Page 9 – Africa Geographic

Coronavirus has finally made us recognise that illegal wildlife trade is a public health issue

OPINION EDITORIAL by Simon Evans, Anglia Ruskin University

There will be few positives to take from coronavirus. But the global pandemic may yet prove to be an important moment in the attempts to address the illegal wildlife trade.

The media has generally concentrated on effects rather than causes, in particular the global implications for public health and economies. But it is also vital to unravel the timeline of the pandemic and categorically determine its initial cause.

What we do know to date is that the epicentre of the disease was in the Chinese city of Wuhan, an important hub in the lucrative trade in wildlife – both legal and illegal. The outbreak is believed to have originated in a market in which a variety of animal-derived products and meats are widely available, including peacocks, porcupines, bats and rats. It’s also a market where regulatory and welfare standards are rudimentary at best.

Some of this trade is legal under Chinese domestic law but the existence of a parallel illegal trade – often within the very same market or stall – allows some traders to launder illicit wildlife products into the system. This situation is very difficult to regulate and control.

We are also reasonably certain that the spill-over event involved the crossover of the virus from animals to humans, similar to the situation with previous contagions like the Ebola and SARs viruses. In each of these cases, the existence of large, unsanitary and poorly-regulated wildlife markets provided an ideal environment for diseases to cross over between species. In a country like China, where wildlife consumption is so deeply embedded in culture, such contamination can, and did, spread rapidly.

The Chinese government has long advocated a “sustainable utilisation” approach to the country’s wildlife. It nonetheless responded to the current crisis by enacting a temporary ban on such markets, effectively closing down a significant sector of its domestic wildlife trade.

Biosecurity, public health and economic impact

In the longer term, the pandemic may provide the impetus to properly address the issue. This is because, while the illegal wildlife trade was once criticised almost purely in terms of conservation, it is now also being considered in relation to broader themes of biosecurity, public health and economic impact.

It is only in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak that the full scale of China’s industry is emerging, with the temporary ban covering some 20,000 captive breeding enterprises and 54 different species allowed to be traded domestically. A report by the Chinese Academy of Engineering estimates the wildlife farming industry is worth around US$57 billion annually. These breeding centres are allowed to operate under loopholes in Chinese domestic law, arguably against the spirit of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.

The parallel illegal trade is less easy to quantify, but globally it is valued by the UN at around US$23 billion. Given the resulting pandemic could cost as much as US$2.7 trillion, even on purely economic grounds there is a strong case for increased regulation.

There are compelling arguments for dismantling the trade anyway: animals are kept in abject conditions, and the trade hastens their demise in the wild. But in China the temporary ban remains just that – temporary. Critics argue that we have been there before with SARS and once the dust settled on that particular outbreak, China resumed business as usual.

What would seriously tackling the wildlife trade actually mean in practice? First, breeding centres for endangered species like tigers or pangolins would be permanently closed. This would make it much harder for their products to be laundered through legal channels and sold as more valuable “wild-caught”. Enforcement agencies currently need to monitor these centres closely to check against laundering, and shutting them down would free up resources to disrupt the supply of illegal products entering China from outside.

Such a move would also help reduce demand. Public education campaigns tell people about how the wildlife trade (both legal and illegal) harms endangered species, but the message is mixed: the presence of a parallel legal market still provides such products with legitimacy and sends a message that it is OK to purchase them, thereby increasing rather than decreasing demand.

In any case, the new Chinese ban excludes products such as tiger bones that are used in traditional medicines. Some conservationists and activists are concerned that this exemption will lead to legalised trade under the assumption that better regulation will protect against future outbreaks. This argument is extremely difficult to validate, and most conservationists continue to favour blanket trade bans.

Another worry is that, given humans have short memories, once the danger has passed, public concern will turn to the next big problem. COVID-19 clearly represents an unparalleled opportunity to combat the wildlife trade and ensure that animal-borne diseases do not mutate and cross over to humans. But only time will tell whether this opportunity will be taken or put off once again until the emergence of the next – perhaps even more virulent – pandemic poses an even graver global threat.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Also read: COVID-19: Will African governments now crackdown on illegal wildlife trade?

Meet the lion coalitions & prides of the Greater Kruger

While in recent years lion numbers have plummeted throughout Africa, the lion populations in the Greater Kruger have done relatively well. The sizeable open system available to them has created the perfect backdrop to allow for their fortunes and catastrophes to play out mostly undisturbed by anthropogenic influence. Lion coalitions and prides have come and gone, and some have achieved celebrity status.

Throughout the years, these lion coalitions and prides have been named by the assorted guides, trackers and researchers that have spent time with them. Most of these names are in some way a reference to the area associated with the pride or the territorial region of the males, but some extend to slightly more imaginative references. Given the tendency of humans to name things this is hardly surprising, but less expected was how social media has created fans across the globe who follow, research and adore certain lion coalitions and prides, most often from afar.

Here are just a handful of examples of these lion celebrities – some living, some legend and some teetering on the edge of survival.

Mapogo Male Lions

No article on famous lions would be complete without mentioning one of the most famous lion coalitions of all time (certainly in South Africa). Born to the Sparta/Eyrefield pride of the Sabi Sands around 2001/2, the Mapogo male lions, six individuals in total, have become something of a legend to the point of inspiring their own movie – Brothers in Blood. Named after a security company known for using somewhat brutal methods, the Mapogo boys: Makhulu, Rasta, Pretty Boy, Kinky Tail and Satan/Mr T, began their reign of terror in 2006 as they set out to claim domination over a massive portion of land on the western edges of the Greater Kruger.

Like all legends, the lines between fact and fiction have blurred over time. Tales of their brutality have been exaggerated by many, but they were known to have killed at least 40 (if not more) other lions, including females and cubs.

Their fortunes changed in 2010 when the first of the coalition was killed and, though they stayed dominant, their territory diminished until the oldest remaining members of the coalition were inevitably pushed out by younger, stronger lions in 2012. The last remaining individual was seen in 2013.

A fight between Mapogo males near a Greater Kruger fenceline © Hannes Kruger

The Southern Matimba Male Lions

Initially a coalition of six male lions, the Matimba males ruled over the Manyeleti Game Reserve and surrounding areas in 2010 before splitting into two groups after the death of the oldest coalition member. The Southern Matimba coalition consisted of two individuals named Hairy-Belly and Ginger that initially established themselves in the southern portion of the Sabi Sands.

Quite apart from their extraordinary good looks, these two consummate survivors were exceptionally good at knowing when to fight and when to back down. As they aged, and whenever they found themselves outmatched, they shifted territories and set up in a different section of the Sabi Sands, somehow always managing to find themselves an area with limited competition. Ginger died in 2019 after contracting a severe mange infestation, but Hairy Belly continues to patrol his territory and mate, despite his advanced age.

The Ximhungwe Pride

The story of the Ximhungwe pride is a perfect example of how the fate of a lion pride can be inexorably linked to the changes in male lion dynamics. Initially the Castleton pride, their numbers boomed in 2006, and the pride numbered over 20 at one stage. The arrival of the Mapogos spelt disaster for this once massive pride – their numbers were decimated, and a combination of disease, bad luck and bad timing meant that the pride never managed to recover.

The remaining Ximhungwe females © Neil Jennings

In 2015, the last adult lioness was killed in a clash with a rival lion pride, leaving behind young lions barely old enough to survive on their own. Two of these young lionesses survived by remaining as secretive as possible for years before finally managing to establish themselves in Manyeleti where they remain around Dixie Dam, far from their natal home range.

The Styx Pride

Named after the Styx River of ancient Egyptian mythology due to their efficiency in dispatching prey to the afterlife, the Styx Pride have been consummate survivors despite facing considerable challenges. Chronic mange infestation has claimed the lives of many of their cubs and worsens every dry season. With the death of their oldest and most experienced pride member in 2019, and with new males posing a threat to their cubs, the pride became nomadic before finally seeming to settle (for now) around the Sand River towards the western edge of the Sabi Sands.

lion coaltions — Styx Pride lionesses and cubs © Brent Leo-Smith

The Birmingham Pride

Birmingham Pride – note the white cubs © Roan du Plessis

The Birmingham Pride currently roams the Ngala Private Game Reserve and Timbavati regions under the watchful eye of the Ross Male. This impressive and successful pride of 14 currently has two of the three wild white (leucistic) lions in the world – a young male of 18 months and a little female not quite a year old. Their arrival caused a buzz of excitement but, like all wild lion cubs, their survival depends upon the care and skill of the pride, the continued dominance of the Ross male and no small amount of luck.

Leucistic colouration is a rare recessive trait and not a separate species or sub-species. With only one exception, the Timbavati region is the home of the white lion gene pool, and it seems to flow strongly through the Birmingham Pride female line.

The Orpen Males

Junior and his coalition mate are perfect examples of how male lions are not necessarily particularly fussy when it comes to choosing coalition mates. More often than not, lion coalitions are formed when young male lions from the same pride – siblings and cousins – move away from their natal prides together. But this is not always possible. In Junior’s case, he was the only young male within his natal pride, when the Birmingham Males moved into the area and eventually forced him out.

During his nomadic wanderings, he encountered another young male, and the two found solace and support in each other. They are now the dominant males of a prime section of territory in Manyeleti Private Game Reserve and the Kruger National Park.

This is just a snapshot of some of the intricacies of lion coalitions and prides in the Greater Kruger. Unbeknownst to them, these lions have their own social media pages – with each individual’s photographs, movements and lineages documented with care and precision. This comprehensive, if somewhat piecemeal, record of their lives may not be good research material, but it certainly is a massive repository of information about the meta-dynamics of lions within the Greater Kruger.

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 16 – Gallery 2

Our Photographer of the Year 2020, with a stunning safari prize provided by Djuma Private Game Reserve, is now in full swing.
There are two galleries showcasing this week’s Weekly Selection. To see the other gallery click here: Gallery 1

? A young hyena is all ears as something catches its attention. Liuwa Plain National Park, Zambia © Andrew Macdonald

? A lioness and her cub enjoy a playful morning beside a river. Zimanga Private Game Reserve, South Africa © Anna-Carina Nagel

? A young mountain gorilla looks inquisitive as it grips a vine. Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park, Uganda © Arlette Magiera

? A pair of elephants stand silhouetted on the shores of Lake Kariba during an enchanting sunset. Matusadona National Park, Zimbabwe © Artur Stankiewicz

? A male leopard sleeps peacefully in a tree, warmed by his patch of sunlight. Eastern Linyanti, Botswana © Artur Stankiewicz

? A shelf cloud formation begins to form over the Karoo landscape. Loxton, South Africa © Bertus Hanekom

? A flap-necked chameleon displays the extent of its camouflage and balance as it perches on a dried flower head. Harare, Zimbabwe © Chris Collyer

? A curious juvenile vervet monkey. Lake Mburo National Park, Uganda © Christian Passeri

? A leopard leaps from a tree limb with its impala kill in a profound demonstration of strength. Khwai Concession, Botswana © Elena Hanak

? A pair of endangered reticulated giraffe. Samburu National Reserve, Kenya © Jane Wynyard

? A hunting squacco heron. Madikwe Game Reserve, South Africa © John Mullineux

? A dugong curls into a dive after surfacing for air. Marsa Alam, Egypt © Josef Kastner

? A spectacular sunset scene as a lone black rhino drinks at a waterhole. Namibia © Juan Venter

? A juvenile malachite kingfisher eagerly accepts a fish from its hardworking parent. Intaka Island, South Africa © Juan Venter

? The cauldron swirl, found along the short section of coastline in Arniston, South Africa © Juan Venter

? A southern ground-hornbill triumphs over its deadly puffadder prey. Kruger National Park, South Africa ©Maggie Griffiths

? Dust flies as two massive elephant bulls clash. Amboseli National Park, Kenya © Peter Derry

? A martial eagle proudly grips an unlucky genet with its sharp talons. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Peter Flanagan

? A young common genet, curled safely against its mother, peeks over the top of a branch. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Tim Taylor

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 16 – Gallery 1

? Dust kicked up by thousands of wildebeest hooves fills the air as they scrum through a river crossing. Serengeti National Park, Tanzania © Artur Stankiewicz

? The penetrating stare of a lioness. Liuwa Plain National Park, Zambia © Andrew Macdonald

? A white-fronted bee-eater tosses a butterfly into the air. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Juan Venter

? A male chimpanzee reveals his teeth as part of a complex system of communication through body language. Kibale National Park, Uganda © Christian Passeri

? Lionesses take refuge from overly excited hyenas on a flimsy pile of dead trees. Ngorongoro, Tanzania © Cole Stirling

? A Kenyan family navigates their way through rush hour traffic. Ukunda, Kenya © Dan Baciu

? A group of bull elephants pay their respects to a deceased elder. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Dawie Maree

? A thick-billed raven, the largest member of the corvid family. Simien Mountains National Park, Ethiopia © Franciscus Scheelings

? A young eastern lowland gorilla appears to extend a hand in disbelief while playing with his peers. Kahuzi Biega National Park, DRC © Jacha Potgieter

? An elephant curls its trunk and rests the massive weight on its tusks. Samburu National Reserve, Kenya © Jane Wynyard

? A male springbok perfectly reflected as it pauses briefly to drink. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Johan Jooste

? A male lion finds himself on the receiving end of the explosive fury of a lioness. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Johan Kloppers

? A black-winged stilt dips its head in search of a meal. Barberspan, South Africa © John Mullineux

? Tiny four-striped grass mice snack on yellow fynbos flowers. West Coast National Park, South Africa © John Mullineux

? A cheetah grips the throat of a springbok at the end of a successful hunt. Etosha National Park, Namibia © Josef Kastner

? A bee narrowly escapes flying directly into a Cape white-eye clinging patiently to an aloe flower. Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, South Africa © Juan Venter

? Play-fights between siblings give young lions a chance to let off some of their excess energy. Liuwa Plain National Park, Zambia © Andrew Macdonald

? A portrait of a painted wolf pup. Timbavati Private Nature Reserve, South Africa © Melinda Martin

? An unconcerned leopard poses during an evening rainstorm. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Paolo Torchio

American parrot breeder wants to import wild-caught African grey parrots for a captive breeding scheme for the pet trade

A permit application to import 4,000 African grey parrots into the United States – around half of them wild-caught – could pose a significant risk to the wild population through fuelling trade, say multiple international conservation bodies. The application came from a Miami bird-breeder Paul Marolf and South African breeders Ray O’Neill and Jason Mitchell, and submitted under the auspices of the Wild Bird Conservation Act (US Fish & Wildlife Services).

African grey parrots are among one of the most trafficked species on the planet, and their populations have declined drastically in the wild, with more than 3 million parrots having been removed from the wild legally in the last 40 years to supply the pet trade. This figure includes birds that die during the capture and transport process. The illegal trade is likely to be far higher than that, but the numbers are impossible to estimate. CITES regulations govern legal trade in African grey parrots, but high levels of fraud and corruption have resulted in rampant trafficking of illegal parrots via CITES channels.

The permit application proposal is for the creation of a co-operative breeding programme where the breeding stock would be acquired from CITES-registered facilities in South Africa to create a “self-sustaining population of grey parrots in the US”. The applicants claim that although they intend that half of the intended imports would be wild-caught parrots, these birds have long been removed from the wild and therefore their proposal will not impact on wild populations. They also argue that due to improper management, the captive-bred population of African grey parrots in the US is no longer viable and will disappear without this intervention and that establishing the captive-breeding programme will be a “boon” to the continued existence of the species.

To place the South African grey parrot breeding industry into perspective, the chairman of the Parrot Breeders Association of Southern Africa (PASA) recently resigned his position after investigators raided his parrot breeding aviaries and found the decomposing bodies of about 300 parrots, and cages infested with rats and cobwebs. According to news media reports, PASA insists that a well-known parrot vet confirmed that there was no abnormal mortality rate at his aviaries.

Dr Rowan Martin of the African conservation program of the World Parrot Trust says that “South Africa’s parrot breeding industry had grown massively in recent years, partly on the back of cheap imports of wild-caught parrots as breeding stock, which has decimated some wild populations.”

The World Parrot Trust disputes the claims made in the permit application proposal and suggests that allowing this import into the US could pose potential risks to wild parrot populations. Conservationists argue that the proposal lacks detail regarding how the genetic diversity of the breeding programme would be managed or how it would contribute to wild parrot conservation. Before the transfer of African grey parrots to Appendix I of CITES (thereby ceasing all legal trade in wild birds), South Africa was the largest importer of wild-caught parrots in the world. The proposal seeks to import parrots of unknown origin, and the World Parrot Trust emphasizes that there is no clarity on the relationship between captive-bred production and demand for wild-caught birds. What is clear is that the recent uplisting to Appendix I has not ended the illegal trade in parrots.

The permit application proposal for the captive breeding programme proposes to donate a portion of the income to “grey parrot conservation projects in situ”. However, the World Parrot Trust suggests that there is a “notable lack of how this fund will operate”.

The Humane Society International, Humane Society of the Us and Humane Society Legislative Fund have added their voices against granting the permits, as has World Animal Protection. They all point out that the African grey parrots have been, and continue to be, harmed by the exotic pet trade and that commercial captive breeding is not a conservation alternative. Also disputing the claims in the permit application were the Association of Zoo and Aquariums (AZA), WCS, Species Survival Network, IFAW, Centre of Biological Diversity, Environmental Investigation Agency, Natural Resources Defence Council, Defenders of Wildlife, Animal Welfare Institute, Avian Welfare Coalition, Wagmore Foundation, the Federation of Animals Sanctuaries and more than 17 rescue centres for parrots in the United States.

In a strongly worded letter to the US Fish and Wildlife Serve, the Environmental Investigation Agency and Centre for Biological Diversity made their position clear that “seeking to create yet another breeding programme that requires the import of 4,000 highly imperilled African grey parrots – almost half of which are wild-caught – to non-existent facilities operated by a single individual in the US with no track record of being able to successfully care for and breed grey parrots in captivity cannot be condoned under the WBCA”.

COVID-19: Will African governments now crackdown on illegal wildlife trade?

So, repeated warnings from scientists about China’s wild animal markets have been ignored and, as a result, we all have to bear the consequences and pay the price.

The loss of human life to Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is already significant (and rising), and the economic costs are probably going to be staggering, across the board. Yet this reality was far from unforeseen – this well-written and easy-to-understand New York Times article about zoonotic diseases from as far back as 2012 spells out the public health and economic risks of these markets and the burgeoning wildlife trade.

I have always maintained that the battle to keep our wildlife and hardwoods safe from the evil ones will only be adequately addressed if and when all governments (including African) step up and take action. Real action – as in shutting down the industries that facilitate the trafficking and consumption of wild ‘product’, including those with parallel markets that are hijacked by illegal traders for laundering purposes. Until then we are all just ‘pissing into the southeaster’, as the saying goes. Government priorities dictate conservation success or failure, that much is clear.

Based on my observations, biodiversity conservation is only vaguely interesting to governments because it underpins the tourism industry, which generates significant employment and tax revenue. It seems short- and medium-term jobs and revenue from environmentally detrimental industries such as mining, farming and manufacturing are far higher on the list of priorities.

THE BIG QUESTION

Now that we know that the trade in wildlife poses a significant risk to public health and economies, will Africa governments treat the issue more seriously?

We know that 75% of emerging infectious diseases in people come from animals, and bats harbour a higher proportion of zoonotic viruses than other mammals. Bat faeces on a piece of fruit eaten by another animal can result in that creature becoming a carrier. The Ebola epidemic of 2014-2016 in West Africa, the consequences of which reverberated around the Globe, is one example of a zoonotic virus emanating from African country communities that consume bushmeat in areas with rampant poaching.

I am under no illusion that the recent move by the Chinese authorities to ban the trade and consumption of wild animals was for any other reason than the immediate need to control the outbreak and thereby minimise the damage to their economy and political capital. This isn’t the first time Chinese officials have passed a law to protect their citizens against zoonotic viruses. In 2003 large numbers of caged civets were culled and their sale as food banned after it was discovered that they likely transferred the SARS virus to humans. The selling of snakes was also briefly banned in Guangzhou after the SARS outbreak. Today, civet and snake are back on the menu. In any case, China already has laws in place to ban the trade or eating of many species (such as pangolin), all of which are openly flouted. Says the South China Morning Post: “But the political will and capacity to enforce those laws often lags, undermining global efforts to curb issues like wildlife trafficking, air pollution and climate change.”

The wet and dry wildlife food and traditional medicine markets are big business in China, and pulling the plug on them will have such profound consequences that it may be an impossibility. Tandem to those markets is the US 74bn wildlife breeding farm industry (more than 20,000 farms have been shut down since the outbreak), which produces product such as bear bile, tiger bones, pangolin meat and scales, and porcupine meat. Despite the farms, it’s always going to be cheaper to process wild-caught animals into food and medicine than farmed animals because of the inherent costs of running a farming enterprise – hence the massive poaching drain on Africa’s wildlife now that the Asian wild areas have been all but denuded of wildlife.

To give you a further idea as to the extent of government inertia behind wildlife conservation efforts, even the demonstrated link between wildlife and charcoal trafficking and terrorism does not spur governments to take wildlife crime seriously.

THE ANSWER

What is needed is for African governments to overcome their cultural and economic fears of angering the mighty Chinese economic machine and that they (African governments) make the brave move to shut down the illegal wildlife industries that are draining our wildlife resources. This will not be an easy process, not the least because the Chinese government is already bankrolling some African countries. It’s not going to get any easier, and the longer the status quo continues, the harder it will be to break.

To date, wildlife activist campaigns have mostly focused on the moral aspects of the wildlife trafficking industry, and the threats to biodiversity. Perhaps they should shift focus to the threat to human lives and livelihoods. Maybe then African governments (including my own) will take this matter more seriously.

Keep the passion.

