was taken whilst corrective measures are to be undertaken.
In conclusion, the Government of Botswana wishes to condemn in the strongest terms possible attempts by individuals or groups who give a false impression that they love Botswana wildlife more than citizens of Botswana. Government wishes to reiterate the fact that wildlife remains a national heritage and our citizens will protect it at all costs.
The attempted relocation of six Namibian desert-adapted lions (3 adults and 3 cubs) from the Daures area (Erongo region) to Skeleton Coast Nation has failed, and the subsequent relocation of the same lions to a private game reserve in the Khomas Region was dogged in controversy as one lion died in the process.
According to Namibia’s Ministry of the Environment & Tourism (MET), the six lions were twice relocated to Skeleton Coast after they caused “problems” (communities were reporting ongoing livestock losses) in their home range in the Erongo region, and on both occasions, the lions returned to their home ranges. MET subsequently decided to relocate the lions to the 9,500 hectare N/a’an ku sê wildlife sanctuary where they “will not cause any problems”.
The male lion, Nkosi – XPL 110, died during this relocation, reportedly of “capture stress”. The adult lions had previously been collared for a monitoring and early warning system, as part of MET’s attempts to deal with ongoing human-lion conflict in the area.
MET advised that the relocated lions would remain the property of MET, and will be relocated to a national park once MET is “satisfied with their behaviour”.
In a Facebook discussion, Izak Smit of Desert Lions Human Relations Aid (DeLRHA) questioned the death of a male lion in the prime of his life. He also questioned why MET would tranquillise and move a lactating female with three cubs and a heavily pregnant female lion.
Smit also commented that “The male and females are of outstanding genetic material and their absence will leave the pride with 5 sub-adults of about 2.7 and 3 years old, two females and three males whom are all closely related (siblings or cousins). This could mean third generation in-breeding as there is no known record of “outside” males, i.e. new blood.”
In their statement, MET suggested that the lions were being fed by people in the vicinity of White Lady Lodge in the Daures area of Erongo, hence their returning to the area after two unsuccessful relocations. This claim was rejected by Smit, who countered that, to the best of his knowledge, the lions were targeting hobbled donkeys and sheep kept in a flimsy kraal near the lodge. In reply to questions on Facebook, he suggested that there is no evidence of “blatant feeding” of lions in order to lure them for viewing by tourists, and asked why no charges had been filed if this was the case.
Smit did concede that White Lady Lodge does have a history of keeping livestock in poorly constructed kraals, and of losing a large number of livestock to lions.
Tanzania’s Mount Kilimanjaro, at 5,895m high, is Africa’s tallest mountain, the world’s highest free-standing peak, and one of the famed ‘Seven Summits’.
Climbing Kilimanjaro is classified as an extreme altitude mountain trek, but with proper preparation, climbing ‘Kili’ can be an achievable goal and a life-changing experience.
Rising from the plains of Tanzania, Kilimanjaro gives climbers a taste of a wide variety of vegetation zones; starting with tropical forest, then heath and moorland, which give way to a highland lava desert, before ultimately reaching the summit zone – a moonscape of rock, ice and scree.
Climbing Kilimanjaro is not ‘a walk in the park’, and it presents considerable physical challenges. The oxygen level at the summit is only 50% of that at sea level, so altitude sickness is an ever-present threat. The temperature at the base averages 35°C, while at the summit it can plummet to minus 25ºC with a stiff wind.
The summit is ice-capped, with five glaciers carrying snow down the mountain’s flanks. Roughly 60-70% of climbers attempting Kilimanjaro will reach the top. If you want to be one of those successful climbers, then there are several factors to take into consideration.
There are seven established routes up Kilimanjaro, and these routes not only vary in length, cost and scenery but also in difficulty and success rates. There is an eighth route, Mweka, used for descents only.
Selecting a Kilimanjaro climb route is one of the most important decisions you have to make. There is no single ‘best route’ up the mountain, and the best route for you depends on several factors, including the availability of time and money, previous experience, fitness level and the time of year. THE MARANGU ROUTE
Marangu is mistakenly thought of as an easy route with a short ascent but is a more serious and difficult climb as there is less time to acclimatise. Due to the negative repercussions on some climbers regarding acclimatisation, there is a lower success rate – with roughly 30% of climbers reaching the summit.
THE MACHAME ROUTE
This is the most popular and crowded climbing route. Machame is considered the best route of all, albeit slightly tougher than the Marangu route. It is very scenic, with proper acclimatisation – but be prepared for crowds (especially on summit night). Approximately 60% of climbers reach the summit.
THE RONGAI ROUTE
With arguably the best acclimatisation, this is probably the ‘easiest’ route. It is away from the crowds, and climbers make their way through true wilderness areas before joining the Marangu route at Kibo hut camp. This route has an excellent success rate, with roughly 70% of climbers reaching the summit.
THE SHIRA ROUTE
This route takes you into some serious altitude (3,500 metres) from day 1, which can hurt if you live at sea level and haven’t had the time to acclimatise. There is generally low traffic on this route before it merges with the Machame route at Baranco.
THE LEMOSHO ROUTE
Probably the most beautiful route, but also the most expensive. Like the Shira route, this one also merges with the Machame route, so everything said about that route remains relevant here. It is a longer route, allowing time for proper acclimatisation, and therefore the success rate is also reasonable. The best option for those who want a wilderness experience, but for whom cost is not the primary consideration.
THE UMBWE ROUTE
The most difficult and demanding route on Kilimanjaro and the most spectacular. It is not a very technical route but is very direct, very steep, very tough and in parts, very exposed. Again, this route joins the Machame route. Due to the level of difficulty, the success rate is low – so don’t consider it unless you have experienced climbing mountains.
THE NORTHERN CIRCUIT
This is the newest route and also the longest. It is good for acclimatisation, and you’ll find very few climbers here. It is the only route to traverse all of the northern slopes on a circumnavigation of the mountain. Due to how long it takes to climb, and how it is easier to acclimatise properly, the summit success rate is quite high.
Aside from choosing your route up Kilimanjaro, there are several other factors to think about as you prepare for this epic adventure – read on to find out more.
The highland areas of East Africa have a pleasant, temperate climate throughout the year, with a long rainy season from mid-March to June, and a second, shorter rainy period from October to late December. The maximum daytime temperature you can expect to encounter at the base of Kilimanjaro is around 28ºC, dropping to 15ºC at night. At 3,000m (10,000ft), daytime temperatures are 15ºC.
Above 4,000m (13,000ft), nighttime temperatures will fall below freezing, and it will be no more than 10ºC during the day (although in the heat of the sun it will feel warmer than this). Summit night will be your coldest, and you can expect temperatures to drop to -25ºC, with cold winds.
Summit night
Summit night is when climbers make the final ascent to Uhuru Point (5,895m). Usually, climbers are woken up at 10 pm and start the gruelling, steep climb (which can take 6 to 8 hours) to reach the top by sunrise. During this time climbers are exposed to potentially sub-zero temperatures and strong winds while hiking slowly.
Keep it light! What you are expected to carry during the day on the trail is a day pack with all the things that you may require throughout the day (such as your camera, extra batteries, water bottle, packed lunch, snacks, waterproofs, toilet paper, and a fleece or a jumper).
The rest of your trekking gear should be packed in a large, tough duffle bag. It will be carried by your porters (not the best place for a fragile bag!). The packed weight of your duffle bag while on the mountain should be no more than 15kg. You should be provided with a suggested packing list by your trekking company.
Footwear
A good pair of waterproof, broken-in boots are essential. Few things will make you more miserable during the trek than blisters, and these are certain to occur if your boots are not broken in. If buying new boots, buy them as soon as you can and wear them as much as possible before the trek.
Clothes
All that is usually needed during the day is a T-shirt and trousers. However, warm clothes will come into play in the mornings and evenings when the temperatures drop, and you aren’t doing much physically. Here is a brief list of what you should include in your packing list:
• A good base layer with a T-shirt on top will keep you warm and dry.
• Mid-layers provide insulation (e.g. a mid-weight fleece top), and if you really feel the cold, then substitute the fleece layer with a down jacket.
• The outer layer is the final layer between you and the elements and must be capable of keeping out the wind, rain, sleet and snow. Any good waterproof/windproof jacket should do the job.
• Legwear in the form of thermal long johns is invaluable for summit night.
• Gloves (thin and thick).
• A good sun hat is essential. Also, a beanie (woollen hat) for warmth, a balaclava for face coverage, and a headlamp.
• Sunglasses which offer 100% UV protection are necessary to combat strong sunlight and snow reflection.
Sleeping bag
A good quality sleeping bag ensures a good night’s sleep (-15 degrees is recommended). Do not compromise on your sleeping bag, as carrying a light one will give you many sleepless nights.
Crew
You should expect your group to be led by an experienced mountain guide, with the help of a Tanzanian local guide who has considerable experience leading climbs on Kilimanjaro. Depending on size, each group would typically have a main guide, a local lead guide, four assistant guides, one cook, a few assistant cooks and three porters per person.
Food
Food on the mountain is usually a mix of local and European dishes, all cooked by the team cook. The emphasis is on a high carbohydrate and easily digestible and largely vegetarian diet, especially at high altitude.
Altitude considerations
The principal difficulty for anyone aspiring to climb Kilimanjaro is the mountain’s considerable height, rising abruptly from the plains. In high mountain ranges, acclimatisation is usually achieved by approaching the ultimate objective by crossing a series of ridges, gaining height gradually. This is not possible on free-standing peaks like Kilimanjaro.
The process of acclimatisation does take time, and the most important rule is to gain height slowly. If you have suffered serious problems at altitude before, you should seek the advice of your doctor or a specialist. I strongly recommended the medication Diamox as I found it helps to acclimatise (not suitable for people allergic to sulphur drugs), though please make sure first to consult your local practitioner when it comes to choosing the right medication.
Training for the climb
On some days you will only be walking for 3 to 5 hours, while on the longest day, to the summit of Kilimanjaro, you can expect to have a 12-15 hour day. As the duration of the climb is relatively short, you need to be in good shape right from the start. Training for at least two months before the climb is pretty essential. People with poor fitness levels will find the trip extremely tough, even impossible.
Travel writer, mountain guide and mother, Sarah Kingdom was born and brought up in Sydney, Australia. Coming to Africa at 21, she fell in love with the continent and stayed. Sarah guides on Kilimanjaro several times a year and has lost count of how many times she has stood on the roof of Africa. She has climbed and guided throughout the Himalayas and now spends most of her time visiting remote places in Africa. When she is not travelling, she runs a cattle ranch in Zambia with her husband.
ALSO IN THIS WEEK’S ISSUE
Big Cats in the Rain Gallery
Cats and rain don’t generally go well together. Well, at least you could say that they would probably prefer not to get soaked to the bone, and for many domestic cats, that is possible with having shelter indoors. However, if you’re a big cat in the African wild, then it is pretty tricky to avoid those epic, rainy season downpours, and at other times the occasional passing shower. That said, there is something magical and enchanting about seeing leopards, lions and cheetahs in the rain, and for both amateur and professional photographers alike, these scenes can produce some stunning images.
Over the past month, a team from the Ethiopian Wolf Conservation Programme (EWCP) implemented the first oral vaccination campaign to pre-empt outbreaks of rabies among Ethiopian wolves, the world’s most endangered canid, in their stronghold in the Bale Mountains of southern Ethiopia.
This is a turning point in the plight to save Ethiopian wolves from extinction, following a decade of intensive research, field trials and awareness work, led by the University of Oxford’s Wildlife Conservation Research Unit and funding from the Born Free Foundation among others. Working alongside the Ethiopian Wildlife Conservation Authority, regular oral vaccination campaigns will now expand to all six extant wolf populations to enhance their chance of survival.
There are fewer than 500 Ethiopian wolves in the world, all in the wild and highly exposed to infectious diseases transmitted by domestic dogs.
“Thirty years ago I witnessed an outbreak of rabies which killed the majority of the wolves I had followed closely for my doctoral studies,” said Prof Claudio Sillero, EWCP Director and Founder. “We have learnt much about these wolves and their Afroalpine homes since. By the time we detect rabies in a wolf population, already many animals are fatally infected and doomed. We now know that pre-emptive vaccination is necessary to save many wolves from a horrible death and to keep small and isolated populations outside the vortex of extinction. I whole-heartily celebrate the team’s achievement”.
Long-term programmes and targeted research are the cornerstones of biological conservation, as success often relays on an intimate knowledge of the workings of populations, the behaviour of individuals and the social, political and economic context. With a generous donation from Virbac of 3,000 SAG2 oral vaccines, EWCP has launched a vaccination strategy, guided by strong empirical information and predictive modelling, and a key component of the National Action Plan for the conservation of the species.
Muktar Abute, the EWCP vet team leader, described the vaccination plan : “Vaccine contained within a meat bait were distributed at night time to three Ethiopian wolf packs. Our target is to immunise at least 40% of all wolves in each population, reaching as many family packs as possible, including the dominant pair – on which pack stability largely depends. We recorded good uptake, with 88% of 119 baits deployed consumed over two nights. Using camera traps we monitored bait consumption, and we will next measure rabies titres levels in blood, to confirm the effectiveness of the vaccine over a larger sample than that of the trials”.
Oral vaccination using SAG2 has been successful in controlling, and even eradicating, rabies in wild carnivore populations in Europe. This approach now raises hopes for the survival of one of the rarest and most specialised carnivore species.
Preventive vaccination can improve the status of other threatened wildlife, and the Ethiopian wolf experience may lead to other practitioners to embrace it as part of their conservation tool kit, in a world demanding closer control of pathogens shared by wildlife, domestic animals and humans.
Watch a video below of a young Ethiopian wolf taking the bait
”I think that the world should be full of cats and full of rain, that’s all, just cats and rain, rain and cats, very nice, good night.” ~ Charles Bukowski, ‘Betting on the Muse: Poems and Stories’
Cats and rain don’t generally go well together. However, if you’re a big cat in the African wild, then it is pretty challenging to avoid those epic, rainy season downpours, and at other times the occasional passing shower. For those mighty felines, it’s just something they’ve learnt to live with – even if it looks like they are not enjoying it!
That said, there is something magical and enchanting about seeing leopards, lions and cheetahs in the rain, and for both amateur and professional photographers alike, these scenes can produce some stunning images. For that reason, we are sharing with you today some of the incredible and captivating Big Cats in the Rain photos, taken by our Photographer of the Year 2017 and 2018 competition entrants. Enjoy!
“It was a hot day in the park, and as we were near Kampersboom, we came across two lionesses and one male lion lying in the shade. We decided to leave them be and drove on. About 10 km further in we saw some dark clouds with rain and lightning approaching us. Then we realised that the rain would move directly over the lions – so we turned around and waited patiently with the lions for the rain to arrive. It was interesting to see that when raindrops started to fall, the lions got up from under the trees and walked to the middle of the riverbed where they just sat there, waiting for the rain to pass. They did not look very impressed with the rain.” ~ Willem Kruger
“Habitat loss, illegal trade and human conflict have led to cheetah numbers plummeting to under 8,000 globally and less than 100 in Asia. I wanted to capture the vulnerability of the species in one, single image. I’d dreamt of chunky raindrops being illuminated by a distant light, with a storm overhead. With the forecast right, I waited in the hope that a cheetah would pass. He did. The image doesn’t shout ‘doom’ for a reason, and the ethereal effect of the light and raindrops highlights an element of hope.” ~ George Turner
“This photo was taken in the marshes of the Ndutu region. It was already evening and raining, and a pride of lions lay in the grass awaiting the arrival of the wildebeest. This particular lioness has risen to search the area for prey.” ~ Thorsten Hanewald
“It is not easy, and quite rare these days, for cheetah mothers to successfully raise all of her cubs to adulthood. They must overcome major struggles, like habitat loss, climate change and droughts. This is why I was so happy to capture this delightful sight of a mother and her four grown cubs coming together to celebrate the welcomed rainfall, after the long hot days in the savannah of Tanzania.” ~ Roie Galitz
“It was a rainy day in the Maasai Mara, and we were lucky to be in the right place at the right time, as these two lion brothers gave us some amazing photographic moments in the rain.” ~ Subhash Nair
“It was a Sunday family outing in the Nairobi National Park. After witnessing the beautiful early morning sunrise and a day-long drive throughout the park, we were on our way back when we saw two lionesses with their five cubs playing. I started to take photos when it started drizzling, though the rain didn’t stop them from playing. However, one of the lionesses then stood up – she seemed to have mixed emotions on her face. It was that moment, captured in this photo, that I will never forget.” ~ Nagaraj Tilakraj
The wet or green season in the Maasai Mara happens from November to April. In this season there are two rainy periods: the short rains in November and the heavy rains in April and May. Many lodges and camps may close over the heavy rainy period because dirt roads turn muddy, rivers flood their banks, and visitor numbers are lower.
“This photo was taken in the Maasai Mara during the rainy season. The grass was extremely high and the trails muddy, and I spotted this cheetah using the trails to move about.” ~ Thorsten Hanewald
Opinion post: Written by Thalefang Charles (sourced from third-party site: Mmegi)
SERONGA: Two days after the World Elephant Day on August 12, just after the worldwide thumb activists stopped tweeting their beautiful elephant images and messages calling for the protection of the last remaining gentle giants, an elephant killed a man near Gunotsoga in the Ngamiland, east of the Okavango Delta panhandle.
This is a story of the area that is popularly known as ‘Overseas’ in Botswana. It is dubbed Overseas because of its remoteness – to access the area involves either crossing the river with a ferry at Mohembo or flying in.
This remote eastern side of the Okavango Delta, an area of about 8,000 square kilometres is home to over 16,000 people who are living with just over 18,000 elephants. It is one of the unique places in the world, where elephants outnumber people.
The people of the area are battling to learn to live amongst the growing population of elephants, although at times it feels in vain, like this week when they have to bury another victim of an elephant trampling.
The entire area has no tarred road, even though it has some of the country’s most scenic villages. Every day the people observe an elephant curfew and seek refuge in their homesteads made out of letlhaka or river reeds. After sunset herds of elephants come from inland past the villages to the river.
Standing by the Ngarange riverside watching the mighty Okavango River stretching wide as far back as the eye can see or the beautiful high grounds of Sekondomboro overlooking the evergreen river plain are special sights. And it is clear from all the villages lined along the scenic river why the people decided to settle there. The area is incredibly beautiful and the perennial mighty river is a source of life to almost all the living creatures around the area.
On this side of the river, just after the Mohembo Ferry is the village of Mohembo East. It is the first settlement in Overseas in the NG11. In there Kgosi Mothohelo begins with complaints of too many elephants. He says, “Most of the elephants that are troubling us are from a park [Mahango Game Park] in Namibia. They destroy our crops, especially at Kutakae along the border”.
Mothohelo suggests that the government should provide wildlife guards to camp around Kutakae during the farming season so that they could assist in driving the elephants away from their farms.
Image source: The Dodo
Twenty kilometres from Mohembo East past Kauxwi and Xakao is the village of Sekombondoro. There Kgosi Mbindira Matabo reveals that they too have many elephants. Matabo suggests that hunting tenders of elephants should be brought back to control their growing population. He also recommends that the government should increase the number of game wardens in the area during the farming season.
Kgosi Keemetse Johane from Ngarange says an elephant attacked and nearly killed a person in April this year and the incident has sent shockwaves in the village.
“We are now living in fear. We can’t go and look after our cattle or travel to our lands, which are far from the village because we are scared of elephants,” Johane says.
He requested the government to speed up the compensation process after wildlife damages and find ways that the people would realise the benefit of the wildlife so that they do not see them just as dangerous beasts that are hazardous to their lives.
After Ngarange is the village of Mokgacha, located at an area with beautiful big trees and there, Kgosi Joshua Gwexa also complains about the elephants.
He says, “Here the elephants are so many that during the ploughing season we did not plant anything because of the many elephants in the area. After sunset, we do not go out at night. So we support the lifting of the hunting ban because we feel it might help with the elephants’ movement”.
The village of Seronga is located at the end of the panhandle as the Okavango River transforms into a delta. Seronga is the largest village in the area and its leader Kgosi Maeze Maeze holds major influence in Overseas. Kgosi Maeze says the elephant population in the area is threatening the existence of other species.
“There are many elephants here and they have destroyed the vegetation. Our goats and small wild animals are under threat because there is not enough grass for eating and hiding. They are out of control,” Maeze reports. “The people are not cultivating crops because of the elephants and they now rely on government destitute programmes although they are able and capable to feed themselves.”
The Seronga chief also welcomed the move to lift the hunting ban saying it would assist in controlling of the elephant population in their area.
From Seronga, the road follows the Okavango spillway heading towards the Linyanti area. The first settlement on this road is Gunotsoga. Kgosi Gakegane Saoxo of Gunotsoga says they love elephants but they are now just too many.
“We want them here. They make our land beautiful and that is also why our grandparents lived here, but they are too many and that is problematic. We want to remain with a manageable number so the government must figure out how to do that, even with hunting it would help us,” Kgosi Saoxo states.
Kgosi Boitshwarelo Mosenyegi from Eretsha says some days the elephants do not even leave the village throughout the day.
“As we speak now, there are elephants in the middle of the village. People can’t access the river to fetch water because they are afraid of elephants. Right now they got small calves and they are extremely dangerous and we live in fear. So the government must find a way, whether through hunting or otherwise to reduce the numbers in our area,” Kgosi Mosenyegi argues.
After Eretsha is a village of Beetsha where Kgosi Bonang Karundu also reiterated other chiefs’ suggestions of finding a way to reduce elephants in the area.
Kgosi Karundu says, “We’ve got a lagoon in the village and the elephants drink here, which poses serious risk to many people. Some of these elephants are very aggressive as they attack people without any provocation”.
Another village elder from Beetsha, Marota Moriri suggested that elephants should be sold to other countries because they are just too many and are unmanageable in their area.
An elephant biologist based in the area, Dr Anna Songhurst of Ecoexist Project differs with the people’s reports of over-population of elephants. She reports that from their surveys of NG11 there are about 18,000 elephants. She argues that the assumption that there are too many elephants is not based on scientific fact, but it is mainly due to “more people encountering elephants”.
“I wouldn’t say there are too many elephants in the area. And I wouldn’t say that the current numbers are unsustainable,” notes Songhurst.
Songhurst suggests that the best solution is to create big movement corridors across the borders of Botswana, Namibia and Angola.
Anthropologist at Ecoexist Project, Dr Amanda Stronza who has been working with communities in the area to find solutions to co-exist with elephants says, “to ensure a future for elephants, we must partner with people to find solutions to human-elephant conflict and wildlife crime”.
“The world loves elephants, but who are the people that bear the costs of living with elephants? It’s people here in Botswana. People here experience relatively few benefits from elephants, and we talk a lot in our project on finding ways for the people to benefit from elephants,” says Stronza.
“If you care about elephants, the best thing is to support the people that live with elephants,” she challenges all elephant lovers.
Final touches are being made to an all-women 50-day conservation adventure from South Africa into southern Africa. The Journeys with Purpose: Rise of the Matriarch expedition brings together 12 women from around the world who will travel 9,000 km across four countries to raise awareness about the contentious human-wildlife conflict.
Headed by Carla Geyser, a KwaZulu-Natal-based eco-warrior, humanitarian and founder of the NPO, Blue Sky Society Trust, the team will fan out across South Africa, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia next month in an epic 4×4 adventure that see them meeting women conservation heroes who are involved in extraordinary projects to help conserve Africa’s nature and wildlife.
American wildlife biologist and conservation scientist, Jennifer Palmer, will fly in to join the team for 28 days. The 44-year old is the founder of Women for Wildlife – an international movement to support and unite women and girls around the world who are devoted to wildlife and conservation.
Palmer’s belief that the solutions to the world’s greatest wildlife challenges are found among the power and leadership of women, is what drew her to the Journey’s with Purpose: Rise of the Matriarch expedition. “I’m looking forward to being part of a dedicated team of inspiring women, being back in the field connecting with on-the-ground conservation projects and offering support in whatever way I am able. I also can’t wait to connect with communities and wildlife along the journey.”
For 41-year old Durban-born Bronwyn Laing, this will be her second conservation mission with Geyser. Laing, who now lives in Tanzania, was part of South Africa’s first all-women expedition to Kenya in 2016 that was also headed by Geyser. That experience has helped manage her expectations this time around. She will join the team for the final two weeks of the expedition.
“Having done this before, I know what an incredible experience it is,” Laing says.”Carla puts a lot of time and effort into getting to know the organisations that we support. This allows us to have a unique behind the scenes look at the exceptional work that is being done to conserve our animals and wilderness.”
American nurse and travel blogger, Emily Scott, signed up as soon as she heard about the expedition.
“I am looking forward to meeting inspiring people working in wildlife conservation,” the 33-year old explains. “Human-wildlife conflict is an extremely complicated issue – finding ways to protect threatened species while also respecting local communities is a real challenge. But based on the ingenuity and commitment I’ve seen throughout Africa, I’m very excited to learn about how locals are tackling these issues and how we can support their efforts.”
Locally, three women from Geyser’s home province, KwaZulu-Natal, are counting down the days to their eco-adventure.
East Coast Radio personality, Erin Dickson, will spend two weeks on the road with the team.
“I hope that we can make a real impact on how people view our wildlife and draw attention to the impact of human-wildlife conflict and poaching on our environment,” says the 26- year old. “It’s so important that we get the message out there. I hope to make a positive impact on the lives of everyone we meet along the way and make some great memories while making a difference.”
Midlands resident, Lungile Dimba, an Education Administrator at WESSA (Wildlife and Environment Society of South Africa) will spend 14 days on expedition alongside Geyser.
The 24-year old believes the Journeys with Purpose: Rise of the Matriarch mission is bigger than any of the crew members: “Morally, everything on Earth deserves love and deserves to be taken care of. This includes all the animals and the environment. There are few people who care about nature and I am so grateful for the opportunity to be part of the few who educate the importance of valuing our environment. I believe environmental work is the cleanest career path on Earth.”
Celokuhle “Smax” Biyela, who works part-time at Geyser’s Blue Sky Society Trust, will spend 15 days on the journey.
The 29-year old, who is from Umzimkhulu, says she’s looking forward to meeting amazing women from around the world who share the same passion that she does.
“I feel honoured to be given such an amazing opportunity,” Biyela says. “Carla’s work really inspires me to play my part and to make a difference not only here in South Africa but elsewhere on the continent too. I’m looking forward to learning and growing as an individual, teaching children how to protect our environment, and I look forward to them teaching me something too.”
Cape Town documentary-maker, Sam Suter from Black Bean Productions and Alize Jireh a camera lady from USA round off the 12-member crew.
While Geyser is putting the finishing touches to expedition she says it’s not too late for corporates or benevolent individuals to get involved:
“Here in Africa, we are losing on average two game rangers a week, three rhinos a day, and one elephant every 15 minutes. That’s a pretty sobering thought. Our conservationists and brave anti-poaching units put their lives on the line and grapple this issue on a daily basis as they seek to educate the youth about conservation and in the process empower communities with skills needed to reduce human-wildlife conflict. We can’t simply sit back and do nothing. We owe it to future generations to do as much as we possibly can to protect our precious planet. If we each do a little, we can accomplish a great deal. Every little bit counts. Every cent matters.”
The expedition will see crew members engage with local communities especially children on the human-wildlife issue and distribute 30 000 educational booklets, connect with anti-poaching groups, visit conservation groups and schools, and meet with incredible women, “she-roes” who are doing remarkable things at a grassroots level to assist in conservation efforts.
Funds raised during the expedition will benefit four causes: Elephants Alive (South Africa), Rare and Endangered Species Trust (Namibia), Eco-Exist Project (Botswana) and the Soft Foot Alliance Trust (Zimbabwe).
“We encourage fellow South Africans to be part of our journey on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter,” says Geyser. “Your messages of encouragement are truly appreciated. We don’t have a backup team so it’s nice to know that there is some positive support coming from home.”
The Journeys with Purpose: Rise of the Matriarch team leaves from the Getaway Show, Ticketpro Dome, Johannesburg on 16 September 2018. The expedition returns to South Africa on 28th October 2018.
On 23 August 2018, the first 90 of 200 African buffalo were presented to the communities of Senior Chief Inyambo Yeta and Deputy Chief Joyce Sekute to further develop the Simalaha Community Conservancy, which forms a vital Zambian component of the Kavango Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area, or KAZA as it is known.
KAZA is the biggest terrestrial cross-border conservation system in the world – connecting 37 protected areas across Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The aim is to preserve large ecosystems across borders and re-establish corridors that allow the free movement of wildlife along ancient migratory routes.
Dr Nyambe Nyambe, Executive Director of the KAZA Secretariat, stated: “Our vision is to establish KAZA as a world-class transfrontier conservation and tourism destination. Within this, socio-economic development is critical. This can only be done by increasing sustainable livelihood and development opportunities for the local communities, such as those in Simalaha, who often bear the ‘cost’ of living with wildlife.”
The Simalaha Community Conservancy comprises 180,000 ha of communal land and lies within one of six key wildlife dispersal areas in KAZA, namely the Chobe Zambezi dispersal area that reaches from Chobe National Park in Botswana to Kafue National Park in Zambia. The Conservancy was established in 2012 to ensure viable natural resource management and support wildlife conservation; to address basic human rights of the Sesheke and Sekhute people, and develop alternative models for income generation for these two communities.
Income from wildlife management was identified as a critical component of the Conservancy and in 2013 a wildlife sanctuary measuring 24,000 ha was established as part of Simalaha. Through the active reintroduction of wildlife that used to occur in the area, and with the addition of the buffalo, the sanctuary now boasts eight different species totalling more than 1,600 animals.
The buffalo were purchased from the Waterberg Plateau Park in Namibia, which had exceeded its carrying capacity for the species. In July, 120 buffalo were captured and spent 30-days in a quarantine facility in Namibia where they were tested and monitored for any signs of foot-and-mouth disease. Ninety of the now certified disease-free animals were released into a 2,500-ha fenced section within Simalaha’s wildlife sanctuary, with the remaining 30 to be brought in next week. An additional 80 will be captured and transported to Simalaha in September, bringing the total to 200 buffalo. Providing disease-free buffalo to Simalaha was crucial, as this member of Africa’s popular Big 5 will not only boost the tourism offering, but will also generate income through the sale of the offspring of the buffalo to other areas in Zambia.
Senior Chief Inyambo Yeta highlighted the fact that the totem animal for his Chiefdom was the buffalo. In years gone by, his chiefdom was responsible for defending their territory from invasion from neighbouring communities and through their efforts were given the totem animal of the buffalo, renowned for its fierceness and impressive defensive skills.
“The buffalo are back! The buffalo are back! I never thought that I would see this happen in my lifetime!” exclaimed the Chief.
The acquisition of the buffalo was made possible by Peace Parks Foundation through the support of its generous donors. The Foundation has been providing the Sesheke and Sekute chiefdoms with technical and financial support since the inception of the Conservancy.
Speaking at the ceremonial release of the buffalo, Peace Parks Foundation CEO, Werner Myburgh said: “These buffalo represent intrinsic economic value and improved livelihoods for people living in the Conservancy and demonstrate our continued commitment to the Simalaha initiative. Simalaha serves as a model of success for community-based conservation engagement and we are continuously inspired by the community’s devotion to protecting the region’s natural and cultural heritage.”
Simalaha seeks not only to conserve wildlife but also to improve the social, economic and environmental circumstances of the communities that host the Conservancy. In this regard, important milestones have been achieved over the past five years which include the training of 22 community wildlife scouts, known as Village Scouts, to protect the animals in the wildlife sanctuary; provision of solar lighting to key communal facilities; and the construction of houses for teachers at a local school. In addition, more than 1 200 farmers have been provided with seeds and trained in Conservation Agriculture methods to improve their yield with less impact on the environment, with many now producing surplus crops to sell. In partnership with Grounded, a process has started to create access to markets for the excess produce.
“We want to thank our partners, the Department of National Parks and Wildlife of Zambia and the Namibian Ministry of Environment and Tourism as well as the kind and continued support of our donors, in particular the MAVA Foundation for Nature, Pamela and Neville Isdell, the COmON Foundation, Coffr Foundation, the Swedish and Dutch Postcode Lotteries and KfW for helping to make Simalaha the success it is today”, concluded Mr Myburgh.
WATCH: The first 90 buffalo were released to welcoming cheers from the community
Nine lions made history this past week when they were translocated to Liwonde National Park in Malawi, returning the species to the park for the first time in 20 years.
On the 22nd of August 2018, conservation non-profit African Parks, in partnership with the Department of National Parks and Wildlife (DNPW), and with support from the Dutch Government, the Lion Recovery Fund and the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation, announced the completion of a series of lion translocations from South Africa to Malawi. Wild lions have been reintroduced to Liwonde National Park two decades after a breeding population was present. Seven lions from South Africa joined two males brought from Majete Wildlife Reserve in March to re-establish the species in the park.
Their arrival also follows the recent reintroduction of cheetah to Liwonde in May 2017, as part of a wider initiative to restore predators to the region. This translocation also included introducing an additional five lions into Majete from South Africa to enhance genetic diversity of the founder population in the reserve, where the predators were also reintroduced by African Parks in 2012, years after being poached out.
These latest introductions highlight the ongoing restoration of Malawi’s natural heritage by the Malawian Government and African Parks for the long-term benefit of the people of Malawi.
“We are immensely proud of the restoration of our country’s parks and are committed to ensuring the ongoing protection of these extraordinary national assets” said the Director of the Department of National Parks and Wildlife, Brighton Kumchedwa. “The reintroduction of lions and other emblematic species form a core part of this vision, enabling the rejuvenation of wildlife populations, enhancing tourism and socio-economic development, and contributing to the well-being of those living around the parks”.
In Liwonde, years of human-wildlife conflict and poaching eradicated resident predator populations, but, before bringing predators back, African Parks overhauled law enforcement to secure the park, constructed a robust perimeter fence, removed thousands of snare traps, established rigorous ranger patrols, and worked with local communities to prevent poaching and human-wildlife conflict.
With infrastructure and security in place allowing a prey base to recover, African Parks began the process of reintroducing wildlife.
The latest translocation marks the return of an iconic predator to Liwonde but also represents a new chapter for Majete Wildlife Reserve.
In addition to the seven lions sent to Liwonde from South Africa, five lions were introduced into Majete, bringing the reserve’s population up to 17 while ensuring greater genetic diversity. The new arrivals, fitted with tracking collars to facilitate daily monitoring, were released on Wednesday August 15th into the wider park from enclosed bomas which supported their adjustment and social bonding.
A century ago, Africa contained more than 200,000 wild lions but in recent decades, habitat loss, human-wildlife conflict and diminished prey have caused Africa’s lion population to plummet to just fewer than 20,000, eradicating them from up to 90% of their historical range. Lions are now extinct in 26 African countries, but Malawi has become a bright spot among efforts to conserve the species.
“Alongside Malawi’s Government and people, African Parks has shown what the pinnacle of lion recovery looks like,” said Dr Jeffrey Parrish, Vice-President of the Wildlife Conservation Network, founder of the Lion Recovery Fund. “Rewilding Malawi’s parks and restoring this flagship predator to its past domain serves as a beacon of hope that we can indeed recover lions and their landscapes across Africa, with and for communities and economies.”
Predators serve an important ecological function. “Bringing back lions restores a key species that is critical to the healthy functioning of the natural system” explains Patricio Ndadzela, African Parks’ Deputy Director of Conservation, “Symbolic of the Malawian Government’s commitment to revitalising its parks and wildlife, the translocation also contributes to the establishment of a significant national predator population and to the development of sustainable tourism economies to promote local livelihoods and socio-economic growth”.
“Parks are the cornerstones of conservation and rewilding parks with their top predators makes a park complete,” said Justin Winters, Executive Director of the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation. “We are honoured to support the bold actions of African Parks through the Lion Recovery Fund.”
“The alpha male chimp was sitting in the forest path ahead, staring into the distance in a melancholy way as if contemplating life’s challenges, chin resting on balled fist. My party and I were waiting it out, aware that it was us who were intruding on his territory and home. He knew we were waiting because every few minutes he would glance our way disdainfully. The rest of the troop were spread about us, a fair distance away in the forest understorey, quietly relaxing and socialising. Life was good. For now.
“He then gave a heaving sigh and swaggered towards us, gangster-like. Being first in the path, I stepped aside and into the thick forest understory, holding my breath as 50kg of muscle and sinew brushed past me. And then all hell broke loose.
“With no warning or apparent reasoning, he went charging off into the forest, screaming hysterically and attacking other troop members. Chaos ensued as the entire troop erupted into a melee of gratuitous violence. Smaller chimps were flung about by their limbs and larger members charged about like hillbillies in a barroom brawl, pant-hooting and screaming at full volume. Thirty seconds later, it was all over, as the cacophony subsided into whimpers and then silence. No harm done then. My group and I were wallpaper to the drama, wary observers, ignored.
“This naked savagery was in sharp contrast to what we had witnessed the previous day. A mother was nursing a tiny infant, and this same large male approached her and tried to touch the baby. The mother slapped his hand and gave him a look that would instantly freeze boiling water. He cringed, adjusted his strategy and tried again – same result. After several attempts, she permitted a few seconds of gentle (for him) patting before nudging him aside and ambling off with her baby. The big male seemed crestfallen, confused even, as he gazed after her.
“These encounters took place in Tanzania’s Mahale Mountains National Park, and I was lucky enough to be accompanying a small party of Africa Geographic safari clients. I have encountered chimpanzees in several areas in Africa, and continue to be fascinated by them.
“The following notes, based on information provided by IUCN Red List, will provide a greater understanding as to how this magnificent creature is doing in the face of rapid population expansion of another great ape, Homo sapiens. Also, read the last section if you are keen to see chimps in the wild.”
Chimpanzees live in western and central African primary and secondary woodlands and forests, farmland and fallow oil palm plantations. They are the smallest of the great apes and our closest living relative.
They live in troops averaging 35 members (the largest known troop has 150 members). Home ranges vary – one of the smallest is 6 km² at Budongo in Uganda, and one of the largest is 72 km² at Semliki, also in Uganda.
Like humans, chimpanzees are omnivorous. They are opportunistic feeders, with fruit forming half of the diet, supplemented by leaves, stems, seeds, flowers, bark, pith, honey, mushrooms, resin, eggs, and animal prey such as insects and medium-sized mammals. They are the most carnivorous of the great apes (other than humans) and are known to form hunting parties to track down and catch species such as colobus monkeys.
Chimpanzees are proficient tool users, using sticks to extract bees, ants and termites from their nests, and stone and wooden hammers to crack nuts. They are also known to hammer tree buttress roots with sticks and their feet to communicate with other chimps.
Chimpanzees reach puberty at 7-8 years of age, and females have a 35-day reproductive cycle, commencing at 13-14 years of age, although earlier has been recorded. Chimpanzees reproduce throughout the year and have a gestation period of 230 days. Twins are occasionally born, but the norm is a single infant, and weaning is at 4-5 years of age.
A female can give birth to as many as nine infants over her lifetime and remains reproductive into her late forties. Only one-third of common chimpanzee progeny survive beyond infancy, whereas in contrast, the infant mortality rate for bonobos is low, with 73% of offspring surviving to age six. Maximum life span is unknown but thought to be about 50 years. Generation time is estimated to be 25 years.
There are two chimpanzee species – the common chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) and the bonobo or pygmy chimpanzee (Pan paniscus).
There are four subspecies of common chimpanzee, namely the Western chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes verus); the Nigeria-Cameroon chimpanzee (P. t. ellioti); the Central chimpanzee (P. t. troglodytes); and the Eastern chimpanzee (P. t. schweinfurthii). Chimpanzee taxonomy and genetics is an ongoing field of study.
Chimpanzees are completely protected by national and international laws in all countries of their range, and it is, therefore, illegal to kill, capture or trade in live chimpanzees or their body parts. This legal standing, however, does not prevent the killing of chimpanzees throughout their ranges.
The common chimpanzee is the most abundant and widespread of the great apes (population estimate 345,000 to 470,000) and yet is classified as ‘Endangered’ on IUCN’s Red List because of high levels of poaching, infectious diseases, and loss of habitat and deterioration of habitat quality. There has been a significant population reduction in the past 20-30 years, and it is suspected that this reduction will continue for the next 30-40 years.
The estimated population reduction over three generations (75 years) from 1975 to 2050 is suspected to exceed 50%. Major risk factors include the ongoing rapid growth of human populations, poaching for bushmeat and the commercial bushmeat trade, diseases that are transferable from humans to animals (such as Ebola), the extraction industries and industrial agriculture, corruption and lack of law enforcement, lack of capacity and resources, and political instability in some range states.
• Western chimpanzee (Senegal and Ghana) – 18,000 to 65,000 individuals
• Nigeria-Cameroon chimpanzee (Nigeria and Cameroon) – 6,000 to 9,000 individuals
• Central chimpanzee (Cameroon and DR Congo) – 140,000 individuals
• Eastern chimpanzee (Central African Republic and DR Congo, Burundi, Rwanda, western Uganda and western Tanzania, with a small, relict population in South Sudan) – 181,000 to 256,000 individuals
The bonobo is restricted to the lowland forests of DR Congo and has a population estimated to be a minimum of 15,000 to 20,000 individuals, although only 30% of its historic range has been surveyed. Bonobos are classified as ‘Endangered’ on IUCN’s Red List because of high levels of poaching, loss of habitat and deterioration of habitat quality and diseases that are transferable from humans to animals (such as Ebola).
In some areas, local taboos against eating bonobo meat still exist, but in others, these traditions are disintegrating due to changing cultural values and population movements. There has been a significant population reduction in the past 15-20 years, and it is suspected that this reduction will continue for the next 60 years.
POACHING
Poaching is the greatest threat to chimpanzees, with frequent extinction occurring in entire local chimpanzee populations. Increases in human populations, easy availability of guns and ammunition, transport system efficiency, and financial incentives for supplying urban markets with bushmeat have resulted in swathes of land in the forest zone of Africa being cleared of wildlife.
Chimpanzees are generally hunted opportunistically with snares and guns but are sometimes targeted because they provide more meat than smaller mammals, such as duikers, and poisoned because they threaten local crops. Poaching is especially intense near mining sites and logging camps – where bushmeat is usually the primary source of protein available. The explosion of these extraction industries has introduced a network of roads into what were vast and roadless forest blocks. Truck drivers provide transport logistics to what has become a lucrative bushmeat industry.
Baby chimpanzees are sometimes trafficked as pets when their parents are killed for bushmeat.
Subsistence/slash-and-burn agriculture
The conversion of forest to farmland across Africa has severely reduced the availability of chimpanzee habitat. Parts of West Africa had lost up to 80% of their original forest cover by the early 2000s. Extensive subsistence farming in the Albertine Rift area (eastern DR Congo, western Rwanda and western Uganda) has destroyed much of the sub-montane forest used by chimpanzees. Central Africa is experiencing lower forest cover loss.
Logging, mining and oil
Timber concessions undergo removal of important food trees and resultant habitat degradation. The disturbance factor due to logging activities is also high. Mining and drilling for oil devastate wildlife habitat and lead to large-scale human settlement and the building of roads, railways and other infrastructure.
Industrial agriculture
Africa has become the new frontier for oil palm plantations, which will hit chimpanzee populations hard in coming years, because of habitat loss.
Major transportation infrastructure
Massive road projects, sometimes several kilometres wide, fragment chimpanzee habitat and enable human settlement in previously wilderness areas.
All of the above extraction industries result in habitat fragmentation due to the building of roads and introduce infrastructure and channels for the trade in wildlife products. They also cause human migration and the introduction of diseases to chimpanzees.
DISEASE
Infectious diseases that are zoonotic (transferable between humans and animals), especially Ebola, are a significant cause of great ape die-offs. Transmission between humans of Ebola is rapid, and humans are more mobile than apes, crossing large rivers and other barriers that apes do not cross – carrying the disease with them.
Because chimpanzees and humans are so similar, chimpanzees succumb to many diseases that afflict humans. Infectious diseases, including outbreaks of respiratory disease and anthrax, are the leading cause of death in several chimpanzee populations that have been habituated to human presence.
Yes, chimpanzees are under severe pressure and facing an uncertain future, mainly because of the antics of that other great ape, Homo sapiens. But there is hope because chimpanzees are a resilient species living in vast swathes of equatorial forest in the heart of Africa.
We close with a quote that reflects chimpanzees in a different light to the above scientific notes:
“In what terms should we think of these beings, nonhuman yet possessing so very many human-like characteristics? How should we treat them? Surely we should treat them with the same consideration and kindness as we show to other humans; and as we recognise human rights, so too should we recognise the rights of the great apes? Yes.” ~ Jane Goodall
Trek for chimpanzees with Africa Geographic
There are several places in Africa to trek for chimpanzees, from the accessible highland forests of Kibale in Uganda to Rwanda’s Nyungwe, where the sheer biodiversity on offer will leave you speechless, to the remote forests of Mahale in Tanzania, where the chimps often venture onto the shores of Lake Tanganyika. Each option has its own unique appeal and other available activities. Trekking for chimps is best woven into a more extensive itinerary, due to the distances and logistics involved. Find out more about our chimpanzee trekking safaris here.
A nationwide survey, by the Humane Society International (HSI), has revealed that the majority of South Africans believe the captive lion breeding industry is harming the country’s international reputation. This announcement comes on the first of a two-day South African Parliamentary inquiry into the lion breeding industry. According to the study, South Africans demonstrate a deep dislike of activities associated with the lion breeding industry, including trophy hunting and canned hunting of tame lions, and are also concerned that the trade in lion bones will stimulate market demand leading to increased poaching of lions and big cats.
The results showed the following:
• That South Africans, by more than a three to one margin, agree that the industry is harming South Africa’s international reputation, with 65% strongly agreeing/agreeing, and 21% strongly disagreeing/disagreeing;
• More broadly, 56% of South Africans fully oppose/oppose to some extent trophy hunting, 60% fully oppose/oppose to some extent canned lion hunting;
• And by nearly a six to one margin, 77% strongly agree/agree with conservationists who say that the trade in lion bones will stimulate market demand leading to increased poaching of lions and big cats.
Results followed the recent local and global backlash against an announcement by South Africa’s Department of Environmental Affairs that it would allow 1,500 captive-bred lion skeletons to be exported this year, nearly double last year’s export quota of 800 captive-bred lion skeletons. South Africa’s lion breeding industry has been under the spotlight since the 2015 release of the award-winning film Blood Lions® and the eponymous Blood Lions® Campaign, of which Humane Society International is a partner.
“These polling results demonstrate that South Africans are overwhelmingly concerned industry is harming South Africa’s international reputation,” said Audrey Delsink, executive director of HSI/Africa. “The captive lion breeding and the lion bone trade is South Africa’s claim to shame. Last year’s bone export quota of 800 was shocking enough: the increase to 1,500 in 2018 has no scientific basis and is a blatant license to kill for the lion breeding industry.”
At the same time, a new report from the South African Institute of International Affairs, commissioned by HSI, found that captive lion breeding industry revenue – from lion cub petting and lion walking tourist attractions – is less than 2% of South Africa’s tourism revenue. Yet, the study finds the lion breeding industry as a whole, including these attractions as well as canned lion hunting and skeleton exports, may seriously undermine the international reputation of South Africa and harm the tourism industry. The study concluded that, “the opportunity costs and negative externalities associated with the predator breeding industry may – along with other threats facing wild lion survival – undermine South Africa’s brand attractiveness as a tourism destination by up to R54.51bn over the next decade.”
Delsink says that public opinion and scientific analysis show that, instead of bolstering this unpopular industry by allowing the export of captive-bred lion skeletons, the South African government should be shutting it down. “The South African government can no longer justify a scandalous industry that is condemned by the South African public, only benefits the pockets of breeders and traders, and threatens to seriously damage South Africa’s tourism sector.”
• According to a report submitted to the 30th meeting of the CITES Animals Committee in July 2018, Vietnam was the largest importer of lion bodies and the second-largest importer of skeletons. Lao People’s Democratic Republic was the largest importer of lion bones and skeletons. The United States was the largest importer of lion trophies. The report suggested that some lion poaching and trafficking involves organised criminal groups, and seizures alongside other commodities such as rhino horn indicate that these groups are dealing in multiple species.
It was not too long ago that we featured our first incredibly adorable gallery celebrating Africa’s Wild Babies. After recovering from the exposure of such cuteness, we discovered that there are more “oohs” and “awws” to be had with wild babies, but now with their mums and dads!
What better way to appreciate Africa’s wild but through the close bonds that are shared between babies and their parents – and all captured on camera by some incredibly talented photographers for you to enjoy.
So sit back and relax while you click your way through our gallery of photos taken by some of our Photographer of the Year 2016, 2017 and 2018 entrants.
“An unusual instance in which a lioness brought out her only cub to a wildebeest kill at a very young age. The cub was only just able to walk very short distances and mistook this young male lion’s paw for its mother’s paw, finding a bit of solace in a dangerous situation.” ~ Matthew Murray
“We were spending time with the Shingwedzi baboon troop in Kruger National Park for the first three hours after sunrise. It was beautiful to see the little ones waking up and exploring with the troop. This little guy was still very new to the rest of the troop and always stayed close to its mother. After drinking time, he was lying on her lap, displaying an intimate and lovable bond between mom and baby. When he stretched out to touch mom’s cheek, it was really as if he meant to say: ‘Don’t worry mom.'” ~ Annemarie du Plessis
“No matter how many leopards I see in the wild, I cannot get enough of these fascinating cats. Just like I am in awe of their stealthy hunting skills and sudden bursts of power and ruthlessness, I was humbled by the tenderness with which this mother looked after her single cub. Never had I seen a leopard with such a young cub, and to be able to spend many hours with them over three days was a true privilege. I often think about this cub and hope that it is growing strong and beautiful – just like its mother.” ~ Pedro Ferreira do Amaral
“The bonding between lion pride members is an essential key to their survival and a reason why lions will often outlive other big cats. Lions can often be seen allogrooming, which strengthens family bonds through licking and rubbing up against one another, with both females and males taking part in this activity.” ~ Armand Grobler
“This photo was taken in Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda. Walking into this family of gorillas was spectacular. They were so comfortable in our presence, very relaxed and observant. It was amazing to see their strong family bond, and this photo highlights that. After a short time, they played and fed in front of us. Some of the youngsters ran through the group, seemingly knowing that it would cause a stir, and enjoying the reaction!” ~ Stuart Sinclair
In a colony of meerkats, the whole family, including the father and siblings, all take turns to help raise the babies (or pups). Female meerkats give birth to one to eight babies at a time, but it is more common for them to have three to four offspring at a time. Read more interesting facts about meerkats here.
“A family of elephants were resting in the shade of large riverine trees on the riverbank, approximately 8 to 10 metres from the road. I spotted this very young baby elephant, still unsure on its feet, secure between the elephant cow’s legs. I liked the natural framing the body and legs of the elephant cow provided and had an image in mind. I had time to take four photos before the baby turned away and disappeared deeper into the herd. It was a privilege to witness how protective the family was of this baby elephant.” ~ Thinus Schoeman
“On a misty morning drive towards Mopani, I was excited to be able to spot and photograph a hyena clan. Two important factors stood out for me in making this sighting a photographer’s dream. Firstly, the mist had slowly evaporated, and a soft light fell upon the savannah. This was coupled with an adorable interaction between a mother and her young.” ~ Ricci Goldstein ~ Read more about the sighting here.
Uganda is home to about half the world’s population of mountain gorillas, with the majority of them living in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park. Bwindi has as many as 11 habituated gorilla families available for tourists to track. Read more about the different gorilla families found in Bwindi here.
“One of my favourite places in all of Africa is Lake Amboseli – where large families of elephants journey along the dry and well-travelled region. On this evening game drive, a matriarch and her family were making the long journey on the dry lake bed, and I had the immense privilege of capturing this image. It was a magical moment while watching the quiet trek in the fading light.” ~ Dana Kennedy
“I was photographing Cape fox pups playing at their den. Their father brought them rats and lizards as food from time to time, while the mother guarded them during the daytime. This pup did not get anything this time around and was pleading to his father for something to eat in typical Cape fox manner: licking the parents’ face.” ~ Johan J. Botha
Female hippos have a gestation period of eight months and usually have only one baby at a time. A baby hippo, or calf, weighs about 23-50 kg (50-110 lbs) when born. Hippos can be extremely aggressive and territorial, and a mother hippo won’t hesitate to protect its baby. Read more about hippos and dramatic river disputes here.
“We were on an evening game drive with our guide when we got caught by a storm. Once it had cleared, we slowly drove back to camp, and as we passed by a ridge, we heard a lion roar close by from behind a bush. Suddenly, a pride of around 14 lions appeared from behind a bush and moved into the sunset along the ridge, giving us this surreal Disney scene.” ~ Anja Gröbel
A leopard’s hunting technique is to either ambush its prey or to stalk it. In either instance, it tries to get as close as possible to its target. It then makes a brief and explosive charge (up to 60km/h), pouncing on its prey and dispatching it with a bite to the neck. Read more interesting facts about leopard here.
This graph is for illustrative purposes only and is not a reflection of any of the graphs from the report. The graphs from the official report reflect downward trends in most areas surveyed.
Opinion post: Written by Maxine Gaines, wildlife biologist
The Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) has just this past week announced that it has lifted the countrywide two-year moratorium on leopard hunting in South Africa. They announced a quota for hunting of leopard to be allocated as follows: Five male leopards in Limpopo Province and two male leopards in KwaZulu-Natal. The leopards, according to the announcement, have to be males seven years or older. They claimed to have made this decision based on a determination by the Scientific Authority.
The information and data behind their decision has not been made public, although I do believe that under the Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA), it should be made available to all interested and affected parties. I had the opportunity to examine some of the science behind the DEA’s decision – via an official report from the Scientific Authority to the DEA. I have to say that I am flabbergasted at the DEA’s decision. The Scientific Authority has done an incredible job of obtaining accurate population estimates and trends across much of the country in a very short space of time. The amount of money, effort and time that went into this study must have been monumental, and the scientific authority are to be commended. But the news is not good.
The official report states that leopard are in serious trouble in this country. A brief summary of the scientific report follows:
1. The population has shown an overall decline of 11% year on year. And this is in areas that are considered suitable leopard habitat, and where leopard are considered to be relatively well protected. The situation in more marginal habitat and where leopard are not adequately protected will in all likelihood be far worse. The reality is that these marginal and unprotected areas, form a large part of leopard range in South Africa.*
2. Of the reserves surveyed during the two-year study period, 70% showed declines in leopard populations, with 42% of them showing dramatic declines. Only 15 % showed stable populations.