Simon Espley – CEO, Africa Geographic

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 15 – Gallery 2

? A powerful elephant bull exerts his authority with an intimidating warning charge. Serengeti National Park, Tanzania © Artur Stankiewicz

? A pied kingfisher selects an African clawed frog tadpole as its meal. Intaka Island Wetlands, Cape Town, South Africa © Braeme Holland

? A dramatic portrait of a male waterbuck. Chobe National Park, Botswana © Cheryl Cranfield

? A jumping spider clutches its meal. Grahamstown, South Africa © David Taylor

? A brave mob of suricates (meerkats) stand their ground against a black-backed jackal. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Hilda Le Roux

? A lioness disciplines her cubs with a snarl. South Luangwa National Park, Zambia © Istvan Keller

? A male lion possessively carries a zebra foal away to a spot where he can eat undisturbed. Pilansberg National Park, South Africa © Jann-Rick Louw

? A Rwandan park ranger on patrol in a bamboo forest. Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda © Marcus Westberg

? Dust fills the air as thousands of wildebeest begin a risky river crossing. Serengeti National Park, Tanzania © Artur Stankiewicz

? A sunrise view of Mount Karisimbi. Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda © Marcus Westberg

? A baby gorilla ensconced in the warmth and comfort of its mother’s embrace. Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, Uganda © Margaux Claret

? A panoramic view of the Cathedral Peak landscape. Drakensberg, Lesotho © Nick van de Wiel

? A baby vervet monkey finds itself covered in fruit during its mother’s lunch. Lake Manyara National Park, Tanzania © Sarina Rowley Roth

? A dark-coloured Cape cobra. Kalahari, South Africa © Thilo Beck

? The cascade of Sipi Falls, Uganda © Marcus Westberg

? Alert male fossa stalks across the ground, his footfalls softened by the leaf litter. Kirindy Mitea National Park, Madagascar © Timothy Portas

? A spotted hyena and topi silhouetted at sunrise. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Xavier Ortega

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 15 – Gallery 1

? A male lion lit by the sun as he feasts on an elephant carcass. Eastern Linyanti Waterfront, Botswana © Artur Stankiewicz

? The gaping jaws of a water monitor. Chobe National Park, Botswana © Cheryl Cranfield

? Massive granite boulders covered in a variety of colourful marine species, creating cave-like spaces and swim-throughs for species such as the Cape fur seal. Cape Town, South Africa © Geo Cloete

? A male African jacana hides his chicks. Chobe River, Botswana © John Mullineux

? The inscrutable stare of a wild chimpanzee. Kibale Forest, Uganda © Artur Stankiewicz

? A lioness and her curious cubs. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Licinia Machado

? A baboon seems to contemplate its existence from the comfort of a hanging vine. Mara Triangle, Kenya © Marcus Westberg

? The lightning-quick reflexes and agility of a ground squirrel are more than a match for the striking Cape cobra. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Dave Pusey

? Three Eastern lowland gorillas ascend the towering trees of Kahuzi-Biega National Park, DRC © Marcus Westberg

? A brown hyena carries off the rear half of an eland carcass, while three black-backed jackals continue to feed on their share. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Margie Botha

? A curious gecko peers out from a tree cavity. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Michael Bonnici Kind

? This portrait of a wild chimpanzee speaks of self-contained power and fierce intelligence. Kibale National Park, Uganda © Kyle Smith

? An African fish eagle attacks a marabou stork mid-flight. Chobe River, Botswana © Myer Bornstein

? A pangolin, successfully released back into the wild after being confiscated from poachers. © Francois Meyer

? The famous coalition of five cheetah males moves as one as they begin their hunt. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Suhaib Alvi

? A golden monkey peeps out at the photographer, its face reflecting the mossy green of its natural habitat. Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda © Marcus Westberg

? A bright-eyed tree frog. Ranomafana National Park, Madagascar © Timothy Portas

? A majestic male lion stands proud and regal, scanning his surroundings with a piercing gaze. Serengeti National Park Tanzania © Yaron Schmid

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Bountiful Busanga

Kafue National Park is the oldest park in Zambia and one of the largest in Africa, representing 36% of Zambia’s total national park coverage. Kafue is part of the five-country Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area – an unspoilt wilderness with an extraordinary diversity of wildlife. Mass tourism does not occur here, so the bush is pure and unexplored, infrastructure is sparse, and visitor numbers are low. With vast tracts of pristine bushveld, Kafue National Park is one of our favourite places, and this time we were set to explore Busanga Plains in the far north.

In the northern portion of the park, Busanga Plains is the jewel of Kafue. The Lufupa River flows into the Busanga Swamps and wide-open spaces flood during the rainy season, generating lush grazing for an array of wildlife. The vast mosaic of grassy seasonal floodplains stretches to the horizon – this is undoubtedly the best place for wildlife viewing in Kafue. The 720km² (72,000 hectares) of floodplains are dotted with palm groves, papyrus reed beds, lily-covered lagoons, woodlands, open waterways and riverine vegetation. As the plains drain after the rainy season, they attract large numbers of wildlife and fantastic birdlife, including huge herds of near-endemic red lechwe, as well as puku, massive herds of buffalo, blue wildebeest, Lichtenstein’s hartebeest, defassa waterbuck and more solitary grazers such as roan and oribi. Attracted by rich pickings, predator numbers are substantial. Lions, side-striped jackals, caracals, serval and genets are regulars, and you often find yourself being serenaded by hyenas at dinner.

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Being submerged for most of the year, these flooded plains are a magnet for birds. The water, islands of fig trees and floodplains make for superb birding, and more than 500 bird species have been recorded here. The plains are home to large flocks of open-billed and yellow-billed storks, as well as grey crowned cranes and their rarer relatives, the wattled crane. Keen birders can look out for Fülleborn’s longclaw and, for the more fortunate, the rosy-throated longclaw and the endemic Chaplin’s barbet.

We were at Busanga Plains Camp, a beautiful seasonal bush camp in the north of Busanga Plains. The camp overlooks the openness of the plains, interrupted only by tree-studded islands, where fig trees and wild date palms draw their nutrients from the remains of giant anthills. Our favourite part of camp was a wooden viewing platform on stilts tucked away up high in a majestic fig tree, with breath-taking views out onto the floodplain.
In the morning mist, as the sun peaked above the horizon, the plains were liberally dotted with herds of red lechwe of various ages and sizes, from newborn to battle scared grandparents, and every size in-between. Many of the herds numbered in their hundreds. Amongst these herds, there were a sprinkling of wattled and crowned cranes, many with young in attendance. With their sharp, slim beaks and slender legs, wattled cranes are the largest cranes in Africa and the tallest flying bird on the continent. Listed as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, wattled cranes are often found with lechwe on the plains, and it is one of their few known breeding sites.

The floodplains ensure a wide range of species and experiences

Crowned cranes, with their crowns of stiff gold feathers, are regularly seen on the plains. Standing about a metre tall and with a wingspan of around two metres, these cranes are omnivores, eating anything from plants and seeds to frogs, small fish and even snakes. Stamping their feet as they walk, they flush out insects which they quickly catch and eat. They capitalise on feeding near the red lechwe by darting in and grabbing prey disturbed by the antelopes’ movements. Crowned cranes’ entire days are spent looking for food, but at night they roost in trees. These are only cranes that can roost in trees because they have a long hind toe for grasping branches.
As the sun rose in the sky, we found a pride of eight lions – two females with their six cubs. The cubs were intensely curious, coming in close to sniff the wheels and then stretching out to relax in the shade cast by the vehicle. One youngster, clearly a little bored, took hold of a large round ball of elephant dung in his mouth and carried it off to play with. Despite his best efforts, he couldn’t interest anyone else in the game.

In the afternoon, a goliath heron stood sentinel in a lagoon as Egyptian geese nibbled at the green grass in the shallows. A pied kingfisher, with its black mask, hovered with wings frantically flapping before diving time and again vertically into the water. A procession of buffalo, over a thousand-strong, stretched out for kilometres across the plains like a string of black pearls.

Moving on we headed for the southernmost edges of the plains, to Ntemwa-Busanga Camp, a rustic bush camp of safari tents with open-air en suite bathrooms, each complete with the traditional safari ‘bucket showers’. Zambia is one of few places where night drives are permitted in national parks, and Ntemwa has access to an extensive network of roads that cover the expanse of the plains. The late afternoon and night drives were terrific here. Watching an idyllic scene of Egyptian geese, storks, cranes and various other water birds at a lagoon as the sun went down was a beautiful end to the day. As night descended, we saw a selection of nocturnal creatures on our drive, from a white-tailed mongoose rummaging in the undergrowth, to genets whose eyes reflected in the spotlight, all accompanied by the eerie cries of the crowned cranes piercing the night sky as they settled in the treetops as darkness descended over the plains.

Ntemwa-Busanga Plains Camp offers rustic comfort in the middle of the wilderness

We didn’t have to head out of the camp to find wildlife. At Ntemwa hyenas came into camp at night to check out what was on the menu in the kitchen before leaving ‘empty-handed’ (fortunately)! One morning, as we headed from our tent to breakfast, we found a trail of lion footprints pressed into the sand along the footpath. There was clearly a sound reason why we were always escorted to our tents at night!

Busanga Plains is one of those special places of low-density tourism, in a world where many ‘remote’ places are becoming overrun by travellers. Fortunately, due to its remoteness, inaccessibility and limited accommodation options, it’s likely to remain that way.

Want to go on safari to Busanga? To find lodges, search for our ready-made packages or get in touch with our travel team to arrange your safari, scroll down to after this story.

Poachers kill white giraffes in Kenya

Poachers have killed the only known female white giraffe in Kenya, and her calf, at a remote community conservancy in Kenya. The celebrated white reticulated giraffes of Kenya have been dealt a devastating blow, as now only a bull giraffe remains of the group.

Conservancy manager Mohammed Ahmednoor said that a search team found only the bones of the two poached giraffes.

“This is a very sad day for the community and Kenya as a whole. Her killing is a blow to the steps taken by the community to conserve rare and unique species and a wake-up call for continued support to conservation efforts,” said Mr Ahmednoor in a statement.

The discovery of the white giraffes in 2017 put the remote community conservancy on the global map and had local community members, tourists and scientists flocking to see them. The female gave birth to a calf in August 2019, bringing the population of these white reticulated giraffe to three.

The white giraffes have a genetic condition called ‘leucism’ which inhibits skin cells from producing pigment. Leucism results in a partial or total loss of pigmentation – resulting in patches of white colouring in fur or feathers. Leucines, unlike albino animals, have normal-coloured eyes, and may or may not have normally coloured legs and beaks. Leucistic animals and birds do produce melanin (unlike albinos which produce no melanin), BUT the condition prevents melanin from being deposited in the fur or feathers. Read The Black & White of African Wildlife Explained.

“This is a long-term loss given that genetic studies and research which were a significant investment in the area have now gone down the drain. Also, the white giraffe was a big boost to tourism in the area. After this incident, only a lone bull remains,” Mr Ahmednoor added.

Giraffes are listed as ‘Vulnerable’ according to IUCN, which means that they are vulnerable to extinction in the near future. There are four distinct giraffe species in Africa, and two of these species have two and three subspecies respectively.

Reticulated / Somali giraffe (Giraffa reticulata) has brown-orange patches which are clearly defined by a network of thick and striking white lines. This species is found predominantly in central, north and northeastern Kenya, with small populations and range persisting in southern Somalia and southern Ethiopia. It has been estimated that about 8,700 individuals remain in the wild – down from an approximate 31,000 as recently as 1998. Read more about giraffes here.

What exactly is CITES and how does it work?

Created as the brainchild of the IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature) in the 70s, CITES makes environmental news headlines regularly, often with highly polarizing results. There are, however, several misconceptions surrounding this tool of the wildlife conservation industry and, as a result, its guiding principles tend to be lost beneath the layers of opposing conservation perspectives.

CITES founding philosophy

The treaty provides the following guidance as to its aim, operation, and how it should be interpreted:

Recognizing that wild fauna and flora in their many beautiful and varied forms are an irreplaceable part of the natural systems of the earth which must be protected for this and the generations to come;
Conscious of the ever-growing value of wild fauna and flora from aesthetic, scientific, cultural, recreational and economic points of view;
Recognizing that peoples and States are and should be the best protectors of their wild fauna and flora;
Recognizing, also, that international cooperation is essential for the protection of certain species of wild fauna and flora against over-exploitation through international trade; Convinced of the urgency of taking appropriate measures to this end;

CITES is a treaty, not an organization

CITES stands for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora; in other words, it is a multinational treaty of enormous scope that regulates international trade to avoid the over-exploitation of both animals and plants. As the name suggests, the ultimate intention behind the treaty is to protect endangered species, rather than control the actions of the member state, hence the Appendix listings (see below). At the time of writing, almost every sovereign state in the world is a party to the treaty, meaning that they have ratified the treaty and are, in theory, bound by its provisions. (A conversation around the nuances of international law is beyond the scope of this article).

It falls to the member states to use the treaty provisions and appendixes as guidance for creating their national laws and policies surrounding trade in animals and plants.

Not just about elephants and pangolins

When issues surround CITES surface and make headlines, they are almost always centred around the more contentious issues involving well-known animal species. The trade in ivory or rhino horn is a good example of this. While these issues rightly cause enormous consternation, the ambit of CITES goes far beyond these matters and provides a legal framework for the protection of more than 35,000 plant and animal species – meaning that it governs everything from the trade in furniture and musical instruments made from rare woods to trading in corals or caviar.

The Appendixes

CITES does not control all international trade in wild species – the basic starting point is that all trade is allowed unless an animal or plant is in some way threatened and is placed under one of three appendixes to the treaty.

Appendix 1 – species threatened by extinction or by trade, such as cheetahs, chimpanzees and pangolins. Trade in animals listed under Appendix 1 is almost entirely banned except under exceptional circumstances, and both export and import permits are required. Any captive-bred animals are treated under the auspices of Appendix 2.
Appendix 2 – species whose numbers could become threatened if subject to uncontrolled trade. Only an export permit is required for trading in animals and plants listed under this appendix.
Appendix 3 – species included at the request of a member state wanting the cooperation of other countries to control exploitation.

It is for the member states to issue export and import permits (these can be subject to CITES scrutiny), but they are under an obligation to ensure that the species was legally obtained and should issue permits only if doing so will not be detrimental to the survival of the species. Although not mentioned explicitly by the treaty itself, a quota system is used to control trade – the member states put forward their suggested quota number that is subject to CITES approval. As a brief side note – if an animal’s listing is changed (for example, due to declining numbers, it is moved from Appendix 2 to Appendix 1), a country may enter what is known as a Reservation – essentially meaning that they object to this classification for whatever reason and that they do not consider themselves to be bound by the reduced trade. This is what the Democratic Republic of Congo did in the case of the trade in the African Grey Parrot.

Conference of Parties

Every three years, the parties to the convention (the signatory countries) meet to review the implementation of the Convention. It is here that the Appendix listing of individual species is revised as an ongoing discussion as to their numbers and the success (or otherwise) of conservation efforts). The states can also make recommendations to improve the efficiency of the implementation of the treaty.

Three permanent committees support the Conference of Parties: the Standing, Plant and Animal Committees, created from representatives of the Parties that exist to deal with the day-to-day operation of CITES, creating a budget and standing groups as well as providing advice regarding species numbers. Only sovereign states are parties to the CITES treaty (some international treaties do include signatories from other international bodies), but the CoP events are attended by observers from non-governmental organizations involved in conservation or trade, as well as several UN agencies. These groups can participate in the meetings but are not allowed to vote in the proceedings. The next Conference of Parties will be held in 2022.

Limitations

Quite aside from the more philosophical debates about sustainable use, CITES has the inherent limitations of any instrument of international law. There is no central enforcement agency, so infractions of state parties must be dealt with through more political and economic measures. In theory, Parties to the statute are required to have both Management and Scientific Authorities; laws prohibiting any trade in violation of CITES; penalties in the case of such trade; and laws providing for the confiscation of specimens, yet many Parties face severe challenges in this regard. If a Party is found to be in contravention of the treaty, the CITES Secretariat can recommend that other state Parties suspend all CITES-related trade.

CITES is a treaty related purely to the regulations of trade – it does not extend to conservation issues relating to habitat-loss or socio-economic challenges of wilderness areas.

Final word

As mentioned, the philosophy behind CITES aside, CITES is an international treaty and should be viewed as such. Countries are not forced to enter into an international agreement – they chose to do so and must face the responsibilities that choice confers. This does not necessarily mean agreement with every decision or restriction but rather, using the existing frameworks to voice those disagreements, as well as working towards international cooperation to guard against the over-exploitation of animal and plant species. The full treaty text can be found here.

CITES processes are corrupt, says report

In a recent report, TRAFFIC highlights how corruption undermines the CITES processes and regulations, using specific examples of abuse of the documentation process. The study was part of the USAID-funded Targeting Natural Resource Corruption project aimed at strengthening anti-corruption knowledge and practices and recommends several ways of reducing the risks.

Regulated by CITES, the trade in fauna and flora species listed under the three Appendices requires various types of formal documentation including both export and import permits, certificates of various forms and notifications to the Member States. Permits and certificates are issued by the Management Authorities of specific countries and are, in theory, backed by the Scientific Authority that must confirm that the species concerned was not illegally obtained and that the trade will not be detrimental to its overall conservation. It is within this documentation process that the highest potential for abuse of the regulations arises.

Rather than focussing on illegal trade that seeks to avoid all formal forms of inspection (smuggling), the report examines situations where the trade masquerades as legal. Several reports and specific case studies were analysed to understand the methods behind the abuse of the documentation processes, as well as how corruption facilitates this practice.

TRAFFIC identifies several different methods of abuse of CITES documentation, including:

The intentional declaration of false information on the documents such as misleading information on specific species identification, quantities, the source of the species and the value of the contents.
Altered documentation such as using originally authentic permits but changing parts of the vital information to allow for the trade in species that might otherwise not have been issued a permit.
Unofficial payment for documents to officials at various levels
Counterfeit documents, often of a very high quality
Re-using or photocopying documents and the use of expired or stolen documents

The report includes specific examples where corruption has been exposed, and each provides different insights into the multitude of ways in which corrupt parties can manipulate the system. In 2011 in Guinea, permits were issued for the export of captive-bred apes despite the complete absence of any captive breeding centres in the country itself. This case eventually resulted in the arrest and prosecution of the head of the CITES Management Authority of Guinea. In the Democratic Republic of Congo, a permit was legally issued for the export of 100 red-fronted parrots but was then modified to allow for the export of 200 African grey parrots. In South Africa and Vietnam, an expose revealed corrupt practices regarding the trade in rhino horn. Corrupt professional hunters were alleged to have obtained permits under false pretences for “pseudo-hunting” – where the intention was always to trade the horn commercially. On the Vietnam side, the horn was seldom declared, and the CITES documents were consistently re-used until they expired.

In all illegal wildlife trade, corruption is identified as a key enabling factor, and while it is difficult to estimate the scale and reach, the abuse of CITES documentation processes is facilitated by corruption in various forms from junior right to senior management positions. The issuing of documentation places certain individuals in positions of power that could be subject to temptation or threats.

The report recommends several strategies to tackle the various forms of corruption, while also acknowledging the realities of the situations in different countries. The report emphasises that the prosecution of corrupt officials is vital not only to punish those responsible but to create an environment where corruption is not tolerated. Unfortunately, the report acknowledges that, at present, such investigations rarely result in the prosecution of a high-level government official. The report also calls for capacity building within the countries concerned, which includes ensuring that officials have adequate scientific knowledge and technical expertise to prevent and detect instances of abuse.

On a more immediate level, electronic permits and fraud-proof systems and technologies could go a long way to reduce the opportunity for corrupt interactions, as well as to make it more difficult to falsify permits. The eCITES initiative aims to streamline and automate CITES permit structures.

The report emphasises the need for comprehensive protocols, including checks and balances, to reduce the risk of corruption which undermines the integrity of the CITES system. However, this relies heavily on the commitment and capacity of specific countries.

The report was compiled by Willow Othwaite, who is the Research and Analysis Senior Programme Officer of TRAFFIC, and TRAFFIC itself is a non-governmental organisation working to ensure the maintenance of biodiversity and sustainability in the trade in wildlife and plant species. They work in strategic partnerships with CITES organisations and other environmental organisations to provide the necessary research and statistics to direct decision-makers and policy.

The full report can be read here: Addressing corruption in CITES documentation processes, W Outhwaite, TRAFFIC, March 2020

Maasai Mara

The Maasai Mara ecosystem is one of the most famous wilderness areas in Africa and one that attracts visitors from near and far. The breathtaking view of the sunrise from Oloololo (Siria) Escarpment, some 2,000m above sea level and 300m above the plains below, was forever etched into human memory by the film “Out of Africa”. Below the mountains, the Mara River winds its serpentine route to the south, hidden beneath groves of riverine trees, and the fields of red oat grass stretch as far as the eye can see. It is from here that one can really understand why the Maa people of the area referred to this place as “Mara”, which, literally translated, means “spotted” or “mottled” – concerning the trees and clumps of vegetation that dot the landscape.

Scenically, the Maasai Mara is one of the most beautiful places on the planet. The dawn light is a photographer’s dream: golden and soft. Rather than detracting from the natural beauty, the multicoloured hot air balloons drifting silently through the air add something fantastic to the morning atmosphere. For centuries, the Maasai people have shared this land with their wild neighbours – look carefully, and you will find the ancient grooves of the cattle paths worn by millions of bovine hooves marking the routes to salt licks still used today. Look even more carefully, and you might just find an abandoned old Volkswagen bus hidden in a secret valley known only to a few observant or lucky souls.

The facts

The combined area under conservation in the Maasai Mara ecosystem in Narok County amounts to almost 3,000km² (300,000 hectares), which is split evenly between the Maasai Mara National Reserve (150,000 hectares) and various community-owned conservancies that share unfenced boundaries. This Maasai Mara ecosystem shares unfenced borders with Loita Plains to the north and east and the Serengeti to the south, in Tanzania.
The Mara Triangle on the western bank of the Mara River comprises one-third of the Maasai Mara National Reserve. It is run by the TransMara County Council and managed by the Mara Conservancy. The remaining two-thirds of the Reserve, on the eastern side of the Mara River, is run by the Narok County Council.
Community-owned conservancies currently make up more than 140,000 hectares, with additional land under negotiation. The current conservancies are:

Olare Motorgi	133km² (13,000 hectares)
Mara North	260km² (26,000 hectares)
Lemek	24km² (2,400 hectares)
Naboisho	200 km² (22, 000 hectares)
Enonkishu	40km² (4,000 hectares)
Ol Kinyei	70km² (7,000 hectares)
Nashulai	24 km² (2,400 hectares)
Olchorro Oirowua	64 km² (6,400 hectares)
Olderkesi	100 km² (10,000 hectares)
Oloisukut	93km² (9,300 hectares)
Pardamat Conservation Area	260km² (26,000 hectares)
Siana	40km² (4,000 hectares)
Olarro North and South	100km² (10,000 hectares)

The concept of individually- or community-owned conservancies should be considered a Kenyan conservation success story. The rangelands surrounding the National Reserve were once cattle grazing lands, but now the communities of landowners rent out the land to tourism operators, and the wildlife is protected. Tourists that visit the conservancies play an enormous role in ensuring the future of these protected wilderness areas by ensuring a continuous revenue stream for the local communities. Given that the use of the land is reserved for paying tour operators, it also means that visitors to these areas are treated to a more exclusive safari experience. With over 65% of Kenyan wildlife existing outside of government-protected wilderness areas, it is easy to see why conservancies will be critical to conservation efforts in the future.