3. In KwaZulu-Natal, where quota has been allocated to hunt 2 leopard, 71% of the reserves studied showed declines in leopard populations, with 43% showing dramatic declines. Only 29% of reserves sampled showed stable populations, although these were of small populations.
4. The situation in all other provinces is just as sobering, with the Limpopo Province also showing declines in leopard population density in 100% of Limpopo sites monitored during the study period (July 2017 to June 2018), with 38% of these sites exhibiting dramatic declines. And yet Limpopo has been allocated 5 leopards to be hunted. Given that the government said in its statement to the public that “It is important to note that the hunting of leopard is only undertaken in specified hunting zones where scientific evidence indicates stable leopard populations” I wonder where exactly in Limpopo they intend to hunt those five leopards?
How on Earth did the DEA decide that this was a good idea?
The report goes on to say that poaching for leopard skins for cultural and traditional uses has been the main cause of the population declines witnessed in KwaZulu-Natal and possibly throughout South Africa. They suggest that this problem receives urgent attention. One religious group in South Africa (which has over 4 million members/voters), uses leopard skins in their ceremonies. What does the government plan to do about this identified cause of leopard population reductions?
So, the DEA is told that poaching has had a dramatic effect on leopard populations across the board and that the population has continued the alarming decline during the two years of the hunting ban. And yet they see fit to place further pressure on the population by reinstating trophy hunting?
After having worked through this official report, I am concerned that the DEA seems to have little interest in the conservation of leopard in this country. Thankfully there are some true conservationists in government and at the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI), who have the best interests of our leopards at heart and have taken heed of the concerning results of the study undertaken by the Scientific Authority. I have to assume that they are under pressure from the DEA and the trophy hunting industry, and had no choice but to play a role in the reinstatement of the quota. These good people have ensured that the initial quota is low, but who is to say that this will not change for the worse next year, as they come under increased pressure?
I also believe that many conservationists (some in the Scientific Authority) who certainly have the best interests of leopard conservation at heart have been held to ransom for too long by the hunting industry. We hear so many stories, from hunters, game farm owners and conservationists alike, that if leopard hunting is not allowed, and farmers/hunters cannot make money from the leopards that pass through their properties by hunting them, then they will shoot them anyway and bury the evidence (the “shoot and shovel” mentality). This is a very real threat. Many of these game farmers deal in the death of wildlife all the time, so would think very little of getting rid of a leopard that is killing their wildlife stock and eroding their profit margins. Understandably, many conservationists are scared senseless by this scenario, and are consequently bullied into coming up with ways to justify quotas for the trophy hunting of leopard.
The damning conclusion I come to, after thoroughly analysing the official leopard population research report, is this: The science produced by world-renowned, respected conservation biologists that clearly shows a leopard population in dire straits, has been ignored completely by the government in determining leopard trophy hunting quotas.
*References:
Swanepoel, L. H., Lindsey, P., Somers, M. J., Van Hoven, W., & Dalerum, F. (2013). Extent and fragmentation of suitable leopard habitat in South Africa. Animal Conservation, 16(1), 41-50.
My skipper Moses has had his line tucked beneath his big toe, the nail as deeply ridged as the bark on a British oak, and streaming out behind our canoe for more than three hours without a bite. It means our dinner is looking limited in scope to the packs of pasta and couscous tucked neatly beneath the simple bench I’m sitting on. Given I’ve seen him haul out coota – the Krio word for barracuda – stretching to half his height on choppier days than this one with the same simple hand line, it comes as something of a surprise to the both of us.
A lifelong islander, Moses, like many Sierra Leoneans, appears more comfortable on the slatted orange planks of the large hand-crafted pirogue than on the terra firma of the continent. In small forest-fringed villages such as York, Sussex and Kent, reminders of British colonial rule over this portion of the West African coast, let alone the centre of the bustling capital of Freetown, you’re never far from the buzz or beep of a smartphone demanding immediate attention.
Even in Sierra Leone, to escape the demands of our modern technologically-driven world you have to say goodbye to solid ground all together, and journey to what is often regarded as the remotest community in the region. There is no better tropical hideaway than the paradisaical Turtle Islands, and nowhere more isolated. There is no cold beer for god-knows how many miles, which is just as well given how far the nearest hospital is, or how long it would take to reach it.
But most importantly for someone who spends much of their life in front of a laptop and beside a phone, in constant contact with the outside world, reaching the islands means a complete digital detox, with no plug sockets, electricity of any sort, Wi-Fi connection or television news; miles from the nearest mobile phone signal and relay tower. There aren’t any sundowners unless you bring them, no spa but the warm lazy waters.
As a result, heading to the Turtle Islands is unlike any normal getaway and rather more like undertaking an expedition, with everything we might possibly need, from tents to spare engines, drinking water to toilet paper – and everything in between – loaded carefully into the nooks and crannies of the canoe in preparation for my departure.
Clambering inelegantly aboard, swinging my legs over her high sides, Moses settles down what is jokingly referred to as his ‘Nescafe’, a jar of frothy, largely alcohol-free, poyo palm wine, and starts up the 55 horsepower outboard motor with effortless expertise. The heavy canoe glides out from its natural beach landing to the deep blue yonder, and never has the phrase sounded so apt than now. It would be only a slight exaggeration to say that my life depends on the skills of a man I barely know; a thought that never crosses my mind on boarding an international flight.
With the pirogue’s hand-crafted bow pointed into the open ocean, so calm I can see the surface tension on the gentle swell, I realise for the first time the importance of Moses’ oft-mentioned compass. It is our only form of navigation save the sun. Without it, and without a mobile phone signal or satellite tracking, we could roam the Atlantic until our fuel and food ran out without finding either the islands or our way back towards Freetown. I slather on an extra layer of sunscreen.
The Turtle Islands lie, like a cartographer’s spilt biscuit crumbs, off the western tip of the much larger island of Shebro, roughly three-quarters of the way down Sierra Leone’s coastline. Approaching from Freetown across the yawning gap of Yawri Bay, there’s not another speck of land as Moses directs the boat with what turns out to be pinpoint accuracy and nothing but dead reckoning, his compass and years of experience plying these same waters in search of coota, grouper and snapper. We’re as alone as the butterfly we incongruously pass hours after our last sighting of Africa’s great bulk.
‘Hoong!’ Moses eventually declares with satisfaction, taking another swig of his palm wine. With the rising heat haze I can hardly see anything of the smudge that has appeared on the horizon, and it takes us a full fifteen minutes more before my landlubber’s eye catches my first real sight of the island. Sacred, it is forbidden for anyone to set foot on Hoong except the initiated men of the local secret society. Women are not even allowed to gaze upon it, turning away or covering their heads with wax cloth wraps or towels especially brought for the purpose.
Without a single tug on his hand (or should that be foot) line, Moses cuts the engine, allowing us to drift beside a local boat of gently perspiring Turtle Islanders. As adept on the water as on dry land, their toes splayed, their balance unaffected by the motion of the bay, they bob in the waters where the shallows around the islands drop to oceanic depths. Yet the sea bottom is just a foot or so beneath the keel in places; we’re arriving at the lowest tide of the month, on the new moon. I’ve never understood the need for moon phase information in diaries until this point in my life.
We are eyed by a large hawk glissading effortlessly above us looking for a meal as much as Moses and myself. We barter three good-sized fish – our dinner finally sorted – cold from the luxury of their onboard ice-box for a single precious 1.5-litre bottle of far-from-cool mineral water.
Moses skilfully manoeuvres our pirogue around the shallows at the lowest possible speed to prevent our stranding. To me, it seems beyond impossible without the technological help of a well-calibrated radar system or depth gauge, but Moses knows these waters. Sometimes the growing sandbanks are signalled by unusually smooth patches of water, while at others they are denoted by fierce waves breaking as if on a beach. Before now yachts with far more impressive navigation systems on board than Moses and his compass have been caught-out and almost sunk.
Beyond Hoong we approach the much larger and more welcoming Bumpetuk, the second of eight largely untouched islands that make up the group, then Chepo, Mut, Sei and Bakei, my day’s final destination. If I didn’t know better I would have thought Spike Milligan had come up with their names. I was promised cartoon versions of low desert islands rising out of pristine waters and comprising ‘two palm trees with a hammock strung between them’. I’m not disappointed.
On the beach at Bumpetuk a small village cluster around a hand-painted sign reading ‘Harbour fee 50,000 Le’. Surrounded all around by tall coconut palms, others lie fallen at the water’s edge, a reminder that these islands are slowly and constantly shifting sandbanks in the Atlantic shallows and nothing more.
Our first landfall however isn’t the ‘harbour’ of Bumpetuk but the yellow sands on the edge of the protected horseshoe-shaped bay of Bakei, where we pick up Alpha, the local harbour master. It’s more a matter of etiquette than necessity, in a culture where respect for roles within the community are vital. “It is custom here to shake hands with the harbour master,” says Moses simply.
Alpha presents me with three coconuts, cut from the heights of the palms, still green and meant for drinking the deliciously-refreshing water within than eating the thin lining of flesh, adding a digestif of sorts to my growing meal. He guides us the short distance across the mouth of the horseshoe lagoon to the basic palm-thronged shelter where we are to set up camp. The tide is now so low we all but abandon the boat in the mud, laying the anchor uselessly beside it in anticipation of the incoming tide.
Island idyll
The sandy loams that make up Bakei are adorned with low scrubby plants that look to be suffering from the intense heat reflecting back up from the water’s surface. There is none of the breeze of Yawri Bay, and it’s impossible to walk barefoot on the sand for the heat it emits as I explore the nearest end of the island. As I do so, Moses refloats the boat, raising the anchor on the hunt for that still-elusive catch. Crabs, larger than any I have ever seen, scuttle about the narrow width of sand between the shrubs and the waves, dispensing eggs with celebratory waves of their pincers to the coming of the new moon. Turtle tracks run up another beach to the high tide line.
I don’t see another soul and have already forgotten about deadlines, those emails I didn’t quite have time to send, and thoughts of uploading jealousy-inducing images onto social media.
On the off-chance, I test for a phone signal – needless to say, there isn’t one. My mobile is a useless frippery from another, less boisterous but more expecting world.
There is so little breeze that come nightfall I manage to keep an unprotected candle alight. The only other sources of light to be seen are the distant flashes of lightning, a dusting of stars more immediately above me, and the fleeting LED shine of Alpha’s torch from the opposite side of Bakei’s bay.
A thin layer of cloud builds up overnight, making it almost chill the next morning, and the woodwork of the boat is wet.
“Did it rain last night?” I ask Moses.
“No, it’s snow” he says, using the Krio term for dew. “The snow here is not like Freetown.” But then nothing is.
Moses points the boat’s bow in the direct of Sei’s contrasting snow-white sands. The waters have a mirror-like sheen to them. Simple huts with walls of plaited palm-frond matting and roofs of unplaited fronds cluster around the beach.
The island’s children gather around, in gentle competition to be the ones who take hold of my hands. They pull the skin from my arms as they stroke the hairs on them. Most of the scattered population of the islands have little contact with the outside world; I’m an exciting interlude into a normal island day. As an elder sister struggles to carry a heavy toddler towards me; he bursts into uncontrollable tears. At the centre of the village, teenagers are bunched around a transistor radio, their only constant connection with the world beyond their islands as if the president in distant Freetown is about to declare an end to all work. But rather than a presidential decree, it’s the midweek football.
“You like football? You should support Liverpool” I’m told. They look disparaging when I say I follow Crystal Palace, the south London side, instead.
Back in Yawri Bay I count thirty local fishing boats, bedecked with fluttering flags like bunting. The arched back of a dolphin cuts through the currents to one side of them. We greet each in turn with a broad wave of an arm as they cut a path perpendicular to our own. Despite their presence, Moses’ bad luck holds, and he’s forced to pull in his line empty-handed once more as my mobile phone kicks back into life.
It’s a familiar ritual to anyone who has camped at Okaukuejo in Etosha National Park in Namibia in June; it takes some effort to hammer your tent pegs securely into the hard, chalky ground, but it’s worth it when the wind blows. Our toddler, Sanne (18 months old), had seen us pitching our tent at the Waterberg Plateau campsite two nights before and she knew the drill, despite the hammer weighing almost as much as her. With each thwack, she kicked up a swirling puff of rose-tinted dust, then looked at us with a proud smile. In the distance, a black rhino ambled down for a drink at the waterhole.
We were six days into a month-long trip with friends through Namibia, and so far their toddler and our Sanne were handling the travel like seasoned pros. They were glowing with the fresh air, and full of curiosity about each of the new places we’d visited so far: Phuduphudu and Kalahari Rest Camp in Botswana, and the Waterberg Plateau in Namibia. After Etosha, we would make our way via Buschberg Guest Farm to Brandberg, Swakopmund, Spitzkoppe and Erongo, before heading home on the Trans-Kalahari Highway – a round trip of about 7,000 kilometres.
Namibia had been a logical choice for an extended camping trip. It’s malaria-free and full of wildlife and wild open spaces. It’s easy to get around and more beautiful than you can imagine.
As we watched a second black rhino stroll down for a drink, we knew that our instincts had been right; having kids is no reason to avoid the wilds of southern Africa. In fact, it’s just another reason to go. At each stop, we would smile as Sanne and her friend Josh (20 months old) helped pitch the tents or unfold the camp chairs, absorbed in the logistics of camp making and the novelty of a familiar-but-new home for the next few nights. They filled every minute of every day with an endless enthusiasm that allowed us to experience the fun of camping and glimpse the wonders of Namibia’s wildlife and landscapes through their eyes, as well as our own.
Here are some of the highlights from our month-long road trip through Namibia.
The Waterberg
Hikes, rocks and sand
The Waterberg Plateau campsite in the Waterberg Wilderness, east of Otjiwarongo in northern central Namibia, was a brilliant find. There were rocks to climb, sand to dig in and hikes that are short enough for independent little legs. The private nature reserve borders the Waterberg Plateau Park, but there is no dangerous game around the campsite, making it a fun and safe area to explore on foot.
Arriving late, we got the last of the camp’s eight spots and in the morning headed out to hike one of the five demarcated trails that start at the camp. The views over the Omaheke plains towards the flat-topped mountain that gives the area its name is spectacular, and we took regular stops to drink them in and to examine ant trails and stones and spiderwebs.
Etosha
Okaukuejo, Halali and Numatoni
The beautiful location of Okaukuejo with its large campsite, nests full of sociable weavers and its waterholes made it an easy place to spend some quality time out of our vehicles. Our delight in the spectacular wildlife that came down to the camp waterhole to drink was magnified by the joy on Sanne and Josh’s faces as they spotted anything from elephants to springbok. They especially loved the creatures that came out after dark: black-tailed tree rats, resident white-faced scops owls, black-backed jackals, various scorpions and more, which provided hours of spotlight fun for everyone.
Halali was the least child-friendly of the camps, and we had a few awkward sundowner moments on the camp’s spectacular viewing deck when the kids’ chatter was met with frowns. Its honey badgers were fascinating, but bigger and bolder than the kids, so we had to pay extra attention to their movements after dark! We did drives during nap times (heat wasn’t an issue as we were travelling in winter) and had some of our most rewarding sightings at its floodlit waterhole after Sanne and Josh were asleep; rhino bulls fighting, a leopard making a kill, and thirsty elephants drinking from moonlit pools, then fading into the inky darkness.
Namutoni has a great network of shorter drives around the camp, and we enjoyed spending time in the big, cool swimming pool and on the green lawns around the campsite (Okaukuejo and Halali also have pools). We had our best lion sightings here, and the kids loved listening to them roar in the early hours of the morning and then setting out with flasks of hot chocolate to find them. We also spent a very relaxing morning at Mokuti Etosha Lodge. They serve a killer buffet breakfast, have an interesting snake park, and beautiful gardens to wander around.
The drive from Etosha to Brandberg, which is near Uis in the heart of Damaraland, winds through dramatic scenery, so it was no surprise that the sprawling campsites at Brandberg White Lady Lodge were spectacular. The area is rural, with free-roaming wildlife and domestic animals sharing the same space, so we had to dodge donkey and elephant dung when picking our tent site.
The thick desert sand provided hours of entertainment for the kids, whose bucket baths with the fire-like mountain in the background, must rate amongst the most spectacular in the world. They also frequently wandered off with the resident meerkat to dig holes in the ground.
While there, we made the short drive to the famous White Lady rock painting site. The hike through a relatively lush and fragrant valley was well worth it as our knowledgeable guide talked about the 2000-year-old paintings (with the pigments bound with blood serum, egg white and casein), the fascinating biodiversity (about 16% of Namibia’s plants are endemic) and history linked to the granite monolith, which is Namibia’s highest mountain.
After a desert drive from Brandberg to Swakopmund, we stayed in the bungalows at the municipal rest camp, an excellent value-for-money option in an often foggy Swakopmund. This vibey seaside city was lots of fun to explore with toddlers. We visited the aquarium and befriended creatures that thrive in the south Atlantic’s chilly Benguela Current, did an historic walking tour, watched people fish from the jetty (built in 1904), played on the beach and in the icy surf, ate delicious local food at several good restaurants (including amazing cheesecake from the institution that is Café Anton) and shed some of the sand we’d collected in the desert, which was replaced with salt.
We also visited the well-curated museum, which is full of accessible info on Namibia’s fauna, flora, geography and history with some impressive, interactive contemporary displays. We also visited the playground next door and spent a morning looking for welwitschias – desert plants that are thousands of years old.
This took us through the ‘moon’ landscape just outside of Swakopmund, which we wished we had longer to explore. Next time, we’ll go with a guide to find the creatures that have made it their home. Another highlight was the trip to Walvis Bay to see the flamingos; a drive between endless dunes, a moody sea and then masses of pink birds!
Spitzkoppe is a place of golden light and glowing rocks, with campsites amongst the most beautiful and private of any we have ever stayed at. The community camp feels like the land that time forgot. Scale and space distort and you feel yourself to be a tiny thing in a vast and ancient universe. Wraparound views and a sky of stars that you can almost touch made each hour in the camp a special one. We pitched our tents up against a rock face and lazed with lizards, lingered over sundowners on hot rocks and tried to fathom the fact that the dramatic granite rising from the desert is more than 120 million years old.
While we skipped the hardcore climbs and longer hikes (where you need a guide), there were plenty of shorter walks that were suitable for us with our toddlers in tow. They tackled them like little dassies (rock rabbits) and seeing their confidence taught us a thing or two about tackling challenges head-on.
The last part of our journey was spent high up at Erongo Plateau Camp in search of Hartlaub’s spurfowl, which we never found, although birding during the rest of the trip was excellent. What we did find was a stark beauty and a tricky hike that we somehow navigated with kids in tow. It was hot and dry and quiet.
Although there was nothing particularly child-friendly about the camp or the area, by then, Sanne and Josh were able to amuse themselves with nothing more than some sand, sticks and stones.
When our month was up, we’d covered less ground than we might have without kids, but I think we saw more. We did fewer activities, but our eyes were opened like never before, both to the places we visited, but also to our children.
They literally grew in front of our eyes as Namibia filled them with its colours, smells and sights. We grew too, as friends and parents and travellers. Each time we repacked or unpacked during the trip (shedding items as we went), we were reminded of just how freeing it is to travel like this, not only for us but also for our kids. For the most part, they were resilient, curious, enthusiastic and easy to please. Which, as far as travelling companions go, are pretty good qualities to have.
Children on safari: Tips from our trip
• Temper your itinerary to keep the distances small;
• Take less than you think you need, but don’t skimp on your medical kit;
• Don’t include too many structured activities;
• Pack bags of toys, books and games;
• Make sure the kids have binoculars also;
• Make sure everyone wears closed shoes at night – there are plenty of scorpions!;
• Take extra sippy cups and snacks that you can pull out when needed;
• Respect other travellers, but don’t apologise for your well-behaved kids;
• Give the children (yes, even the toddlers) regular campsite chores;
• Take extra moisturiser for winter trips, as the desert air is very dehydrating;
• Don’t worry about stocking up on food before your travel (fresh meat and produce was easy to get);
• In unfenced camps: A little common sense goes a long way. We avoided unfenced camps in areas where there is a high likelihood of having predators move through the camp. In sparse game areas, be vigilant and watch your children.
Medical and potential health issues
• Be proactive before you travel. Speak to your paediatrician about emergency medication you might need.
• Doing a CPR and basic first aid course is a good idea. Otherwise, be aware of potential dangers from snakes and scorpions and find out how the response to these is organised in the places you visit.
• Inform yourself about medical evacuation procedures, local emergency numbers and cellphone coverage. Often the people who run the places you plan to stay at are excellent sources of advice and information. They usually have kids or know people in the area that do.
• Let your medical aid know you’re out of the country, and understand what they cover and what they don’t. If you’re going really off the beaten track, consider a satellite phone.
Dianne Tipping-Woods is a Hoedspruit-based journalist who tells stories about conservation, travel and development in South and southern Africa. Working for various international print and online publications, she writes about a wide range of issues and gets to explore some of the world’s most wild and beautiful places, sometimes with her two kids in tow. Endlessly inspired by the people she meets and the places she goes, every journey is a privilege and an opportunity to learn, grow and write!
ALSO IN THIS WEEK’S ISSUE
Epic Kruger
The Kruger National Park in South Africa is a photographer’s dream destination when it comes to incredible wildlife sightings – with each and every sighting unique and unforgettable. From buffalo bulls aggressively going at each other at a waterhole and an incredibly magnificent elephant bull towering over the landscape to a python strangling its enormous prey and lions giving you the proverbial death stare. These are the epic moments that Kruger has to offer, and fortunately, there are photographers out there who have been able to catch these jaw-dropping scenes on camera.
Travelling with kids on a safari in Africa may seem like a daunting task. They can get bored very quickly, especially on long road trips, and keeping their attention and interest piqued about wildlife can become a tedious, exhausting and stressful task. However, with proper planning and armed with the knowledge of what your kids enjoy, you can make a safari quite an enjoyable and memorable experience for the whole family.
Here are a few useful tips to consider when taking your kids on safari:
• Have a bag packed full of entertainment for the kids for those flights and long drives. Colouring-in books, small games, books, and puzzles are some items you can include, as well as electronic devices such as cellphones (consider getting educational wildlife-related apps), iPads and mini DVD players – remember to have those fully charged and pack extra battery devices just in case. Don’t forget to pack headphones for each member of the family. Of course, once on safari, you want to keep the kids away from electronic devices, and enjoying the outdoor experience.
• When looking for accommodation options, note that some lodges have age restrictions, or do not allow children at all. For those that do allow children, choose family tents or rooms that can accommodate the whole family. This way, you can keep an eye on the little ones.
• If you can afford it, opt for a private vehicle for your game drives. Sharing a vehicle with other guests may cause some stress as your kids may lose their patience and could start disturbing other guests. With a private guide and vehicle, you can make the game drive as long or short as you wish, depending on your kids’ mood and interest in wildlife. Some camps require you to book a private vehicle if travelling with kids, so make sure to enquire about this when booking your safari accommodation. Be very sensitive about others when travelling with your kids, but never apologise for taking your kids with you on safari – this is the best thing you can do for them!
• Always discuss with your children what they should expect to see on a game drive, and how they will probably need to be patient. Perhaps even turn the game drive into a game to see who spots the animals first. Choosing a safari in an area that has an abundance of general wildlife, where there will most likely be action around every corner, is a good strategy.
• If animal sightings are few and far between, direct their attention to the other wonders of the bush – unusual insects, spider webs, birdlife, interesting trees, termite mounds, identifying the tracks on the ground, etc.
• Speak to your kids about dangerous animal sightings, and why they need to be quiet, stay seated and keep their limbs inside the vehicle. Be prepared for any extreme sightings, such as a kill, as this may frighten the little ones.
• Consider choosing camps and lodges that offer a variety of experiences, such as kid-friendly walking excursions into the bush, boat rides, hot-air balloons, horse riding, and quad biking. Camps or lodges that are fenced-in and protected from the wildlife will allow more freedom for your kids to roam about, whereas those open to the bush will restrict their movements to the living areas and bedrooms.
• Choose a genuinely child-friendly safari lodge or camp. Ask the lodge about specialist guides for kids, ask them if they give families free private vehicles and ask about specific activities offered in the ‘kids club’. Often a lodge will have two or three smaller lodges associated with the parent property, and it’s quite common for one of those to be specifically aimed at kids, so be sure to check.
• Don’t forget about the downtime. With their regular routine not possible, and early morning and late evening game drives, your kids will probably find themselves exhausted and hopefully, they will rest during the midday siesta time. Make sure you also take some time out to relax and sleep.
• If possible, provide your kids with their own cameras (disposable is a good choice) as it will help them create their own memories and keep them engaged with what’s going on around them.
• Give them a bird book and a pair of binoculars to identify the birds that are easily seen around the camp. A checklist to tick off the animals seen is always fun, or ask the little ones to draw the animals. One of the things that can help to keep older kids interested is to sit them up front next to the ranger and asking them to be the “tracker”!
• Remember that wild animals can be dangerous – especially for kids. Be sure to ask for advice about how to behave when in wild areas, and read 10 Points About Wild Animals.
Definition of epic: [adj.colloq.] Particularly impressive or remarkable; excellent, outstanding. ~ Oxford English Dictionary
The Kruger National Park in South Africa is a photographer’s dream destination when it comes to incredible wildlife sightings – with every sighting unique and unforgettable. From buffalo bulls aggressively going at each other at a waterhole and an incredibly magnificent elephant bull towering over the landscape to a python strangling its enormous prey and lions, giving you the proverbial death stare. These are the epic moments that Kruger has to offer, and fortunately, there are photographers out there who have been able to catch these jaw-dropping scenes on camera.
So, without further ado, we present the gallery Epic Kruger, which comprises of a selection of stunning photos taken in the Kruger and Greater Kruger areas, along with some thoughts from the photographers themselves. And they’re not just any photos; they’re some of the special photos submitted during our Photographer of the Year 2016, 2017 and 2018 competitions.
“I took this photo of an elephant bull standing on a slight hill using a wide-angle lens. A storm was brewing in the distance, which created a rather spooky effect.” ~ Annemarie du Plessis
“The water levels were low around this time of year, so you did not need to drive too far in search of wildlife as the animals would soon turn to the few permanent water sources to drink. At one of the waterholes a few old dagga boys turned up just after 8 am, and true to their grumpy nature the one bull aggressively launched at the other bull when he entered the water!” ~ Renata Ewald
“Dramatic composition reigns supreme in this evocative black and white image that captures one of Africa’s most regal predators in a natural, rugged state.” ~ Craig Hayman
“While travelling from the airport to our photographic safari destination, we took a small detour on a well-known loop when suddenly this massive elephant bull appeared out of nowhere. He was so gracious and not bothered about our presence at all. While he was walking, the perfect side profile shot presented itself for this amazing capture. It was truly amazing to see this tusker in this area just going about his daily routine.” ~ Bernhard Bekker
Opinion post: Written by Maxine Gaines, wildlife biologist
When the government announced in 2015 that it was placing a moratorium on the hunting of leopard in this country, I was proud to be a South African. Science had revealed that leopards were in decline across most of their range and that the South African hunting quotas at the time were based primarily on “thumb suck data”. Most scientists insisted that there was not enough population data available on leopards to justify the hunting quotas at the time or any hunting quota for that matter.