Beyond the migration

The Great Migration is one of nature’s greatest spectacles. Every year from around July until October, over a million wildebeest, zebra, topi, eland and Thomson’s gazelle make the treacherous journey from the Serengeti into Maasai Mara. Driven by their quest for food, they flow across the landscape and are forced across crocodile-infested rivers: battling currents and leaping over hippo only to be forced to dodge the predators waiting on the opposite bank. It is a chaotic, adrenaline-inducing smorgasbord of survival instincts on a knife-edge and the predators throw themselves into the melee with joyous abandon, so witnessing a kill is almost guaranteed.

That said, there is far more to the Maasai Mara than the migration. All year round, wildlife enthusiasts are treated to spectacular sightings of the Big 5 and the cheetah sightings are astounding – the now-renowned of five males deserving of a special mention. The Mara is home to some of the largest hyena clans in Africa, and while the highly endangered black rhino number only a few, they are there for those who know where to look. Many visitors have found themselves delighted not only by the larger animals but also by courageous jackal, cheeky bat-eared foxes and graceful serval, as well as the striking crowned cranes and ubiquitous secretary birds.

The experience

From rustic campsites to lodges that epitomize luxury, the Maasai Mara has something to offer every taste (and an array of varied budgets), but the knowledge of experienced guides can make the difference between a good safari and a once-in-a-lifetime adventure. Guides know the weather, the area, the best (and worst) roads and the animals, and they can use that information to make informed decisions. A canny visitor (or guide) can use the topography to their advantage during the high tourist season by using crests and viewpoints to spot sightings from a distance but during the quieter times, finding animals often requires more effort and skill. A particularly good time to visit the Mara is just after the departure of the migration: the grass is shorter; the predators often experience a ‘baby-boom’, and there is far less pressure from other safari vehicles.

The Mara is enormous and covering ground is essential to experiencing the beauty of this ecosystem in its entirety. The days may be long, but nothing is as refreshing as lunching beneath the boughs of an ancient fig tree, languishing in its shade and perhaps speculating as to how much history the fig has witnessed over its long life. The rains are biannual – the “short rains” usually arrive around November and dissipate sometime in January and then the “long rains” begin again in April until around June. The weather, however, is unpredictable and torrential downpours and afternoon thunderstorms are not uncommon. Getting stuck up to the axles in black cotton soil is part of the Mara experience and should simply be accepted in the spirit of adventure.

For the most part, the afternoon thunderstorms dissipate just in time for another Mara treat: the sunset. With the dust of the day washed away by the rain, the landscape is once again drenched in gold, this time with the faintest of pinkish hues. The extraordinary beauty of the Maasai Mara and its abundance of wildlife make it deserving of its reputation as one of the most exceptional safari experiences in Africa.

Want to go on safari to Maasai Mara? To find lodges, search for our ready-made packages or get in touch with our travel team to arrange your safari, scroll down to after this story.

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 14 – Gallery 1

Our Photographer of the Year 2020, with a stunning safari prize provided by Djuma Private Game Reserve, is now in full swing. Here is this week’s selection:

? A lioness walks through the burnt vegetation, perfectly contrasted against the scorched earth. Phinda Private Game Reserve, South Africa © Alexandre van Dievoet

? A pair of zebra look out across the pink sand lilies. Liuwa Plain National Park, Zambia © Andrew Macdonald

? A glowing yellow full moon makes for a perfect silhouette. Montenegro, Kunene Region, Namibia © Ben McRae

? A group of armed warriors stand silhouetted against a dramatic sky. Omo Valley, Ethiopia © Kevin Dooley

? A serval launches into the perfect pounce to ambush its unsuspecting prey from above. Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe © Blade Bester

? Male lions frozen in a brief burst of fury, teeth bared and claws extended. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Corlette Wessels

? The golden spiral of a sleeping dwarf chameleon’s tail. Natal Midlands, KwaZulu Natal, South Africa © Courtney Robert Hundermark

? Love is a battlefield for these three lions. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Xavier Ortega

? A Kenyan girl playing with a tyre on the white sands of Diani Beach, Kenya © Dan Baciu

? A spotted bush snake pokes its head out from a kudu lily. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Daniel Koen

? A rufous-naped lark completes its display by fluttering and rattling its wings. Pilansberg National Park, South Africa © Japie Bornman

? A flamboyance of flamingo silhouetted in a Walvis Bay lagoon, Namibia © Jenny Rood

? A young woman prepares grain for the local market. Ethiopia © Kevin Dooley

? A family of bamboo lemurs huddle together in the forest treetops. Andasibe National Park, Madagascar © Laurent Morax

? A lion cub practices the skills vital to its future survival on a Thomson’s gazelle fawn. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Xavier Ortega

? A lion cub rests on the neck of the giraffe it has been feasting on. Savuti, Botswana © Margie Botha

? A nocturnal sportive lemur peers out from its hiding position in the late afternoon. Western Madagascar © Neville Jones

? The mottled colouring of a marbled tree snake. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Sophie Brown

? A leopard stalks its warthog prey from atop an anthill. Okavango Delta, Botswana © Tami Walker

? A symmetry of horns as a pair of evenly-matched impala rams engage in battle. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Tristan Masterton

? An African darter opens its throat wide to swallow a tiger fish. Chobe River, Botswana © Willem Kruger

? A mother raises her baby to greet a new day. Ethiopia © Kevin Dooley

? A handsome pair of male lions affectionately affirm their brotherly bond. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Xavier Ortega

? A large rinkhals rears up and flares its hood in a very effective threat display. Magaliesburg, Gauteng, South Africa © Courtney Robert Hundermark

? A cattle herder warms himself by his fire and prepares for a hard day’s work. Ethiopia © Kevin Dooley

? A flat-tailed gecko exquisitely camouflaged against a mossy branch. Maosala Rain Forest National Park, Madagascar © Laurent Morax

? Black-backed jackals bare their teeth during a feeding frenzy over an eland carcass. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Willem Kruger

Newly discovered Taita Mountain dwarf galago (bushbaby) could already be on the brink of extinction

A team of researchers based at the University of Helsinki Taita Research Station in Kenya have confirmed the survival of what they believe to be a scarce species of bushbaby – the Taita Mountain dwarf galago (Paragalao sp.). The first reports of this tiny, secretive primate living in Kenya’s Taita Hills were made in 2002, but at the time the scientists were unable to secure a thorough identification, though biologists recognised that they were most likely a new, undescribed mammal species.

The Taita Hills are part of the Eastern Arc Mountains and include several fragmented montane forests that are home to several endemic species. The fact that 98% of these forests have been destroyed due to the spread of agricultural land had researchers fearing for the survival of the Taita Mountain dwarf galago. During 2019, they set about searching the five largest remaining forest fragments and found small surviving bushbaby populations in two: the Ngangao and Mbololo Forests.

Certain dwarf or lesser galagos are notoriously difficult to observe and identify. In essence, they are cryptic and nocturnal, and most researchers use their calls to distinguish between species in the field (the alternative method of examining their unique genitals is more difficult to execute). In analysing their calls, researchers believe that the Taita Mountain dwarf galago is related to the Kenya coast dwarf galago – Paragalago cocos – which are only found at low elevations.

Bushbaby researchers were able to make some progress in observing the natural behaviours of the dwarf galagos – they were seen using tree hollows as sleeping spots during the day, as well as hunting insects around small trees. On three occasions, wood owls were seen hunting the galagos, and one of these attempts was successful.

Critically, the researchers call for urgent molecular analysis, ecology investigation and estimates of the population to assess the taxonomic classification of the species. This is vital to ensure it receives the correct IUCN Red List classification and the associated protection. The observed Nangao Forest population numbered less than ten individuals. The researchers stress the desperate need to protect the remaining forest fragments in the Taita Hills as these tiny galagoes, not even fully described, already seem to be on the brink of extinction.

The full report from the researchers on some of their observations is available here: Taita Mountain dwarf galago is extant in the Taita Hills of Kenya
H Rosti, J Rikkinen, T Pellikka

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 13 – Gallery 2

? An East African gaboon viper lies motionless amongst leaf litter waiting for its next meal. St Lucia, KwaZulu Natal, South Africa © Tyrone Ping

? A lion cub hones the hunting instincts ingrained since birth. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Xavier Ortega

? A brand-new giraffe calf wobbles to its feet for a drink just after birth. Olare Motorogi Conservancy, Kenya © Yaron Schmid

? A spotted hyena showing off an impressive set of teeth. Liuwa Plain National Park, Zambia © Andrew Macdonald

? Dozens of African grey parrots in flight. Odzala Kokoua National Park, Republic of Congo © Antoine Ede

? An Ethiopian wolf on alert. Bale Mountains National Park, Ethiopia © Franciscus Scheelings

? A pair of cheetah siblings share a tender moment. Mara North Conservancy, Kenya © Jacques-Andre Dupont

? A black-backed jackal grips tightly onto its prey. Mara North Conservancy, Kenya © Jacques-Andre Dupont

? A wide-eyed African wild cat. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Jenny Andersen

? An old male lion covered in blood as it feasts on an eland. Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Jens Cullmann

? A pack of painted wolves tear apart their baboon kill. Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Jens Cullmann

? A glowing Namibian sunset. Namib Rand Reserve, Namibia © Lambert Heil

? The watchful gaze of a chimpanzee observing a troop member through the dense foliage. Budongo Forest, Uganda © Patrice Quillard

? A pangolin in the wild peers over a tree trunk. South Africa © Richard Visser

? A tiny elephant shrew takes in the view. Tuli Game Reserve, Botswana © Saul Rivkind

? A spotted hyena cub rests on its mother at their den site. Timbavati Nature Reserve, South Africa © Stephen Lee Sun

? A satanic leaf-tailed gecko at night. Ranomafana National-Park, Madagascar © Timothy Portas

Spotted hyena

The spotted hyena (Crocuta crocuta) is one of the world’s most misunderstood animals. Public perception often tends towards scorn and even outright hate – they are reviled as cowardly, thieving, dirty, ugly, lazy…the list goes on. These impressions are embedded in human history and public consciousness then reinforced by mainstream media and films. Fortunately, though, more and more people are coming to appreciate hyenas for the fascinating creatures they are. Regardless, misconceptions about hyena abound. Spotted hyenas are extraordinarily complex: they defy most natural ‘rules’ and research that might apply to hyena in one part of Africa might not be born out in their behaviour elsewhere. They are so highly adaptable and varied that generalizations are inappropriate, especially given that certain aspects of their lives are still being researched and are are not fully understood.
Quick facts:
– Social structure: a clan of anywhere from under 20 to over 100 individuals
– Mass: between 50 – 85 kg (East African spotted hyenas tend to be smaller than those in southern Africa.)
– Shoulder height: between 70-90cm (as above)
– Gestation period: 110 days
– Litter size: 1 or 2 cubs (3 rarely)
– Average life expectancy: debated, probably area-dependent but around 12 years in the wild, 20 in captivity

Spotted hyenas in action. Left) © Caleb Shepard. Right) © Margie Botha

Taxonomy

There are four extant species of hyena: the spotted hyena (Crocuta crocuta), the brown hyena (Parahyaena brunnea), the striped hyena (Hyaena hyaena) and the aardwolf (Proteles cristatus). Despite their dog-like appearance, all members of the hyena family (Hyaenidae) are more closely related to the genet (Viverridae) and mongoose (Herpestidae) families, as part of the Feliformia (cat-like) sub-order of Carnivora.

The basics

Spotted hyenas are the most abundant large predator in Africa, and though populations are fragmented, they are found in savannah and forest habitats throughout most of sub-Saharan Africa. They live in social units called clans of anything from a handful of individuals to over a hundred – consisting of several unrelated females and their offspring (matrilineal lines), as well as immigrant males from outside clans.

Despite their reputation as scavengers, they are able and efficient predators in their own right and in some parts of their range, they hunt over 90% of the food that they consume. Their large hearts relative to their body size allow spotted hyena the extra stamina necessary to exhaust their prey during a relentless chase. They adapt their strategy depending on the prey and use mud, rain, rocks or water to their advantage, either individually or in groups, which allows them to hunt and catch larger prey species. Spotted hyenas are also opportunists and will scavenge or steal from other predators. They are not alone in this – all predators steal from other predators if conditions suit them; lions often more so due to their sheer bulk.

Reproduction

Hyena cubs peaping out the den © Rod Watson

The unusual genital structure of the spotted hyena is perhaps its most famous trait. Females have what is known as a pseudopenis – fused urinary and vaginal tracts and an extended clitoris. The outer labia are also enlarged, taking on the appearance of testicles. There are several theories as to the reasons behind this curious evolution, but no conclusive agreement.
The pseudopenis has to be retracted to mate – a process that can make the courtship lengthy and the act itself an exercise in dexterity, particularly for the male, whose aim has to be impeccable. Due to the anatomical restrictions, the male is forced to undergo an elaborate courtship to win the affections of the female. These courtships can be highly entertaining to observe as the male bows and scrapes the ground, tucking one front foot under the other – the picture of servile submission. This becomes even more amusing when the female disdainfully walks away, or worse, ignores him completely. The males have to be forward-thinking and often ingratiate themselves with females by playing with their cubs in the hope that their efforts might be remembered when it comes time to mate, months or years later.

If the mating process is tricky, the birthing process is difficult and often dangerous. The narrowed opening of the clitoris has to split to make space for the 1.5 kg cub(s), and it is common for at least one, if not both cubs, to die during a female’s first labour. The cubs are born with their eyes open and their milk teeth erupted and immediately engage in a savage battle for those critical early days as siblings look to establish which is dominant. The widespread belief that siblicide in hyena cubs is common is inaccurate – it is rare and generally only occurs when access to milk is restricted.

Hierarchy

The first few weeks in a cub’s life are critical – they must learn from their mothers where their position lies in a complex hierarchy. Within a clan, whether it is large or small, each hyena occupies a level in the clan hierarchy. At the head of the clan sits the matriarch. Not all males in the clan are the lowest-ranked individuals because each cub inherits his or her mother’s status in the clan, slotting in directly beneath her position and above their older siblings. If a high-ranked female has a young son, he is automatically a high-ranked member of the clan unless and until he chooses to disperse. Not all males disperse from their natal clans, but if they do approach a different clan, they will enter at the bottom of the hierarchy. The females generally stay with the clan throughout their lives.
Naturally, higher-ranked positions within the clan are coveted because they mean better access to food and resources for both the females and their offspring. While hierarchies are strictly enforced regularly, lower-ranked individuals can rise up against those above them in something very close to what we would understand as a coup.

Intelligence

Behavioural ecologists who have studied spotted hyena believe that they rank among some of the most intelligent animal species on earth and that there is strong evidence of convergent evolution with primate intelligence – they learn quickly and are natural problem solvers, outperforming chimpanzees in certain aspects of cognitive tests. Like primates, each hyena recognizes every other clan member, and they show kin nepotism, even in situations where kin are generationally removed. Their notorious (and often feared) laugh-like vocalization is just one of the many sophisticated ways in which spotted hyena communicate. Studies of spotted hyena behaviour aim to reveal not only their secrets but to reflect some of our own as well, as they are the only apex predator on this planet with anything close to the complexities of our own social history.
So strong is the bias against hyena that even Jane Goodall, upon her arrival in Tanzania, did not expect to have any affection for them. However, like all those who spend time in the company of these peculiar mammals, they won her over. “Hyenas are second only to chimpanzees in fascination,” she wrote, “they are born clowns, highly individualistic.” In a rush to view the more beloved wildlife, tourists so often overlook Africa’s smartest predator.
The information included here was mainly sourced from the two long-standing hyena research programs: the Michigan State University’s Mara Hyena Project, and the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research’s Ngorongoro Crater Hyena Project. Anything further comes from the IUCN Red List and personal observations of the writer – Africa Geographic scientific editor Jamie Paterson.

Surrounded by vultures © Thorsten Hanewald

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 13 – Gallery 1

? A ring-tailed lemur shows off its impressive tail. Anja Reserve, Madagascar © Timothy Portas

? A white-bellied tree pangolin rehabilitated and released into the wild, after being confiscated from the bushmeat market. Tikki Hywood Foundation, Cameroon © Angelia Young

? A yellow-billed oxpecker picks at a giraffe’s old wounds. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Chris Jolley

? A baboon gently investigates a kaleidoscope of yellow butterflies. Chobe National Park, Botswana © Corlette Wessels

? A big-headed African mole-rat emerges from below ground. Bale Mountains National Park, Ethiopia © Franciscus Scheelings

? A cheetah uses its tail for balance during the tight turns of a high-speed chase. Mara North Conservancy, Kenya © Jacques-Andre Dupont

? A cheetah cub launches itself from the trunk of a tree. Mara North Conservancy, Kenya © Jacques-Andre Dupont

? A black-backed jackal is an agent of chaos at a waterhole as it hunts Burchell’s sandgrouse. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Arica © Jenny Andersen

? The eye and the fly. Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Jens Cullmann

? A pack of painted wolves (African wild dogs) chase away a scavenging spotted hyena. Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Jens Cullmann

? A white-necked raven flies over camp. Barranco Camp, Kilimanjaro © John Mullineux

? A hyrax emerges from its secret crevice. Kaokoveld, Namibia © Lambert Heil

? Sunlight highlights the membranous wings of a straw-coloured fruit bat in flight. Musha, Rwanda © Mihir Bhatt

? A male lion cuts a fine figure, lounging at sunset. Liuwa Plain National Park, Zambia © Andrew Macdonald

? A rescued and rehabilitated pangolin by @africanpangolinconservation and cared for by @johannesburgwildlifevet. Undisclosed location © Gareth Thomas

? A common barking gecko sticks its head out from beneath the sand. Namaqualand, Northern Cape, South Africa © Tyrone Ping

? A brown hyena and black-backed jackals feed on an eland carcass. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Willem Kruger

? A leopardess tenderly carries her precious cub. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Yaron Schmid

Leopard raids ground-hornbill nest

Camera trap footage has confirmed what has long been suspected but never before proved – leopards raid the nests of southern ground-hornbills. The footage shows the predator climbing into a tree with an occupied artificial nest and, despite the best efforts of the adults, climbing into the nest. The footage can be viewed here – watch for the leopard hissing at the frantic adult birds:

Ground-hornbills are endangered within South Africa, and The Associated Private Nature Reserves (APNR) in the Greater Kruger has been home to a research project for the past 20 years. Run by the FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology (University of Cape Town) and funded through a National Geographic grant, the APNR Ground-Hornbill Project has been researching and conserving southern ground-hornbills in an attempt to increase our understanding of the species and help to slow and reverse their decline in numbers. The birds naturally nest in large tree cavities; however, habitat loss has resulted in a shortage of nesting sites within the region. One of the earliest tasks for the project was to install artificial nests throughout the reserves – to provide these large birds with the opportunity to breed. This aspect of the project has been a massive success.

One of the best ways to unobtrusively monitor which birds are breeding and what is happening at the nests is through the use of camera traps. These cameras provide vital information about the breeding of the birds and about which group members are contributing towards the incubating female and growing nestling. This ultimately provides us with a deeper understanding of the social structure within the species.

While cameras help us improve our knowledge, they also provide insights previously assumed, yet unconfirmed, such as the idea that predators take advantage of defenceless nestlings. Recently, a camera located inside Klaserie Private Nature Reserve caught one of the culprits – a leopard. The footage shows the agile and inquisitive leopard raiding the nest while the adult birds remain nearby alarm-calling and swooping past the nest, trying to distract the predator. It is not unusual for ground-hornbill breeding attempts to fail, and while it has always been assumed that leopards are one of the main culprits, the event has never been captured on camera and confirmed.

While this was obviously an unfortunate outcome for this endangered bird, it has provided us with some much-needed proof of what is preying on the species.

If you are interested in finding out more about the APNR Ground-Hornbill Project, check out the Facebook and Instagram pages. Otherwise, if you have any questions, contact them via email on nghututu@gmail.com. If you would like to contribute towards nests or cameras at the nests, please consider donating via their gofundme page.

Elephant body language 101 – a guide for beginners

A headshake is a very effective intimidation tactic. © Sally Lucas

Animals communicate in a variety of ways but the most obvious of these, to humans at least, is their body language. Anyone can learn to read the body language of animals to differing degrees – we spend our lives figuring out the complexities of human communication and animals are far less equivocal than human beings. With their complex social structure and high intelligence, not to mention their potential danger to humans, elephants are an excellent place to start. A little practice and some observational skills are all that’s needed to understand the basics. In turn, this understanding can add immeasurably to the enjoyment of an elephant sighting or ensure comfort for elephants and those viewing them.

Where to start

Are you looking at a breeding herd or a male or a group of males? This is important because different things can motivate bulls and cows. The older females of a breeding herd are the ones that will dictate what the herd does and how they respond to something, and their sole objective is to ensure the safety of their herd. The younger elephants can be playful, insecure or looking to establish their boundaries, so their signals are often misleading, meaning that it’s always a good idea to gauge the mood of the larger females first. The intentions of males can be harder to read or understand. The younger males that have left the security of their herds at puberty are often quite nervous, and this either translates into either moving away or attempting to intimidate a potential threat. Older males are the undisputed kings of all that they survey and should be treated as such – don’t block their routes or antagonise them, and most will behave like perfect gentlemen.

Tails

Believe it or not, the tail is the real key to reading elephant body language. Elephants are intelligent and often display what’s known as displacement behaviour – they sometimes pretend to feed, for example, while they figure out their next move in an uncomfortable situation. Their tail, however, gives them away. The tail of a relaxed elephant swings from side to side; the tail of an alert or uncomfortable elephant is held still, pointing downwards; and the tail of an upset, frightened or angry elephant is held out stiffly at right angles from the body.

Ears

An elephant that is flapping its ears isn’t angry, it’s hot and trying to cool down. They use wind cooling over the surface of their ears to lower the temperature of the blood and ultimately, their core body temperature. If an elephant is unsettled by something, they will raise their heads and spread their ears in an attempt to show off how large they are (this is mostly unnecessary, as anyone who has been close to an elephant will tell you). A headshake often accompanies this.

This is often something that older cows do close to vehicles and is their way of telling you not to try anything silly. You, in turn, can communicate your good intentions by staying still and quiet. If this movement from a female is accompanied by a few short running steps in your direction, it’s time for you to move off if you can – again calmly and as slowly as possible.