The moratorium was short-lived though. After only two years of no leopard hunting, we now have apparently accumulated enough population data to reinstate a hunting quota and lift the zero quota. I find this very hard to believe for such a cryptic species. The intent was already there in 2017, after only one year of the zero quota. The DEA, on the 8th of February 2017, placed a notice in the Government Gazette (No. 40601) entitled “Draft Norms and Standards for the Management and Monitoring of the Hunting of Leopard in South Africa for Trophy Hunting Purposes”.
Members of the public and all interested and affected parties were invited to lodge their written comments or objections to the proposed draft. They were given 30 days to do so. I immediately got working on an objection based on prevailing science and lodged this within the required time frame. I received absolutely no response to my objections – other than an acknowledgement of receipt, and this only after I kept emailing every day to insist that they acknowledge receipt.
I know that other organisations who lodged objections had the same response. I have repeatedly emailed the DEA in the interim, asking for an update on where they stood once objections had been heard, but my emails were ignored.
Eventually, at the beginning of this hunting season, after no response from Edna Molewa or Ms Makganthe Maleka, or SANBI, I included a Ms Magdel Boshoff in my mail enquiry and I finally got a reply, saying that she had forwarded my mail to Mr Mpho Tjiane and Ms Malepo Phoshoko – as their functions related directly to the leopard hunting quotas. Thank you Ms Boshoff.
I waited expectantly but was disappointed. The reply I got from Mr Mpho Tijane was as follows – quoted directly.
“Dear Maxine
There is decision on the quota for 2018. A decision will be made in due cause
Regards
Mpho”
Unenlightening and uninspiring to say the least.
My main objections summarised very briefly (and I am happy to send the entire referenced document to anyone who is interested) were the following:
1. The current leopard conservation status is of a population in decline and facing numerous threats, with increasingly disappearing and fragmented habitat. They are included in 3 of the 5 categories of species MOST vulnerable to extinction.
2. The proposed safe age (seven years old) to hunt leopard does not take into account later studies showing very high mortality due to infanticide. Infanticide would be worse in hunting areas where males in the prime of their lives are continuously removed.
3. Hunters have proven to be particularly poor at ageing and sexing leopards – and this was from clear photographs. Leopards in the wild are viewed at a distance, and often not from the best angle, which would hinder proper ageing. The exam used to test hunters’ abilities in this regard has some flaws.
4. Hunters have proven to be untrustworthy in terms of declaring if females were shot, and also have admitted their willingness to shoot females even if this is illegal.
5. Even moderate levels of hunting have been proven to be detrimental to large African felids like leopards and lions. Hunting of lion and leopard has been shown to cause declines in numbers in many well-known and supposedly well-managed hunting concessions AND the adjacent National Parks, in a number of African countries.
The quota of seven male leopards at this stage is a conservative one and applies only to two provinces – KwaZulu-Natal and Limpopo – but this is nothing to celebrate.
In 2009, researchers released a paper describing the Phinda leopard population in KwaZulu-Natal as “persecuted”. This population has recovered in no small part due to the efforts made by Phinda to change surrounding land uses from hunting to ecotourism. Previous hunting areas have been bought and converted to ecotourism, and other hunting areas that were won by the community in land claims have been turned over by the community to be managed by Phinda for ecotourism. This speaks volumes of Phinda’s community-based conservation ethic. Ask any Phinda guest, guide or staff member who has enough history to compare leopard viewing now at Phinda to what it was like 20 years ago, and you will hear only glowing reports. Visitors to Phinda now stand a good chance of seeing a leopard. The population is healthy and the leopards are relaxed and starting to trust the guides – to the point that they are very viewable. And this is great for ecotourism and leopard conservation in the area.
The reason for this change is, in my view, clearly related to the absence of hunting on the surrounding properties. Nothing else has changed. Poaching still occurs, the demand for leopard skins by the Shembe church and for other traditional uses is still high. But hunting has come to an end in the area and the leopard population has flourished.
And now, hunting is to be reinstated…
I for one would like clarification from SANBI as to who exactly the scientific authority was that gave the go-ahead to reinstate hunting. “The Scientific Authority” is a very vague label given to a number of different interested and affected parties and stakeholders, and I feel that we have the right to know who the scientists are who OK’d this so that we can look at the specific research directly and challenge it appropriately and scientifically. I know that Panthera has been very involved in this research, and probably formed part of the Scientific Authority, but I really believe that we need access to all the information and data relating to this decision so that those of us who care about leopard conservation in South Africa and who have an opposing viewpoint can challenge this decision in the appropriate manner – with science.
In a surprise move, South Africa’s Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) has issued a quota of seven male leopards for trophy hunting during 2018.
The quota allocation is five from Limpopo Province and two from KwaZulu-Natal, and the leopards must be male and older than seven years. The hunting of leopards can only be undertaken in ‘specified hunting zones’, where scientific evidence indicates stable leopard populations.
This after zero quotas were issued for 2016 and 2017, as a result of an alert at the time by the country’s Scientific Authority that the number of leopards in the country was unknown and that trophy hunting posed a high risk to the survival of the species. This latest announcement by DEA was made based on a new determination by the same Scientific Authority that leopard populations in certain areas can now sustain a trophy hunting quota.
The Scientific Authority was established to assist in regulating and restricting the trade in threatened or protected species. In making this new recommendation, the Scientific Authority took into account data and reports from the National Leopard Monitoring Project and other inputs on leopard numbers.
As part of an ongoing adaptive management approach, the Scientific Authority concluded that a small quota, restricted to older males and coupled with the implementation of appropriate management systems as set out in the draft Norms and Standards for the Management and Monitoring of the Hunting of Leopard in South Africa for trophy hunting purposes, would not have a detrimental effect on the survival of leopard in the wild.
DEA further noted in their announcement that quotas may change every year depending on the updated available scientific information on the status of leopard populations in South Africa.
Whale sharks, the world’s largest fish, roam less than previously thought. Local and regional actions are vital for the conservation of this globally endangered species moving forward, according to a new study by researchers from the Marine Megafauna Foundation, University of Southampton, and Sharkwatch Arabia. Their findings were recently published in the journal Marine Ecology Progress Series.
Previously, genetic research indicated that whale sharks mixed within distinct populations in the Indo-Pacific and Atlantic Ocean, respectively. This new study used stable isotope analysis, a biochemical technique, to demonstrate that whale sharks feeding at three disparate sites in the Western Indian Ocean (Mozambique and Tanzania) and the Arabian Gulf (Qatar) rarely swim more than a few hundred kilometres north or south from these areas.
“Whale sharks are amazing swimmers, often moving over 10,000 km each year, and they can dive to around 2,000 metres in depth. Biochemical studies tell us more about where they go and what they do when they’re out of our sight”, said Dr Clare Prebble, who led the research as part of her PhD project at the University of Southampton.
The researchers used isotopes of nitrogen and carbon that have similar chemical properties, but vary in their atomic mass. Ratios between the heavier and lighter isotopes of these elements vary naturally across different habitats in the marine environment. For example, more of the heavier isotopes are found in near-shore environments than offshore.
These ratios stay consistent as they are passed up through the food web, from tiny marine plants to top predators, and therefore provide a record of the animal’s feeding and movement behaviours. Stable isotope analysis thereby provides a ‘biological passport’ for whale sharks.
Electronic tags are commonly used with marine animals to record their movements and diving behaviors. However, the challenge of keeping them attached to a large shark, while minimising disturbance, has meant that only short-term deployments (weeks to months) have been possible. This study used tiny samples of skin tissue from wild, free-swimming whale sharks. These small pieces of skin, collected over 2-3 years at each location, were sufficient to reconstruct the sharks’ movements and feeding preferences over the weeks and months prior to sampling.
Values of both carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes differentiated at each site. To complement the biochemical analysis, the researchers also took photographs of the natural markings on each whale shark to identify and track individuals over a 10-year timeframe.
Every whale shark has a unique spot pattern, similar to a human fingerprint. The team recorded 4197 encounters with 1240 individual whale sharks within these three countries.
Only two sharks moved between sites, both swimming around 2,000 km north from Mozambique to Tanzania. Taken together, these findings indicate that there are limited movements between these major aggregation sites over months to years. These results have implications for the conservation of this endangered species.
“The best data available suggests that more than half of the world’s whale sharks have been killed since the 1980s. Although the Western Indian Ocean remains a global hotspot for the species, even the largest feeding areas only host a few hundred sharks. Our results show that we need to treat each site separately, and ensure good conservation management is in place, as the sharks may not re-populate if they’re impacted by people’s activities,” Prebble added.
The study stresses the need to protect these filter-feeding sharks at the areas where they come together in numbers, particularly where human pressures are also present. Whale sharks are an incidental catch in coastal gillnets, which are frequently used in Mozambique and Tanzania. The Arabian Gulf is a huge oil shipping area where vessel strikes pose a major threat to the sharks when they are feeding near the surface.
“Whale sharks are fully capable of swimming across oceans, but it seems like the juveniles, at least, are choosing not to”, commented Dr Simon Pierce, Principal Scientist at the Marine Megafauna Foundation and a co-author on this study. “They like coming back to the same sites each year to take advantage of predictable feeding opportunities. Looking on the bright side, that emphasises that local protection can have a major benefit for the recovery of this endangered species. The rewards can also be felt locally, with whale shark tourism now worth over $100 million each year around the world.”
Earlier this year, colleagues reported that whale sharks regularly visit Madagascar to feed, which has led to a growing ecotourism industry between the months of September and December. To date, none of the sharks identified in Madagascar have been seen outside that country, further reinforcing the results from this new study.
Dr Clive Trueman from the University of Southampton concluded: “Interestingly, most sharks found at these feeding sites are juvenile males of less than nine meters. To truly assess how populations are globally structured and distributed, we need to learn more about where the sharks go once they reach adulthood. They may well move out of our sight to feed and breed in deeper offshore waters.”
The study was supported by WWF Tanzania, Shark Foundation, Aqua-Firma, Waterlust, Maersk Oil Research and Technology Centre, Qatar Ministry of Municipality and Environment, PADI Foundation, Rufford Small Grants, and two private trusts.
Struck with two poison arrows, this 45-year-old bull elephant faced a slow and painful death without intervention. Luckily, he was observed limping through Tsavo National Park in Kenya by a pilot from The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust (DSWT) – which operates ten de-snaring teams in the region – who called in ground teams to treat him. After a dramatic and successful operation that involved a helicopter, fixed-wing aircraft and numerous vehicles, he’s on the mend.
The elephant was initially observed late evening of 22 July 2018 as daylight was fading, making any operation to treat him at night too dangerous. Early next morning, DSWT pilots flew a Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) vet to the scene while ground teams prepared for the challenging operation in dense bush, which limited access and visibility for the rescuers.
The elephant was moved out of thick bush and into a clearing where he was darted by the vet from a DSWT helicopter hovering above, ensuring the team could have enough space and time to treat the elephant. Once sedated, the vet cleaned the animal’s first wound, cutting away rotten flesh destroyed by the arrow’s poison, before rolling the huge elephant over with a road grader so they could access the second wound on the other side of his body.
It took one hour to treat his wounds, and after administering long-acting antibiotics and a revival drug, the elephant was soon back on his feet.
Says Rob Brandford, Executive Director of the DSWT: “Without urgent treatment, this elephant would have died a very painful and slow death. As we celebrate World Elephant Day, we are reminded that every day across Africa, we are losing elephants to poachers and conflict with humans and that every individual matters.”
World Elephant Day, celebrated on 12th August 2018, aims to bring the world together to help elephants and raise awareness of the threats facing the species. An aerial census estimated Africa’s elephant population to be around 400,000 individuals, with 144,000 elephants lost to ivory poaching and habitat destruction in less than a decade.
Tsavo National Park is a safe haven for Kenya’s wildlife and home to more than 12,000 elephants – Kenya’s largest single population. Safeguarding this wilderness in support of the Kenya Wildlife Service is The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, East Africa’s oldest and most pioneering conservation charity. Their operations, which include de-snaring teams, aerial surveillance and a sniffer dog squad, patrol to stop wildlife crimes in the protected area, prevent habitat loss and work with communities to prevent human-elephant conflict – a growing threat to elephants across Africa. They also operate five mobile veterinary units across Kenya in partnership with the KWS, including in Tsavo.
Arrows and spears can be used to kill elephants for their ivory, but are also used by communities to protect themselves and their property when elephants leave protected areas in search of food. It is unknown how this elephant incurred his injuries.
Adds Rob Brandford: “Humans are the root cause of so many threats facing elephants. Veterinary initiatives are one of a plethora of solutions we have in place to save this magnificent species”.
Screenshot from a video showing Mafa the white rhino in a Russian circus. Source: The Great Moscow State Circus YouTube page
Opinion post: Written by Simon Espley, CEO of Africa Geographic
This appears to be how a (small) sector of South Africa’s respected and burgeoning wildlife conservation industry is now monetising their investment into ‘conservation’. A two-ton white rhino, sold from a South African farm, is being forced to perform tricks at Russian circuses. Mafa the rhino’s subjugation and capitulation to the life of circus pony with painted face and bejewelled ankles has been widely criticised on social media. And, bizarrely, some even support this circus act, with one individual even suggesting that this is OK because the rhino gets to ‘avoid poacher bullets’ (yes, actual reasoning on a social media comment stream).
The video clip below, from the Russian State Circus, shows the rhino being made to perform acts like sitting, balancing on a tiny platform and having the trainer climb onto its back while the rhino plods around the ring. The footage sees this massive creature flinch as his master brandishes two whips – clear indication that the whip plays a role in the rhino’s ‘training’. Imagine how much cruel persuasion is required to force this huge wild animal to perform such unnatural acts, and within such a crowded, noisy environment so far from his natural home range.
Mafa is from South Africa, one of many rhinos bred for ‘conservation’ purposes. Other rhino monetisation strategies include trophy hunting and of course the harvesting of rhino horn for sale to people from the Far East, who believe that the horn (made of keratin, the same substance as human hair and nails) will cure all sorts of ailments (including cancer), and uplift their social status. All of these bizarre malpractices are loudly defended by some as being all about saving rhinos from extinction in the wild. Go figure. Apparently having rhinos perform circus tricks is now also OK. We know that the same people also justify the farming of lions under appalling conditions for their bones, taking new-born lion cubs from their mothers and having tourists molest them before they are forced in their adolescent years to walk with the same ilk of tourist – and finally being shot from close range in a small enclosure (‘canned’ hunting). And then there is the display of wild-caught elephants in small cages in China – apparently also OK, as this too is apparently in the name of conservation.
So, what’s next? I do not see any scenario being rejected, so long as someone makes money and the term ‘sustainable utilisation’ can be loosely attached.
Screenshot from a video showing Mafa the white rhino in a Russian circus. Source: The Great Moscow State Circus YouTube page
Surely the vast majority in our highly respected and successful wildlife conservation industry needs to say enough is enough? Does this next level abuse of our wildlife not embarrass the industry and make a mockery of its noble cause? Is it not time for industry leaders to stand up and be counted?
If you feel that this next level monetisation of our wildlife is not a true reflection of your industry, stand up and say so. Shout it out from the rooftops! If you feel the opposite, then let’s hear from you. My team will gladly publish your opinions and thoughts.
Screenshot from a video showing Mafa the white rhino in a Russian circus. Source: The Great Moscow State Circus YouTube page
Watch the video below from the The Great Moscow State Circus YouTube page
So what really has happened to all the chameleons in South Africa? This is a question you’ll often see pop up all over social media when someone posts a photo of one either in the garden or whilst on holiday in places such as the Kruger National Park. Many people are quick to respond with: “When I was growing up we used to see chameleons ALL the time”.
That may well be true, although 10, 20 or even 30 years ago people did spend a lot more time outside than they do now. Children played outside, climbed trees and came home when the streetlights turned on. In contrast, many people spend most of their time behind a desk, in an office, and you’ll find children stuck behind a multitude of screens.
Before we begin, there are some positives: If you know where to look, what to look out for, and know the habits of these miniature modern-day dinosaurs, then it is not uncommon to find dozens of them in small patches of suitable habitat.
A quick insight into the chameleons found in South Africa reveals that there are currently 19 described species: two typical chameleons (Chamaeleo) and 17 dwarf chameleon (Bradypodion) species.
Chameleons can be found just about anywhere in South Africa (where typical habitat still occurs) from coastal forests, grasslands, savannah, montane forests, fynbos, renosterveld, karoo scrub and even suburban gardens.
There are several factors which affect the chameleon populations throughout the country
Habitat loss and fragmentation is an obvious factor that affects most wildlife, so this is not strictly limited to chameleons. When acres of natural habitat is cleared for housing development, agriculture, or road construction, these animals, if not killed in the process of earth moving equipment or killed out of fear by the workers, attempt to flee but often have nowhere else to go.
Many people find chameleons crossing busy roads and sadly they rarely make it to the other side alive. With the clearing of natural habitat there is also the loss of prey which the chameleons need to feed on, and without adequate food sources these reptiles are forced to relocate and again are forced to cross busy roads.
Domestic cats can have a crippling effect on local populations of chameleons as they make for easy prey. A single domestic cat can totally eradicate a population of chameleons in a suburban garden in a matter of months.
Suburban gardens generally made of up neatly manicured lawns, high walls and electric fences can pose as a threat to chameleons. Pristine, manicured lawns can create vast areas void of trees and shrubs which chameleons rely on to move around. Without green corridors of connected trees and shrubs chameleons are then forced to descend onto the lawns and become easy prey for a variety of animals (mainly cats and dogs). In addition, high walls (without vegetation) can prove to be too high for chameleons to traverse, and electric fences pose a risk of being electrocuted.
Many people do not like the idea of wild growing creepers as they may not be visually appealing, but these creepers and hedge rows provide the ideal habitat for these shy and secretive animals.
Pesticides and insecticides can have devastating affects on chameleons. Much like owls that feed on poisoned rats, a chameleon that unknowingly consumes insects that have been baited or sprayed with insecticides will suffer a similar fate.
Illegal trade of chameleons is a booming market in South Africa. For many years visitors to Sun City will have seen informal traders selling chameleons on the end of sticks, as well as tortoises. Although these informal traders are indeed a problem, it is important to look at the larger picture.
Large quantities of chameleons are collected from the wild and sold both locally and internationally. These indigenous chameleons are illegal to buy and when they are bought it is simply perpetuating a vicious cycle of supply and demand – so basically one is not saving or helping the species by buying chameleons from traders.
Fear and superstition, although not a major contributing factor to the decline of chameleons on a large scale, is still a factor. Many people (especially in African cultures) believe chameleons to be dangerous and are deadly or venomous – of course this couldn’t be further from the truth. There are many superstitions and beliefs that are associated with reptiles in general, and for chameleons some believe that they can shoot bolts of lightning from their eyes and are considered to be a bad omen, and are therefore senselessly killed.
• Plant small trees and shrubs which provide chameleons with adequate protection and perches which will allow them to move around freely. Also, by planting indigenous flowering plants in your garden you encourage insects – the primary food source for chameleons. If a garden is planted correctly chameleons can, and will, thrive in suburban gardens.
• Compost heaps are not only an environmentally-friendly way to recycle your food waste (and adds nutrients into your soil), but they also help with attracting scores of insect life.
• Avoid picking up chameleons you see in the wild and taking them home. They cannot live indoors on a pot plant and feed on flies (unfortunately these animals will slowly die if subjected to such a life).
• Do not support the illegal wildlife trade in chameleons – remember you’re not helping by buying these animals as it only contributes to the problem.
• Transform small, neglected areas by planting indigenous trees or shrubs and clearing alien vegetation, creating a habitat where chameleons can thrive.
Africa’s culture is rich and diverse and home to many tribes, ethnic and social groups. One of the key features of this culture is the large number of ethnic groups throughout the 54 countries. From the Himba in northern Namibia to the Surma in western Ethiopia, and the Maasai in Kenya and Tanzania, all cultures express themselves through their various traditions that are passed down from one generation to the next – from the arts, crafts, and music, to folklore, clothing, cuisine and language. Discovering the rich and splendid cultures Africa has to offer is usually at the top of anyone’s bucket list when travelling around the continent.
In this gallery, Celebrating Africa’s Culture, we take a look at some of the fascinating people and cultures of Africa through the lens of some incredibly talented photographers who entered our Photographer of the Year 2016, 2017 and 2018 competitions. The photos are accompanied by some interesting facts and thoughts from the photographers themselves.
“I captured this Samburu woman’s portrait during my visit to their tribe while I was working on a well digging project to help supply water for the people who live there. While I was walking through the village, I saw this woman who was sitting at the entrance to a house. Our eyes met, and I was fascinated with her gaze and the energy which exuded from her.” ~ Vedran Vidak
The Maasai lead a semi-nomadic life, so their houses or inkajijik (Maasai word for house) are loosely constructed and semi-permanent. They are usually small, either circular or loaf-shaped, and are built by the women using mud, sticks, grass and cow dung.
“I stayed with the Maasai warriors for a week, and this man was my guide the entire time. He named the animals when I asked. He brought meds when I got sick. He drove the motorcycle when we needed to be somewhere. And when I approached him about an epic sunset photo… he jumped at the chance.” ~ Ian Hanson
“The Danakil Depression is one of the planet’s most inhospitable places; located in Ethiopia’s Afar region at more than 100 metres below sea level, it is the world’s hottest inhabited place, with temperatures rarely dropping below 40°C in winter and often soaring above 50°C in summer. Shade on the salt lakes is non-existent, the work physically exhausting, and the pay low. Once the salt has been mined, it is transported out on the backs of camels in long caravans.” ~ Marcus Westberg
The Maasai dress typically consists of red shuka (the Maa word for sheets traditionally worn wrapped around the body), adorned with beaded jewellery placed around the neck and arms. These are worn by both men and women and may vary in colour depending on the occasion.
“I was walking around the Jemaa el-Fna square in Marrakech, looking for photo opportunities when this stall caught my attention. The meticulous manner in which it was laid out and the pride the owner had in the display was something I just had to photograph. Asking for permission to take one quick snap, this stall owner accepted, even lifting a sample of his produce to get a better view. One shot was all he gave me time for as it was quickly back to business. I was glad about the way the image came out with its beautiful vibrant colours.” ~ Miguel De Freitas
“Children of the Surma tribe in Omo Valley, Ethiopia, enjoy making outrageously creative headgear from fruits, flowers and leaves gathered around their village.” ~ Robin Yong
“In the late afternoon sun at Lalibela, Father Abebe Sisay holds one of the ornate crucifixes of his church towards the light from the window. This image is the result of careful timing at Lalibela for the sun only shines through this particular window at a certain time of the day.” ~ Inger Vandyke
“The intensity with which a Maasai warrior dances is incredible to watch as they enter a trans-like state, the rhythmical jumping and slow drowning hum of the singing makes for a mesmerising show. I lay flat on my back, mere centimetres from the pounding feet of this warrior to capture a unique point of view to enhance the intensity of the leaps he was making.” ~ Andrew Aveley
“In southern Ethiopia, in the Omo Valley region, there live various tribes, including some of the most striking and surprising in Africa. Just looking at their eyes, you can sense their pride and dignity in belonging to their people, their culture, their land.” ~ Enrique Lopez-Tapia
“Each morning the Himba women in Otjimazeva Village in Namibia undertake a lengthy beauty regime, whereby they crush small stones of ochre (a natural clay earth pigment) into a fine powder before adding it to a butterfat mixture to apply to their bodies.” ~ Ben McRae
“The Surma tribe of the Omo Valley in Ethiopia – a place where humankind probably began. The children and teenagers appear innocent and beautiful, with their ornate body paintwork and exotic head decorations made of flowers. This is the original and most beautiful place of tribal fashion.” ~ Robin Yong
Shortly after arriving at camp, I was relishing a moment of pure bliss, washing off the heat and the dust under the best outdoor shower ever. From cold, foggy Cape Town to sunny Botswana. Filled with a sense of freedom and oneness with nature, I thought, “Can life get any better than this?”
I think that a genie was tapped into my musings because a few seconds later loud sounds of splashing water interrupted the stillness. I quickly grabbed a towel and my camera and rushed out of the tent. And right there below me, a bull elephant was quenching his thirst in the Boteti River.
As I was admiring the graceful movements of this gentle giant, the realisation struck me of what an incredible privilege it is to enjoy such a special sighting from the veranda of my private luxurious tent. This was my introduction to this rustic camp called Meno a Kwena.
We now live in the selfie era, where the ultimate safari experience is determined by how close one can get to wildlife, to snap the perfect shot and post on social media. But isn’t the true essence of wildlife viewing being able to observe from a distance the animals behaving normally?
Later, while I was sipping on a glass of ice-cold white wine, and munching on delicious veggie samosas, camp manager Justin Everingham told me the story of the camp.
In years gone by this area was frequented by legendary explorers and crocodile hunters. Later it became a mobile safari hotspot and eventually, in 2003, the foundations of this rustic camp were laid.
This is one of the few camps in the mostly flat Botswana that is perched on the edge of a rocky clifftop, providing amazing panoramic views of the river and wildlife below.
“The [Okavango] delta is a unique oasis and a paradise, but you don’t get this view. To be up here, elevated, and to be able to look over across the Boteti River that has so many stories to tell, is a privilege,” said Justin.
He went on, saying that “there’s a spirit, a soul and an incredible atmosphere here. It’s the perfect way to get in touch with what the bush is all about – it’s about respecting nature from afar”.
He was echoing my earlier ponderings.
If you are looking for designer luxury, move on because this camp will not meet your needs. Instead, Meno a Kwena represents the authentic bush camp experience.
“The bushveld does not define by class; it’s not posh and prestigious. Raw, authentic beauty is often overshadowed by overt luxury – it loses its true essence,” said Justin.
The essence of this place is to quietly observe the comings and goings of wildlife to the river below from your front-row seat – this is the “The Boteti River private show”.
You won’t get a personal butler or chef, but I can promise you that a bunch of naughty vervet monkeys might try to open your tent to check if you need anything early in the morning.
The beds are dangerously comfortable – you might be tempted to stay underneath the warm blankets and miss the early game drive. Luckily, I didn’t. But even if you do, there is plenty to do in camp.
After a delicious breakfast cooked on the fire, you can wander down to the floating hide to spy on the continuous wildlife parade, or relax in the pool with a view, or grab a great read from the library in camp.
On one such quiet morning, I enjoyed exploring all the small details in camp, such as the old maps, photos, periodic decorations, and all the crocodile statues. I also took time to park off at the fire and get to know all the international guests and the friendly staff, hear their unique stories, and sip on the delightful beverages that flow so freely.
The camp is fantastic for children as well – it’s the perfect fortress or a spaceship where the little explorers can get to know Africa better. One evening I overheard a conversation between a Californian couple who came to Meno a Kwena with their seven-year-old twins. The kids loved the place so much that one day they will return to start a mokoro business.
My favourite aspect of camp is the staff – incredibly warm-hearted people with a true passion for wildlife and nature. My guides Kgabisi Bojosi and Mpaphi Dikaelo impressed me with their knowledge, but also made me feel as if I have known them for ages. The Tswana are known for their remarkable hospitality, but at Meno a Kwena one feels part of the family. Most of the camp team come from Moreomato, a nearby village, and they know this land like the back of their hands.
This camp would not be the same without the mysterious Boteti River, which is a magnet for wildlife in this otherwise desolate salt pan ecosystem. The river starts its journey as an offshoot of the Thamalakane River that passes through the town of Maun, en route from the Okavango Delta to its journey end at Ntwetwe Pan – part of the greater Makgadikgadi Pans system.
During a soothing boat safari on the river, Mpaphi explained that the name Boteti means “something mixed”, because of the ethnic diversity of the people living here.
Once, the Boteti was a life-giving force that provided a significant volume of water into the pans. The flow used to fill the Mopipi Dam, which is vital for a few diamond mines in the region and supplied the major grain-producing area around Sukwane with fresh water. And of course, the wildlife benefited from the fresh water.
Between 1993 and 1995, the river started drying up – probably due to tectonic movements that deviated the annual Angolan floodwaters that feed the Okavango Delta (a 20-year cycle that researchers are still trying to understand). As a consequence, wildlife populations declined significantly. The management of Meno a Kwena started to pump water so that wildlife could at least survive the prolonged drought. Elephants, impalas and kudus were rubbing shoulders in the scrum for water, and large numbers of zebras died.
Human-wildlife conflict also escalated (read more about the human-wildlife conflict in the area here). Then, in 2008, the river suddenly started flowing again, and there were celebrations all around.
THE ZEBRA MIGRATION
The Boteti River also plays a crucial role in one of Botswana’s best kept secrets, the zebra migration – the longest land migration in the world. From April through to October / November – the dry season – this river is the only source of water in the region, providing an excellent stop for the migrating herds. The scale of the procession, and the optical illusions cast by so many moving stripes, can leave guests breathless. The camp name, Meno A Kwena, means “the teeth of the crocodile” – a possible reference to crocodiles snapping their teeth at the countless number of herbivores crossing the river at this point.
One morning we embarked on a game drive to the Nxai Pans, which makes up part of the great Makgadikgadi landscape. Signs of lion spoor got my heart racing, particularly because a few of the guests had seen a large pride the previous day, but sadly for me, we did not see any of the big cats. We did, however, encounter giraffes, elephants, zebras, kudus, oryx, a variety of antelope, hippos and both black-backed and sided-striped jackals.
I have always wanted to improve my birding skills, and this was my chance. I made a list to show off to my colleagues once back in the office. It included kori bustards, red-billed buffalo weavers, long-tailed paradise whydahs, ostriches, secretary birds, southern yellow-billed hornbill, capped wheatears, lappet-faced vultures, lilac-breasted rollers and pale chanting goshawks!
We barely saw any other humans during our 12-hour-safari in the pans, and I felt like this wilderness belonged to me.
The Makgadikgadi Pans landscape is the world’s most extensive salt pan landscape. It covers an area of over 30,000 km² and is technically not a single pan, but consists of many pans – the largest of which are Sua, Nwetwe and Nxai pans. The Makgadikgadi Pans were once part of the old Makgadikgadi lake bed – an ancient lake that is believed to have covered as much as 80,000 km², and started drying up almost 10,000 years ago, leaving huge salt-encrusted pans behind.
The Makgadikgadi Pans National Park incorporates the western end of Ntwetwe. At its northern boundary, it meets the Nxai Pan National Park, separated only by the Nata-Maun Road.
Some camps, such as Meno a Kwena, will take you camping on the pans at night, once the pans have dried up after the rains – an exceptional experience. The flat, moon-like surface of the pans is like one giant space auditorium, a natural observatory.
Another out-of-this-world experience in the pans is to venture out to Baines’ Baobabs or Kubu Island, home to gigantic baobab trees that loom over the flat landscape. I am a passionate tree-hugger and to be around these millennia-old baobab trees was a moment filled with awe.
This was a spiritual journey for me – it is believed that these trees assist with important decision-making. So if you have any life dilemmas, this is the place to be.
I was eight years old when I discovered my passion for Africa, and by my teenage years, I was immersed in the rich culture and history of the continent. I was the weird cat in my home town school in Bulgaria – always talking about African tribes and rituals. And so the chance to rub shoulders with the Khoisan people was a dream come true.
I was beside myself when told by camp managers Tutalife and Matilda that I was to get ready for a walk with Khoisan people. And there they were – proud, humble people, with warm, genuine eyes. I sat as close as possible to them, absorbing every click, every gesture, every facial expression and every mimic. I felt profound and deep respect and connection with them from the get-go.
As they all gathered around the fire, dancing and singing, I sensed a deep longing in my heart. It felt like an endless wanderer who has finally come home. For a brief moment, while joining them in this ancient dance, I remembered something I had long forgotten.
We all kissed hands and said goodbye…
On the last night of this memorable journey, I was gazing at the stars, standing on this incredibly special piece of land that protects so many natural and cultural gems, whispering only one thing: “Thank you!”
ABOUT Meno a Kwena
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Meno a Kwena is a simple-but-stylish explorer-styled tented bush camp perched on a rocky clifftop above the Boteti River in Botswana, bordering the Makgadikgadi Pans National Park. This elevated position allows for excellent wildlife viewing from your private verandah, as thirsty wildlife slakes its thirst at the river below. Meno a Kwena is a 90-minute drive from Maun, making it a good option for groups and families looking for that bush break.
Accommodation
Meno a Kwena is not about private butlers and air conditioning – it’s about making a genuine connection with nature and creating safari memories.
The canvas lounge and dining tents are decorated with old-world artefacts, books and trinkets – and a seemingly bizarre sculpted crocodile. The communal area includes a rocky swimming pool – perfect for cooling off as you watch the animals doing the same below you. Accommodation consists of nine classic tents, perched on a 100-foot high clifftop overlooking the Boteti river – and offering excellent ‘armchair’ game viewing. Furnishings merge classic safari with locally-woven fabrics and colonial-style furniture – simple fittings brightened by snippets of colour. All tents have fully-equipped en suite bathrooms, and there are two new family units, both with inter-leading tents, perfect for the kids.
Activities
Meno a Kwena offers game drives in the Makgadikgadi Pans National Park, complete with bush picnics and chilled drinks. Also on offer are cultural safaris and walks with the resident Bushmen, a cruise along the Boteti River by boat (water levels permitting), sleep out under the stars in the heart of the Makgadikgadi Pans and viewing the wildlife at the river at eye-level from the floating game-viewing hide.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR, Ayo Gospodinova
I am a traveller in time and space with a passion for Africa, wildlife and adventure! I was born and raised in Bulgaria, but my heart is moulded in the shape of the African continent. I came to Cape Town after I graduated with my Masters Degree in Journalism in the Netherlands and ever since day one I have been in love with the Mother City.
A new study from the Conservation Ecology Research Unit (CERU) at the University of Pretoria (UP) set out to unravel migration in the world’s largest terrestrial mammal: the savanna elephant.
Migration, a term often associated with wildebeest in the Serengeti, is more common amongst large mammals than one might think, particularly in species that inhabit highly seasonal environments. A common assumption is that elephants also migrate but until now there has been a lack of evidence to support this notion.
“We know elephants can move long distances and that these movements often coincide with changes in season, but whether or not these movements were migratory was hearsay,” says Professor Rudi van Aarde, supervisor of the study and Chair of CERU.
The study, published last week in Scientific Reports, set out to answer a very simple question: Do elephants migrate? It turns out the answer is a bit more complicated.
Andrew Purdon, lead author of the study explains the findings, “Elephants are a facultative partially migratory species. In other words, only some elephants migrate, and if they are migratory, they may not migrate every year.”
The current study, which is one of the largest studies on elephant movement to date, comprised of movement data collected over 15 years from 139 savanna elephants distributed across seven southern African countries. Of the 139 elephants, only 25 showed migratory movements – to and fro movements between two non-overlapping seasonal ranges. Of these 25 elephants, only six migrated more than once during the period they were tracked.
Although it is unclear as to exactly why these elephants migrate, the theory suggests that benefits for migratory individuals include exploiting changes in food abundance or quality, accessing spatially limited resources, or even escaping competition from other individuals.
Van Aarde elaborates, “It is plausible that during the dry season, elephants are restricted to habitats close to permanent water. At the advent of the rainy season, elephants are less restricted by water and are therefore able to move away from their dry season ranges towards areas that are greener, more productive, and that have fewer elephants.”
These results highlight the adaptive and flexible behaviour of elephants, but also their spatial needs.
Van Aarde continues, “If conditions demand it, elephants are capable of moving long distances to survive, as long as they have access to seasonal resources and the space to exploit it.”
Although few elephants migrated, most of the protected area clusters that were studied harboured migratory individuals. This included elephants in Etosha National Park (Namibia), Chobe National Park and Moremi Game reserve (Botswana), Hwange (Zimbabwe), Kruger National Park (South Africa), North and South Luangwa (Zambia), and the Quirimbas National Park (Mozambique). However, almost all of the migrations moved beyond National Park boundaries (IUCN category I Parks) and 11 migrations crossed international borders.
According to Michael Mole, a co-author of the paper, “The one thing these protected areas all have in common is that they are large, often buffered by secondary protected areas, and are relatively un-fragmented. Migrations need space, some of these elephants’ travel over 100 km to reach their seasonal ranges.”
“The fact that elephants are still able to move such vast distances and beyond international borders speaks wonders and points to the amazing conservation initiatives employed by many governments and organisations striving to maintain functional space and connectivity between and around national parks.”
Nowhere else is this clearer than in northern Botswana, where 15 elephants migrated. The national parks and surrounding protected areas (or Wildlife Management Areas) form a vast protected and mostly undisturbed heterogeneous landscape.
“At a time when long-distance dispersals are disappearing, this research underscores the importance of northern Botswana’s landscape to support some of the world’s longest large mammal migration,” explains co-author Dr Mike Chase, director and founder of Elephants Without Borders.
Nonetheless, the study begs the question. Are national parks big enough to adequately protect elephants?
Elephants that are moving beyond protected areas are at a higher risk of poaching and increasing human populations and habitat fragmentation are a reality threatening to isolate and fragment protected areas across Africa. So can more be done?
“We can start by gaining a better understanding of the spatial needs of large roaming species. Understanding the spatial requirements of species can help better inform the establishment of functional protected area networks,” Purdon says. “In this way, conservation areas across Africa can be large enough to effectively conserve large scale ecological processes such as migration.”
WWF-Kenya has admitted that grave mistakes were made in the translocation operation in Kenya which saw 10 out of 11 critically endangered black rhinos die. The rhinos were being translocated from Nairobi and Nakuru National Parks to the newly-created sanctuary in the southeast of the country to offer a more secure location for the endangered species.
In a statement on their website, WWF-Kenya said that it will review the inquiry report into the rhino deaths and assess its processes as a donor.
“All of us at WWF are deeply saddened by the tragic deaths of ten rhinos following translocation to Tsavo East National Park by Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) … The results of the inquiry released today by the Government of Kenya into the deaths stated that there were areas of clear negligence by KWS,” the statement read. “We recognise that grave mistakes were made in the translocation operation and as a result, we will be urgently reviewing the inquiry report and undertaking an assessment of our processes as a donor.”
For the translocation, WWF-Kenya made a donation of two Land Cruisers, three motorbikes, night vision cameras, tents, GPRS equipment, binoculars and boots.
Preliminary investigations into the rhino deaths showed that salt poisoning from the water may have been the cause.
“According to the inquiry team, the cause of all the deaths was due to multiple stress syndrome intensified by salt poisoning and complicated by the following conditions: dehydration, starvation, the proliferation of opportunistic bacteria in the upper respiratory tract, gastric ulcers and gastritis,” said Kenya’s Wildlife and Tourism Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala at a press briefing last week Thursday.
The eleventh rhino was in critical condition after being attacked by lions, but a recent photo posted on Kenya Wildlife Service’s Facebook page claims that it is doing well.
Balala said that six of the KWS officials involved in the deadly operation had been suspended due to negligence. He has since announced a new KWS Board of Trustees in a gazette dated July 31.
Rhino death in Lake Nakuru National Park
In a separate incident, Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) confirmed on Tuesday that a 12-year-old black rhino was killed on Monday by suspected poachers who escaped with two horns in Lake Nakuru National Park. A statement from KWS said that their rangers were still pursuing the suspected poachers, reinforced by the County security team, including the police.
“… Two rangers who were on duty have been interdicted pending investigations by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) into their culpability. A post-mortem examination has been conducted on the 12-year-old male rhino to determine to exact cause of the death,” the statement concluded.
The Extinction Business: South Africa’s ‘Lion’ Bone Trade is an investigative report by EMS Foundation and Ban Animal Trading that reveals startling and alarming factors that have a significant negative impact on worldwide big cat conservation. There is an evil network of traffickers and farmers who are using loopholes in CITES regulation, corrupt and slack government officials and a friendly wildlife trading environment in range states such as South Africa and markets in the Far East to enrich themselves and drive wild big cat populations to extinction.
The recent doubling of the annual South African lion bone export quota to 1,500 skeletons (from 800 last year) on the back of an interim study by a pro-trade economist, and the lack of transparency from both government and from the industry players themselves, makes this report essential reading. This post is a short summary of the 122-page report, and we recommend that you download the full report here.
The report suggests that the South African government’s strong support of this abusive industry, which has strong links with international criminal networks (including drugs, weapons, cars, prostitutes and human trafficking), fuels the demise of wild big cat populations by providing a legal channel for the trafficking of illegal big cat parts. Unchecked demand for tiger parts is seriously threatening the survival of wild tigers as well as leopards, snow leopards, clouded leopards, lions and jaguars – all of which are killed and traded illegally and sold to consumers as tiger. Tiger bones are used to make tiger ‘tonic’ wine, and other pseudo-medicinal and status products. Lion bones are now in some cases being valued above tiger bones.
The report goes on to question why the South African authorities seem to believe that this abhorrent and destructive industry is a sustainable and ethical option, when quite clearly this is not the case. There has been a tsunami of domestic and international criticism against South Africa, both locally and globally, with many conservation bodies, scientists and NGOs affirming that the government’s unfettered support for this globally rogue predator breeding industry cannot be supported scientifically or from a tourism, conservation, ethical or welfare perspective.
There is no information in the public domain about how the lion bone industry works, a situation that needs to change. When the original bone export quota was legislated in South Africa, the authorities claimed the bone industry was merely a by-product of the trophy/canned hunting industry, and yet this report finds that 91% of the skeletons exported included skulls, and were therefore not sourced from hunters (who keep the skull as part of the trophy). Contrary to government claims, big cats are being commercially bred specifically for their bones, and lion mass slaughterhouses are now part and parcel of the industry. Also, since 2016 there has been a dramatic increase in poaching of big cats from captive environments in South Africa.
The report also highlights that the CITES permitting and enforcement process has substantial loopholes and management shortcoming that enable illegal wildlife trafficking. The report also suggests that South African CITES officials are issuing export certificates to known criminal syndicates. Amongst other shocking revelations, the report noted an average weight of 17,6 kg to 20,5 kg per lion for the skeletons exported – more than double the weight (9kg) of an average lion skeleton. In other words, the quota of 1,500 skeletons is more than likely being exceeded via the legal CITES channels because no weight quota has been implemented.
The report discloses the main perpetrators of the lion bone trade, including international trading companies and traffickers from the Far East and a small band of South African bone Mafiosi – farmers and traffickers. The three countries taking the bulk of South African lion bone exports are Lao PDR, Vietnam and Thailand.
In short, the shady and poorly-managed legal trade in lion bones is fuelling the illegal trade in big cat bones by providing laundering opportunities. This overlap and merging of legal and illegal trade in wildlife parts is a toxic mix, when combined with poor management by the South African authorities and CITES loopholes. The revenue loss to the South African tourism industry is likely to be many times more than the value of revenue generated by this abhorrent industry – making this entire situation bizarre.
This thorough and detailed report recommends a zero quota for big cat body parts, a restriction of the keeping and breeding of big cats and improvement in animal welfare legislation. It also requests a forensic investigation and financial tracking of the industry, a stakeholder meeting to address the dismantling of the captive big cat industry and co-operation between the South African government and other relevant governments to dismantle international criminal networks. There is also a call to address CITES permitting and enforcement shortcomings and for more transparency, as regards these CITES processes.
Please download this report and invest your time in reading it. Keep the passion.
It was a few years before the South African (Boer) War, in the late 1800s when President Paul Kruger (in office 1883 – 1900) was alerted by James Stevenson-Hamilton to the fact that a rapid extinction of various species of flora and fauna was taking place in South Africa. Unregulated hunting meant that wild animals were disappearing fast, and President Kruger had his eye on a piece of land he wanted to turn into a reserve.
In 1898, he managed to declare the area between the Sabie and Crocodile rivers a game sanctuary and restricted hunting zone – which he called the Government Game Reserve, subsequently renamed to the Sabi Game Reserve. This was a time of great upheaval, during which President Kruger declared war on the British Empire, a war that ended in 1902.
In 1903, the area between the Sabie and Olifants rivers was added to the reserve, and by the end of 1903, the Shingwedzi Game Reserve was proclaimed – covering the area between the Letaba and Levuvhu rivers. The subsequent addition of further farms added to this vast protected area.
Hunting was forbidden, but wildlife was still scattered and skittish. Staff were appointed, and James Stevenson-Hamilton became the first park warden. He became renowned for his dedication to conservation and famously disapproved of the tarring of the roads in the reserve, believing that people would then drive faster, resulting in the unnecessary deaths of wild animals. This man could see well into the future!
It soon became clear that the only way to secure the future of wildlife in the reserve was to establish it as a national park under the South African Union Government. Unfortunately, this idea was short-lived, as in 1914 World War I broke out, resulting in many of the staff leaving for active service. The poor state of the economy meant that most departing staff were not replaced.
With the lack of staff, the reserve suffered from rampant poaching. There was a single police sergeant at Komatipoort, to the south of the reserve, whose job it was to singlehandedly defend that section of the park. Also, soldiers returning home from the war hoped to be given the land for sheep farming.
At the time, it looked like the reserve would never recover, but by 1919 things started to improve. The staff numbers had increased again, and the discussion once again arose about the declaration of a national park.
Finally, on 31 May 1926, the National Parks Act was drawn up and passed by the Houses of Parliament, and the Kruger National Park was officially established.
WELCOME TOURISTS
The first ‘real’ tourists were welcomed to the park in 1926. Before that, in 1922, there were railway tours that passed through the reserve – the trains would stop for one day in the park to allow passengers to view the wildlife.
It was only in 1928 when the first tourist facilities were constructed in the park. Satara, Pretoriouskop and Skukuza (then known as Sabi Bridge) became the first locations for overnight huts. A tented camp was erected on the banks of the Luvhuvhu River in the far north of the park, but after being hit by floods, and swamped with mosquitos, it was concluded that it was, in fact, not the ideal location to bring tourists. Everyone involved was new to this, and through trial and error, the park began finding its feet.
The late twenties seemed like a laid-back time in Kruger’s history. The only real rules that applied were to leave your firearms at home and pay your fee of one Pound at the gate. Other than that, you were a free agent. Guests weren’t even required to return to their cabins at night. Instead, they could camp out under the stars. Those early pioneering Kruger guests must have had a few adventures and stories to tell, what with such casual arrangements and the complete lack of communications. (Imagine the stress of an African safari without mobile phone apps and live updates to Instagram and Facebook 😉 )
The picnic spots in the park were unfenced, despite repeated warnings to the Board by warden Stevenson-Hamilton about the dangers involved. It was finally agreed that picnic spots would not be shown on tourist maps, and that warning signs would be put up.
By 1930, things were getting out of hand, and a few more rules were required to maintain order. Consequently, an official list of rules and regulations was drawn up. But with no funding to conduct patrols, they were rarely enforced.
The historical evidence that exists on Kruger frequently mentions the epic fights that were had with the Board at the time, an assemblage of stooge-like characters. And, while curbing infrastructure in the name of conservation is a worthy cause, the Board didn’t seem to be committed to any particular ethical stance. Instead, they seemed to possess a staunch commitment to the slow turning wheels of bureaucracy.
One notable dispute took place over baths. A proposal was made that the camps had to be equipped with hot water, but the chairperson, Senator Jack Brebner, considered this a foolish luxury. The fight continued, and in 1933 hot water was granted on the condition that each guest paid a shilling per bath.
Being generally out of touch, the Board had to be convinced that the game rangers could not be expected to make the beds and bring the guests tea, while also trying to make sure the buffalo don’t go thundering through a neighbouring farm. Finally, much to everyone’s relief, no doubt, the Board agreed to hire more staff.
Tourists in Kruger during the early days faced unique challenges, including the almost total lack of roads. Before 1928, there were only service roads, capable of low-volume traffic from Gravelotte and Acornhoek to the Portuguese border (modern-day border of Mozambique). The roads were not capable of carrying heavy tourist traffic.
In 1922, South African Railways offered tours via trains, and for a brief moment in history, air service was introduced, and then promptly cancelled. There were seven planes, of which six were legal, and they seated just two or three passengers at a time.
While there was a functioning airstrip at Mavumbye (near Satara), there was still the challenge of getting the guests from the airfield to the rest huts. In the 1940s the first official roads were built. There were several notable challenges to this construction process, including the thick vegetation that renders vast areas of the Lowveld reasonably inaccessible. Add to that challenge the shortage of finances and lack of manpower, and the situation became rather dire.
The Board dealt with these challenges by having the already overworked and underfunded game rangers help to clear the thick vegetation and make the roads.
This once again shows that a Kruger Park ranger’s remarkable forbearance and grit is never in question – then and now.
Eventually the full network of roads we know today appeared, and in the 1960s some of the roads were tarred. One has to wonder if we lost a bit of the ‘old’ Kruger when some of the dirt tracks were covered up. Stevenson-Hamilton most likely would have thought so.
The 344,000 ha Greater Kruger is one of conservation’s biggest success stories, in that land outside the national park is incorporated into an overriding management strategy. Additional parcels of land (privately and community-owned) on the western border have been incorporated into the core protected area over the years, by the signing of management accords and the removal of fences. This ongoing process involves complex negotiations and varied land-use requirements and expectations, including photographic tourism rights and trophy hunting in some areas (there is no trophy hunting in the national park itself).
There are no longer fences between these reserves and Kruger, providing the animals with an opportunity to roam, thereby reducing pressure on vegetation and bringing back historical local seasonal wildlife movements in an east-west direction, compared to the north-south shape of the Kruger National Park.
Sabi Sand Reserve
The 65,000 ha Sabi Sand Reserve shares a 50km unfenced boundary with the Kruger National Park. When the Kruger National Park was declared in 1926, the original landowners of the Sabi Game Reserve were excised and had to settle for land outside of the national park. In 1948, 14 of these conservation-minded landowners met at Mala Mala and decided to join forces and create the first-ever private nature reserve in South Africa. The eastern fence of the reserve, bordering the Kruger National Park, was removed in 1993, making the Sabi Sand Reserve part of the Greater Kruger. Land use is for photographic tourism and private leisure use.
Associated Private Nature Reserves (APNR)
The 197,885 ha APNR is an association of privately-owned reserves that removed fences with the Kruger National Park in 1993 after operating before that as wildlife hunting and livestock farms. The reserves (which in turn are made up of multiple smaller properties) included in the APNR are Timbavati Private Nature Reserve (53,395 ha), Klaserie Private Nature Reserve (60,080 ha), Umbabat Private Nature Reserve (17,910 ha), Balule Nature Reserve (55,000 ha) and Thornybush Game Reserve (11,500 ha). Land use varies from private leisure use to photographic tourism and trophy hunting on some properties.
Manyeleti
Founded in 1963, the 23,000 ha Manyeleti Game Reserve is sandwiched between the Kruger, Sabi Sand, and Timbavati, with no fences in-between. It also has an interesting and unique history. During the Apartheid years, it was the only reserve that welcomed people of colour, and after claiming back the land, the local Mnisi people now own and manage the reserve. Land use is exclusively for photographic tourism.
Letaba Ranch
The 42,000 ha Letaba Ranch Game Reserve, just north of the mining town of Phalaborwa, shares an unfenced border with the Kruger National Park. The reserve is owned by the local Mthimkhulu community and has historically been used mainly for trophy hunting. Future plans include hunting and eco-tourism, but current operations appear to be in a state of turmoil.
Makuya
Makuya Nature Reserve is a 16,000 ha game reserve near the Pafuri gate in the far north of the Kruger, and also shares an unfenced border with the Kruger National Park. The reserve is owned by the Makuya, Mutele, and Mphaphuli communities and is used for both trophy hunting and photographic tourism purposes.
BEYOND SOUTH AFRICA AND THE BIG PICTURE
Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park (GLTP)
GLTP is a 3,8 million-hectare peace park, created on 10 November 2010, that straddles the international borders of three countries, with some of the best wildlife areas in southern Africa being managed as an integrated unit.
This transfrontier park links the Greater Kruger National Park in South Africa to Mozambique’s Limpopo National Park (1 million ha), and Zimbabwe’s Gonarezhou National Park (500,000 ha). Fences between the parks have started to come down, allowing the animals to take up their old migratory routes that were previously blocked by political boundaries. Translocations of various antelope species and entire elephant breeding herds have been undertaken, to speed up the process.
Transfrontier Conservation Areas (TFCA)
The TFCA is a strategy to expand the GLTP to an area of approximately 10 million hectares, by incorporating several more national parks, such as Mozambique’s Zinave National Park (400,000 ha) and Banhine National Park (725,000 ha), plus large tracts of state and community-owned tracts of land in-between these parks.
The Kruger National Park is the foundation and role model for this growing and evolving conservation success story. For more about big-picture plans, read Kruger 10-year Management Plan.
People have lived in and travelled through Kruger for thousands of years.
The Kruger is an archaeologist’s treasure trove, with more than 300 significant sites – from early Stone Age to San rock art – and cultural artefacts from thousands of years ago. The humans of history have left their mark on the Kruger National Park of today.
Before Kruger’s formalisation as a protected area, the area was home to people who mined, hunted, traded and lived their lives – as humans do. The ruins of Thulamela on the southern banks of the Luvuvhu River near Pafuri is one of the most significant archaeological finds in South Africa. This ancient stone citadel reveals a thriving historical mountain kingdom that was occupied by 3,000 people who traded in gold and ivory between 1200 and 1600 AD. The prolific trading community, descendants of the Great Zimbabwe civilisation, were skilled goldsmiths who also traded in iron extracted and smelted from 200 local mines. After the Thulamela dynasty a Tsonga-speaking agricultural and fishing community, known as the Makuleke, settled in the area and thrived until they were forcibly removed to make way for the national park.
The transition to conservation status heralded a less pleasant part of Kruger’s history, when these indigenous people were removed from the area, and relocated elsewhere. In recognition of this, and in line with South Africa’s ongoing land restitution process, in 1998 the Makuleke area in the Kruger was returned to the ownership of the Tsonga people, who now earn concession royalties in return for that area remaining within the Kruger National Park. Other areas within and bordering the Greater Kruger are currently under some form of land claim, and the future will reveal the results of this process.
Although there are no longer any indigenous people living inside the Kruger, there are still many interesting conversations to be had, across Africa, about indigenous people living semi-traditional lives within the boundaries of national parks and other protected areas.
These and other issues such as poaching continue to drive the evolution of this fantastic, iconic national park. The Kruger is one of the world’s most outstanding conservation success stories, with a fascinating past and promising future. Long may it continue to evolve and thrive!