Trunks

This complicated body part so unique to elephants often displays the nuances of elephant body language. An elephant uses its trunk for everything from eating and drinking to smelling and touching so it is continuously moving and interpreting its meaning can be quite complicated. A good general approach is that if the movement is focused – feeding, for example, then the elephant is relaxed. If the elephant is standing still with the trunk raised and curled with the tip pointing in a specific direction, the elephant has picked up on a particular scent and is working out what it is and what direction it is coming from. If the elephant is standing still with the trunk down and the tip twisting from side to side, this can mean that something has caught the elephant’s attention and it is deciding what to do next. A twisting trunk can be a sign of anxiety.

Bull elephants, particularly those in musth (see below), sometimes drape their trunks over their tusks. This is almost always an attempt at intimidation and should be interpreted as such – those new to elephant behaviour should take this as a sign to move out of the male’s way.

Feet and general body language

Elephants use their feet constantly to dig up roots or kick up dirt or dust, so an elephant kicking the ground repeatedly is no cause for concern. Elephants are constantly moving so any stillness (unless they are resting with sleeping youngsters) is a sign that something is amiss or that they are listening intently – either to other elephants or something else. Rocking from side to side can also be a sign of indecision or anxiety.

Musth

Musth bulls are deserving of their own section based on the fact that they can be more unpredictable and occasionally more aggressive while in this state. All mature bulls experience musth cycles where their testosterone levels skyrocket to around 60 times the normal levels. They secrete liquid from their temporal glands (see below) and that, combined with a constant urine drip that coats their legs, gives them a distinctive musky odour. Musth bulls hold their heads high with the ears above the level of the shoulders and walk with a self-assured swagger.

Temporal glands

Elephants have glands between their eyes and ears (the temporal region) that secrete an oily substance containing hormones and other substances. Often these secretions go into overdrive when the elephant is nervous, stressed or excited, although interpreting the reasons behind this can often be quite tricky.

Final word and disclaimer

Elephants are complex creatures, and it is impossible to apply any rules with absolute certainty. Discretion is always the better part of valour where elephants are concerned, and they should never be taken for granted – if you are uncomfortable with a situation, move away slowly and calmly. This guide is intended to assist beginners in reading an elephant, rather than encourage a sense of overconfidence. All wild animals should be treated with respect and elephants are no exception.

An elephant’s trunk communicates a vast amount of information © Karen Blackwood

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 12 – Gallery 1

? Endangered Grevy’s zebras locked in a fierce battle. Samburu National Park, Kenya © Yaron Schmid

? A black mamba strikes a pose. Sabi Sands Game Reserve, South Africa © Asgeir Westgård

? A curious elephant calf and a leopard tortoise. Addo Elephant National Park, South Africa © Barbara Fraatz

? Two black-backed jackal pups play hide and seek at night. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Brandon Huntley

? An aerial view of a herd of gemsbok on sandy desert dunes. Sossusvlei, Namibia © Chase Wells

? A painted wolf pack play in the water near the Marico river. Madikwe Game Reserve, South Africa © Darren Donovan

? A great white pelican bathing in Lake Nakuru National Park, Kenya © Dave Richards

? An endemic Namaqua chameleon. Namib Desert, Namibia © Jandre Germishuizen

? A silhouetted baboon enjoying the sunlight. Sabi Sands Game Reserve, South Africa © Janine Malan

? A male lion with a bloody tongue after feeding on its kill. Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Jens Cullmann

? A hungry crocodile catches a fish. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Johan Wandrag

? Young baboons at play being disciplined by an adult. Kruger National Park, South Africa © John Mullineux

? A big male leopard feeds on a steenbok. Sabi Sands Game Reserve, South Africa © Jp VanZyl

? An exhausted lion falls asleep on the head of its giraffe kill. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Julien Regamey

? A charging hippo. Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Jens Cullmann

? A middle-aged coconut crab. Fanjove Island, Tanzania © Marten Heinrichs

? A lioness carries her cub to a safe spot in the early morning. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Nicolas de Vaulx

? An elephant uses its versatile trunk to uproot a waterlily. Khwai, Botswana © Sandy Hickey

? The yellow eye of a muddy crocodile. Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Jens Cullmann

? A southern ground hornbill gathers a mouthful of insects and lizards. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Tristan Cary

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 12 – Gallery 2

? A male lion rids his mane of water by giving it a big shake. Kgalagadi National Park, South Africa © John Mullineux

? Bad timing for an elephant calf. Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Jens Cullmann

? A territorial male hippo explodes from the water. Sabi Sands Game Reserve, South Africa © Brandon Huntley

? A leopard can’t decide whether to play with its impala prey or eat it. Okavango Delta, Botswana © Chase Wells

? A ground squirrel rids another’s tail of parasites. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Daniela Anger

? A resting elephant calf. Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Jens Cullmann

? A fork-tailed drongo irritates a martial eagle. Madikwe Game Reserve, South Africa © Darren Donovan

? A curious baby baboon. Mashatu Game Reserve, Botswana © Deborah Jordan

? A leopard poses with its hanging impala kill. Khwai, Okavango Delta, Botswana © Jens Cullmann

? A pregnant Thyene natalii jumping spider feeding on a fly. Rustenburg, North West, South Africa © Elaine de Bruin

? An aerial view of pink salt pans. Swakopmund, Namibia © Jandre Germishuizen

? An elephant calf trapped in mud – tragically, the clay ultimately claimed its life. Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Jens Cullmann

? A hippo emerges close by a tiny vervet monkey that is caught in the mud. Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Jens Cullmann

? A lion pins a buffalo down by the throat to suffocate it. Okavango Delta, Botswana © Panos Laskarakis

? A baby vervet monkey plays amongst marula fruit. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Karen Blackwood

? Three hyena feed on a buffalo carcass. Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Jens Cullmann

? A tiny jacana chick navigates across the water via lily pads. Chobe River, Namibia © Lambert Heil

? A chacma baboon and her baby huddle together during a heavy summer rainstorm. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Samuel Cox

Baby elephants rescued – 11 incredible images

October 2019, and Mana Pools National Park was at the height of the dry season, after an extended drought. This is ‘suicide month’, and the mercury regularly rises to the mid-forties Celcius. The animals of Mana, already pushed to the brink of survival, must eke out an existence before the arrival of the rains.
Photographer Jens Cullmann, on his annual Mana Pools sojourn, was bushwalking when he came across an elephant cow and two calves stuck in the mud of a rapidly drying pool. The elephants, driven by their desperate thirst, had ventured too far into the sticky mud and as their strength deserted them, they had collapsed in exhaustion.
Jens quickly realised that the three elephants were highly dehydrated and that their lives were hanging in the balance, so he rushed to the park reception to report the situation. By sheer coincidence, crews from ifaw Africa and Wild is Life were in Mana Pools to dart and assist another distressed elephant. They were joined by a group of Czech visitors and local lodge staff as everyone rushed to aid the stricken animals.
Both of the elephant calves suffered from bites to the trunk and ears, probably from opportunistic hyenas. One baby’s tail was bitten clean off. The rescue operation of the babies took a few hours, under the debilitatingly scorching summer sun. They were successfully extracted from the mud and once efforts were made to stabilise their fluid levels, they were flown to a rehabilitation centre to join other young elephants with similar stories. The intention is to release the elephants into the wild once they are rehabilitated and old enough to join a herd.

The adult mother, presumably the mother of one of the babies, was not so lucky. She was successfully extracted from the clawing mud but was too far gone to recover. We will share her story in the weeks to come.
Jens attributes this successful rescue to cooperation from Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks), Wild is Life crew members Dr Mark Lombard, Cathrine Jennings and January Gweshe, as well as Steven Bolnick, Dave McFarland and Garth Prichard. Ifaw Africa funded the rescue operation.

The following uncaptioned images speak for themselves.

WATCH: a video of the rescue here.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR, JENS CULLMANN

Jens Cullman is a German nature photographer. “It takes a lot of passion to capture one magical moment in the wild. Sometimes I wait for many hours in oppressive heat and have no luck. At other times the patience is rewarded during a split second of magic. But being ready at all times for that split-second is what makes the difference. Along the way, on this incredible journey, I have gained massive respect and love for wild places, and to accept nature’s ways. The golden hour of the sun, dust in the sky, animals in action right in front of you – this is where I always want to be.”

There’s a cheetah on the roof – when wildlife viewing crosses the line

There's a cheetah on the roof © Kaido Haagen — © Kaido Haagen

With ever-growing competition within the safari industry, the pressure to provide up-close and personal cheetah and other big cat sightings have increased. Within most of the popular safari destinations, the wildlife has become so habituated to the presence of vehicles that they largely ignore them, allowing visitors to admire the beauty of these animals at close proximity. But how close is too close?

In East Africa, there are countless videos and photographs on the internet depicting safari vehicles with cheetahs clambering over them, sometimes even into the vehicle itself, in-between the guests. A once-in-a-lifetime experience for those guests and something that is on the wish list for many a novice safari-goer – with the added bonus of the footage or photographs going viral. The practice is unethical for several reasons and puts the cheetah’s life at risk. Also, this is against established rules and condemned by cheetah conservation programs,

These car-climbing cheetahs are almost all found in the open habitats of East Africa, and they probably do it for the same reason they might climb a tree or a termite mound – it provides a useful vantage point and a high point to scent-mark. With younger individuals that learn this behaviour from their mothers, there is almost certainly an element of curiosity as well. It comes with significant risk, and there are incidents of cheetah injuring themselves climbing onto or jumping off vehicles and, as with any wild animal, injury can have dire consequences.

There's a cheetah on the roof © Mara Meru Cheetah Project — © Mara Meru Cheetah Project

As the smallest of the big cats of Africa, the cheetah is generally a timid animal that is unlikely to pose a threat to humans, which has led to a certain amount of complacency around them. However, they are still big predators and can injure a human being if provoked (and have done so in the past). The cheetahs that climb vehicles have lost their natural caution around humans, and that inherently makes them potentially more dangerous. In a closed environment in such close proximity to people, any sudden movement or noise from a guest could provoke a defensive or aggressive response from the cheetah, which will inevitably result in injury. This is even likely when there are children in the vehicle (human children are prey-size, and they often squeal similarly to a distressed prey animal) or when the guests provoke the cheetahs for a better photo – not to mention the possible diseases and parasites tourists could be exposed to. In most cases, when a wild animal injures a human, the animal will pay the price in one way or another.

This increased comfort with humans could also spell disaster for cheetah for a different reason – one of the biggest threats facing cheetah populations is conflict with people, and these cheetahs are less likely to go out of their way to avoid encountering humans.

The exploitation of wildlife is a hot topic and “wildlife selfies” are pervasive, despite the token (and mostly meaningless) efforts of social media websites to curb the tide. Allowing cheetah to climb onto cars falls on the wrong side of this line, and with changing attitudes towards interaction with wild animals, tourists need to be aware of this. Cheetah make their intentions clear when they approach the vehicles, and all that is required to prevent them from jumping up is for the guide to move the vehicle slowly away, especially if that individual cheetah is known for that behaviour.

cheetah on the roof © Suhaib Alvi — © Suhaib Alvi

Dr Femke Broekhuis, who is currently a senior research associate with the Wildlife Conservation Research Unit at the University of Oxford and has extensive experience in cheetah conservation throughout Africa, suggests that tourists too have a responsibility in their enjoyment of wildlife. Firstly, by not pressuring or encouraging their guide to allow the cheetah too close, and secondly, by not propagating the popularity of this practice by sharing or supporting the photos and videos of these sightings. She writes, “Cheetahs already face a kaleidoscope of threats that are causing significant declines. Let’s not add additional stress to these animals. We can all play a role in cheetah conservation by respecting these felids in peril”.

Painted wolves (African wild dogs) released after rescue

Painted wolf (African wild dog) release with Africa Geographic

Ten painted wolves (African wild dogs) were successfully released a few days ago onto the 5,500 ha Rietspruit Game Reserve on the outskirts of the bushveld town of Hoedspruit near the Kruger National Park. This follows the recent release of 5 lions into the same reserve. Those lions were to play a significant role during the painted wolf Lycaon pictus release – more about that later.

The pack (two adult females and eight yearlings born in April 2019) are thought to be from the Thornybush area in the Greater Kruger but roam over a large area that includes private land outside of the protected area. They were captured in late 2019 and placed into a boma on Rietspruit for safekeeping, after landowners in the Guernsey area (outside of the Greater Kruger) complained that the canids were killing wildlife. The original plan was to relocate the pack to Gorongosa in Mozambique, to join a pack of 15 relocated there in 2018, but paperwork delays led to the decision to release the pack into Rietspruit Game Reserve.

It is almost impossible to restrict painted wolves to fenced reserves (they crawl under the fences through holes made by aardvarks and warthogs, as do leopards, hyenas and other species), and so it is likely that this group will reunite at some stage with remaining members of the pack (6 males and a female) that were last seen in a private game reserve bordering Rietspruit.

The monitoring of resident painted wolf packs (there are five in the Hoedspruit area alone), and stepping in to ensure safety from negative human influence when required, is a 24/7 operation that demands significant financial and other resources. In charge of the collaring and release operation was Grant Beverley, the Lowveld regional coordinator for the carnivore conservation program at the Endangered Wildlife Trust – a busy man. Packs roam over vast distances and encounter many man-made dangers such as bushmeat snares, intolerant landowners, livestock farmers, speeding vehicles and exposure to disease from domestic dogs. Helping Grant during the collaring of the female and subsequent release of the pack was Joel Alves of Wildlife Vets.

Speaking of lions

At a crucial stage of the release, when nine of the ten painted wolves had exited the boma to feed on an impala carcass, three large male lions appeared on the scene. Attracted by the excited chatter of the painted wolves and the smell of meat, these pride males were here to spoil the party. They barged in, scattered the pack and claimed the carcass. The lions eventually left the scene, and the tenth painted wolf left the boma safely. All ten pack members were seen the following day.

Lion with Africa Geographic — This large male lion steals the impala carcass after scattering the painted wolves © Simon Espley

Who paid for this collaring operation?

Meet Michelle Campbell, a Hoedspruit resident and owner of Wild Wonderful World, who stumped up the R30,000 required to collar the painted wolf. Heroes like Michelle and Stephanie make an enormous contribution to painted wolf conservation. Be like them, donate here or email Grant Beverley.

Africa Geographic — Michelle Campbell, sponsor of this painted dog collar © Simon Espley

Further reading about painted wolves (African wild dogs):

What’s in a name? Dogs or wolves, painted or wild?

10 Interesting facts about painted wolves

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 11 – Gallery 2

Our Photographer of the Year 2020 is now in full swing.
There are two galleries showcasing this week’s Weekly Selection. To see the other gallery click here: Gallery 1

? A male lion in the tall grass. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Arlette Magiera

? A juvenile male gelada monkey (also known as a bleeding-heart monkey), huddles with the rest of his troop in the cold, thick drizzle of the rainy season. Guassa Community Conservation Area, Amhara region, Ethiopia © Bing Lin

? Two spotted hyena and a buffalo carcass. Madikwe Game Reserve, South Africa © Darren Donovan

? A pool of water mirrors a male lion as he walks by. Ndutu, Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tanzania © Diego Occhi

? A sleepy cheetah cub. Serengeti National Park, Tanzania © Diego Occhi

? An African darter catches a fish. Zibulo Colliery, South Africa © Gerbus Vermaak

? A red-billed teal taking off while being chased by a red-knobbed coot. Zibulo Colliery, South Africa © Gerbus Vermaak

? A crocodile makes a dramatic splash as it enters the river. Chobe National Park, Botswana © Guy Scott

? Three black-backed jackal feast on a fresh kill. Mara North Conservancy, Kenya © Jacques-Andre Dupont

? A lioness carries her young cub to a safer location. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Lennart Hessel

? Maasai warriors at sunset. Maasai Mara, Kenya © Manuel Nagele

? A female leopard gets low as she stalks a warthog. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Matrishva Vyas

? Hundreds of wildebeest become entangled during a river crossing. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Nicolas de Vaulx

? A Cape cobra in a tree cavity. Tswalu Kalahari Game Reserve, South Africa © Thilo Beck

? A pair of orange-bellied parrots searching for the ideal nesting site. Samburu National Park, Kenya © Tim Nicklin

? A rescued eastern green mamba hatchling emerges from its egg. All seven hatchlings and their mother were released back into the wild. Pennington, South Coast, KwaZulu Natal, South Africa © Tyrone Ping

? A family of cheetah huddle together in the rain. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Xavier Ortega

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 11 – Gallery 1

Our Photographer of the Year 2020 is now in full swing.
There are two galleries showcasing this week’s Weekly Selection. To see the other gallery click here: Gallery 2

? Four lions on the move at sunset. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Margie Botha

? A pod of hippos panic during a wildebeest crossing. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Nicolas de Vaulx

? Two northern carmine bee-eaters make a simultaneous catch. Selous National Park, Tanzania © Yochi Levanon

? Two sleepy hyena cubs at sunrise. Liuwa Plain National Park, Zambia © Andrew Macdonald

? A young male lion standing proud as he scans the plain. Liuwa Plain National Park, Zambia © Andrew Macdonald

? Silhouetted fishermen in a mokoro at sunset. Chobe, Botswana © Corlette Wessels

? A brown hyena feeding on a poached white rhino carcass. Madikwe Game Reserve, South Africa © Darren Donovan

? A cheetah grips tightly onto its prey after a successful hunt. Serengeti National Park, Tanzania © Diego Occhi

? Two lionesses at play, honing their predator reflexes in the process. Serengeti National Park, Tanzania © Diego Occhi

? Cheetahs in the rain. Ndutu, Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tanzania © Diego Occhi

? Two sub-adult male lions face an oncoming dust storm. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Ed Aylmer

? A young flap-necked chameleon sheds its skin. Lusaka, Zambia © Esme Tenner

? A foraging black-winged stilt. Zibulo Colliery, South Africa © Gerbus Vermaak

? An arrow-marked babbler enjoys a refreshing bath. Chilwero, Northern Botswana © Innocent Samunzala

? An eastern lowland gorilla gazes up into the rain. Democratic Republic of the Congo © Jacha Potgieter

? A Maasai warrior looks out over the Mara plains at sunrise. Mara North Conservancy, Kenya © John Piper

? A little bee-eater pair. Samburu, Kenya © Leon Marais

? A blood-soaked black-backed jackal and carcass. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Margie Botha

Bangweulu – where the water meets the sky

The dense, swirling column of Abdim’s and open-billed storks above us pulsed like a sardine bait-ball before dropping to the shallow lake in a g-force-defying stoop, accompanied by an ear-buffeting swoosh to join boisterous pelicans working the fertile fishing grounds.
This is the dry season zenith in north-eastern Zambia’s remote Bangweulu Wetlands, just days before the annual monsoon rains arrive to transform the landscape into a vast inland ocean where the water meets the sky. After a long, hot and dusty day locating a shoebill in dense wetland papyrus beds, I was enjoying a cold beverage on the steps of Shoebill Island Camp, deep in contemplation. The storks were doing their fighter jet thing overhead while fires smouldered on the hazy horizon behind herds of grazing black lechwe, and fishermen plied their trade in the shallows.

You see, this is a different kind of protected area. The owners live here and eke out living fishing, hunting and gathering natural resources – as they have done since before the safari tourism industry was born. And they do so sustainably, albeit with assistance from an exceptional organisation. More about that later.
My travel companion was my close friend and colleague Christian Boix. Christian had dropped off clients in Lusaka after their safari of a lifetime, before joining me. With us in Bangweulu were two siblings, a retired Australian banker and his South African sister. All of us thoroughly enjoyed our brief sojourn to this special place; this was precisely what we were after – responsible tourism in its purest form.

Bird’s-eye view

Bangweulu Wetlands consists of floodplains, seasonally flooded grasslands, woodlands and permanent swamps fed by the Chambesi, Luapula, Lukulu and Lulimala rivers. The area has been designated as one of the world’s most important wetlands by the Ramsar Convention, and a BirdLife International Important Bird and Biodiversity Area.

9,850 km² (985,000 hectares) – total size	6,000 km² (600,000 hectares) – Managed by African Parks in partnership with Zambia’s Department of National Parks and Wildlife (DNPW) and six Community Resource Boards
430 migratory and resident bird species rely on the wetlands	350 shoebills (6 monitored shoebill nests)
50,000 endemic black lechwe	50,000 owners (6 chiefdoms)

The Story of Bangweulu Wetlands

Bangweulu Wetlands is owned by over 50,000 community members across six chiefdoms

Bangweulu, meaning ‘where water meets the sky’, is home to about 50,000 people who retain the right to harvest its natural resources sustainably and who depend entirely on those resources for their survival. But things were not always as balanced as they are now. Decades of rampant poverty-driven poaching had driven wildlife and fish stocks to the edge, and the community realised that they needed assistance to protect their food sources. They signed a long-term agreement in 2008 with African Parks and Zambia’s Department of National Parks and Wildlife (DNPW) and committed to sustainably managing the wetlands to benefit wildlife and people. Since then, bushmeat poaching has been contained, and the endemic black lechwe populations have increased from 35,000 to over 50,000 (estimated carrying capacity is 100,000). Large mammal species such as zebra, impala and buffalo, previously almost exterminated by poaching, have been reintroduced and show steady population increases. Limited quantities of black lechwe, sitatunga and tsessebe are sustainably harvested yearly, earning much-needed revenue (annual target revenue of US$300,000) and protein for local communities. Local community members now guard shoebill nests against the illegal live bird trade because they realise that shoebills are a crucial driver of tourism numbers to this region. Fishermen are adhering to seasonal fishing bans lasting three months to allow stocks to recover, resulting in annual increases in fish stocks, better catch rates and improved economic benefits for communities.

Bangweulu Wetlands is the largest employer in the region, healthcare is being delivered to community members, and 60 schools are supported.
African Parks’ management priorities for Bangweulu are preventing illegal resource harvesting, overfishing, community education and enterprise development to improve livelihoods and build sustainable revenue streams. Their core deliverables revolve around these issues. Managing an area as remote and vast as Bangweulu Wetlands is not easy, and there are ongoing challenges relating to expectation management and law enforcement. Still, compared to the situation before 2008, Bangweulu Wetlands is a shining example of balancing the needs of the people with the preservation of wildlife.

Find out about Zambia for your next African safari. We have ready-made safaris to choose from, or ask us to build one just for you.

Bangweulu Wetlands’ continued survival as a sustainable ecosystem depends on its owners deriving lasting benefits whereby they recognise conservation as a viable land-use choice.