We wish to thank South African National Parks (SANParks) and Joep Stevens, their General Manager Strategic Tourism Services, for sharing their numerous resources, including photographs and text, from their archives.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Noelle Oosthuizen
Growing up watching Beverly and Dereck Joubert’s documentaries and idolising Jane Goodall, Noelle Oosthuizen has always dreamed of living in the bush. For now, she writes about her bush adventures from her home in Cape Town, South Africa. She has a particular soft spot for chacma baboons, and she advocates for these charming primates every chance she gets. By far her favourite adventure has been being a foster mom to an orphan baby baboon.
A tenth endangered black rhino has reportedly died after a botched translocation from one Kenyan reserve to another. We previously reported the death of eight rhinos, and later added a ninth death to this post.
The eleventh rhino is in critical condition and could also die after being attacked by lions.
“According to the inquiry team, the cause of all the deaths was due to multiple stress syndrome intensified by salt poisoning and complicated by the following conditions: dehydration, starvation, proliferation of opportunistic bacteria in upper respiratory tract, gastric ulcers and gastritis,” said Kenya’s Wildlife and Tourism Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala.
Balala said that six of the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) officials involved in the deadly operation had been suspended due to negligence.
“The independent inquiry further showed there were areas of clear negligence that occurred post translocation at the release site in Tsavo, especially in the holding boma at the sanctuary. These included poor co-ordination and communication among officers that were responsible for pre-translocation studies, including biomass assessments; environmental impact assessments and water quality assessments. The investigators found unacceptable professional negligence among the officers, who are forthwith suspended pending further disciplinary action to be taken as appropriate by the Board of KWS.”
This latest update was provided by Kenya’s Wildlife and Tourism Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala on Thursday.
An elephant herd from above in Venetia Limpopo Nature Reserve. Image source: De Beers Group
Media release from De Beers Group
De Beers Group has begun to transport 200 elephants across 1,500km from its Venetia Limpopo Nature Reserve (VLNR) in South Africa to Mozambique. The operation, one of the largest elephant translocations ever recorded in South Africa, is part of a major conservation initiative to protect the welfare of wildlife in South Africa and help restore Mozambique’s elephant population.
For the first phase of the project, approximately 60 elephants will be transported in July and August from the VLNR to Zinave National Park in southern Mozambique. The remaining elephants will be moved to conservation areas that hold sufficient elephant carrying capacity within Mozambique from next year.
An elephant in Venetia Limpopo Nature Reserve. Image source: De Beers Group
De Beers Group is partnering with Peace Parks Foundation, a leading not-for-profit organisation focused on the preservation of large functional cross-border ecosystems, to carry out the initiative. Through formal agreements with Mozambique’s National Administration for Conservation Areas, Peace Parks Foundation co-manages Zinave National Park, which is an integral component of the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Conservation Area.
Zinave National Park offers prime habitat for elephants
Peace Parks Foundation will assist De Beers Group with the translocation, ensuring the elephants’ social groups aren’t disturbed and that they flourish in their new habitat through ongoing monitoring of their well-being and enhanced protection efforts.
Bruce Cleaver, CEO, De Beers Group, said: “There is no greater symbol of Africa than the majestic elephant. For us to be able to help secure their future in Mozambique, while also ensuring other species at our Venetia Limpopo Nature Reserve can flourish, is something every employee of De Beers Group is proud of. This translocation is born of a deep sense of responsibility and is part of our wider commitment to continue to invest in new and innovative ways to protect the natural world.”
Close-up of elephants in Venetia Limpopo Nature Reserve. Image source: De Beers Group
Covering 32,000 hectares and established in the early 1990s, the VLNR can accommodate around 60 elephants without adverse impacts on the surrounding ecosystem. Currently, however, there are more than 270 elephants on the reserve, as a result of natural population growth, with their presence risking extensive damage to an ecosystem that must sustain a diverse wildlife population.
By contrast, wildlife populations in Zinave National Park, which was founded in the 1960s, have been critically depleted following Mozambique’s 15-year civil war. The park offers significant carrying capacity for large numbers of elephants across its 408,000 hectares, and is currently home to only around 60 of them.
A young elephant with its trunk in the air in Venetia Limpopo Nature Reserve. Image source: De Beers Group
Werner Myburgh, CEO, Peace Parks Foundation, said: “Ecosystems require a range of fauna and flora to stay balanced. If you remove one species, such as elephant, it has a ripple effect on the whole system. The reintroduction of elephants to Mozambique will bring us one step closer to achieving our dream of restoring the landscape and establishing uninterrupted connectivity with seamless migration of wildlife across the parks within the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Conservation Area.”
As part of its investment in the elephant translocation initiative, De Beers Group is also providing Peace Parks Foundation with US$500,000 over five years towards anti-poaching support measures, which will include the hiring and training of new park rangers, and the opening of new access roads to increase patrol coverage.
Elephants at a waterhole in Venetia Limpopo Nature Reserve. Image source: De Beers Group
Mateus Mutemba, General Director of the National Administration for Conservation Areas in Mozambique, said: “The overall partnership with Peace Parks Foundation in Zinave, Banhine and Limpopo Parks represents to us a meaningful contribution towards our goal of making these areas viable for tourism and nature-based conservation icons and part of a regional effort and landscape, the GLTCA. Overall this year alone Zinave will receive around one thousand animals into Zinave including wildebeest, zebra, giraffe, and impala and a total of one hundred elephants. The Beers Group contribution provides an important financial boost not only into this translocation process but also in the protection of these animals”.
Watch the video below introducing the Venetia Limpopo Nature Reserve in South Africa
The Cape leopard is the stuff of legends. This seldom seen, highly elusive apex predator survives in some of the most inhospitable habitat possible – the rugged, low nutritional fynbos biome of the Cape Fold Mountain ranges.
Despite the habitat limitations, this region did historically host many wildlife species such as black rhino, Cape mountain zebra, bontebok, Cape buffalo, hippopotamus, elephant, spotted hyena, brown hyena and wild dog – all of which now only occur in some fenced private and national game reserves in the Cape. The Cape lion, quagga and bluebuck also occurred in the area, but are now extinct.
The arrival of permanent European settlers signalled the death knell for these species in the wild, and 365 years later, the pressure has escalated. And yet the Cape leopard is hanging in there. And they do so with other hardy survivors such as African wildcat, chacma baboon, caracal (rooikat), Cape clawless otter, Cape fox, large-spotted genet, striped polecat, honey badger and several antelope species.
So, what is the Cape leopard’s secret? How does the Cape’s apex predator escape local extinction? In a nutshell, Cape leopards continue to survive because they are adaptive to change, opportunistic about food sources and because of the vastness of their home ranges.
Let’s look at a few interesting Cape leopard facts
1. The Cape leopard (Panthera pardus pardus) is the same species as the savanna/bushveld leopard, despite the differences noted below. The southern African leopard population is comprised of several geographically isolated groups, with slight genetic variations caused by distance isolation. These differences are not enough to classify each group as a separate sub-species;
2. Cape leopards are about half the mass of savanna leopards. On average males weigh in at around 35kg (savanna leopard 60-70kg), whereas females weigh around 20kg (savanna leopard 35-40kg);
3. Home ranges are far more extensive than those of savanna leopards. While male leopards in the Kruger National Park have a home range of 25 to 50km², the range of a male Cape leopard is between 200 and 1,000km²;
4. Contrary to popular belief, Cape leopards do not commonly target livestock, unless food is scarce and there is an easy opportunity;
5. Females give birth to two to three cubs in a litter, but conditions are very harsh in the Cape mountains, and there is a high mortality rate in the first six months of a cub’s life;
6. Leopards in Africa are classified as ‘Vulnerable’, but Cape leopards are more threatened than other leopards because of urbanisation and limited suitable habitat;
7. Although one should always be very cautious when encountering any predator, Cape leopards are generally extremely wary of people and will readily retreat – except when threatened or cornered. A Cape leopard sighting is normally only very brief – the leopard will appear as if from nowhere, stand still for a few seconds, and then disappear into the fynbos once more. There are no reports of unprovoked attacks on people in the Western Cape. However, if one were to corner a Cape leopard, or threaten a female’s cubs, they could be extremely dangerous;
8. There is no definitive total for leopard numbers in the Western Cape; however, data from recent studies in three distinct mountain areas suggest the number to be fewer than 1,000;
9. Leopards are opportunistic and adaptive hunters. Cape leopards mainly target rock rabbits (dassies), klipspringers, Cape grysbok and porcupines. Baboons do not form a major part of their diet.
• Human-wildlife conflict:
-Illegal hunting with snares for bush meat – which depletes the prey base and also kills leopards which get caught in the snares despite not being the intended targets;
-Direct persecution by farmers in retaliation for livestock losses (guilty or not);
-Indiscriminate use of poisons and pesticides;
• Habitat loss and fragmentation;
• Roads and traffic;
• Too frequent and large scale veld fires, which damage ecosystem health;
• Natural threats, particularly to cubs, include black eagles, snakes, disease, malnutrition and territorial killings by other leopards.
Human-wildlife conflict is a complex issue, and there is no simple single solution. Instead, various ways can be used in combination – depending on the circumstances. The Cape Leopard Trust believes in a holistic livestock management strategy, instead of trying to manage predators.
In essence, this means taking livestock off the predator’s menu. These methods include well-trained livestock guardian dogs, traditional herding, and keeping livestock in adequately fenced, predator-proof kraals at night.
Farmers are often put in challenging situations when it comes to livestock depredation by leopards. Education is critical, and they need to understand how and why they need to protect their livestock rather than reverting to simply killing all predators using unselective and inhumane methods. Killing predators does not solve the problems in the long term, because new individuals will move in to take over the vacant territory. All predators fulfil a vital function in our ecosystem – without them, adverse knock-on effects are likely to be experienced.
In rare instances, one specific individual leopard may be classified as a ‘problem animal’ and dealt with as such by the authorities. The Cape Leopard Trust always tries to work with landowners and CapeNature to find viable long-term solutions that are effective and relevant to each particular farm.
Why are Cape leopards important?
These beautiful, enigmatic creatures epitomise wilderness, and that is reason enough for many people. For those that require more substantive reasoning, Cape leopards are the top (apex) predator in the Cape, which means that they are a vital cog in maintaining ecosystems and other species.
The Cape Leopard Trust is a non-profit, public benefit organisation, funded primarily by corporate funders, trust funds and private donors.
• Donate: http://capeleopard.org.za/donate;
• Sponsor a school camp or eco-club for disadvantaged children;
• South Africans only: Sign up for a MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet card and choose the Cape Leopard Trust as your beneficiary. The card is completely free, and participating stores will donate a percentage of your spend to the charity of your choice http://www.myschool.co.za;
• Spread awareness of the Cape Leopard Trust and the need to protect leopard habitat and prey to ensure their long-term survival;
• Follow the Cape Leopard Trust on their website, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for regular updates;
• While enjoying time out in nature, be on the lookout for illegal wire snares. Cut and disarm these snares and report them to the Cape Leopard Trust. Also, report any other suspicious activity like other traps and feral dogs;
• Drive slowly and carefully through mountainous areas to avoid hitting wild animals – including leopards and their prey;
• Farmers: Adopt holistic livestock husbandry practices to avoid conflict with leopards;
• Property owners: Refrain from hunting/killing ‘agricultural or garden pests’ like porcupine, grysbok, duiker and dassie – these are leopards’ main prey.
The Cape Leopard Trust was initiated in 2004 in the Cederberg to study the ecology of the Cape leopard. Dr Quinton Martins began his studies by hiking these mountains and searching for signs of leopards. The literature on the subject was almost non-existent, and yet they were being killed in large numbers. Quinton teamed up with farmer Johan van der Westhuizen as co-founder, supported by Dr Andrew Baxter – and so the Cape Leopard Trust was born. After a successful fundraising event, Leopard’s Leap Family Vineyards and Rand Merchant Bank Fund pledged their support, and momentum began building. Over the years, activities expanded to include projects in the Boland, Little Karoo, Namaqualand, and the Table Mountain National Park.
The Trust also supports predator projects in partnership with the Dept. of Conservation Ecology at the University of Stellenbosch as well as the Animal Demography Unit (ADU) at the University of Cape Town. The Cape Leopard Trust Education and Outreach Programme (est. 2009) is a vital component of their work and operates mainly in the Cederberg Wilderness Area, the Boland Mountains and the Cape Peninsula.
The Trust uses research as a tool for conservation, finding solutions to human-wildlife conflict and inspiring interest in the environment through an interactive and dynamic environmental education programme. Since its inception, it has become an authority on predator conservation in the Cape, and one of the leading authorities in SA.
The long-term vision is to ensure the long-term survival of leopard populations by promoting peaceful coexistence and the protection of landscapes, empowered by scientific research, positive community partnerships, education and advocacy.
ABOUT Simon Espley
Simon Espley is an African of the digital tribe, a chartered accountant and CEO of Africa Geographic. His travels in Africa are in search of wilderness, real people with interesting stories and elusive birds. He lives in Hoedspruit with his wife Lizz and two Jack Russells, and when not travelling or working, he will be on his mountain bike somewhere out there. His motto is ‘Live for now, have fun, be good, tread lightly and respect others. And embrace change.’
ALSO IN THIS WEEK’S ISSUE
Celebrating Africa’s Wild Babies
They are clumsy, incredibly cute, and curious about everything. Their ears and feet are too big for their bodies, and their large, curious eyes seem to suck you right in. They have protective, doting parents that keep an eye on them 24/7 and will protect them no matter the cost. These are the incredibly adorable wild babies of Africa – guaranteed to put a smile on your face upon sighting while on an African safari.
Press release from University of Pretoria/Sea Search – Namibian Dolphin Project
Research led by scientists at the University of Pretoria has shed light on an evolutionary arms race with a twist. This research, conducted by Morgan J. Martin, a Ph.D. student from the university has found that the small Heaviside’s dolphins (Cephalorhynchus heavisidii) selectively switch between cryptic, high frequency, echolocation sounds used to search for prey, and lower frequency communication sounds which help to maintain their highly social lifestyle. However, this switch may come at the risk of being heard by their key predator – killer whales (Orcinus orca).
About Heaviside’s dolphins
Heaviside’s dolphins are only found in the Benguela Ecosystem along the west coast of southern Africa and range from southern Angola to the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa. They are one of the smallest dolphins on Earth, smaller than a person (i.e. less than 1.7 m long) and found in shallow waters along the coast.
“Heaviside’s dolphins are a poorly understood species of dolphin and we are working to collect as much baseline information as possible on their numbers and behaviour,” says Dr. Simon Elwen, a marine mammal expert at the University of Pretoria and director of the Namibian Dolphin Project.
What we know about sound use in Heaviside’s dolphin
All dolphins use sound to find objects in their environment, such as fish. This process, called echolocation, involves the animal producing a sound commonly termed a ‘click’, which hits a target, producing an echo which the animal hears and processes, effectively ‘seeing the world with sound’. Most dolphins also use other sounds, such as whistles, to communicate over long distances. Heaviside’s dolphins are one of 13 species of toothed whales that have lost the ability to produce whistles for communication.
In addition, most dolphins echolocate with clicks that cover a range of frequencies, from around 10 kHz to 200 kHz; however, these 13 species have shifted their echolocation signals to occur only in an incredibly high and narrow frequency band around 130 kHz (almost seven times higher than the 20 kHz upper limit of human hearing and even above the hearing limit of killer whales). These acoustic adaptations are thought to reflect a type of acoustic crypsis, meaning that they decrease the risk of being heard by predatory killer whales.
Scientists from the Namibian Dolphin Project and the University of Pretoria first started recording Heaviside’s dolphins in 2009 in Walvis Bay, Namibia.
“When we first recorded the dolphins, we noticed unusual features to the sounds, which Morgan Martin has investigated further,” says Dr Tess Gridley (now based at the University of Cape Town).
In contrast to the prevailing idea that many dolphin species are effectively acoustically hiding from predators, Martin’s results showed that Heaviside’s dolphins are commonly producing communication signals consisting of click sounds at a much lower frequency and with a more broadband structure (i.e. the sounds cover a range of frequencies). This makes them very different from other similar dolphins and porpoises, a result which has surprised scientists worldwide.
These lower frequency clicks are risky to produce because they can easily be heard by eavesdropping killer whales which potentially increases the chance that Heaviside’s dolphins end up on the dinner table.
“Heaviside’s dolphins seem to be hunting and navigating using typical narrowband high-frequency clicks, but use riskier lower-frequency clicks when they communicate with each other,” explains Martin.
The research team then started wondering about why these dolphins would switch to signals that were more likely to be heard by potential predators when they could stick to their “safer” cryptic biosonar signal.
“The lower frequency of these communication signals means that they are less directional and travel further underwater, so they are much more effective for social communication,” says Dr Frants Jensen, a bioacoustics expert at Aarhus Institute of Advanced Studies and co-author of the study. “So far, this seems to be the only narrowband high-frequency species that selectively increases communication range by changing the structure of their clicks,” emphasises Martin.
The team’s initial paper on the research, Heaviside’s dolphins relax acoustic crypsis to increase communication range, was published on July 18th in the Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B. Indeed, four months ago, Martin and her team observed a pair of killer whales attacking and killing a Heaviside’s dolphin right after they had observed the dolphins socialising in a group nearby. It is possible that their lower frequency communication sounds gave the dolphins away to the lurking predators.
While research has shown how these sounds are important for communication, Martin emphasises that there’s still much more to learn, “These dolphins communicate by emitting bursts of very rapid clicks (more than 500 clicks per second) at highly varying repetition rates. We don’t yet know what information they can encode when they produce these sounds, but we are trying to find out”. Martin adds that the next paper will link specific sounds produced underwater with surface behaviours to understand the function of different social signals.
Full report: Morgan J. Martin, Tess Gridley, Simon H. Elwen, Frants H. Jensen (2018). Heaviside’s dolphins (Cephalorhynchus heavisidii) relax acoustic crypsis to increase communication range. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B.https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2018.1178
The authors gratefully acknowledge research funding by the University of Pretoria, a United States Fulbright Research Fellowship, Claude Leon Foundation, National Research Foundation and National Geographic Society’s Emerging Explorers Grant in conjunction with the Waiit Foundation.
They are clumsy, incredibly cute, and curious about everything. Their ears and feet are too big for their bodies, and their large, inquisitive eyes seem to suck you right in. They have protective, doting parents that keep an eye on them 24/7 and will protect them no matter the cost. These are the incredibly adorable wild babies of Africa – guaranteed to put a smile on your face, whether it is while out on safari, or from the comfort of your home looking at photographs.
We are celebrating those delightful and captivating youngsters in this gallery, Celebrating Africa’s Wild Babies, which comprises of a selection of stunning photos, along with some interesting facts and thoughts from the photographers themselves. And they’re not just any photos; they’re some of the special photos submitted during our Photographer of the Year 2017 and 2018 competitions.
If you are ever stuck with identifying the species of an elephant, take a look at their ears. When an African elephant’s ears are stretched out, like this little guy here, you will see that they are shaped like the African continent. Meanwhile, Asian elephants have smaller ears, which are more rounded on top and flat along the bottom. An elephant’s ears act as a cooling mechanism to help keep the elephant from overheating.
“Photography at a kill can be very rewarding because of all the action and interaction. This was again the case at a lion kill of quite a big lion family of nine which included some cubs. All had enough to eat when all of a sudden this overfed lion cub just fell over on its back… looking at me!” ~ Johan J. Botha
When born, a mountain gorilla baby weighs only 3-4 pounds (1.4 to 1.8 kg) and has enough strength to cling onto its mother’s fur. From the age of about four months, they ride their mother’s back and continue doing so through the first two or three years of their lives. As it can become quite cold in their mountainous habitat, mountain gorilla fur is much thicker and longer than the lowland subspecies who have short, fine hair.
“On a trip to the Maasai Mara, we came across this mother cheetah with two young cubs. The mother rested a bit with her cubs who just lay against the termite mound and did not interact with each other. After a while, the mother wanted to start moving again, presumably to look for food. As she got up, the one cub grabbed her tail as if to say ‘don’t go!’.” ~ Teresa Nel
Newborn elephants stay very close to their mothers as they are unsteady on their feet and require support. They rely on touch, smell, and hearing as their eyesight is poor for the first few days.
“One early morning, I spent a few hours at a hyena den sight in Kruger National Park being entertained by inquisitive cubs exploring the surrounding. One of the cubs discovered loose feathers on the ground, of which some ended up gently sticking on its nose after a sniff. The playful scene in front of me produced this soft and innocent moment that I was able to capture with my camera.” ~ Senka Gavrilovic
“It was one of those days in the bush – and this can happen in Sabi Sand – with no sightings all day long. Before the usual stop for a sunset drink, we came across this baby rhino and his mother. He was having fun chasing an oxpecker and running around like crazy, but suddenly froze when he saw us and tried to hide, looking for protection from his mother.” ~ Andrea Galli
African wild dog pups are cared for by the entire pack. Once they are old enough to eat solid food, they are given priority at a kill (even over the dominant pair) and are allowed to eat first.
“We had watched this valiant mother cheetah drag her springbok kill across the valley to a safer place while all of her three cubs played around, jumping on the kill, racing each other, and generally making nuisances of themselves! Once she got the kill to some cover, they fed, and she was finally able to have some rest. Then, one by one, all the cubs came up to her, expressing the deep affection and bonds between them with touching sweetness – like this cub licking her nose. It was truly something special to witness.” ~ Sarah Zito
Lion cubs play with anything that arouses their interest, including their mother’s tail. Most of the time their play imitates behaviours they will use as adults, such as stalking and fighting. This is an important part of their development as playing will help the cubs learn these skills as well as help to form strong social bonds within the pride.
Baboons are very sociable creatures and are often found grooming, feeding and playing together within a troop. They are also very vocal and have many hand and arm gestures that help with communication – this also includes very expressive faces!
“A hyena mom had just arrived back from her night’s activities and was calling for her baby to come out of the den. A small black bundle came wobbling out, and the mother and pup enthusiastically greeted each other. After a few minutes, the mother decided it was time for the youngster to go back into the den, but the baby had other ideas, and it continually came back out to be with its mom. After about five minutes of this the mother firmly picked up her pup and put it back down the entrance hole of the den, the pup looked in our direction with a sad face that clearly said, ‘Awww Mom, do I have to?’.” ~ Andrea Schoeman
“After a long, foggy day on the Semien Mountains, I finally saw a troop of geladas. My attention was immediately attracted by a baby gelada, safe and protected in the centre of the group.” ~ Paolo Maccarone
White lions are technically leucistic, and not a separate species or subspecies. Leucism is where an animal does produce melanin (unlike albinos which produce no melanin), but the condition prevents melanin from being deposited in the fur, resulting in patches of white colouring in the fur.
According to a new lion bone export quota, 1,500 lion skeletons from captive-bred lions can now be exported annually from South Africa, effective from June 7. The announcement was made by the Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) Minister Dr Edna Molewa on Monday.
This new quota is nearly double the number of last year’s quota of 800 lion skeletons.
The DEA said that the quota is based on new evidence from a research project by the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI), in collaboration with the University of the Witwatersrand, Oxford University and the University of Kent.
The research showed that:
• there is a growing stockpile of lion bones due to restrictions;
• there has been no discernible increase in poaching of wild lions‚ but there appears to be an increase in the poaching of captive-bred lions for body parts (heads‚ faces‚ paws and claws);
• and the captive breeding industry is in a state of flux as breeders respond in different ways to the United States’ restrictions on trophies and the imposition of the skeleton export quota.
The DEA said there was a demand for lion bones and‚ if supply was restricted from the captive breeding facilities‚ dealers might seek illegal ways to source bones or start poaching lions.
It added: “South Africa has learned through its experience with rhino and abalone poaching that these illegal supply chains are very difficult to disband once they become established‚ and seeks to avoid such a scenario materialising.”
South Africa, considered a top destination for trophy hunting of captive-bred lions, is the world’s largest legal exporter of lion bones and skeletons, with currently around 6,000 to 8,000 lions held in captivity in more than 200 breeding facilities across the country.
“Hunting is part of South Africa’s policy of sustainable utilisation of natural resources – a principle supported by multilateral environmental agreements such as CITES and the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). All activities involving the African lion, including hunting, possession and trade are regulated through a permit system; and our policies are supported by solid scientific evidence,” said Molewa in the statement.
Responding to the DEA’s announcement, the team behind the global documentary Blood Lions released this official statement:
‘Blood Lions condemns the recent announcement from DEA that the lion bone quota for export has been doubled to 1,500 carcasses. Unofficial reports in this regard had been circulating for months.
It would seem that the Minister has used a 2015 report, Bones of Contention, put out by Wildcru and the University of Witwatersrand as the basis of the decision. It is worth pointing out that the data in this report is now at least 4 to 5 years old, and that the circumstances around the captive breeding, hunting and export of bones has shifted somewhat. The bone trade may no longer simply be a convenient by-product of hunting, poaching of lions, both wild and captive is on the rise, and so is the demand for lion bones. And the DEA has missed one of the most important cautionary tones in this report: “the trade in tiger bones is an established threat to tiger conservation”. If this pertains to tigers, why would it not be the same for lions?
And Blood Lions is increasingly concerned at the way DEA continues to be involved in matters involving the captive lion breeding industry when they themselves claim their mandate to be solely about biodiversity conservation.’
[UPDATE July 17: Kenya’s Ministry of Tourism and Wildlife announced that a ninth black rhino has died]
Eight out of 14 critically endangered black rhinos have died after being translocated from one reserve to another in southern Kenya, according to a statement released by the Kenyan Ministry of Tourism and Wildlife.
The rhinos were being translocated from Nairobi and Nakuru National Parks to the newly-created sanctuary in the southeast of the country to offer a more secure location for the endangered species.
Preliminary investigations show that salt poisoning may have been the cause of death, as a result of the rhinos drinking water that contained a high level of salt – more than what they were accustomed to – in their new environment. The high salt levels lead to dehydration that triggers the thirst mechanism, resulting in excess water intake of the saline water that further exacerbates the problem.
Kenya’s Tourism and Wildlife Minister Najib Balala ordered the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) to immediately suspend the translocations of the remaining rhinos. The three surviving rhinos who were also moved are being closely monitored by veterinary and park management teams and are being provided with fresh water in temporary water pans. The three rhinos who were due to be moved from Nakuru will remain in the park and are said to be safe and sound.
The Kenyan government said the death of the rhinos was “unprecedented” in more than a decade of such transfers. The relocation of endangered animals involves putting them to sleep during transit and then reviving them in a process that poses some risks. According to the ministry, Kenya transported 149 rhinos between 2005 and 2017 with eight deaths.
Losing the rhinos was “a complete disaster”, the Kenyan conservationist Paula Kahumbu, of WildlifeDirect, told the Associated Press.
“Rhinos have died, we have to say it openly when it happens, not a week later or a month later,” she said. “Something must have gone wrong, and we want to know what it is.”
According to the ministry, “this kind of mortality rate is unprecedented in KWS operations” and it has invited an external expert from South Africa to join in the investigation behind the deaths.
“Disciplinary action will definitely be taken, if the findings point towards negligence or unprofessional misconduct on the part of any KWS officers,” they added.
In 1874 Charles Darwin, along with six other eminent contemporaries, wrote to the Governor of Mauritius and its dependencies: “We the undersigned respectfully beg to call the attention of the Colonial Government of Mauritius to the imminent extermination of the gigantic Land Tortoises of the Mascarenes, commonly called ‘Indian Tortoises’…
No means being taken for their protection, they have become extinct in nearly all these islands, and Aldabra is now the only locality where the last remains of this animal form are known to exist in a state of nature.”
This was the first time – but not the last – that the intervention of scientists saved the Indian Ocean atoll of Aldabra. Now part of Seychelles, and enshrined in 1982 as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Aldabra is home to the world’s largest population of giant tortoises, and as Darwin noted, the only remaining natural one in the Indian Ocean. Other Mascarene islands once had similar inhabitants; there were giant tortoises on the granitic Seychelles, Madagascar and Comoro islands; there were flightless birds on Mauritius and Réunion. Humans failed them all.
Described by UNESCO as a prime example of an oceanic island ecosystem, Aldabra is one of the last remaining such places on our planet, a refuge of stability in a volatile world. It is so isolated and so inhospitable to humans; one photographer called it “the island that wants to kill you”.
In the late 1960s, Aldabra again came under the spotlight of the international conservation community, when the British and US governments considered developing the world’s largest raised atoll as a military base. Several scientists from the Royal Society, supported by other scientific bodies such as the Smithsonian Institution, mounted a protest, gaining public support against the development (known as the “Aldabra Affair”). Eventually, the Society was able to buy the lease to the island. A research station was completed in 1971, and to this day a permanent 15-person research team lives on the island. In 1979, responsibility for the protection of the atoll was moved to a public trust, the Seychelles Islands Foundation, which continues to manage the island.
The atoll itself consists of four main islands: Picard, Polymnie, Malabar and Grande Terre.
The most westerly of these, Picard, is the only permanently inhabited part of Aldabra. This has been the case since Darwin’s day as it possesses by far the largest and safest beach, protected by the reef some half a kilometre offshore.
Attempting landings anywhere else on the outside of the atoll, even in the calmest weather, can spell disaster; sometime in the 1920s, the Lion, carrying 200 passengers, wrecked off the south coast, a stone’s throw from the shore. All but 20 perished in the surf and on the vicious rocks that line the coast. The few who survived the wreck soon died of dehydration.
It is not only humans who made good use of Picard’s Settlement Beach. Aldabra is one of the most important turtle nesting areas in the region, and this beach is by far the atoll’s most popular nesting site for green turtles. The turtle trade was the primary reason why Aldabra was settled in the first place. This trade was not unregulated, and the lessee of the island was required to inform the Governor of Mauritius of intended catches.
However, documentary evidence shows that in the early 1900s, lessees were requesting (and presumably granted) permission to land a staggering 12,000 turtles a year – mostly nesting females and mostly taken from this one 2-kilometre stretch of beach.
These unsustainable practices continued until 1968 when a Seychelles-wide ban was brought into force. By this time, turtle populations had dwindled to a fraction of what they once were; potentially as few as a thousand across the atoll. Studies in the mid-1980s, however, showed a gradual increase in the numbers of nesting females.
In the absence of human hunting and without the pressures of invasive predators, beach destruction, and artificial lights that have so plagued other nesting beaches, the turtles began to return in increasing numbers. In 2016, some 5,700 nesting emergences were recorded on Settlement Beach alone.
A real conservation success story, and one that shows that often all that is required to allow populations to recover is not radical intervention, but merely allowing nature to take its course without human interference.
Northeast of Picard lies the island of Polymnie – the smallest of the main islands and the only one uninhabited by tortoises. No one knows why this is the case, but it is possible that they were extirpated by human hunting.
Whereas tortoises can migrate across the channels from island to island, the two channels that separate Polymnie – Grande Passe and Passe Gionnet – have unusually swift currents, slowing recolonisation. In addition to these two channels, Passe Hoareau in the northeast and the West Channels near the research station allow Aldabra’s massive lagoon to fill and empty twice a day.
This lagoon is some 190 square kilometres – enough to accommodate Manhattan twice over – but nowhere except the channels, scoured as they are by the ripping currents, does it get more than five metres deep.
The shallow waters and fringing mangrove forests are a haven for wildlife. Hawksbill and green turtles cruise here in their hundreds threatened only by tiger sharks up to five metres in length; seabirds and waders abound. Aldabra is also home to globally significant populations of crab plovers, red-footed boobies, and possibly the world’s largest frigatebird population; it is one of only two oceanic breeding areas for flamingos, and the blue-eyed Aldabra sacred ibis (along with 11 of the other twelve land bird species) is found only here.
Fish biomass is some ten times higher here than in granitic Seychelles; the only fishing that is allowed here is closely monitored subsistence fishing by the researchers. Sharks thrive here, and the sight of massive giant groupers is common. At one of the regular marine survey sites, divers are usually shadowed by Hank, a two-metre-long potato grouper with a fascination for diver’s dreadlocks.
Pods of resident spinner dolphins are seen on almost every boat journey, and during the dry season, humpback whales and their newborn calves pass by in droves.
East of Polymnie we find Malabar Island, which runs most of the remaining length of the north of the atoll. Malabar was the last stronghold of two of Aldabra’s endemic birds; the Aldabra warbler and the Aldabra flightless rail. The introduction of rats with early settlers, and subsequently of cats around 1900 to control the rats, spelt disaster for these two species.
Although we cannot be sure of the reason for the decline and eventual extinction of the warbler, last seen on Malabar in 1983, we do know that the impact of these two invasive mammals (the cats in particular) caused a steep decline in numbers of the rail. By this time, the Aldabra rail was the sole remaining flightless bird in the Indian Ocean, a region that was once home to such flightless birds as the dodo, Rodrigues solitaire and Madagascar’s elephant bird.
In 1999, cats were eradicated from Picard, and a rail reintroduction program was initiated, which led to great success. In less than 20 years, an initial population of 18 reintroduced birds has ballooned to over 3,000. The distinctive rising duets of these monogamous birds can now be heard all across Picard and is to many residents the ‘sound of Aldabra’.
The largest of the main islands, taking up the whole southern and eastern borders of the atoll, is the aptly-named Grande Terre. Although Aldabra’s tortoises are found on Picard and Malabar (and also Ile Michel, the largest of the islets that dot the massive lagoon), it is on Grande Terre where they truly make their stand.
As on many other islands, the lack of native terrestrial mammals established reptiles as the primary herbivores. Aldabra is the only place in the world whose ecology is dominated by a single herbivorous reptile species.
Here, it is the endemic giant tortoises that have adopted this niche; and giants they indeed are, with a carapace on Picard Island reaching on average over 1.2 metres in length, and with an average weight of 250kg (the heaviest recorded wild-living Aldabra tortoise is over 360kg).
The impact the tortoises have on the Aldabra ecosystem cannot be overplayed; an entire plant assemblage of over 20 sedges, grasses and herbs, known as ‘tortoise turf’, has evolved alongside these ecosystem engineers, and their dung provides food and fertiliser for numerous other species.
Although technically herbivores, the harsh environment on Aldabra means that resources are never wasted. Toward the end of the dry season, these tortoises have been known to eat carrion, including the carcasses of seabirds and even other tortoises (in a bizarre twist of the childhood tale, Aldabra tortoises in an introduced population on Cousin Island have been known to eat non-native hares!)
Although very young tortoises are at risk from crabs, herons and pied crows, after a few years they have no natural predators, and when the sun sets after their evening grazing session, they will fall asleep where they stand.
Since the cessation of tortoise hunting, they have only two threats as adults: the sun, and sinkholes. As reptiles, tortoises must control their body temperature behaviorally. If they don’t take shelter from the hot sun in the middle of the day, they will bake to death in their shells.
Because of this, shaded areas are often crowded with tortoises, and in areas with limited vegetation, they will pack into small caves, stacked one of top of each other like nests of tables – one such cave on Grande Terre, with an opening five metres long and 1.5 metres high, was found to contain over 80 tortoises! Windswept beach trees regularly shelter over 200 tortoises. Trees and caves which have been used as shelters for perhaps hundreds of years boast this distinction with highly polished roots and rocks as a result of daily tortoise traffic.
The limestone geology of the island means that large, deep sinkholes are commonplace and these holes will often be littered with the bones and shells of tortoises who have fallen to their deaths, or who were unable to climb back out having mistakenly reached too far for overhanging vegetation.
Unlike granitic Seychelles (the ‘inner’ islands), Aldabra was never part of the ancient supercontinent of Gondwana, whose tectonic migration over 200 million years ago left the granitic islands in its wake. Aldabra is much younger, and at approximately 2 million years old is a relative newcomer to the region. This comparatively short time for colonisation, along with its isolation and harsh environment, is reflected in its relatively low terrestrial vertebrate diversity, consisting mostly of birds and bats (who were able to fly to the island), and small reptiles (one gecko and one skink species) who were likely brought accidentally on floating rafts after storms.
But the question might reasonably be asked: “How did the tortoises get there?”
It would be hard to imagine a 200kg tortoise rafting on floating vegetation, and surely they didn’t swim all that way? Well, likely, they did indeed swim. In 2004, a tortoise believed to have come from Aldabra trudged up out of the sea on a beach in Tanzania, having travelled a distance of over 740km. It was even possible to estimate, from the size of the barnacles covering the legs and lower carapace, that the tortoise had been at sea a minimum of 6 to 7 weeks!
Tortoises are fantastic island colonisers. As Darwin noted, before the arrival of humans, perhaps 20 species and subspecies were present on islands in the Indian Ocean, not to mention the famous Galapagos populations in the Pacific.
Heavy as they are, their lungs are located at the top of the carapace, ensuring the tortoise will float upright. They can survive without food or water for up to 6 months, and their oxygen requirement is so low that on Aldabra, they have been seen to sleep with their heads underwater. These factors amount to a perfect storm for a coloniser!
Although a 3-day survey on Picard in 1898 failed to locate a single tortoise due to over-hunting, their numbers have now reached a healthy and stable population of approximately 100,000 individuals – the largest giant tortoise population in the world, and about five times that of the Galapagos population.
Without these ecosystem engineers, the ecology of this unique island would be very, very different, and without the legacy of protection initiated by Darwin almost 150 years ago and continued by Aldabra’s protectors today, the world would have lost one of its few pristine islands and the only remaining home of these magnificent reptiles.
Aldabra’s history tells us that we can have a profound influence on the trajectory of our natural world, both for good and evil. This is particularly pertinent now as despite its protected status there is now a new insidious threat to Aldabra. Large amounts of plastic debris now wash up on Aldabra’s beaches from as far away as Australia, India, China and Malaysia, killing birds, turtles, tortoises and marine mammals.
In a world of rapid change, biodiversity loss, habitat destruction and over-exploitation of resources, we sometimes despair of there being the hope of a bright future. We wonder whether there are any places left on Earth that have remained stable and we wonder what we can do to protect and preserve our natural treasures. Aldabra is proof that with enough willpower we can save Earth’s special places. But the ongoing plastic threat shows us that the only way to indeed do so is as a global community.
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April Burt
April Burt is currently studying for her DPhil at the University of Oxford after spending the past eight years in conservation management and research positions in the western Indian Ocean region. This included working in senior scientific roles for GVI Seychelles, Nature Seychelles and lastly as the scientific coordinator for Aldabra atoll, a marine UNESCO World Heritage Site. April has led expeditions and teams now for many years and is now the leader of the Aldabra Clean Up Project, a collaboration to clean one of the largest atolls in the world of marine plastic pollution. She is also a member of the IUCN commission on ecosystem management in the island ecosystems specialist group, and she has authored or co-authored several scientific publications specialising in both marine and terrestrial tropical habitat conservation.
Adam Mitchell
Adam Mitchell is a biologist and photographer with a particular interest in herpetology, island ecosystems, and field data management. He has lived and worked throughout the Caribbean, and more recently spent three years managing a remote field lab in the Kalahari desert, and 18 months stationed on the remote Aldabra atoll. He counts himself lucky to be among the handful of photographers fortunate enough to spend more than a few days on Aldabra and perhaps the only one in recent years to be able to catalogue a full year there. You can follow him on Instagram or visit his website.
In September 2018, an all-female Journeys with Purpose expedition, called ‘Rise of the Matriarch’, will make its way through various southern African countries, taking a limited number of people to some extraordinary places and conservation projects.
Journeys with Purpose is an ecotourism fundraising initiative inviting people to join the Blue Sky Society Trust on expeditions through Africa, combining adventure travel with conservation projects. The aim of this upcoming expedition is to travel 9,000+ kilometres over 50 days, through four countries across southern Africa: South Africa, Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe.
Participants can choose to join a leg of the 6-week journey, and take part in raising money for non-profit organisation, with a focus on human-wildlife conflict and youth conservation education.
The first expedition, ‘Elephant Ignite Expedition‘, took place in 2016, where the aim was to raise money and awareness for the poaching crisis that is currently affecting Africa’s wildlife and, in particular, elephants. The expedition focused on community upliftment, youth education, public awareness for wildlife crime and poaching, and a fundraising drive to support the organisations that are fighting the battles on the frontline.
A group of 13 ladies set out on a 100-day journey from South Africa to Kenya, driving over 15,787 km for African elephants.
They visited 37 different organisations and handed out over 10,000 educational booklets to children in areas adjacent to conservation areas. In the end, they managed to raise close to R400,000 for worthwhile conservation projects.
This second expedition will run over the next two years starting in September 2018. The journey will take a total of 8 crew members at a time, through various southern African countries over a 6-week period. Each year a route will be plotted and various wildlife organisations and conservationists will be visited on that particular journey.
• 2018 involves travelling into South Africa, Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe
• 2019 involves travelling further north into South Africa, Namibia, Angola, Zambia, Tanzania, Rwanda and Uganda
Departure date: 7th September 2018
There is a cost involved to be part of the Journeys with Purpose hand-picked crew. This is not an expedition for everyone and will involve crew members getting involved hands-on in daily chores – cooking, cleaning, camp set up, driving and helping with additional fundraising, etc.
Opinion post: Written by Simon Espley, CEO of Africa Geographic
The highly controversial shooting of a male lion by a trophy hunter in the Umbabat section of the Greater Kruger could conceivably mark the beginning of the end for trophy hunting in this part of Africa.
I am speculating here, but please hear me out…
Since we reported the known facts about the hunt, I and many others have been digging for clarity. Was the hunted lion indeed ‘Skye’? – a dominant male of the Western Pride, featured in this tribute ‘The Story of Skye’ by Charlie Lynam, a shareholder in Ingwelala, one of the properties making up Umbabat. The photos accompanying this opinion editorial are of Skye and his pride.
The trophy hunting ‘team’ insist that the lion killed was not Skye the pride male, claiming that he was in fact an old male lion with worn teeth and a protruding spine. But they refuse point blank to supply a photo of the dead lion to prove their claim, citing legal and personal safety concerns. One senior person representing the landowner undertook to give me a look at the photo of the dead lion, but then reneged at the last moment. Lynam and others insist that Skye the pride male was killed. According to Lynam, Skye has not been seen since the day of the killing of that lion. Additionally, one of his cubs has since been killed and some of the pride lionesses have been beaten up as a new coalition of males has moved into the area. This is classic lion behaviour when a dominant male is removed and new male/s move into the vacuum – cubs are killed (infanticide) and lionesses are beaten up as they try to defend their cubs.
Recently journalist Don Pinnock, who broke the story, has revealed that the hunter in question is an American by the name of Jared Whitworth, from Hardinsburg, Kentucky. He also revealed the names of the South African hunting outfitter who sold and managed the hunt and the government official who signed off on the lion permit. Whitworth is a member of Safari Club International (SCI), which defines hunting success in terms of size and rarity. Apparently the larger the horns/tusks and rarer the animal, the more respect you are due for killing it. Whitworth’s 15-year-old daughter was awarded the title “2018 SCI Young Hunter of the Year”, and the SCI website features her proudly posing with a massive buffalo she killed. I found this out by visiting the SCI website a few days ago – and note with interest that today those pages have been removed (fortunately I saved a screenshot). Are the SCI members now afraid of the tree-huggers? Perhaps they should be …
And here, ladies and gentlemen, is where I start reasoning why I believe that trophy hunting will soon end in the Greater Kruger.
As I write this, an investigative agency has been hired to look into the legality of the Skye hunt, there is a popular online petition calling for justice, and various people are digging away to find out the personal information of everyone involved. Momentum is building, and I hear that the guilty parties are shaking in their boots. Anyone remember what happened to Walter Palmer, the American dentist who shot Cecil the Lion, once his name was known to the public? Regardless of whether this particular batch of killers of Africa’s iconic wild figures is eventually tracked down and forced into the terrifying world of transparency, the momentum is building …
Let me be blunt: Do trophy hunters really think that they can keep these things secret in this day and age, and do they and their families feel safe knowing that their deeds will be in the public domain sooner or later? I understand from sources that the southern African trophy hunting industry is already suffering from cancellations because of increased public scrutiny and vigilantism.
Beyond the hunter and the hunting outfitter, what about the other people involved – the government officials and game reserve management? How long before these people decide that they are not prepared to take the risk and stress of being associated with this industry that specialises in surgically removing the last-remaining big-gene animals? Many of these people are simply ordinary employees, who signed up to be involved in conservation and now find themselves defending an industry they don’t even believe in, and being subjected to personal abuse and threats of physical violence.
We are increasingly seeing government departments and officials being targeted by a tidal wave of public backlash against trophy hunting. The fact that much of the commentary is factually inaccurate is beside the point – this is a battle of emotion, not fact. The anger generated amongst the social media-empowered general public, driven by activists who value impact over fact, is a toxic cocktail that will drive change – regardless of the consequences. Recently the Namibian government issued a ruling that trophy hunters to that country cannot publish kill photos on social media. This bizarre and unenforceable move is surely testament to the extent of the pressure that is being brought to bear on the trophy hunting industry.
Anti-hunting activists are evolving, and increasingly now combining their immense social media support base with targeted action against specific perpetrators. On the other hand, the trophy hunting industry does not have the DNA to evolve. They are still barking out the same defensive rhetoric from decades ago – despite the conservation landscape having shifted massively under the immense pressure of habitat loss and poaching. This industry will never be driven by ethics and transparency; it is entirely opportunistic, and known to retrofit the conservation argument based on the specifics of the particular animal hunted.
In the court of public opinion, we are all judged by the company we keep, and the partners we choose. In my opinion, if management of the Greater Kruger does not change tack and distance itself from their trophy hunting partners, this tremendous conservation initiative will self-destruct. Members of the Greater Kruger simply cannot any longer risk being associated with an industry that refuses to evolve, and regularly shoots itself in the foot. Quite simply, they have to dissociate themselves, or face eventual ruin.
And that is why I believe that it is only a matter of time before trophy hunting ceases to be a management tool in the Greater Kruger. Africa is patient …
Of course, the landowners and managers of these wildlife reserves will consequently need to source alternative funding for their rapidly escalating anti-poaching and general conservation costs. Photographic tourism can provide some of the extra funding, but not all of it. Even if all parties agree to higher lodge and vehicle densities (with concomitant increased environmental pressure) and higher lodge prices, not all areas in the Greater Kruger have the same tourism potential – this is a simple function of location, carrying capacity and biodiversity. Many of the most vocal social media activists have never been on safari in Africa, and are unlikely ever to. But hopefully they will donate to a fund to enable anti-poaching work in the Greater Kruger to continue once trophy hunting revenue dries up.
I suspect that some landowners, especially the local communities, will seriously consider alternative land uses such as livestock and crops, once trophy hunting is off the table. There are few straight roads in Africa.
Some pro-hunting folk will refuse to acknowledge advice like mine if it does not come accompanied by instant iron-clad alternatives to hunting. With respect, this is like refusing to accept that your daughter is pregnant, just because she won’t tell you who the father is. The first step to solving a problem is to acknowledge that you have a problem.
I have great faith that in time trophy hunting in the Greater Kruger will be replaced by a more ethical, more relevant sustainable land-use strategy. This will take time, but it will happen. A luta continua!
Celebrated winner of our 2017 Photographer of the Year, conservation photographer John Vosloo continues to amaze and astound with his incredible wildlife photography.
John has a knack for catching moments in time. From a lioness showing her displeasure to a young elephant calf getting a time-out, these snapshots into the lives of African wildlife is what this gallery is all about.
Here we present a selection of some of his favourite photos that he took in the Addo Elephant National Park and surrounding areas in the Eastern Cape in South Africa, along with his thoughts.
“This was a very exciting image to capture as mother elephants usually hide their babies out of direct sunlight to prevent sunburn, so you seldom get the chance to see one drinking with enough light to capture a decent photo – they are usually in the shadows by their mother’s side, and one generally battles to get enough light.
“In this case, 1/200 sec and more than the usual light secured this unique image. On a bright day (as was the case in this image) you can also get lucky with the sunlight reflecting off the ground and up into the shadows – like a natural light reflector.” Canon EOS 1D MK4 with a Sigma 150-600mm lens (sport version) – f7.1 1/200 sec ISO 640 @ 600mm
“I took this image of this lioness at Kuzuko Lodge (a 5-star game lodge in Addo Elephant National Park) while feeding on a kudu kill. Her aggressive mood and “stay clear” signals caught my attention as they always make for a compelling and in-your-face image, especially when cropped tightly as in this case. Those eyes say it all!” Canon EOS 1D MK4 with a Sigma 150-600mm lens (sport version) – f7.1 1/100 sec ISO 800 @ 534mm
“This hyena with an antelope’s leg was photographed in the very early morning in the Addo Elephant National Park. They are often seen with a leg or a bone scuttling away to feed in peace. They always seem to be on the move.
“Whenever you get close to one of these creatures, it always amazes me how much bigger they are. They are very impressive killing machines when seen up close – precisely built in perfect form and function for their purposes in every respect. All in all, an impressive animal to see and experience up close in the wild. At close quarters they always send shivers down my spine.” Canon EOS 1D MK4 with a Sigma 150-600mm lens (sport version) – f7.1 1/320 sec ISO 1600 @ 380mm
“In the Addo Elephant National Park, this little chap was getting a bit out of hand, and the parents put him in his place. They pegged him down and calmed him in a peaceful, firm and gentle manner – AND IT WORKED!
“These giants often do things gently but with firm purpose. Perhaps that is why their family groups are generally well behaved, and there seems to be mutual respect between all members. Some rowdiness is tolerated, but when it gets out of hand, it is always dealt with firmly and with some finality and success. A winning combination in a group where size most definitely matters!” Canon EOS 1D MK4 with a Sigma 150-600mm lens (sport version) – f7.1 1/400 sec ISO 800 @ 600mm
“I had been following these three ostriches from birth when they were part of a group of about seven (only these three made it to adulthood), and the older they got, the more physical and boisterous they became. I caught them one evening after a dust bath against the setting sun in the Addo Elephant National Park having a dispute and almost getting into a full-blown fight – the lighting and dust was awesome and made for a great moody image.” Canon EOS 1D MK4 with a Sigma 150-600mm lens (sport version) – f7.1 1/400 sec ISO 1000 @ 380mm
“This elegant cat photographed in the Addo Elephant National Park (where he and his three brothers “broke into the camp”, and nobody knew where they came from) is always a privilege. They ooze elegance and are just perfect in form and function to do what they do best – hunt at high speed.
“In this case, his ‘1000-yard stare’ caught my attention, with those eyes and ears picking up everything and anything in the bush. A highly effective and elegant predator and always a pleasure to see and photograph.” Canon EOS 1D MK4 with a Sigma 150-600mm lens (sport version) – f7.1 1/6400 sec ISO 800 @ 512mm
“This image was taken at Radical Raptors, a rehabilitation centre for raptors situated between Knysna and Plettenberg Bay in the Eastern Cape. This particular vulture is non-releasable and is used for educational purposes while free-flying around the area. It was quite an intimidating experience, having a vulture of this size swooping down into my face, but fun all the same.” Canon EOS 1D MK4 with a Sigma 150-600mm lens (sport version) – f6.3 1/5000 sec ISO 3200 @ 600mm
“This Cape buffalo (AKA Black Death) had such an intimidating stare that I was compelled to try and capture his mood and attitude – always in a bad mood and always with an aggressive attitude. Choosing black and white over colour worked well to depict this dagga boy as the cantankerous tank of the African bush.
“It is always exciting to get up close and personal to these huge creatures and never knowing what to expect. They just ooze confidence, power and demand attention from all and anything around them.” Canon EOS 1D MK4 with a Sigma 150-600mm lens (sport version) – f7.1 1/30 sec ISO 640 @ 600mm
“This secretary bird was on the hunt in the Addo Elephant National Park. Their keen and alert approach is always interesting to observe, but taking a photo of them can be challenging as they are difficult to capture on camera due to their size and speed when hunting. Therefore much patience and planning are required to get close and secure a shot – their rather predictable hunting patterns help this, and one can usually anticipate where they will be during their walking hunt.
“I got lucky with this shot as they are quite skittish and generally do not allow one to get too close or allow much time for composition and focus.” Canon EOS 1D MK4 with a Sigma 150-600mm lens (sport version) – f7.1 1/2500 sec ISO 800 @ 600mm
“This little elephant calf, taken at the Spekboom waterhole in the Addo Elephant National Park, is still very young, with telltale hairs still prevalent on its body. Under close protection from mom (as is always the case!), this image depicts the size difference between the two and shows how big these behemoths can get as opposed to how tender, small and vulnerable they are when born.
“Baby elephants are always a great photographic subject as they are playful and full of antics that can keep the photographer mesmerised for hours on end. Always a great experience shooting these little guys.” Canon EOS 1D MK4 with a Sigma 150-600mm lens (sport version) – f71. 1/400 sec ISO 1000 @ 430mm
“This elephant was blowing bubbles in the water at the Hapoor Dam in the Addo Elephant National Park. Sometimes elephants seem to enjoy ‘playing’ with the water by blowing bubbles or smashing it with their trunks or feet in a spectacular manner. In this image, the sunlight caught the water in such a unique way that it looked like sheets of bubbled water, making for an interesting ‘waterscape’.” Canon EOS 1D MK4 with a Sigma 150-600mm lens (sport version) – f7.1 1/200 sec ISO 800 @ 600mm
“This pretty little common waxbill was photographed in our garden at a water trough we put out for them. Having a shallow tray of water in your garden is sure to attract a variety of birds, and can be utilised to create awesome images of the birds drinking, bathing, feeding or fighting.
“Patience is the name of the game with precise focusing and honed techniques as they are swift little birds to photograph – always a challenge one enjoys rising to.” Canon EOS 1D MK4 with a Sigma 150-600mm lens (sport version) – f6.3 1/1600 sec ISO 800 @ 600mm
“These two kudu cows, photographed in the early morning in the Addo Elephant National Park, depict the grace and elegance of African wildlife. Those prominent ears, coupled with superb eyesight, do not miss a thing. Being super alert is their mantra – nothing comes, goes or moves without them knowing. They are hardy, intelligent, crafty and are not known as the grey ghosts of Africa for nothing! They can disappear in a flash and are true masters of camouflage.” Canon EOS 1D MK4 with a Sigma 150-600mm lens (sport version) – f7.1 1/500sec ISO 640 @ 270mm
“Interestingly, this is the same crew as the other ostriches in the sunset dust image when they were still small and part of a larger group. These little ones always make for interesting photographic subjects… if one can manage to stay away from their overprotective parents – those eyes in the back of the photographer’s head are needed in this situation!