Focus on black lechwe

Bangweulu is the only place in the world where you will find wild black lechwe Kobus leche smithemani.
This medium-sized antelope grows to about 1 meter in height and weighs 60 to 120 kilograms (males are 20% larger than females). Only the males have horns. The hindquarters are noticeably higher than the forequarters, and the hooves are elongated and widely splayed – all adaptions to life on soft ground and in water.
Like red lechwe Kobus leche leche and Kafue lechwe Kobus leche kafuensis, black lechwe are slow runners but excellent swimmers and are often seen grazing shoulder-deep in water. Their greasy coats act as waterproofing but also give off a distinctive odour. Black lechwe are classified as vulnerable by IUCN.

Black lechwe are endemic to the Bangweulu region

Focus on shoebill

The shoebill (Balaeniceps rex) looks like it belongs in the prehistoric age. Found in the marshes of East Africa, the shoebill is classified as vulnerable and is a bucket-list sighting for any avid birder.

Sadly, this iconic species is severely threatened by habitat loss and the illegal bird trade, as the demand for their eggs and chicks places considerable pressure on wild populations. Thankfully, around 350 of these quirky giants find sanctuary in Zambia’s Bangweulu Wetlands, where Yoram Kanokola and other African Parks staff work with dedicated local community members known as ‘Shoebill Guards’ to protect and safeguard nests, ensuring that chicks can safely fledge. Over the last few years, these efforts have helped protect more than 30 fledgelings – ensuring the preservation of the species for generations to come.
For more information about shoebills, read Shoebill – 7 reasons to love this dinosaur of birds.

The shoebill is an iconic species that has high tourism status and value

Explore and stay

Bangweulu is open all year round – but accessibility by road and access to game drive tracks varies depending on water levels.

Shoebill Island Camp was opened in 2018 to generate photographic tourism revenue for Bangweulu Wetlands. Four luxury tents and an impressive open-plan common area nestle under a grove of trees on an island that is reached by boat during the flood season and by a four-wheel-drive vehicle at other times.

Bangweulu also offers self-catering campsites. Nsobe Campsite has six sites for tents, and is located between the Chimbwe woodland and the edge of the swamps.

DID YOU KNOW that African Parks offers safari camps (lodges and campsites) where 100% of tourism revenue goes to conservation and local communities? Find out more and book your African Parks safari.

Bangweulu Wetlands is best included in a safari that includes other Zambian destinations such as Luangwa Valley and Kafue

ABOUT THE AUTHOR, 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.’.

Simon Espley (right) and colleague Christian Boix.

Black honey badgers spotted in Gabon

A camera trap photograph of four melanistic (black) honey badgers was captured by researchers in an area near Ivindo National Park in Gabon. The camera traps were placed there as part of a survey conducted by Panthera, who has been tasked by Gabon’s park authorities Agence Nationale des Parcs Nationaux (ANPN) to assess and document local wildlife to ultimately establish a protected reserve. The four black honey badgers captured on camera are most likely related to each other – honey badgers are typically solitary apart from mothers and their one or two offspring, but they are occasionally seen together in small groups.

Dr Philipp Henschel, West and Central Africa Regional Director for global conservation NGO Panthera, explains that in his 21 years of working in Gabon, he has never seen a honey badger there and that up until the more widespread use of camera traps, conservationists had no idea that there were honey badgers in the deeply forested areas of Gabon. When the first camera trap picked up a melanistic honey badger in 2003, the indistinct image had the researchers wondering if they had discovered a new species and it was only a year later that the image of two black animals helped researchers connect the dots and conclude that it was a melanistic form of honey badger (Mellivora capensis).

Nowadays, camera traps are more common across Gabon, and scientists believe that around 50% of the honey badgers in the Gabon forested areas are melanistic. Melanism is a recessive genetic trait that causes excess production of the pigment melanin in the skin or fur, resulting in animals appearing almost black. The expression of melanism is a genetic trait that is not affected by environmental conditions, but the environment can determine the success rate of melanistic individuals, both in terms of survival as well as reproduction. Melanism does not occur in all animal species – there are no melanistic lions, for example (despite the edited images floating around the internet). Still, it does occur in felid species such as leopards and jaguars. Given that melanistic cats are more common in moist rainforests (like Gabon), scientists believe that there is an adaptive advantage to this colouration. Though the mechanisms are less well understood in mustelids (the family which includes badgers, otters and wolverines), the assumption is that the evolutionary mechanisms are the same.

Recent camera trap surveys, initiated by a Panthera field team and since 2015 led by Christopher Orbell, have yielded other significant surprises apart from the black honey badgers, including a melanistic civet. Perhaps even more ecologically important is the record of spotted hyena, a species considered locally extinct in Gabon. Camera trap photos have revealed two adult individuals that appear to have become resident in the mineral-rich forest clearings.

Normally-coloured honey badger© Katja Voth

The images also prove that the naturally saline area under survey has an important population of elephants as well as leopards – these numbers of rare wildlife are unusual in an unprotected area given the risks of poaching or mineral resource extraction. The area is the caldera of an ancient volcano and is known to contain rare earths but, so far, the Gabonese government has prevented any industrial use. Dr Henschel praises the philosophy of the president of Gabon, as well as the Minister of Forests and Environment, for the “visionary” plans for Gabon’s park authorities to designate it as a formally-protected area, “which will assure that future government leaders who may be less visionary and environmentally-friendly are held to protect this unique site.”

The death of ‘Julian’, one of Africa’s last great tuskers

The magnificent elephant bull, nicknamed “Julian”, was believed to be well over 50 years old and had lived out his life in the Rukinga region of Kenya that lies between Tsavo West and East National Parks. He was well known to conservationists of the area and his enormous tusks that brushed the ground as he walked made him instantly recognisable. His carcass was found on 14^th January 2020 after it was spotted by a gyrocopter pilot who reported it to authorities. We reported last week that the famous tusker ‘Tim’ died last week, also of natural causes.

A tusker is the description given to an elephant with tusks that touch the ground, and there are very few remaining tuskers in Africa – some estimates suggest that there may be less than 40 individuals remaining on the entire continent. Their numbers have been decimated through decades of indiscriminate hunting and ivory poaching. The Tsavo area is known for its spectacular big tuskers.

The announcement was made by Wildlife Works – a REDD+ (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation) project development and management company responsible for establishing the Kasigau Corridor in the Rukinga region. Julian was regularly seen within the project area, and officials estimated him to be approximately 50 years old. Wildlife Works aerial surveillance team started to officially keep an eye on him during the Kenya poaching crisis in 2014 when he was the second-largest resident bull. The only bull larger than Julian died during the 2017 drought in Tsavo.

Julian’s carcass was spotted from the air © Wildlife Works

Wildlife Works described Julian as one of the more mobile bulls on the ranches; he would move right down to northern Tanzania’s Mkomazi Game Reserve, and Kenya’s southeastern ranches Koranze and Lungalunga. He would often not be seen for several months at a time, making much of his life a mystery. He would, however, always return to Rukinga ranch to socialise with the large herds, often accompanied by other bulls – almost acting as his bodyguards. Locals say that he would often hide his tusks in bushes when aircraft flew overhead, as if he knew he was a target for poachers.

Julian was not known as an aggressive bull, vehicles or rangers never had to be cautious around him, nor was he known as a crop raider. He had a scar on his right side, a possible attempt on his life from a poisoned arrow of a poacher.

He was found on 14th January 2020 under a tree in the long grass of Rukinga ranch, eyes closed as if he went to sleep peacefully. His death was deemed to be as a result of natural causes.

Lightning kills 4 mountain gorillas

Gorilla Doctors reported that on the 3^rd of February, lightning struck during a severe storm and killed four endangered mountain gorillas from the Hirwa group in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park (MGNP). Three females and one new-born infant were killed. One of the females, Gikundiro, was pregnant and a second, Kahatwa, left behind an infant son only 14 months old. The Hirwa Group, formerly resident in Rwanda, crossed to Uganda in August 2019, now number 13 gorillas and are led by a silverback named Munyinya.

The cries of the remaining group members and the chest-beating of the males were heard by an MGNP tracker who immediately reported it to the relevant authorities. The incident was investigated by an international response team led by the Greater Virunga Transboundary Collaboration (GVTC) with representatives from the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA), Rwanda Development Board, MGNP, Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and Gorilla Doctors. The health of the remaining members was of paramount importance: fortunately, all were cleared as being in good health. However, Imbanzanbigwi (Kahatwa’s surviving son) will be closely monitored as he had only just started eating solids and was still suckling. Post-mortems were also conducted – yielding the expected results that preliminary cause of death was fatal electrocution resulting from the lightning strike.

According to Gorilla Doctors, this has been a particularly challenging time for the Hirwa group as they have faced multiple health issues, including their lead silverback being treated for a respiratory infection.

Mountain Gorilla numbers have increased recently, but their small population remains under pressure, and their reproductive cycle is slow, meaning that the loss of any individuals is a setback. The loss of three adult females is not only tragic; it also means the loss of their reproductive potential.

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 10 – Gallery 1

? A tiny foraging field mouse. Serengeti National Park, Tanzania © Alice van Kempen

? A leopard in dappled light. South Luangwa National Park, Zambia © Alice Péretié

? Mating lions. Etosha National Park, Namibia © Alessandro Belloni

? A leaf-tailed gecko at night. Saha Forest Camp, Madagascar © Ben Price

? Back-lit baby vervet monkey. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Gareth Thomas

? A pangopup rescued by @africanpangolinconservation and cared for by @johannesburgwildlifevet. Undisclosed location © Gareth Thomas

? A little grebe surfaces from a dive for food. Zibulo Colliery, South Africa © Gerbus Vermaak

? A dazzle of zebra gallop across a dry lake. Lake Magadi. Kenya © Gurcharan Roopra

? A nesting pair of marabou storks put on a display. Moremi Game Reserve, Botswana © Irene Amiet

? A spotted hyena chews on a zebra leg. Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Jens Cullmann

? A pack of painted wolves (African wild dogs) take down a helpless eland calf. Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Jens Cullmann

? A colourful juvenile boomslang. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Jeroen ten Haaf

? A gelada baboon (also known as a bleeding-heart monkey) exposing an impressive set of teeth. Simien Mountains National Park, Ethiopia © Josef Kastner

? A chameleon catches and devours a mantid. Madagascar © Kirill Dorofeev

? A humpback whale breaches out of the waters of St Helena. Island St Helena, Madagascar © Kirill Dorofeev

? An endless road to beautiful landscapes. NamibRand Nature Reserve, Namibia © Marta Nieto Aicart

? A red bishop clings to a bulrush. Addo Elephant National Park, South Africa © Peter Reitze

? A herd of elephants at sunset. Madikwe Game Reserve, South Africa © Rupert Bridgman

? A clan of muddy spotted hyena scavenge on a hippo carcass. Mara North Conservancy, Kenya © Tommy Mees

? A wet female baboon and her infant. Maasai Mara Game Reserve, Kenya © Tommy Mees

? An aerial view of sandy desert dunes at sunset. Namib desert, Namibia ©Vanessa Thorimbert

Lion cub petting & captive wildlife interactions: what tourists need to know

In past years, tourists have been grossly misled by certain commercial captive wildlife facilities masquerading as sanctuaries or rehabilitation centres. Gullible holidaymakers are attracted to such facilities, as paying day-visitors and voluntourists, who pay to work at the facilities. Also hoodwinked are kind souls who donate money to such facilities in the belief that they are ‘saving’ animals. Growing awareness of the false marketing being used, and changing ethical attitudes mean that it is incumbent on tourists and donors to ask the right questions of the places that they wish to visit and support. So how does one go about deciding which wildlife facilities to visit and support?

The South African Tourism Services Association (SATSA) has released a handy guide to help visitors make these decisions and, to simplify even further, there are a few activities that SASTA now recognises as ethically unacceptable and therefore to be boycotted – regardless of what you are told:

if you can touch or play with the infants (lion or cheetah cub petting for example);
if you are allowed to touch any predators or cetaceans (dolphins, whales or porpoises);
if the facility has performing animals or if you can ride the animals (such as elephants);
if the facility breeds lions or tigers.

You need to consider whether or not the facility is a true sanctuary or rehabilitation facility, and to answer that, you can look at the following aspects:

There is no breeding of animals;
They do not trade in animals;
No animals are performing for entertainment
There are no tactile interactions and no walking with the animals;
The animals are in captivity because they were sick, injured, orphaned, rescued, donated and/or abandoned;
The animals will have a home for life or will be relocated back into the wild as part of a recognised conservation initiative;
And the facility is compliant with all relevant legislation and is transparent in its operations and marketing collateral

If the facility you are looking at visiting fulfils ALL of the above criteria, it is recognised as a sanctuary, and you can support it or visit with a clear conscience. If not, you need to dig deeper into the practices of the facility you wish to visit, or walk away.

The full flowchart is included below, and you will see that the guide also raises relatively obvious points such as not supporting a facility where the animals end up at canned hunting operations or where their body parts are traded. Naturally, this may be difficult for an unsuspecting visitor to discern. Captive wildlife facilities that are involved in unethical practices are unlikely to be upfront about their true colours, so visitors are advised to make sure that they are fully informed and have done their research beforehand. The SATSA guideline are a good place to start.

Evaluating captive wildlife activities. Source SATSA

The full report, including the history and guiding principles behind this chart, can be found here.

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 10 – Gallery 2

? A crowned eagle tucks into an unlucky water monitor. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Brandon Huntley

? A female meerkat keeps a watchful eye out for danger as her three pups get up to mischief. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Brandon Huntley

? Spotted hyena cubs at play. Khwai, Botswana © Didier Couvert

? A tsessebe is pinned down by three hungry lions. Pilansberg National Park, South Africa © Ilna Booyens

? A flamboyance of flamingo. Sandwich Harbour, Namibia © Jandre Germishuizen

? A Kenyan sunrise. Samburu National Park, Kenya © Jane Gross

? A tiny four-striped grass mouse. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Jenny Andersen

? A rare sighting of greater-painted snipe. Intaka Wetlands, South Africa © Johan Mocke

? A hunting rock monitor lizard. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Joschka Voss

? A young spotted hyena cub seeks comfort from its mother. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Karen Blackwood

? A young cheetah practices its hunting skills on a wildebeest calf. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South-Africa © Karen van der kolk

? Three-headed giraffe. Maasai Mara, Kenya © Karen van der kolk

? A black-backed jackal framed by elephant legs. Senyati, Botswana© Margie Botha

? An aerial view of Scorpion Dune. Sossusvlei, Namibia © Miguel Bruno

? The wild eye of a male lion through a buffalo carcass. Okavango Delta, Botswana © Panos Laskarakis

? A view of Cape fur seals from below. Seal Island, Millers Point, South Africa © Peet J van Eeden

? A striped skink carries off its centipede meal. Londolozi Private Game Reserve, Sabi Sands, South Africa © Rod Watson

? A group of black herons displaying their hunting technique. Moremi Game Reserve, Botswana © Sandy Hickey

? A spotted hyena feeds among vultures. Maasai Mara, Kenya © Thorsten Hanewald

? The big eyes of a Natal forest tree frog. Durban North Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa © Tyrone Ping

? A group of great white pelicans. Awasa Lake, Ethiopia © Vittorio Ricci

? A bright green flap-necked chameleon. Bushmanland, Namibia © Wynne Cilliers

RIP: Tim the iconic elephant dies

Tim with Mount Kilimanjaro in the background ©Dean Bricknell

Tim, the iconic super-tusker who roamed the Amboseli area of Kenya, has died of natural causes. He was 50 years old.

Tim was an enormous bull elephant, with massive tusks that touched the ground. His fame catalysed many conservation programs, and he was a popular photographic subject for tourists, who would travel from across the world to see him. He is Africa’s most photographed elephant.

Tim captured the hearts of people around the world because of his gentle demeanour. He is an ambassador for his species, as his legend will live on.

Tim narrowly escaped death in 2018 when he got stuck in a waterhole before being rescued.

We celebrate his life with these images, which were submitted by entrants to our Photographer of the Year

Latest rhino poaching stats: shades of grey

Yesterday South Africa’s government released the 2019 rhino poaching statistics via an update to the website of the Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries (DEFF).

We interrogate the stats, with revealing graphs and intriguing questions.

During the time of former Minister of Environmental Affairs Dr Edna Molewa (now deceased), the department used to hold several press briefings a year, allowing us to study the stats and ask questions directly to the Minister and her assembled panel of experts and ministers from the security cluster. The rhino poaching crisis isn’t just for DEFF to handle; our government has defined rhino poaching as a trans-national crime, requiring all aspects of enforcement to be involved.

These press briefings do not happen anymore. Now, all we get is a brief press release surreptitiously loaded onto the DEFF website. And so, in the absence of direct communications with relevant experts, we are forced to ask questions in this manner and to speculate about what is going on. Amanda Watson, who has been reporting on rhino matters for The Citizen for many years, wrote an article outlining how serious this speculation has become. Simon Espley, CEO of Africa Geographic, expressed a similar sentiment last year when he publicly challenged Minister Barbara Creecy to reveal how many rhinos we have left. She did not reply.

It’s probably uncomfortable for DEFF to address some of the issues at play; but that is the role of the media industry – to get to the real story. This press release was dropped on us with no warning and, predictably, most news media have chanted praise for the perceived success of a “decline” in rhino poaching. Sipho Kings, editor of the Mail & Guardian recently sent out tweets criticising news outlets for just printing press releases as news, and he’s right… some digging needs to be done.

It’s unfortunate that DEFF’s brief press release, which is meant to be a thorough analysis of the past year, omitted several significant developments. Examples include concerning politics surrounding rangers, dismissal/disciplinary hearings of seemingly competent senior members of SANParks staff, the loss of the RhODIS contract, the possible closure of the Skukuza Court, a growing impatience from rhino farmers threatening to sell their horn stock and international gatherings like CITES that took place.

And so, let’s do some digging…

Does the ‘decline’ in poaching reflect success?

“A decline in poaching for five consecutive years…” – Minister Barbara Creecy, DEFF Press Release

Official rhino poaching statistics put the number of rhinos poached in South Africa in 2019 at 594. This is a decline from 769 in 2018. BUT without the census results from the Kruger National Park (home to the largest number of rhinos in the world), we cannot be sure what this means. When Bonné (de Bod) phoned the DEFF spokesperson yesterday to ask about the latest rhino population figures, she was directed to SANParks, who said they would check and get back to us. We know from years prior that SANParks cannot release the results without the Minister’s approval. And let’s not forget that we are still waiting for last year’s census results.

So just to be clear, we have not had population stats since the 2017 census – which we actually filmed, to obtain footage for STROOP! So complicated is the rhino counting procedure in Kruger that we ended up not including our footage in the film, but witnessing the process was humbling. Counting rhinos from the air is hard work, and a dedicated team is performing this tough task. However, something is getting lost from the effort on the ground to the paperwork on the department’s desk. Rumours abound that two recent counts have been done in Kruger National Park and that results reflect a halving of the 2017 numbers. So we did some searching through scientific journals to find Kruger’s white rhino population figures and actual white rhino poached numbers from the last few years of official results to find out whether the reported decline in poaching has any validity.

What do the Kruger white rhino numbers tell us?

Looking at the above graph, the downward spiral in Kruger southern white rhino populations is apparent. Note that DEFF has refused to date to issue figures for 2018 and 2019. The more than 50% decline in our southern white rhino numbers in Kruger over 6 years (10,621 in 2011 to 5,142 in 2017) is massive, and we cannot slow down or pat ourselves on the back.

The above graph tells us that the proportion of rhino poached each year, as a percentage of the remaining population, is increasing. This reality is in stark contrast to the ‘good news’ from DEFF that nominal rhino poaching numbers are down. The DEFF press release ascribed the reduction in rhinos poached to several factors, but failed to mention what is arguably the main reason – that there are fewer rhinos left to poach.

The above graph really highlights the crisis at hand and points to another damaging factor – “collateral damage”. Collateral damage is the knock-on effect of losing a cow to poaching. One rhino cow not only removes her from the population but also all potential future rhinos birthed by her – which could be as many as a dozen. Births of Kruger southern white rhinos are estimated at over 900 per anum for 2013 and 2014; by 2017 they are down to just above 300 … That’s a dramatic drop and an indicator surely that things do not look good. If you factor in the drought that has plagued the region, and the impact that will have had on rhino births and natural deaths, we suspect that the current figures would shock us if they were revealed.

Does releasing rhino numbers benefit poachers?

A senior SAPS officer pulled us aside after a STROOP screening last year and pleaded with us to stop asking for the census results to be released. This person said that census results would educate poachers, and that information like this is, therefore, not for public consumption. Trust us, we get that, and we left a LOT out of STROOP for that very reason. But we also know what convicted poachers tell us – that the poaching syndicates have their tentacles stretching way into government’s bureaucratic system – they have full knowledge of how many and where the rhinos are. Also, it’s absurd to think that the public shouldn’t know living rhino numbers for safety reasons, because the IUCN’s African Rhino Specialist Group publishes living rhino numbers every three years and so do scientific journals on the internet, which is where this information is from.

“Rhino conservation targets are set around rhino population sizes and growth rates; it is important to survey populations frequently to detect statistical changes… and assessing the effectiveness of current management.” – Dr Sam Ferreira, Large Mammal Ecologist, SANParks – read more here.

What concerns us is the general perception that the DEFF announcement attempts to create and that major news media outlets and social media commentators broadcast without any research – that we can ease off the accelerator now that we are “winning the war on poaching”. We most certainly are not winning; the above graphs make that obvious.

We need to support the real heroes who risk life and limb every day of their lives to keep our rhinos safe. Our rangers, police, prosecutors, vets, private owners, orphan rehabbers deserve more than this.

Kruger National Park census from helicopter ©Susan Scott

Baboon kidnaps lion cub

The baboon was seen grooming the cub © Kurt Safari

Baboon sightings in the Kruger National Park in South Africa are always entertaining but visitors watching one particular baboon troop experienced far more than expected when they realized that one of the baboons was clutching a tiny lion cub – no older than four weeks old. The male baboon carried the small cub around, climbing into a nearby tree and grooming and caressing the little cub as he might have done with a young member of his troop.

According to witnesses, the baboons were initially extremely excited about the presence of the cub. They fought over it for an extended period before the young male emerged victorious to play with his prize. It is a known fact that baboons are a potential threat to the offspring of most predators – lions and leopards included. Still, it is extremely unusual for these moments to be observed or photographed.