“They are generally curious little creatures and will move towards the patient photographer, allowing for some great shots of their unique and interesting patterns of colours.” Canon EOS 1D MK4 with a Sigma 150-600mm lens (sport version) – f7.1 1/400 sec ISO 800 @ 600mm
“This huge elephant bull came down a narrow road towards me in Addo Elephant National Park, and not wanting to make direct eye contact with him I decided to photograph his feet, toes and trunk in motion – parts of the elephant that is not always photographed. This made for an interesting image and a thrilling experience at the same time with a couple of tonnes of elephant moving past me just three feet away.” Canon EOS 1D MK4 with a Sigma 150-600mm lens (sport version) – f7.1 1/500 sec ISO 800 @ 600mm
“This Cape gannet was photographed on Bird Island in Algoa Bay in the Eastern Cape. It is a highly protected island and hosts the largest flock of gannets on Earth – about 65,000 breeding pairs.
“When they come in to land, they tend to fly in a pattern, and upon seeing or hearing their chicks, they apply the brakes and drop out of the sky on the spot (as in this image) – often to an aggressive landing crew where space is already at a premium.
“It is an all-out assault on the senses to be there and witness this large flock and the vitality of life that it generates. An absolute must to those who get the opportunity to visit as it is a life-changing event!” Canon EOS 1D MK4 with a Sigma 150-600mm lens (sport version) – f7.1 1/3200 sec ISO 500 @ 230mm
“These two buffalo were photographed at the Spekboom waterhole in the Addo Elephant National Park. Their joint symmetry while drinking caught my attention and the artful curve of their horns always make for a great photographic subject. They can be quite cantankerous, and one is always alert when photographing these species at close quarters. Born with a bad attitude, these few tonnes of fury can become quite a large problem in seconds.” Canon EOS 1D MK4 with a Sigma 150-600mm lens (sport version) – f7.1 1/250 sec ISO 1250 @ 600mm
“These helmeted guineafowls in the rain created an interesting myriad of colours and shapes for me. The raindrop streaks can be seen when using slower shutter speed and the bright colours of the guineafowl, coupled with their strange yet spectacular heads, make for an interesting subject. But be warned, they are difficult to capture on camera as they move about with speed and always seem to do the unexpected. In the rain, however, they do seem to slow down a bit, allowing for an easier target.” Canon EOS 1D MK4 with a Sigma 150-600mm lens (sport version) – f7.1 1/50 sec ISO 800 @ 600mm
ABOUT JOHN VOSLOO
“I have been involved in photography on and off for the last 20-odd years. Recently, say over the last five years, I have become more involved with digital and wildlife photography, which to me has been a whole new concept and approach to photography. My photographic mantra is: ‘Let the camera do its thing, but let your heart be the lens’.”
Some of John’s notable accolades include fifth place in the Getaway Gallery Competition (2016); Top 10 in Sunday Times Wildlife Photographer of the Year (2016); winner of Africa Geographic’s Photographer of the Year (2017); winner of Kragga Kamma’s Wildlife Photographic Competition (2017 – open category); winner of the PSSA Senior Open Division – winning image (medal award); extensively published in SANParks Addo Elephant National Park official guide; and extensive images featured in the book The Last Elephants – to be published at the end of this year.
In the uMkhuze section of iSimangaliso Wetland Park, part of the Lubombo Transfrontier Conservation Area, elephants are flourishing. Following the reintroduction of the species into the game reserve during the 1990s, the numbers rapidly grew to a healthy 139 strong elephant population today. In a world where more than 30,000 elephants are lost to poaching each year, this is a true management success story for conservation partner Ezemvelo KwaZulu-Natal Wildlife, but one that, unfortunately, now has also started to present its own challenges. This is because uMkhuze, one of South Africa’s oldest game parks (est. 1912), only offers a range of 43,000 ha with a finite carrying capacity for these gentle giants.
Only 150 kilometres to the west of uMkhuze, Ezemvelo’s Ithala Game Reserve struggles with the same challenge of effectively maintaining their blossoming elephant population within the reserve’s approximately 30,000 ha protected area.
“There are various ways in which an overpopulation of elephants can be managed. This includes culling, contraceptives, as well as translocations. In both uMkhuze and Ithala, contraceptive plans have already been put into action. This will, however, take time to significantly contain numbers – time that the reserve does not have as the tightly contained herds of elephants start to disrupt ecosystems and diminish resources,” explained Dave Cooper, Wildlife Veterinarian for Ezemvelo.
Accordingly, last week, expert teams from Elephants, Rhinos & People, Conservation Solutions, and Ezemvelo, supported by the Department of Environmental Affairs, came together to capture 29 of the uMkhuze and 24 of the Ithala elephants and transport them safely through a 1,250 km journey with greater purpose. By removing a significant percentage of the elephant population from the reserves, it potentially negates any need for further extreme elephant management interventions for at least the next 10 to 15 years.
The elephants crossed two borders and traversed three countries (South Africa, Swaziland and Mozambique). Less than two days later, they were released into the care of Peace Parks Foundation and Mozambique’s National Administration for Conservation Areas who co-manage the elephant’s new home – Zinave National Park.
iSimangaliso’s Park Operations Director Sizo Sibiya – who in 1994 was a section ranger at uMkhuze when the elephants first arrived – commented: “We must remember that protected areas are managed not only for the benefit of specific species, but rather holistically for all biodiversity. In the case of the flourishing uMkhuze elephant population, their numbers are reaching a point where a noticeable impact can be seen on the trees. This proposal to donate some of them to Zinave was a win-win solution for all of us.”
ERP, supported by groupelephant.com, funded and coordinated the translocation operation as part of their drive to translocate large elephant numbers outside of South African borders, to alleviate the country’s increasing elephant population pressures. Helicopter time and fuel was sponsored by Wild Tomorrow Fund.
Lise-Marie Greeff-Villet, the Communications Coordinator for Peace Parks Foundation, shared: “Observing the elephant capture operations was like watching a well-choreographed dance. It was breathtaking to see the skill with which game capture teams, veterinarians, rangers, pilots, and drivers coordinated their responsibilities; and even more beautiful the passion and care that accompanied every interaction with, and touch of, an elephant.”
Zinave, situated within the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Conservation Area, offers a protected space of 408,000 ha with prime elephant habitat, more than sufficient water resources, and only a handful of local elephants – positioning the uMkhuze and Ithala elephants to proliferate as the progenitors of a thriving new elephant population. The new elephants will bring the total elephant population in the Park to about 67, a number that is expected to double over the next 10 years.
The elephants will initially be released into an electrically-fenced 18,600 ha sanctuary. This will allow them to settle into their new environment and be introduced to the family herd that has been resident in the sanctuary for the past year. Safeguarding the wildlife within Zinave is of course paramount to Park management. Through significant funding from Peace Parks Foundation, the Park’s protection capabilities were recently reinforced with 26 newly trained and appointed rangers, ranger base camps, patrol equipment and digital communication systems – all as part of advanced and integrated anti-poaching strategies.
The ‘destructive’ behaviour that resulted in the elephants’ move from uMkhuze and Ithala, is exactly what will now benefit the ecosystem balance in Zinave. With almost no wildlife present in the Park for decades, the vegetation has become extremely overgrown and dense. Peace Parks Foundation has been rewilding the conservation area for the past few years and the close to 1,250 animals, mostly grazers, brought in have already started to change the flora landscape for the better. However, the elephants will now take this to a whole new level.
As Bernard van Lente, Peace Parks Foundation’s Project Manager in Zinave, notes: “The elephants will stimulate biodiversity by trampling and, thereby, opening up space in overgrown areas, allowing for other species of grasses and smaller saplings to gain access to sunlight, currently blocked out by dominant, larger tree species. The spaces opened up by elephants will also create pathways for other species and expose grasses and flora for these grazers to eat, food that would otherwise have been inaccessible. In addition, the proliferation of other insects attracted to elephant dung also provides food for birds and bats, which in turn helps spark the increase in other species, known as ‘succession’.”
‘’We are very excited about the positive impact these cross-border elephant translocations will have on reducing elephant population pressures in South Africa, whilst establishing new populations in areas such as Zinave National Park. This is also the first of what will hopefully be many more meaningful projects conducted by ERP in Mozambique in collaboration with Peace Parks Foundation‘’, said Dereck Milburn, Director Operations for ERP.
Rewilding Mozambique’s protected areas is a primary focus in Peace Parks Foundation’s strategy for the development of transfrontier conservation areas in the region, with repopulated parks hopefully leading the way in revitalising the country’s eco-tourism economies.
Cheetahs have experienced drastic population declines and there are only ~7000 mature individuals left in Africa. The number of cubs that survive to independence is crucial for population growth. Cheetahs have relatively big litters, ranging from one to six cubs. It is thought that they have such large litters to compensate for the high natural mortality of their cubs. In neighbouring Serengeti National Park, less than 5% of cubs reach independence. Cheetah cubs can succumb to various factors including predation by other predators, abandonment, poor health and fires. However, there are other factors, such as habitat and tourism, that are believed to also have an impact. These other factors have, until now, not been explored, so my aim was to determine the effect of the following on the number of cubs that reach independence in the Maasai Mara National Reserve in Kenya:
• Habitat
• Tourist abundance
• Lion abundance
• Spotted hyena abundance
Between 1st June 2013 and 31st October 2017 data was collected on how many cheetah cubs were seen and how many reached independence. At the same time, data were also collected on the number of tourists, lions and spotted hyenas.
Key findings
The amount of open habitat and high tourist abundance both limited the number of cubs cheetahs raised to independence. More specifically, cheetahs in open habitats on average raised fewer than two cubs to independence compared to approximately three cubs for mother’s residing in denser habitat such as acacia woodland. Similarly, females in areas with a lot of tourists on average raised one cub or less to independence compared to more than two cubs in low tourist areas. Neither lion nor spotted hyena abundance was found to have an impact on cub recruitment.
While this study shows that high tourist abundance has a negative impact on cheetah cub recruitment, it is important to note that tourism also plays an important, positive role in cheetah conservation through, for example, the creation and maintenance of protected areas and wildlife conservancies and positively influencing attitudes and behavioural intentions of local people towards predators. However, the results presented here are worrying as growth rates for cheetahs inside the wildlife areas need to be high if they are to compensate for declines outside the wildlife areas.
The following recommendations are based on the above findings:
Habitat management
While cheetahs are often considered to be an open plains species, denser vegetation is important for cub survival. In areas where habitat is managed, care should be taken that a diversity of habitats are available. For example, areas that are burned could have a negative effect on cheetah cub recruitment as by attracting female cheetahs with cubs to open areas where prey abundance is high, cub recruitment is likely to be low.
Tourist management
Cheetahs, especially with cubs, are a major tourist attraction and commonly attract large numbers of vehicles (during this study, we observed a case of 64 vehicles present at one sighting over a period of 2 hours). It is important that strict viewing guidelines are implemented and enforced. Actions that could be taken to ensure that tourists do not have a negative impact on cheetahs include:
• allowing no more than five vehicles at a cheetah sighting;
• ensuring that no tourist vehicles are allowed near a cheetah lair (den);
• ensuring that vehicles keep a minimum distance of 30m at a cheetah sighting;
• ensuring that noise levels and general disturbance at sightings are kept to a minimum;
• ensuring that vehicles do not separate mothers and cubs;
• and that cheetahs on a kill are not enclosed by vehicles so that they can detect approaching danger.
These guidelines would ideally be incorporated into management policies and distributed to tourists upon arrival with rangers ensuring that these guidelines are respected.
This research would not have been possible without the financial support from the African Wildlife Foundation, BAND foundation, Vidda Foundation and private donations made through the Kenya Wildlife Trust.
“Everyone likes birds. What wild creature is more accessible to our eyes and ears, as close to us and everyone in the world, as universal as a bird?” ~ David Attenborough
Birds may be ubiquitous and are often overshadowed by the celebrity wildlife stars like Africa’s Big 5. But one thing is for sure – no matter their size, shape and colour, they will never cease to amaze and are incredibly beautiful to behold.
Found around the world, birds have adapted to life in the wilderness. From forest, jungles and the open bush, to deserts, high mountains and far out at sea, birds can be found everywhere!
Globally there are approximately 9,500 bird species, and of that almost 2,500 have been seen in Africa and its associated islands. We are now going to take some time out to admire and appreciate some of these African birds in our gallery, Africa’s Avian Candy, which comprises of a selection of stunning photos, along with some interesting facts. And they’re not just any photos; they’re some of the special photos submitted during our Photographer of the Year 2016, 2017 and 2018 competitions.
Bateleur eagles can often be seen spending their time at waterholes during the heat of the day, frequently entering the water for a bath and then opening their wings to sunbathe. By exposing their wing feathers to direct sunlight, the oils in their feathers warm-up, which the bird then spreads over the feathers with its beak to improve aerodynamics.
Saddle-billed storks feed on a variety of aquatic species, such as fish, crustaceans (crabs, shrimps), and amphibians (frogs). The storks use their bills to stir up the water to flush out the fish, causing the water (and the fish) to become muddy, so often you will see them washing their fish before consuming them whole.
Shoebills may be big, but they can fly if they want to. Granted, they don’t fly very far, and long flights are rare, but flying is no mean feat considering they can grow up to 1.5 metres tall and can weigh up to 7kg.
In Africa, southern ground-hornbills are classified as ‘Vulnerable’ by the IUCN; however, those in South Africa are classified as ‘Endangered’ as only about 1,500 individuals live within the country. Loss of habitat, loss of nesting trees, electrocution from transformer boxers and even, in some cases, killed for use in traditional medicine, have all contributed to the rapid decline of these majestic birds.
“While waiting for over two hours in the hot equatorial sun for a migration crossing to happen, I decided to change my focus to a group of vultures that were feeding on a drowned wildebeest carcass. Fully fed, this beauty decided to dry off its wings in the sun, which produced this interesting image of a great raptor. These raptors face many problems, from loss of habitat, reduced breeding sites, and reduction in large ungulates (resulting in fewer sources of food), to death from poisoning, the witchcraft trade and collisions with power lines. They play such an important role in making sure that diseases such as rabies and anthrax do not spread, and they also help cycle nutrients back into the ecosystem. We must help conserve these amazing raptors at all costs.” ~ Sushil Chauhan
“Two lanner falcons, an adult and a juvenile were on the hunt at the Cubitje Quap waterhole in the Kgalagadi. From the nearby trees, they observed the smaller birds enjoying a drink. Now and then they would make their swoop, and on one of these swoops, the adult caught a Namaqua dove. The juvenile, with nothing to show for its efforts, attacked the adult, trying to steal its kill. Feathers flying, the adult held on to its prize and flew away while the juvenile was left to contemplate its disappointment in the air.”~ Olli Teirilä
Red-billed queleas form flocks which can contain thousands of birds. They are considered a major problem bird in some areas as they can cause a lot of damage to cereal crops. With the adult breeding population at approximately 1.5 billion pairs, red-billed queleas are the most common wild bird in the world.
Crested guineafowl are named because of the curly tufts on their head. They inhabit central parts of Africa, ranging throughout all the forest territories, as well as a handful of regions in southern Africa.
Rosy-faced lovebirds are very social birds and will often congregate in small groups in the wild. They feed throughout the day and are very dependent on water. The plumage is identical in males and females, and their rapid flight shows the blue rump against their green back.
The martial eagle is the largest eagle in Africa, weighing in at almost 6.5kg. This bird is a powerful hunter with extremely keen eyesight and can spot potential prey up to five kilometres away.
Crested barbets spend most of their time bouncing around on the ground foraging for food. They are not accomplished flyers, and when they do fly, it is only for a short period.
The white tern is a beautiful bird seen on all the islands in Seychelles. This species is notable for laying its egg on bare thin branches in a small fork or depression – without a proper nest structure.
Egrets form symbiotic relationships with many hoofed animals, especially with African buffaloes. While the egrets eat the insects that live on the ungulates and are disturbed as they walk through the grass, the buffaloes on which they forage benefit from the removal of harmful parasites.
Black-cheeked lovebirds inhabit deciduous woodland, where permanent supplies of water exist, as they require daily access to water. In the dry season, these birds may congregate in large flocks of up to 800 or more.
Meyer’s parrots eat mainly seeds and nuts, husking small seeds and chewing on larger food items. It is the only bird in its distribution range capable of cracking pods and seeds of leguminous trees, so it benefits from a monopoly of this food type.
Cape robin-chats occupy a variety of habitat types, generally preferring areas with quite dense undergrowth and scattered trees, bushes, rocks or other structures to use for perching, along with surface water for drinking and bathing. It is a common bird in gardens across much of its distribution, including in city centres such as in Cape Town.
Pearl-spotted owls are one of southern Africa’s smallest owls. They will breed from August to November, and possibly both parents incubate the eggs for up to 31 days. The female lays 2-4 eggs in a tree cavity, often made by woodpeckers or barbets. Incubation lasts 29 days, and the young fledge at 31 days and become independent a few weeks later.
The Namibian Minister of Environment and Tourism has responded to the killing of the male desert-adapted lion, Gretsky (XPL 99). The iconic Huab river lion was shot and killed by the Ministry of Environment and Tourism (MET) at De Rust farm in Ugabriver in June. According to sources, on the evening of 11th June, he entered a kraal on the farm and killed about 29 livestock.
Dear all as promised, here is our response to the Lion concerns in Namibia.
The Ministry of Environment and Tourism has learnt with concern about the inaccurate and false reports and the assumptions made on social media over a lion that was destroyed at De Rust farm in the Kunene Region of Namibia on the16 June 2018.
The lion was shot in response to repeated incursions and following days of attempts to alleviate the situation using non-lethal methods. The lion is part of the pride that has raided stock at De Rest farm, killing 27 goats and sheep as well as two donkeys inside the kraal. For many international followers, this might be nothing but for households in Namibia, this is a substantial loss.
The concerns are mostly from international community individuals or groups advocating for wildlife rights and lobbying against sustainable use of our wildlife. We have noted that despite numerous attempts and efforts to clarify our conservation methods, these groups are keen on spreading unfounded rumours aimed at tarnishing the image of our country with reference to our wildlife management and utilisation thereof.
Namibia has subscribed to conservation methods that are tailor-made to address our situations and benefit our people as per the constitutional provision. These methods have been tried and tested with tangible result visible in terms of wildlife population growth and recoveries.
As a result of our conservation successes that tripled our wildlife numbers, cases of human-wildlife conflict increased with animals like lions, elephants and crocodiles been the main culprits as people and wildlife continued to compete for resources and space. In this regard, our National Policy on human-wildlife conflict management was developed in such a way that it addresses our needs to conserve our wildlife while recognising and respecting the rights of the people and tourism development.
There are suggestions within our critics that we should overlook our own people’s plights at the expense of tourists to the country. This is despite the fact that our citizens have accepted to share their living space with dangerous predators and animals which most of the time destroy their properties and other sources of their livelihoods. In some instances, human lives are lost.
It is a pity and shameful to see that some international people still think Africans cannot run their own affairs and therefore should be subjected to their ideologies that have no regard for our people. For as much as we value tourism as an economic sector based on the revenue it generates, as a responsible government we will always put the needs of our people first without compromise or fail.
Unfortunately, we have a few individuals in Namibia who are simply unable to get their heads around the big picture of conservation on communal and commercial land, and the vital role that incentives, predator management and social acceptance play in the process. They cannot look into the future to see where Namibia needs to be in decades to come. They rather look at each lion individually. This is not a conservation biology approach, but a more western urban short term animal rights approach which is higher counter-productive to the long term conservation.
Through social media, these individuals, self-proclaimed conservationists, prey on well-meaning but uninformed people in society. Because conservation biology is complex and difficult to explain in sound bites, they prefer to project simplistic approaches and solutions, which failed worldwide. By contrast, Namibia has more wildlife today that at any given time in the past 100 years, increasing from about 0,5 million in the 1960s to about 3 million today.
From near extinction in 1960s, Namibia now has the largest free-ranging population of black rhinos in the world, we also have the largest cheetah population in the world, our elephant population has more than doubled from a mere 7,500 in 1995 to over 22,000 to date and an increasing free-roaming lion population outside National Parks.
The Ministry would like to bring to the attention of the public and the international community that lions occur across the entire north of Namibia and some parts of the country in the central and southern areas.
Our estimated lion population in the country is seven hundred (700) with four hundred and thirty (430) in Etosha National Park, one hundred and twenty (120) in Kunene Region where this incident occurred and parts of the Erongo Region, fifty (50) in the Khaudum National Park and surrounding areas of the Kavango East Region and Otjozodjupa Region, fifty (50) in the Zambezi Region and about ten (50) is some commercial farms.
There are also assertions that funds generated through trophy hunting are pocketed by individuals in leadership positions at the Ministry. We want to rubbish this claim by clarifying that funds generated through hunting are reinvested in the conservation of our wildlife through the Game Product Trust Fund and the Community Based Natural Resource Management programme as well as rural development.
The Ministry regards human-wildlife conflict as a serious problem that if not addressed appropriately, treated with necessary understanding and respect, and managed effectively, it has the potential to harm and destroy conservation effort and tourism benefits for the country, and will therefore put measures in place to manage the conflict in a way that recognises the rights and development needs of local communities, recognises the need to promote biodiversity conservation and ensure that decision making is quick and based on the best available information.
It must be clear that addressing human-wildlife conflict requires striking a balance between conservation priorities and the needs of people who live with wildlife. Most Namibians depend on the land for their subsistence. But the presence of many species of large mammals and predators, combined with settlement patterns of people, leads to conflict between people and wildlife. It therefore necessary that mechanisms are created for rural communities and farmers to manage and benefit from wildlife and other natural resources.
Finally, we call upon all potential tourists to Namibia to disregard the advocacy against our country. Namibia’s conservation is sound but by no means without challenges and the Ministry works hard to address them. Tourists should come and experience the beauty of our country from its amazing landscapes, our diverse cultures, to its abundant wildlife and in this case our free-roaming lions on communal land, commercial farm and National Parks. The Namibian public and the international community are thus called upon to ignore these inaccurate, false reports and assumptions on our lions and sustainable utilisation practices.
Warning: Do not handle processionary caterpillars as their hairs can cause irritation, burning and itching
The processionary caterpillar is the larval stage of the reticulate bagnest moth (Anaphe reticulata).
The name ‘bagnest’ is derived from the pupating stage of this moth’s life cycle, when the silken cocoons can be seen in a circular conglomeration on trees (‘bag nests’), held together by a silk mesh. Once the moth emerges from the cocoon, it lays eggs on trees and shrubs with palatable leaves.
A reticulate bagnest moth (Anaphe reticulata). Image source: N. Voaden courtesy of Africanmoths.com
After hatching from eggs, the caterpillars begin to feed on the leaves of their first host plant. Once having devoured that food source, they trail off in single file to their next meal, nose-to-tail and connected via a silk trail started by the leader. The leader will also make use of pheromones and chemical clues to show the way.
These long lines are most often seen during the colder months of the year. If the line is disrupted, the caterpillars become disoriented and the line will come to a complete stop before a new leader takes control and leads the way.
There are several species of processionary caterpillars in the world, all of them hairy. The hair is a defence mechanism from natural predators such as birds like tits and cuckoos. The caterpillar’s hairs are barbed and are considered dangerously toxic. Coming into contact with the hairs can cause a range of reactions, from mild inflammation and irritation to severe rashes and anaphylactic shock.
When they feel threatened or stressed, the caterpillars can eject their hairs in defence, which then penetrate and irritate all areas of exposed skin, followed by allergic reactions. They are considered particularly toxic for children and animals, such as dogs, who are often inquisitive of these small creatures and get too close to them.
Fortunately, the species in South Africa (including Anaphe reticulata), do not have the same level of toxicity in their hairs as other species (such as the ones found in Europe), and even in large groups, they do not present as a health hazard – although it is always wise to be cautious and not touch them.
Watch a video of the processionary caterpillars doing what they do best – marching in procession bumper to bumper
I’ve always thought Disney’s portrayal of Pumba in The Lion King is the epitome of a warthog. Working as a field guide I am fortunate enough to see these funny characters on a daily basis. To me, they are quite possibly the most comical of Africa’s mammals.
Inquisitive in nature, warthogs typically stare at you curiously as you approach them. This is usually followed by a short, loud snort as they turn on their heels and run away with their tails pointing straight up. Forget science for a moment and think of Pumba. It’s as though he suddenly remembers he is late for an appointment and has to dash off. No matter how bad your day, a running warthog will make you smile.
Back to science – despite their cuteness, warthogs are clearly well designed for combat. Warthogs are not territorial, but males will fight for mating rights.
The name warthog comes from warts found on the face. Sows have one pair of warts whilst boars have a second pair. The second pair of warts are much larger and aid in deflecting enemy tusks whilst fighting, thereby protecting the eyes.
It goes without saying that warthogs use their sharp tusks like swords in battle, but until recently I had never seen these weapons in use.
It was late in the afternoon as we left Berg-en-Dal camp in the Kruger National Park. In the distance, two boars knelt on their front legs facing one another. Snout to snout, forehead to forehead. Their muscles tensed and their bulky mass pushed forwards. The smaller of the two was missing his tail. Was this the scar of an earlier battle? Or had he previously had a close encounter with a predator?
Whichever it was, he was smaller and I didn’t fancy his chances.
We watched in fascinated silence. Every now and then dust would fly into the air as one of the boars flicked up his head in a sideways motion in an attempt to catch his opponent off balance and reach the fleshy underbelly with those deadly tusks.
On several occasions, the smaller of the two pigs was catapulted upwards and a shrill scream filled the air.
These flying lessons didn’t deter the smaller boar. He intermittently jousted back. It was then that we noticed just how sharp one of his tusks was. He may not have had the size or the power, but he was quicker and more agile than the bigger hog.
Both boars had blood-covered faces and it looked likely that this duel would not end until one of them was dead. The scene was an oxymoron; extremely difficult to watch but at the same time enthralling.
Suddenly there was a break in the wrestle and the larger pig turned on his heel and sprinted away. The smaller, tailless boar was hot on his heels. The warthogs quickly covered a surprising amount of ground and from our vantage point, we lost sight of the larger hog. The victor returned, tusks dripping with blood and his head held high.
Pumba may well portray one side to the warthog but there is certainly another side to these seemingly friendly pigs that is certainly not to be messed with!
Watch the video below of the two warthog boars battling it out
Travel in Africa is about knowing when and where to go, and with whom. A few weeks too early/late or a few kilometres off course, and you could miss the greatest show on Earth. And wouldn’t that be a pity?
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Dianne Tipping-Woods is a Hoedspruit-based journalist who tells stories about conservation, travel and development in South and southern Africa. Working for various international print and online publications, she writes about a wide range of issues and gets to explore some of the world’s most wild and beautiful places, sometimes with her two kids in tow. Endlessly inspired by the people she meets and the places she goes, every journey is a privilege and an opportunity to learn, grow and write!
I am a traveller in time and space with a passion for Africa, wildlife and adventure! I was born and raised in Bulgaria, but my heart is moulded in the shape of the African continent. I came to Cape Town after I graduated with my Masters Degree in Journalism in the Netherlands and ever since day one I have been in love with the Mother City.
Simon Espley is an African of the digital tribe, a chartered accountant and CEO of Africa Geographic. His travels in Africa are in search of wilderness, real people with interesting stories and elusive birds. He lives in Hoedspruit with his wife Lizz and two Jack Russells, and when not travelling or working, he will be on his mountain bike somewhere out there. His motto is ‘Live for now, have fun, be good, tread lightly and respect others. And embrace change.’
April Burt
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