The male baboon carrying the lion cub © Kurt Safari

The photographs were captured by Kurt Schultz of Kurt Safari, who escaped his company office in Hazyview for some time spent with his camera in the Kruger National Park, unaware of the extraordinary experience awaiting him. He describes how in an area of large granite hills and boulders known to be a preferred spot for lion and leopard den sites, he encountered a troop of baboons and tourists in another vehicle informed him that they believed that there was a lion cub amongst the baboons.

He waited patiently until one of the baboons emerged with the cub, which he initially believed to be dead. As the male baboon carried it into the tree and moved from branch to branch, the cub stirred, and he realized that it was alive, albeit weak and exhausted. Although Kurt did not spot any visible injuries, he does not dismiss the possibility that the cub had internal injuries. What struck Kurt was how gentle the male baboon was with the cub and how he was grooming it. In his twenty years of guiding experience, he has been witness to baboons killing leopard and lion cubs but had never seen care and attention being given.

Pragmatically, Kurt acknowledges that the lion cub did not have a chance of survival. By 8 am it was 30 degrees Celcius and a lion cub that young would dehydrate quickly, even if the baboons did not harm it further.

Says Kurt, “This will remain one of my most interesting sightings. Naturally, one cares for the lion cub and would want it to grow up and live a wild and free life, but nature has its own ways, and we cannot get involved. We need to keep Kruger simple and wild – true to the wishes of Stevenson Hamilton: that nature should wander freely, and people remain in their vehicles.”

Kurt Safari offers one to five-day safaris into the Kruger National Park, operating mostly in southern and central Kruger. Based in Hazyview and operating mainly with Umbhaba Eco Lodge, they provide their clients with quality and educational safaris. With top safari guides from the local Hazyview community and a modern fleet of 23 vehicles, the company is rated number 1 on TripAdvisor for Kruger Park safaris.

Iona NP in Angola joins African Parks

The Angola Government and African Parks have signed a management agreement for the vast 15,200 km² (1,5 million hectares) Iona National Park, initiating their first partnership to ensure the long-term protection of one of the country’s largest protected areas. Iona is an iconic southern Angolan desert landscape, extending from its Atlantic coastline over dunes, plains and mountains.

“We are excited for what the future holds for Iona National Park, by partnering with African Parks to enhance park management and restore this landscape for the benefit of wildlife and people,” said Aristófanes Romão da Cunha Pontes, Director General of the National Institute of Biodiversity and Conservation Areas (INBAC). “Our vision is to showcase the natural wonders that Angola has to offer and for people to come from all over and experience this globally significant region of the planet”.

Situated in the Namib desert in the south-west corner of Angola, its stark 160-km shoreline abutting the Atlantic Ocean, Iona is one of Africa’s most sublime wilderness areas with rich terrestrial and offshore ecosystems. The sand and gravel plains at its centre are bordered by mountains reaching heights of 2,000 metres in the east and dunes that run the length of its coastline in the west. Fed by two bordering rivers, the Cunene and Curoca, the park contains extensive woodlands and is inhabited by cheetah and leopard, herds of Oryx, springbok and Hartmann’s zebra, ostrich, endemic reptiles and is the principal habitat to one of the world’s most ancient plants, Welwitschia mirabilis.

“This is a visionary step for conservation in Angola, and we are exceptionally proud to be partnering with the Government and helping them to manage this stunning national asset,” said Peter Fearnhead, CEO of African Parks. “This is a tremendous commitment from the Government”.

African Parks is grateful to The International Conservation Caucus Foundation for the catalytic role that they played. The ICCF Group acts as the private-sector coordinator for the Angolan Ministry of Environment, to attract private-sector investments in ecotourism and protected areas. Susan Lylis, The ICCF Group Executive Vice President, said: “We are thrilled to see this landmark agreement for the co-management of Iona National Park, which we believe will lead to transformational outcomes for community development and conservation, and allow Iona to become a shining model throughout the region”.

Iona National Park is regionally important, forming part of a trans-frontier conservation area (TFCA) with the Skeleton Coast National Park in Namibia. Historically, the park was inhabited by rhino and elephant, but both of these species have become locally extinct, and other wildlife have been depleted. Unregulated human activities from settlements on the periphery and within the park, including the grazing of livestock, are placing pressure on its ecosystems.

African Parks and the Government of Angola will work closely with the local communities, implement proper law enforcement, and restore wildlife to ensure the long-term ecological, social and economic sustainability of Iona. Its spectacular mountainous, desert and coastal topography make this trans-frontier area globally unique, giving the park enormous potential with sufficient investment to emerge as one of the continent’s most extraordinary landscape experiences. With adequate conservation and the optimisation of tourism and other sustainable revenue-generating activities, Iona will continue to support healthy terrestrial and marine ecosystems to benefit people long into the future.

About African Parks: African Parks is a non-profit conservation organisation that takes on the complete responsibility for the rehabilitation and long-term management of national parks in partnership with governments and local communities. With the largest counter-poaching force and the most amount of area under protection for anyone NGO in Africa, African Parks manages 17 national parks and protected areas in 11 countries covering 13.5 million hectares in Angola, Benin, Central African Republic, Chad, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Republic of Congo, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, Zambia and Zimbabwe. For more information visit www.africanparks.org, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 9 – Gallery 1

Our Photographer of the Year 2020 competition, with a stunning safari prize provided by Djuma Private Game Reserve, is now in full swing and open for submissions!
There are two galleries showcasing this week’s Weekly Selection. To see the other gallery click here: Gallery 2

? A leopard leaps between branches. Serengeti National Park, Tanzania © Alice van Kempen

? A male village weaver on the lookout for any potentially interested females. Mara North Conservancy, Kenya © Alison Mees

? A pangolin tastes freedom after being rescued from poachers and released. Malawi © Amanda Harwood

? Herding cattle creates a dusty sunset. Southern Tanzania © Andrea Kaucka

? A spotted bush snake digesting a frog. uMkhuze Game Reserve, South Africa © Arnaud Legrand

? A browsing gerenuk. Selenkay Conservancy, Kenya © Boone Thompson

? Mating pair of lions. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Boone Thomson

? Yellow-billed oxpecker and buffalo. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Boone Thomson

? Zebras backtrack after spotting a lion on the other side of the river during a crossing with wildebeest. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Boone Thomson

? Elderly Mursi tribeswoman. Omo Valley, Ethiopia © Bruce Miller

? Silhouetted Cape darter. Chobe River, Botswana © Cheryl Cranfield

? Bark mantid. Harare, Zimbabwe © Chris Sheppard

? Giraffe drinking at sunset. Madikwe Game Reserve, South Africa © Darren Donovan

? A pale chanting goshawk plucking its francolin meal. Madikwe Game Reserve, South Africa © Darren Donovan

? Black-backed jackal feeding on an elephant carcass. Madikwe Game Reserve, South Africa © Darren Donovan

? An agitated white rhino bull. South Africa © Darren Donovan

? A water monitor resting on a tree. Chobe River, Botswana © Erwin van Liempd

? A little bee-eater tossing an insect into the air. Maputo, Mozambique © Eurico Dzivane

? A white-winged widowbird male displaying to a female. Maputo, Mozambique © Eurico Dzivane

? A gelada baboon (also known as a bleeding-heart monkey) yawning. Simien Mountains National Park, Ethiopia © Franciscus Scheelings

? An African black oystercatcher in flight. Eersterivier Beach, Eastern Cape, South Africa © Gerbus Vermaak

? A tiny leopard cub goes exploring. Mashatu Game Reserve, Botswana © Michael Heyns

? A tidal pool rich in life and colour. Bloubergstrand, Western Cape, South Africa © Peet J. van Eeden

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 9 – Gallery 2

? Scarface, one of the legendary lions of Africa. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Karen van der Kolk

? A southern red-billed hornbill with its bat meal. Manyeleti Game Reserve, South Africa © Katja Voth

? A female mountain gorilla with its infant. Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Uganda © Kevin Dooley

? An impressive male lion surveys the area. Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tanzania © Kevin Dooley

? A Knysna turaco coming in to land. Kenton on Sea, Eastern Cape, South Africa © Mike Pearson

? A view from the top of the Drakensberg Amphitheatre. Royal Natal National Park, South Africa © Raymond Graves

? A baboon spider strikes a pose. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Ryno Jones

? Male hippos fight for territory. South Luangwa National Park, Zambia © Sandy Hickey

? Black-backed jackal pups at the entrance to their burrow. Serengeti National Park, Tanzania © Sonja Metzger

? An African rock python takes a large, impressive yawn before disappearing into the grass. Amboseli National Park, Kenya © Tim Nicklin

? The famous coalition of five cheetahs, known as the Five Musketeers or Fast Five, take a stroll through the plains. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Xavier Ortega

? A crash of white rhino gathers for a drink around a waterhole, along with a black-backed jackal. South Africa © Zac Dykstra

? A southern carmine bee-eater. Okavango Delta, Botswana © Dave Richards

? A waterbuck at first light. Chobe National Park, Botswana © Erwin van Liempd

? A red-knobbed coot collects building materials for its nest. Springs, South Africa © Gerbus Vermaak

? Himba dancing beneath the Milky Way. Epupa, Kunene Region, Namibia © Ben McRae

? A spotted hyena catches an eland calf. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, Botswana © Hilda Le Roux

? Male lion takes down a buffalo cow. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Hilda Le Roux

? A warthog and red-billed oxpecker. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Hilda Le Roux

? A lion and the rising sun. Ol Pejeta Conservancy, Kenya © Jane Gross

? Crocodile reflection. Selous Game Reserve, Tanzania © Josef Friedhuber

? A hippo, fish and a crocodile. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Karen van der Kolk

Humans not always to blame for genetic diversity loss in wildlife

ZSL-led study shows genetic differences in African lions likely caused by ecological rather than human factors.

DECODING SCIENCE by Zoological Society of London

Conservationists should be wary of assuming that genetic diversity loss in wildlife is always caused by humans, as new research published today by international conservation charity ZSL (Zoological Society of London) reveals that, in the case of a population of southern African lions (Panthera leo), it’s likely caused by ecological rather than human factors.

Published in Animal Conservation today (28 January 2020) the study saw researchers from ZSL’s Institute of Zoology and Imperial College London analyse the genetic diversity of 149 African lions in the KAZA (Kavango–Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area) in northern Botswana between 2010 to 2013.

While human impacts are the leading cause of genetic diversity loss in many cases, scientists studying the lions found that diversity loss across the population was instead caused by the lions’ need to adapt to differing habitats.

They identified two genetically different populations of lions in the region, each adapted to living in a distinct habitat type; the so-called ‘wetland lions’ residing in the wetland habitat in the Okavango Delta and a ‘dryland lions’ group living in the semi-arid habitat of the Kalahari Desert.

If a separate population is created but cut off from its original source group due to ecological or human barriers, over time there will be less gene flow from lack of breeding between the populations. While a larger more connected population would generally have greater genetic diversity, small amounts of movement between them can maintain diversity while preserving adaptations that allow them to thrive in two different environments. Though not different enough to be classified as separate sub-species and still having slight genetic movement between the populations, it suggests a phenomenon called phenotypic plasticity – animals adapting in various ways to suit the environment they’re in.

Ensuring wildlife conservation managers understand how a population becomes genetically fragmented is important in order that decisions regarding protection are well-informed and consider animals’ true needs.

Dr Simon Dures, lead author and ZSL Researcher explained: “The findings have important applications for wildlife managers across Africa. It means translocations of animals, post human-wildlife conflict for example, need to be carefully considered with regards to their genetic predisposition to their new environment.

Map fo KAZA and lion populations © simondures.com ZSL

“The distinct ‘wetland lion’ populations living in the Okavango are incredibly well adapted to their environment. They’re strong swimmers and seem to thrive in water chasing buffalo down for a kill – which is the opposite for other lions in Africa, which would not typically hunt in water. Moving these animals into a semi-arid environment could be detrimental to their survival.

“Animals need to be able to move freely in order to maintain a level of genetic diversity that builds resilience to changes in their environment caused by climate change, and we think this ecologically-induced separation of the lions pre-dates western Europeans colonisation of southern Africa, so has likely been developing for a long time; way before people came with their fences and hunting.

“Although we didn’t find humans to be the driving force here – it doesn’t mean to say they aren’t having any effect. Impacts such as persecution or increased development could lead to exacerbating inbreeding and threatening the future of these specially adapted lions.”

Full Report: S. G. Dures, C. Carbone. V. Savolainen, G. Maude, D. Gotelli, Ecology rather than people restrict gene flow in Okavango-Kalahari lions. 2019. Animal Conservation

To find out more about ZSL’s Institute of Zoology research, see www.zsl.org/science

Understanding Malaria

Malaria is a parasitic disease that attacks red blood cells and is usually spread by the female Anopheles mosquito. Although the implications of being infected with malaria can be severe, the likelihood of tourists in Africa being infected is extremely low if good advice from travel experts is followed, and simple precautions are taken.

Introduction

Malaria is a mosquito-transmitted infectious disease caused by parasites belonging to the Plasmodium genus. The female Anopheles mosquito transmits these single-celled organisms into the human bloodstream where they begin their full life and reproductive cycle, first in the liver and later in the red blood cells. ‘Uncomplicated’ malaria symptoms include high fever, headaches, body aches, nausea and diarrhoea (though not always), and a feeling of extreme fatigue, but ‘severe’ or ‘complicated’ cases can result in coma, seizures and death.

P. falciparum, P. vivax, P. ovale and P. malariae are the most common species of Plasmodium mosquitos that cause malaria in humans, and medical professionals must confirm which species has been responsible for the infection. Typically, P. falciparum and P. vivax are considered to be more dangerous, but all malarial infections should be treated as a medical emergency. While many people consider cerebral malaria to be a different type of malaria, it is typically caused by a severe infection of P. falciparum that has gone untreated for an extended period.

Which African countries are high risk?

Malaria is present in the majority of African countries, but its geographic distribution is complicated by several different factors, meaning that malaria-free and malaria-risk areas can occur in close proximity and risk levels can be seasonal. The highest risk areas tend to be around the equator, as warm and humid temperatures in high rainfall areas favour transmission. As per the CDC, malaria transmission does not occur at very high altitudes, in deserts away from oases and in areas where eradication programs have successfully eliminated the risk. In temperatures below 20˚C, the parasite cannot complete the necessary growth cycle in the mosquito before transmission.

Every year, the Malaria Atlas Project works in conjunction with the World Health Organization to produce the World Malaria Report with the necessary, updated information about the distribution of malaria and where outbreaks could be anticipated. An up-to-date and interactive map can be found here.

Avoid being bitten

It’s impossible to avoid every single mosquito bite, no matter how diligent you are, but there are a few tips to avoid being bitten wherever possible:

travel during low-risk seasons – the dry and cool months;
use insect repellent;
cover legs and arms with long-sleeved shirts and trousers, particularly at night;
sleep under a mosquito net in an air-conditioned or well-screened room and, if possible, sleep with a fan on;
avoid standing water that may breed mosquitoes.

Preventative Prophylactics

Due to the complexity of the malarial plasmid life cycle, there is no widely available or effective vaccine available against malaria, though there are vaccines at differing stages of clinical development and trial.

There are several prophylaxis medications available, and many different factors should be considered in choosing an appropriate one. Most important is to follow the advice of a doctor, who should be up to date on personal medical history, as well as which medications are more effective for different strains of malaria. All of these medications are to be commenced before the date of travel to a malaria area and continued after the traveller has returned.

Some of the more common options include:

Atovaquone-profuanil (Malarone) – must be taken daily at the same time of day;
Doxycycline – taken daily at the same time of day;
Mefloquine – taken once a week on the same day of the week;
Chloroquine phosphate or hydroxychloroquine sulfate (Plaquenil) – taken once a week on the same day of the week but effective only in certain areas.

As with any medications, these medications all have their potential side effects that should always be discussed with a doctor beforehand, including nausea, insomnia and photosensitivity (when taking doxycycline). Most side effects are infrequent and generally do not necessitate discontinuing the drug.

Pregnant women and parents of young children need to be particularly cautious if travelling to a malaria area and it essential to combine both the prophylaxis (some options are safe in both pregnancy and for infants) with active preventative measures.

Treatment

With malaria, early detection is critical. The disease typically presents with symptoms between one to three weeks after exposure, but in extremely rare cases, prophylaxis drugs have delayed symptoms for a few months. It is essential for anyone who has travelled to a malaria area to seek medical advice immediately if they display any malaria symptoms and fully explain their travel history. While home tests are available, it is essential to note that due to the complexity of the malaria life cycle, these tests can yield false-negative results. Even if a home test shows a positive result, it is still necessary to seek medical attention so that the species of malaria and seriousness of infection can be confirmed via a blood test-particularly since certain strains of drug-resistant malaria require specific treatment. It is also critical to complete the course of medication prescribed to avoid the risk of reinfection, regardless of whether or not symptoms are still present.

Akagera NP (Rwanda) tourism revenue up 25%

The success story of Akagera National Park continues as this year, Rwanda’s only Big 5 reserve reported a 25% growth in revenue for 2019 – $2.5 million. A successful partnership with the non-profit conservation organisation African Parks, secured in 2010, has seen the number of visitors to the park grow each successive year. 2019 saw 49, 000 visitors to Akagera and, as in previous years, 48% of these visitors were Rwandan citizens.

As with any National Reserve, any growth in revenue is significant and Akagera Park management report that the revenue received accounts for 90% of their annual visitors. $525,000 of the 2019 revenue was directed back into the local communities, either through staff salaries or through local purchases.

It is not just visitor numbers that have increased over the years – monitoring programs and aerial counts have shown that animal numbers are on the rise as well, with overall numbers rising from 12,000 in 2017 to 13,500 in 2019. Seven lions were reintroduced to the park in 2015, having been relocated from South Africa and eighteen black rhinos were moved from South Africa to Akagera in 2017. Four months after the relocation of the rhino, the birth of first rhino calf in the wild in over a decade was recorded, and the arrival of the rhino completed Akagera’s “Big 5 status”. A further five rhino arrived from a zoo in the Czech Republic in 2019, increasing tourist interest in the park.

Sarah Hall, who is the Tourism and Marketing Manager at Akagera National Park, told Rwanda’s The New Times that increased revenue meant several improvements including a tar road from Kabarondo to make access to the reserve easier for the guests. She also noted that the reserve had seen an increase in visitors from Francophone countries.

For a relatively small country with a complicated history, the success of Akagera National Park under the management of African Parks is a triumph of conservation efforts and, as the wildlife benefits, so will the local communities.

Lions have been re-introduced to Akagera © Jytte Fredholm Ferreira

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 8 – Gallery 1

Our Photographer of the Year 2020 competition, with a stunning safari prize provided by Djuma Private Game Reserve, is now in full swing and open for submissions!
There are two galleries showcasing this week’s Weekly Selection. To see the other gallery click here: Gallery 2, Gallery 3

One of the male lions that forms part of a coalition that dominates the Ngwehla area. Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe © Riaan Olivier

? This male lion is a member of a coalition that dominates the Ngwehla area. Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe © Riaan Olivier

A gathering of elephants. Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Kevin Dooley

? A gathering of elephants in. Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Kevin Dooley

? Serra da Leba mountain pass near Lubango, Angola © Evan Naude

? Black mamba catching the morning glow of the sun before setting off on her morning hunt. Maun, Botswana © Mark Flatt

? Southern ground-hornbill with a caterpillar. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Robert Holmwood

An impala attempts to jump away from a painted wolf (African wild dog). Moremi Game Reserve, Botswana © Fabio Vegetti

? An impala leaps high to escape a painted wolf (African wild dog). Moremi Game Reserve, Botswana © Fabio Vegetti

? “There is danger in the mud”. A crocodile opens its eyes while resting in a muddy pool. Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Jens Cullmann

? Leopard brothers playing on the rocks. Samburu National Reserve, Kenya © Trish Hennessy

? On the crater’s rim. Mount Nyiragongo, DR Congo © Susana Silvestre

? Up close of a leopard’s paw and claws while it holds down an impala. Mashatu Game Reserve, Botswana © Zaheer Ali

? Two elephants crossing paths create an intriguing visual effect. Etosha National Park, Namibia © Jeff Harrisberg

? A purple heron with a gecko. Lake Panic, Kruger National Park, South Africa © Leon Heyes

Detailed shot of a zebra's nose and mouth. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Dominique Maree

? Detailed shot of a zebra’s muzzle. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Dominique Maree

? Lions fight over an impala carcass. Chobe National Park, Botswana © Francis Bompard

? Backlit shot of a spotted hyena as it moves in to feed on a zebra carcass. Madikwe Game Reserve, South Africa © Rupert Bridgman

Elephants heading towards water. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Sophie Brown

? Elephants heading towards the water. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Sophie Brown

Battersby green snake coming down a palm tree in Karura Forest. Nairobi, Kenya © Tim Nicklin

? Battersby’s green snake (Philothamnus battersbyi) descending a palm tree in Karura Forest. Nairobi, Kenya © Tim Nicklin

? Spotted hyena cub emerges from a den into the golden light. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Willem Kruger

? Maasai man gathering wood in a desolate landscape, near Serengeti National Park, Tanzania © Alice van Kempen

? A scenic flight above the ‘Eye of Sahara’. Chinguetti, Mauritania © Miguel Bruno

Baby elephant resting between its mother's feet. Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Jens Cullmann

? Baby elephant resting between his mother’s feet. Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Jens Cullmann

? Exploring the dunes in Sossusvlei. Namib Desert, Namibia © Chanèl Rossouw

? The magical spectacle of light and colour at sunset at the Avenue of the Baobabs. Madagascar © Kim Paffen

? Cheetah brothers look out into the valley. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Yarin Klein

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 8 – Gallery 2

? A spotted hyena attempts to get her cub into the den. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Anna-Carina Nagel

? A purple-crested turaco in flight. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Dave Pusey

? An endless sea of wildebeest during the Great Migration. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Ross Cooper

? White-backed vulture. Chobe National Park, Botswana © Tanya Nadauld

A very young elephant calf attempt to suckle from its mother. Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Jens Cullmann

? A very young elephant calf suckling from his mother. Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Jens Cullmann

Lioness and cub whilst feeding. Central Kalahari Game Reserve,Botswana © Eben van Heerden

? Lioness and cub feeding. Central Kalahari Game Reserve, Botswana © Eben van Heerden

A yellow-billed hornbill displays a perfect reflection at a waterhole. Indlovu River Lodge Private Game Reserve, Greater Kruger, South Africa © Braeme Holland

? A yellow-billed hornbill displays a perfect reflection at a waterhole. Indlovu River Lodge Private Game Reserve, South Africa © Braeme Holland

? Buffaloes in the dust at sunset. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Willem Kruger

? Cheetah feasting on a wildebeest kill. Ndutu, Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tanzania© Matrishva Vyas

? Dark silhouettes of dead trees against the light of sunset in Deadvlei, Namibia © Linda Klipp

? Up close with a southern ground-hornbill. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Kyle Lewin

? Boomslang (tree snake) makes a surprise visit to a garden at a holiday resort on the KwaZulu-Natal South Coast, South Africa © Leon Heyes.

A spotted hyena cub looking after its sibling. Timbavati Game Reserve, South Africa © Tina Antrobus

? A spotted hyena cub looking after its younger sibling. Timbavati Game Reserve, South Africa © Tina Antrobus

? Wildebeest giving birth. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Hilda Le Roux

? Baglafecht weavers use colourful string from fisherman to build their nests. Lake Naivasha, Kenya © Deborah Hill

Up close of a green tree frog. Odzala-Kokoua National Park, Republic of Congo © Liam Charlton

? Close-up of a green tree frog. Odzala-Kokoua National Park, Republic of Congo © Liam Charlton

A young baboon quenches his thirst at a waterhole. Indlovu River Lodge Private Game Reserve, Greater Kruger, South Africa © Braeme Holland

? A young baboon quenches his thirst at a waterhole. Indlovu River Lodge Private Game Reserve, South Africa © Braeme Holland

Male and female Standing's day gecko on a baobab tree. Zombitse-Vohibasia National Park, Madagascar © Kim Paffen

? Standing’s day geckos on a baobab tree. Zombitse-Vohibasia National Park, Madagascar © Kim Paffen

? A spotted hyena feeds on a buffalo. The buffalo was killed by lions, which where chased away by the hyenas. Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Jens Cullmann

? African rock python. Lephalale, Limpopo Province, South Africa © Ryno Jones

A leopard observes guests on game-viewing vehicle a few metres away from him. Sabi Sands Private Game Reserve, South Africa © Zaheer Ali

? A leopard observes guests on a game-viewing vehicle a few metres away from him. Sabi Sands Private Game Reserve, South Africa © Zaheer Ali

? Lion cub resting in the late afternoon sun. Greater Kruger National Park, South Africa © Katja Voth

A juvenile pale chanting goshawk takes off with elephant dung, and attempts to extract worms from it. Addo Elephant National Park, South Africa © Braeme Holland

? A juvenile pale chanting goshawk takes off with elephant dung, which it was searching for worms. Addo Elephant National Park, South Africa © Braeme Holland

? African hummingbird hawk-moth drinking nectar from a flower. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Morne Grobler

? Elephant taking a swim. Mashatu Game Reserve, Botswana © Kevin Dooley

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 8 – Gallery 3

? An elephant family herd at a waterhole. Mashatu Game Reserve, Botswana © Kevin Dooley

A nomad in the Chinguitti Desert, Mauritania © Miguel Bruno

? A nomad and his camels in the Chinguitti Desert, Mauritania © Miguel Bruno

? Bickering helmeted guineafowl. Karongwe Private Nature Reserve, South Africa, South Africa © Willem Kruger

? A male leopard rests after hoisting his impala kill into a tree. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Tiffany Franks

A European bee-eater attempts to catch a moth for his meal. Cape Town, South Africa © Braeme Holland

? A European bee-eater flips his moth meal before swallowing it. Cape Town, South Africa © Braeme Holland

? Eye-to-eye with a scrub hare. Addo Elephant National Park, South Africa © Braeme Holland

? Monitor lizard looking out of the mud. Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Jens Cullmann

A leopard focuses on a baby vervet monkey after it was accidentaly left behind by the mother after the troop escaped the big cat. Okavango Delta, Botswana © Thomas Retterath

? A leopard focuses on a baby vervet monkey left behind by the mother when the troop fled from the big cat. Okavango Delta, Botswana © Thomas Retterath

? A spotted bush snake. Sabi Sands Private Game Reserve, South Africa © Rod Watson

? White-headed buffalo weaver lies in a defensive pose after a scuffle amongst the flock. Serengeti National Park, Tanzania © Matrishva Vyas

A cheetah with one of her seven cubs walking through the rain. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Yarin Klein

? A cheetah and one of her seven cubs walking through the rain. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Yarin Klein

? A mating pair of lions. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Manuel Nägele

? Springbok herd with zebra in the background. Etosha National Park, Namibia © Kevin Dooley

? Great white pelican preening. Walvis Bay, Namibia © Anthony Roberts

A mother baboon drinks at what's left at Long Pool. The head of the baby looks like it is in the mud, but actually there is a hollow of dried mud behind the water where its head is. Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Jens Cullmann

? A mother baboon drinks from the muddy water at Long Pool. The head of the baby looks like it is in the mud, but actually, there is a hollow of dried mud behind the water. Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Jens Cullmann

A spotted hyena walks through the plain after the first rains. Liuwa Plain National Park, Zambia © Daniela Anger

? A spotted hyena walks across the plain after the first rains. Liuwa Plain National Park, Zambia © Daniela Anger

? Bull elephants in musth fight for dominance. This tussle lasted for over an hour. Mara North Conservancy, Kenya © Alison Mees

One of the four cheetah cubs rests after feeding on a large male impala that their mother killed. Mashatu Game Reserve. Botswana © Deborah Jordan

? One of the four cheetah cubs rests after feeding on a large male impala that their mother had killed. Mashatu Game Reserve. Botswana © Deborah Jordan

? A muddy buffalo in the dying light of the day. Savuti, Botswana © Erwin van Liempd

? Cape cobra (Naja nivea). Montagu, Western Cape, South Africa © Tyrone Ping

An elephant calf attempt to give itself a dust bath. Nxai Pan National Park, Botswana © Didier Couvert

? An elephant calf dust-bathing. Nxai Pan National Park, Botswana © Didier Couvert

A Malagasy giant chameleon crossing the street on a road along the Bay of Diego-Suarez in Madagascar © Kim Paffen

? A Malagasy giant chameleon crossing the road near the Bay of Diego-Suarez in Madagascar © Kim Paffen

? A leopard cub under the watchful eye of its mother. Londolozi Nature Reserve, Greater Kruger National Park, South Africa © Willem Kruger

A tiger snake. Lephalale, South Africa © Ryno Jones

? A tiger snake. Lephalale, Limpopo Province, South Africa © Ryno Jones

Wildebeest migration routes under threat – researchers

DECODING SCIENCE POST by AG Editorial

Researchers have conducted a lengthy pre-published study indicating that the lesser-known wildebeest migration patterns throughout East Africa are facing grave peril. The scientists point to population growth resulting in: range restriction, degradation and loss of habitats, agriculture, poaching and artificial barriers such as roads and fences. They highlight the necessity of urgent conservation measures and commitment from the governments of both Kenya and Tanzania.

The study examined migrations in 5 different ecosystems. 1 = Serengeti Ecosystem, 2 = Maasai Mara Ecosystem, 3 = Narok County, 4 = Athi-Kaputiei Ecosystem, 5 = Machakos County, 6 = Greater Amboseli Ecosystem, 7 = West Kajiado and 8 = Tarangire – Manyara Ecosystem © F. Msoffe et al

Understanding migration

The yearly Great Migration of over a million white-bearded wildebeest and zebra through the Serengeti and Maasai Mara ecosystems is perhaps the most renowned large mammal migration and generates enormous tourism revenue. Importantly, the study notes that these populations are not under threat, and their movements are mostly unrestricted. However, poaching is still a challenge for conservation authorities. Though by far the largest, this is not the only wildebeest migration in East Africa. The scientists emphasise that conserving smaller populations and migrations is essential for several ecological and socio-economic reasons.

Protecting a migratory route involves complex analysis of the context in terms of the human populations of the land. Integral to this study was research into historical wildebeest migration patterns as well as their current status. Researchers attained historical information through literature reviews, colonial-era records, maps, GIS databases, records of GPS collared wildebeest and interviews with residents and researchers alike. For current movements and status information, 36 wildebeest across the study range were collared, and their movement tracked for two years. Wildebeest population estimates used external data compiled by aerial surveys and various governmental, development and wildlife organisations provided the data on the anthropogenic aspects of the analysis.

Population trends of migratory wildebeest populations: a) Serengeti-Mara ecosystem, b) Maasai Mara ecosystem, c) Narok County, d) Athi-Kaputiei ecosystem, e) Machakos County, f) Greater Amboseli ecosystem, g) West Kajiado and h) Tarangire-Manyara ecosystem © F. Msoffe et al

Disappearing wildebeest

This approach was made all the more complicated by the fact that irreversible changes to the migratory populations and routes that occurred as early as the beginning of the 20th century. With this in mind, scientists examined the Serengeti-Mara, Maasai-Mara, Athi-Kaputiei, Amboseli Basin and Tarangire-Manyara ecosystems and came to the following conclusions:

Serengeti-Mara – as discussed, though the migratory routes have changed slightly, the numbers have remained stable (currently around 1.3 million animals) because the migratory pathways occur mostly within protected areas. Referred to by researchers as ‘southern migration.’
Maasai-Mara – during the dry season (July-October) as the Serengeti wildebeest move north into the Maasai Mara, wildebeest from the Loita Plains descend to the conservancies surrounding the Maasai Mara National Reserve. Their numbers have declined 80.9%, from 123,930 wildebeest in 1977-78 to less than 20,000 in 2016. Referred to by researchers as ‘northern migration’.
Athi-Kaputiei ecosystem – includes Nairobi National Park, Athi Plains and surrounding areas. This population has declined 95% from over 26,800 in 1977-78 to under 3,000 in 2014, leading to a “virtual collapse of the migration”. It is important to note here that researchers believe that many of these wildebeest have moved, rather than died in such enormous numbers.
Amboseli Basin – includes Amboseli National Park and surrounding pastoral lands in Kajiado County. The population of the Amboseli ecosystem declined 84.5% from 16,290 in 1977-78 to 2,375 by 2014.
Tarangire-Manyara ecosystem – incorporates both national parks and private conservancies in Tanzania. The population declined from 48,783 in 1990 to 13,603 in 2016 and shows no signs of recovery.

As can be seen from the above, four out of the five studied migrations are at the point of disappearing completely, particularly the Athi-Kaputiei population. As wildebeest numbers have dropped, the human populations have soared: a 673% increase in Narok County (including Loita Plains), 905% in Kajiado County (Incorporating the Amboseli Basin), and a 247% increase in Machakos Country – all from 1962 to 2009. Increased human numbers means increased agriculture, increased sedentarisation and settlement of formerly semi-nomadic populations, and more fences and roads that occlude grazing resources and routes. In Kenya, the increase of private land ownership has changed the game, and in Tanzania the Game Controlled Areas have been cultivated.

The study expressed frustration at what the researchers describe as “incoherent government development policies that promote incompatible land uses, such as promoting cultivation pastoral rangelands occupied by wildlife to combat food insecurity while also promoting wildlife-based tourism in the same areas”. In Kenya, landowners do not have access or user rights over the wild animals on their land and are often offered no compensation for the cost of supporting wildlife. While there are several changes in policy and legal framework, none of these has been adequately implemented.

Hope going forward

The study acknowledges the existing governmental and conservation efforts in both Kenya and Tanzania that have gone some way towards mitigating the effects of expansive population growth, particularly in the development of policies on corridors, dispersal areas and buffer zones to create habitat connectivity. The researchers highlight the system of conservancies within Kenya – private landowners (either individually or as an amalgamation) rent out large sections of land to tourism operators for game viewing. In Kenya, around 65% of wildlife occurs outside of protected areas, so the rapid growth in popularity of conservancies is a positive development. They do, however, require a sustainable tourism potential. In Tanzania, the creation of the Tanzania Wildlife Authority as well as the reorganisation of the entire wildlife sector into paramilitary-style organisations to intensify the fight against run-away poaching, have both been positive steps. However, these efforts need to be enhanced by economic incentives to communities.

“The Kenyan and Tanzanian governments need to strongly promote and lead the conservation of the remaining key wildebeest habitats, migration corridors and populations and more conservancies or management areas should be established to protect migratory routes or corridors, buffer zones, dispersal areas and calving grounds for the species.” The plight of the white-bearded wildebeest is one that represents a far more significant challenge facing the wildlife of Africa.

Full report: Wildebeest migration in East Africa: Status, threats and conservation measures
Fortunata Msoffe, Joseph Ogutu, Mohammed Said, Shem Kifugo, Jan de Leeuw, Paul Van Gardigen, Robin Reid, JA Staback, Randall Boone – hosted by bioRxiv

Who is who? Elephant identification tips and tricks

DECODING SCIENCE written by Dr Julie Kern from Elephants Alive

How many large-tusked bulls remain in the APNR? How socially connected are different population members? How successful are human-elephant conflict mitigation methods? These questions are all examples of key research objectives for Elephants Alive. If at first glance you think these questions have little in common, look again, and you’ll see they all rely on a key piece of information – who’s who.

Identifying elephant bulls falls under the umbrella of the ID Study and is Elephants Alive’s longest-running project, having begun in 1996. Since then, the team have identified almost 1,500 individual bulls. Identifying elephants requires excellent observation skills and the team pay special attention to any noticeable physical features which differ between individuals, from tusk configuration and body appearance to characteristic ear patterns, such as notches, tears and holes. Using photographs collected at each sighting, identikits are drawn for each individual elephant and subsequently used to identify the individuals seen in the field. If you’re keen to hone your detective skills, read on for our selection of top elephant-identification tips and tricks to use at your next sighting.

State the obvious

Many individuals have startling body features which can make their identification quick and simple. Look out for collapsed or folded ears, missing tails or trunk tips, and the location of scars or lumps.

Also, take note of the tusks – any birdwatchers will be familiar with the acronym ‘GISS’ or ‘general impression of size and shape’, a rule which also holds true in this case. Are they short or long, thin or thick, straight, splayed or skew? Are both tusks present, and if not, is one broken at the base or missing altogether? When missing entirely, the tusk socket is conspicuously empty (below far right).

Elephants with various tusk shapes — © Elephants Alive

Play it by ear

Once you’ve checked the more obvious features, it’s time to take a closer look at an elephant’s ears. If there are any tears, notches or holes, pay attention to their location, size and shape. Unfortunately, many individuals have few notches and holes in their ears, especially younger elephants, which makes them much harder to identify. In this case, you can often find a clue to their identity by noting venation patterns on the ears.

Elephants with ear identification — © Elephants Alive

The signs they are a-changin’

Once you’ve got the hang of it, it’s worth remembering that much like ourselves, an elephant’s physical features are likely to change over time as tusks break, another tear appears, or holes pull through leaving a notch in their place. Take Kierie-Klapper (below), a young bull first seen in 2005 and resighted in most years since. In 2013 a new hole appeared in his lower left ear, and earlier this year, another notch was added to the top of his right ear.

Elephants with ear changes over the years — © Elephants Alive

Elephants Alive has recently published an Elephant ID Guide in conjunction with Amarula, featuring 30 of the most iconic individuals in the APNR. If you’re interested in purchasing a copy or if you have photographs from your own sightings that you’d like to add to our Citizen Sightings database, please forward them to info2u@elephantsalive.org.

Trophy hunting: rural communities respond

Africa’s rural communities live with wild animals and should have a greater say in how wildlife is managed © Simon Espley

OPINION POST by Ishmael Chaukura and others

Below is a Communities Response letter by Ishmael Chaukura of the Masoka Community in Zimbabwe, along with a number of concerned parties from 4 southern African countries. It was originally published in Science Magazine in response to an article calling for trophy hunting bans and also references Amy Dickman’s answer to that same article. According to the representative of the Communal Areas Management Programme for Indigenous Resources (CAMPFIRE) in Zimbabwe, it “is vital to ensure that discussions on conservation are informed by those who live with wildlife and that their livelihoods are protected, and rights upheld”:

trophy hunting — An elephant crosses the fence separating a northern Botswana national park and community land © Elephants for Africa

Dear Sir/Madam

A recent letter in Science by Dickman et al about trophy hunting unleashed passionate debate in the Western media. These discussions have involved over 400 conservationists, academics and animal rights advocates from the US, Europe and Australia, voicing strong, if divergent, opinions on effective conservation strategies.

Much of the discussion focuses on Africa, but with the notable exception of Dickman et al’s letter, key voices missing from the debate are those of rural people and governments who live with and manage African wildlife, and who will ultimately determine its future. As legitimate representatives of many thousands of people from key wildlife range states (Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe and Zambia), we would like to correct this and have our perspective and voices heard.

Sustainably managing megafauna is complex, and successful conservation must start with we who live directly with wildlife. Whilst many in the West view elephants, lions and other wildlife through a romantic, idealized lens, our daily reality of living with these magnificent and valued, yet often dangerous, animals requires more pragmatism.

We, who live surrounded by this wildlife, worry daily that our children may be killed on their way to school, or that our livelihoods will be destroyed. In Botswana, 36 people were killed by elephants in 2018. In Zimbabwe, at least 30 people were trampled by elephants in 2019. Every death is a tragedy, and often involves family breadwinners. Recently, two Zimbabwean siblings disappeared from their home. Only the dismembered head of the two year old was recovered from the suspected hyena attack, and the four year old has never been found. The harsh reality is that if wildlife is just a threat to us, and our incentives to conserve it are removed, its future will be as bleak as that of the wolves, bears and other carnivores of Europe and the US.

For centuries our people have lived with wildlife, and its value is deeply ingrained in our cultures. During colonial times our rights to manage and benefit from these resources were removed. This led to dramatic loss of wildlife and its habitat – a disaster for conservation, our traditions and our livelihoods. Following independence, our governments restored our rights and integrated wildlife into rural economies. This enabled the development of socio-economic incentives to live with and sustainably manage our wildlife. Whilst it varies nationally, up to 90% of these economic incentives are provided through sustainable, regulated hunting. This has led, in Southern African countries such as ours, to increasing wildlife populations and habitat, often even beyond formally protected areas, in stark contrast to most Western countries.

We acknowledge that banning wildlife trophy imports into foreign countries is within the right of those governments. We further recognize that regulated hunting may appear a counter-intuitive conservation strategy to many. Yet if your objective is conservation – not solely the recognition of individual animal rights – import bans are misguided and have important implications for our human rights. We are concerned that hundreds of millions of dollars have been gobbled up in misleading animal rights campaigns without any benefit for the custodians of African wildlife – African people. Banning trophy imports risks significantly reducing the value of our wildlife, reducing incentives to tolerate and manage wildlife as an integral component of our livelihoods. Imposing such disastrous policies on us negates our sound conservation record. Once again, wildlife numbers will plummet and our rights to sustainably manage our natural resources will again be undermined.

We recognize and respect the rights of Western conservation scientists and animal rights advocates to discuss how best to manage African wildlife. However, we request that your discussions are informed by our voices as custodians of this wildlife. Discussions should acknowledge both our conservation successes and our communities’ right to earn a livelihood through the culturally appropriate, sustainable management of our resources for the benefit of our people. Any less is to deny our human rights.

Yours sincerely,

Ishmael Chaukura

CAMPFIRE Inter-ward Chairperson – Mbire District, Zimbabwe

Full Letter: RE. Communities Response in Science Magazine. Ishmael Chaukura (CAMPFIRE Inter-ward Chairperson Mbire District, Zimbabwe), Gakemotho Satau, Kutlwano Russel, Tumeleng Mogodu, S.K. Moepedi, Kerapetse Bantu Peter, Amos Ben Mabuku, Hilda N. Nathinge, Max Mayemburuko, Theo Naruseb, Brisetha Hendricks, Stein Katupa, Zaack Dirkse, Geoffrey Tukuhuphwele, Never Ncube, Delani Mabhena, Phillip Mpofu, Zoolakes Nyathi, Morning Manguba, Isaac Msebele, Land Ndebele, Innocent Mavunela, Patson Simango, Kumbula Jimmy, Naison Ndhlovu, K. Njanjeni, Nyalani Mgaduwi, Chief Shana, Sinikiwe Nyathi, Jabulani Ndubiwa, Promotion Dzomba, Sarudzai Goredema, Osca Marowa, Public Museruka, Ishmael Jack , Julius Chokubooka, Justin Mawachi, Cossam Chikondoma, Godfrey Ndlovu, Chief Tategulu, Chief Matupula, Chief Siphoso, Dr Rodgers Lubilo

Greater Kruger

The Kruger National Park has attained international renown, but the terms ‘Kruger National Park’ (KNP) and ‘Greater Kruger’ are often used interchangeably, despite their differences. The distinction between the two is important, to understand both the tourist experience and how this conservation model has impacted the wildlife of the area.

Find out about Greater Kruger or Kruger National Park for your next African safari. We have ready-made safaris to choose from, or ask us to build one just for you.

The ‘Greater Kruger’ refers to 344,000 hectares (860,000 acres) of protected land to the west of Kruger National Park that provides a more substantial area for wildlife to roam freely. Private and local community property owners own this additional land, and most is utilised for commercial purposes.

There are no longer fences between these properties and KNP, providing the animals with an opportunity to roam, thereby reducing pressure on vegetation and bringing back historical local seasonal wildlife movements. Historically most seasonal migration was in an east-west direction, from the coastal areas of Mozambique to the slopes of the Drakensberg mountains, to take advantage of seasonal food and water. Fences and human pressure now prohibit that movement, and the north-south shape of KNP is not optimal for seasonal migrations.

Greater Kruger game drive — Leopard encounter during a game drive in Klaserie, Greater Kruger © Simon Espley

Luxury safaris
The Greater Kruger is utilised primarily for photographic tourism and is home to some of South Africa’s best-known luxury Big 5 lodges. Relatively high prices and strict access control results in low visitor numbers compared to the neighbouring KNP, and off-road driving (by experienced guides), night drives and bush walks guarantee fantastic wildlife encounters.

Wildlife industry
South Africa’s conservation strategy incorporates other wildlife industries such as hunting; a strategy that has resulted in large areas outside of national parks falling under some form of protection against livestock and crop farming and other forms of development not tolerant of wildlife. A small portion of the hundreds of landowners making up the Greater Kruger permit trophy hunting on their (non-tourism) properties, to fund their significant and increasing anti-poaching and other conservation costs. The limited trophy hunting quotas are subject to approval by the KNP, and hunting protocol strictly enforced by the management of the constituent reserves. That said, immoral or illegal behaviour by members of the trophy hunting industry does occur. Trophy hunting in most constituent reserves within Greater Kruger is gradually being squeezed out by the resurgent photographic tourism industry, and no trophy hunting is permitted in the KNP itself.

Properties making up the Greater Kruger

Sabi Sand
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 landowners of the original 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. The land is used for photographic tourism and private leisure. For your ready-made African safari to Sabi Sand Game Reserve, click here.

The Associated Private Nature Reserves (APNR)
The 197,885 ha APNR is an association of privately-owned reserves that removed fences bordering the Kruger National Park in 1993 after operating before that as livestock and hunting 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 Private 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 Game Reserve
Founded in 1963, the 23,000 ha Manyeleti Game Reserve is sandwiched between the KNP, 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 Nature Reserve
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 limited photographic tourism purposes.

Greater Kruger walking safari — Walking safari in Balule, Greater Kruger @ Simon Espley

Despite ongoing challenges, the Greater Kruger is one of conservation’s greatest success stories and is the model underpinning KNP’s 10-year management plan. It is also the perfect safari destination for those looking for exclusive encounters with Africa’s Big 5.

Further reading: The History and Future of Kruger

Victoria Falls drying up? Fake news versus fact

Let’s address the recent international news-media claims that Victoria Falls is running dry

As the largest waterfall in the world, Victoria Falls needs very little in the way of introduction. Even to the uninitiated, the name conjures images of breath-taking vistas, lush and verdant vegetation, thrill-seeking and, of course, water thundering down into gorges releasing spray that can on occasion be seen kilometres away. The falls are also officially known as Mosi-ao-Tunya or “The Smoke That Thunders” in the Lozi language of the area – a name that perfectly captures the almost mystical atmosphere of this World Heritage Site.

Upstream of the falls, the Zambezi River flows across an almost flat basalt plateau in a shallow valley before reaching the fracture in the plateau with a vertical drop into First Gorge, around 100 metres below. At this point, the Zambezi is 1,708m in width, creating the largest continuous falling curtain of water in the world. From there, the river narrows through a series of awe-inspiring gorges. Geographically, Zambia lies on the northern and eastern side of the falls which is topographically higher, with Zimbabwe to the south and west. Naturally, the amount of water flowing over the falls is seasonally dependent on the amount of rain that falls into the catchment upstream – typically, the rainy season begins around November/December and continues through until April when the rest of the year remains comparatively dry.

The changes in seasonal rainfall inevitably impact the tourism experience and different times of the year will treat visitors to diverse ways to experience the falls. The river is usually at its most dramatic from February through until May where the highest amount of water tumbles over the falls. The flip side of this is that there is a chance that the falls may not be clearly visible, obscured as they are by the rainbow-lit spray. After months of dry weather, the falls begin to reduce in size and reach their lowest levels towards the end of the year. This too presents different opportunities for visitors, allowing them unobscured views of the falls and the opportunity to go rafting.

Over the past few years, there has been a degree of social media speculation and even panic as the dry season reaches its peak and the river levels drop, particularly because the topographically higher Zambian side often slows to a minimum and occasionally stops flowing in places. However, at the end of 2019, this story was seized upon by international news media that ran with alarmist headlines suggesting that the Falls was completely dry – pictures that were taken from the drier parts of the Zambian side were used to emphasize the seeming urgency of the situation. The Zimbabwe side of the falls, still flowing and still spectacular, was largely ignored and most media outlets initially neglected to mention the seasonal fluctuations of the river.

The narrative that the falls were in danger of drying up completely and were at their lowest-ever levels was far from being supported by facts. The Zambian River Authority monitors the water levels each day and has records that go back decades. While the water levels did come close to the low levels seen in 1995/96, the improvement was already being seen as the story gained international traction-a fact that was largely ignored. At the time of writing, the water levels have been steadily increasing and are now higher than they were at the same time last year. Records going back further showed that some of the lowest-ever recorded levels were seen in the early 20th century – yet no reference was made to this fact. Nor was there mention of the water that is diverted away from the eastern cataract to supply the power station below the falls.

Scientists have not ignored the anthropogenic impact on the flow of the Zambezi – in a 2012 report published by International Rivers, Dr. Richard Beilfuss examines the numerous factors affecting the flow of this river system, including hydroelectric power, seasonal weather changes and the potential impact of climate change. While the cause for concern is clear, he also notes that “[t]he Zambezi River Basin has one of the most variable climates of any major river basin in the world, with an extreme range of conditions across the catchment and through time.” The graph below taken from his report shows the average yearly discharge at the falls. Note that there have been at least three other examples of extreme lows: 1914, 1948 and 1995, often followed by years of high flow rates.

In an area where tourism is not just a vital part of daily life but essential to the survival of the surrounding communities, it does not take a massive leap of intuition to imagine the potential effect of the fearmongering of international news media. Several tourism operators reported cancellations (our own travel team had to council safari clients that were concerned about the reports) and, while the ultimate effect on tourist statistics remains to be seen, the furious response of Victoria Falls locals is easy to understand. Many took to social media to showcase their photographs or videos taken in front of the flowing falls and the hashtag #VictoriaFallsIsNotDry became a vent for their growing frustration. In a furious response to one particular news outlet, a well-known member of the tourism community in Livingstone, Peter Jones, wrote “[f]or those of us living at the Victoria Falls, both in Zambia and Zimbabwe, we are picking up the pieces after your whirlwind visit to incorrectly inform the world the mighty Victoria Falls was in danger of drying up…We have all lost bookings and business in some way as a result of your misinformation [and] some people’s lives have taken a very definite turn for the worse.”

The impact of such reporting is deeply regrettable, not only in terms of the impact it will inevitably have on tourism revenue, but in the effect it has in polarising already divergent views. In ignoring or glossing over the facts, the message loses all credibility and fails its conservation agenda. Most importantly, the very real threat facing the people of certain parts of Zambia and Zimbabwe struggling to sustain themselves after an extended regional drought has been lost in the social media hysteria and subsequent backlash. The impact of dams and irrigation on some of Africa’s main river systems, as well as the socio-economic demand for electric power, has been ignored in favour of the more attention-grabbing “climate change” headings.

In an official statement in response to the reports on the state of Victoria Falls, the African Travel and Tourism Authority noted that “[w]hilst we are cognisant that Climate Change [sic] is a growing concern on a global level, and that it is potentially having an impact on countries throughout the world, what has been lacking in the media reports is an insight into the historic seasonal patterns and the resultant changes in water flow which are vital pieces of information to ensure a clear perspective is maintained”.

Victoria Falls white-water rafting © White Water Magazine

Breaking: copper mine in Lower Zambezi NP cancelled

04 March 2021 UPDATE: The Court of Appeals of Zambia has dismissed an appeal to stop the proposed large-scale open-pit mine in Lower Zambezi National Park, upholding the High Court’s decision to dismiss the case.

18 January 2020:

The planned open-cast Kangaluwi copper mine in Lower Zambezi National Park WILL NOT proceed, says a minister in the Zambian government, in a dramatic turnaround of a recent announcement that the controversial mining project would indeed go ahead – based on a legal technicality.

Now, it appears, another legal technicality has come to the fore to reverse that ruling, as Tourism and Arts Minister Ronald Chitotela announced the project wouldn’t go ahead because an environmental impact report that was submitted by the environmental regulator has expired. “If this mining firm wants to go ahead with its project, we can advise them to submit a fresh report which will have to be scrutinized and approved by the government,” he explained in an interview.

As a cautionary subnote to Mr. Chitotela’s confident announcement, there has not yet been any confirmation about the cancellation of the mining permit from the office of Zambia’s president, and Africa Geographic has been informed that at least three additional prospecting permits are being considered, for mining inside the national park.

Elephants crossing the Chongwe River – a tributary of the Zambezi that borders the Lower Zambezi National Park © Sharon Gilbert-Rivett

This mining project has a long history of questionable maneuvres and governmental decisions. The Kangaluwi copper mine project was initially owned by Bermuda-registered Mwembeshi Resources, which was in turn owned by Australian company Zambezi Resources (renamed Trek Metals) before being sold to Dubai-based Grand Resources Limited, a company of dubious substance, but thought to be a front for Chinese investors. It would appear that the Zambian Mines and Mineral Development Act of 2008 does not contain any substantial provisions relating to mining in protected areas and that foreign investors who face more robust legislation in their own countries are targetting this weakness.

Read this post for a thorough analysis of the situation, including the views from various stakeholders and affected parties.

Kingdom of the Black Pharaohs

When we mention Sudan, most people don’t react positively, either because they don’t know much about the country, or they recall negative news reports about it. Ten years ago, when we visited the “kingdom of the black pharaohs” for the first time, there were very few tourists. Nowadays, fortunately, some prejudices have disappeared, and more foreigners (khwadja) have started visiting this northeastern African country.
Though most tourists tend to stay close to Khartoum and stick to the main routes, to visit the impressive Nubian pyramids at Meroë and remnants of ancient temples. There is so much more to discover in the country of the black pharaohs, so many more archaeological sites that tell stories from ancient times.

? Sudan boasts many temples and ancient remnants – the most famous being the Nubian pyramids at Meroë © Andrea Kaucká and René Bauer

The ‘tourist boom’ started in about 2012 when several archaeological societies began working in various locations to uncover treasures of long-forgotten civilisations. Every year we returned to Sudan on expeditions that zigzagged across the barren countryside, and every year we discovered new and interesting places.

? Left) The prayer hall at Khatmiyah Mosque in Kassala; Right) The pyramids at Meroë were built by the rulers of the ancient Kushite kingdoms that are known as the ‘black pharaohs’ © Andrea Kaucká and René Bauer

? A nomad woman in Kassala, Sudan © Andrea Kaucká and René Bauer

ASK UNCLE GOOGLE

It was during one particular trip to Sudan that we found ourselves deep within the desolate Nubian Desert, on a quest to find an intriguing-looking rock with an even more interesting name: Jebel Magardi.
Our adventure started when we came across a large poster of this rock in the national museum in Khartoum. We questioned all of our Sudanese friends and their friends to help us find this mysterious Jebel Magardi in an area called Bir Nurayet – the massive rock no one had ever heard about. We ended up spending hours on Google Earth searching for the mysterious rock in the middle of the Nubian Desert and eventually pinpointed an approximate location close to the Egyptian border, deep in the desert.

? Clockwise from left: 1) Camping in the Nubian Desert; 2) Roughly 1 000 km of off-road driving was a fun experience; 3) Climbing to the top of the dunes provided some great landscape shots of the Nubian Desert; 4) Another beautiful desert camp, in the middle of nowhere and not a hint of civilisation. All images © Andrea Kaucká and René Bauer

We created a waypoint and started looking into how to get there and decided to approach the desert from the Red Sea coast so that we could find a lonely beach to rest up before the strenuous journey. We picked out routes that went through wadis (dry riverbeds), as this seemed like the easiest way through the Red Sea mountain range. In the comfort of our home, it only took us a few hours to find a route on the computer, but of course, the reality was somewhat different.

? Clockwise from top left: 1) A temple with lion statues at Musawarat – dedicated to Apedemak – a lion-headed warrior god; 2) Sudanese pyramids are smaller than their Egyptian cousins; 3) Statue of a ram. The ram is attributed to Amun, the god of the air; 4) The pyramids at Meroë are smaller than their Egyptian counterparts and were built between 2,700 and 2,300 years ago © Andrea Kaucká and René Bauer

MESSAGES FROM THE END OF THE WORLD

With our three off-road vehicles loaded up, we travelled from Khartoum to Port Sudan, and north towards the Egyptian border. In Mohammed Qol, they already knew who we were, because in the previous year we had been arrested at the police checkpoint. The officers had no idea what a tourist was and why we would want to explore Sudan and instead believed us to be CIA spies. Looking back, this misunderstanding was actually quite amusing…

Nubian desert, Sudan © Andrea Kaucká and René Bauer

? “We love the desert; one feels free there. For those who respect it, the desert is rewarding, but those who ignore its rules could face fatal consequences.” © Andrea Kaucká and René Bauer

About 50 km behind Mohammed Qol, we found a remote and quiet spot by the beach and made camp. There was no phone signal and, as we set off the next day, our careful planning was all we had to rely on to get us to our destination. Heading towards a towering mountain range in the distance, we followed a wadi of deep sand that wound its way into the mountains. What a mighty river this wadi must once have been!

We passed rocks of all different shapes and colours and now and then came across small villages along the route. Green acacias dotted along the wadi helped to break up the bleak-looking landscape of sand and rocks.
There were times when we were faced with a fork in the road, and I had to double-check the GPS and radio René (who was driving the lead vehicle) to discuss which route to take. Sometimes we took the wrong turn, ending up in a dead-end, and had to backtrack. On other occasions, we got hopelessly stuck in the deep hot sand, and the whole team had to dig and push – back-breaking work.

? Left) Beja tribesman with his camel; Right) Reaching an oasis in the desert. Both images © Andrea Kaucká and René Bauer

SUDAN’S GOLDEN VEINS

Travelling over the golden sands of the Nubian Desert, we felt like explorers of decades long past. Sometimes we met people along the way – mostly nomadic Beja – and the way they looked at us made us think that we must have looked like aliens to them.

Often we would take a break to take photos or because our Sudanese drivers had to pray. And it is was then that the emptiness of the landscape hit home. We would stand in awe, listening to the quiet around us. We could hear the wind blowing through the wadi and felt it on our skin, the sands slightly shifting below our feet. The ‘nothingness’ was broken only by the odd acacia tree, small village or occasional goat or camel.
We were seven hours into our adventure and had only covered a mere 150 km. On Google Earth, it didn’t look that far, but then we were spending quite a bit of our time stopping for photos because there was something worth photographing around almost every corner.

? The people of the desert, clockwise from top left: 1) A cotton picker; 2) A nomad with facial scarring; 3) A nomad tends to his donkeys; 4) In areas not conducive to farming, people (many of them nomads) support themselves by raising cattle, sheep, goats, or camels; 5) “The locals welcomed us with a smile”. All images © Andrea Kaucká and René Bauer

Finally, we reached Wadi Oko, the biggest wadi in the area. There was more traffic here, and a gold diggers town! Our Sudanese drivers were not too happy about it, but the locals welcomed us with a smile and even pulled out their smartphones to take selfies with us.
It was scorching, so we stopped for lunch and of course jebenah – a fantastic Sudanese coffee prepared in a specially-designed flask.

Drawing water from a well in Sudan© Andrea Kaucká and René Bauer

? Drawing water from a well at a gold mine © Andrea Kaucká and René Bauer

There are many more of these gold digger towns in the Nubian Desert and the Red Sea Hills. This is no huge surprise, considering that Nubia was the primary source of gold for ancient Egyptians. Descriptions of the precious metal appeared in hieroglyphs as early as 2600 B.C., and by 1500 B.C. gold had become the recognised medium of exchange for international trade. Pharaohs sent expeditions to Nubia to mine the quartz lodes for gold, which Egyptian goldsmiths transformed into vessels, furniture, funerary equipment and sophisticated jewellery. Even the name Nubia is considered by some to be a derivative of the Egyptian word for ‘gold’.

? Clockwise from top left: 1) Jebenah, Sudanese coffee, being prepared; 2) Freshly roasted coffee; 3) An ancient gravesite along the way to Bir Nurayet; 4) A qubba is an Arabic term for tomb structures, particularly Islamic domed shrines. These tombs were dotted along the way en route to Bir Nurayet. All images © Andrea Kaucká and René Bauer

LOST IN THE DESERT

Moving on from the gold-digging towns we found ourselves off-roading for about two hours when suddenly a green valley opened up before us, and as the sun started to dip below the horizon the golden light illuminated a majestic rock rising out of the valley ahead of us – Jebel Magardi! From afar, the rock looked like the head of a moray eel coming out of the ground, but in an archaeological context, Jebel Magardi represents a phallus symbol, an ancient sign of fertility. In its shadow, we found an area that the locals call Bir Nurayet to make camp.
It was quite late by the time we had set up camp. We sat around the crackling campfire and celebrated – not only because we had found Jebel Magardi, but also because it was René’s birthday. What better celebration could one wish for than sitting deep in the desert with absolutely no civilisation around us? It was just us and the desert that night.

? Left) Jebel Magardi and the contrasting cracked earth of the Nubian desert; Right) Camping at Bir Nurayet. Both images © Andrea Kaucká and René Bauer

The Sahara is a seemingly barren sea of hot sand, and yet a mere 13,000 years ago it was a thriving, lush landscape teeming with life. Wildlife such as giraffe, various antelope, elephant, ostrich and (later on) cattle once roamed this area, along with human hunter-gatherers. It is hard to believe what the desert once was, but thankfully there is evidence left behind by the ancient inhabitants, in the form of petroglyphs (rock paintings) of their life and the wildlife they encountered.
These petroglyphs are found in one of the biggest rock art galleries in the world. Discovered in 1999 by the Polish archaeologist Pluskot and his Dutch writer and photographer Baaijens during their camel caravan expedition, these petroglyphs depict scenes such as ancient hunts and cattle herding practices – lively proof of how the locals lived thousands of years ago.

Jebel Magardi, a huge monolith, rises out of the desert and towers above Bir Nurayet in Sudan © Andrea Kaucká and René Bauer

? Jebel Magardi, a massive monolith, rises out of the desert and towers above Bir Nurayet © Andrea Kaucká and René Bauer

At sunrise, we used the golden hour to walk around Jebel Magardi, looking for these petroglyphs. The rock looked even more majestic when we stood at its base, and we wondered what it would tell us if only it could speak. In times of the old caravans and bushmen, Jebel Magardi was used as an orientation point in the desert, easy to see from far away and with a wellpoint next to it.
But even after walking all around the rock we couldn’t find any petroglyphs. Just nothing. Where were the petroglyphs? Opposite the rock there was a dry riverbed and behind were a few rocks and cliffs, one of which looked like a camel head… and something told us we should go over to investigate.

SURROUNDED BY ELEPHANTS

We entered a little valley in between the rocks and on every rock face there were drawings of hundreds of cattle, all with very long horns, side by side with herds of camels and humans. We made our way past all these rocks paintings, utterly fascinated. In between these petroglyphs, we found a scene of an antelope hunt, then, a few metres further, elephants walking along, and even further down, we recognised a leopard.

? Pastoralists using petroglyphs of longhorn cattle to communicate the ancient tradition of raising cattle © Andrea Kaucká and René Bauer

One can see what animals lived in this area when humans settled here for the first time. Some petroglyphs were very simple; others were very intricately engraved – a good sign of the progress of human art.
The art of Bir Nurayet is attributed to the Neolithic period and mostly depicts a fertility cult. We explored, discussed and imagined the stories for each drawing we saw. In the national museum in Khartoum, one can see 63 little statues and clay pots found at Bir Nurayet.

? Various petroglyphs found at Bir Nurayet, clockwise from top left: 1) Longhorn cattle; 2) Evidence that elephants once roamed the area; 3) A depiction of what is suspected to be a lion; 4) René getting a closer look at the ancient petroglyphs. All images © Andrea Kaucká and René Bauer

We were fascinated and happy to have found a place deep in the desert, which only a handful of people know of and have visited. We had accomplished our mission to see Jebel Magardi and its petroglyphs! Our state of delight made the two-day return journey to Khartoum a breeze, as we left ‘our’ discovery of the ancient hidden riches of Sudan’s Nubian Desert behind.

Pertroglyphs at Bir Nurayet of longhorn cattle, Sudan © Andrea Kaucká and René Bauer

? The main subject matters of the various petroglyphs at Bir Nurayet are longhorn cattle, camels, wild animals, and shepherds, hunters and battle scenes © Andrea Kaucká and René Bauer.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS, Andrea Kaucká and René Bauer

Andrea and René met in New Zealand in 2005. Since then they have worked and travelled in various places in Europe. Their biggest adventure was crossing Africa from north to south in their vehicle in 2008/2009. During this trip, they travelled through Sudan and knew that it wouldn’t be the last time. They return to Sudan every year to discover more places, especially in the Nubian Desert. They are both tour guides, conducting trips in Europe and Africa, and write regularly for magazines, as well as hold photo exhibitions and slideshow presentations.

ALSO IN THIS WEEK’S ISSUE

Galleries: Photographer of the Year 2020
View the latest photographs chosen for our Weekly Selection galleries as part of our Photographer of the Year 2020 competition.

VISIT THE GALLERIES HERE

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 7 – Gallery 1

Thirsty elephants come to drink at a waterhole. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Hilda Le Roux

? Thirsty elephants arrive at a waterhole. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Hilda Le Roux

A giraffe bull gets some additional calcium by chewing a bone. Sibuya Game Reserve, South Africa © Peter Reitze

? A giraffe bull gets some additional calcium by chewing on a bone. Sibuya Game Reserve, South Africa © Peter Reitze

? Behati, a silverback mountain gorilla, takes a break while feeding. Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Uganda © Tiffany Franks

? A yawning fossa. Kirindy Mitea National Park, Madagascar © Beverly Houwing

? A giraffe close up. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Jason Clendenen

? An African darter catches a fish. Chobe National Park, Botswana © Cindee Beechwood

? View of the Drakensburg Amphitheatre. Royal Natal National Park, South Africa © Gavin Duffy

Lesser bushbabies peek through a hole in a tree. Thornybush Private Game Reserve , South Africa © Michael Raddall

? Lesser bushbabies peek from a hole in a tree. Thornybush Private Game Reserve, South Africa © Michael Raddall

A young baboon takes a leap in a tree. Chobe National Park, Botswana © Subi Sridharan

? A young baboon makes a leap of faith. Chobe National Park, Botswana © Subi Sridharan

? A Madagascar scops owl. Kirindy Mitea National Park, Madagascar © Beverly Houwing

? A dwarf beaked snake (Dipsina multimaculata). Northern Cape, South Africa © Tyrone Ping

Tuareg on their camels shortly before a race, taking place north of Timbuktu. Mali © Mario Gerth

? Tuareg people on their camels shortly before a race, taking place north of Timbuktu. Mali © Mario Gerth

? A grey crowned crane. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Diana Knight

? A female vervet monkey carries her infant safely tucked underneath her protective arms. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Karen Blackwood

? Lion pride with five cubs resting on rocks. Serengeti National Park, Tanzania © Kaido Haagen

An elephant and a calf drink at a waterhole. Savuti, Botswana © Margie Botha

? An elephant and calf drink at a waterhole. Savuti, Botswana © Margie Botha

Secretary bird looking for food. Serengeti National Park, Tanzania © Eduardo del Alamo

? Secretary bird hunting for food. Serengeti National Park, Tanzania © Eduardo del Alamo

? Hyena at sunset. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Ivan Glaser

? Zebra herd up close. Ndutu, Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tanzania © Patrick Hozza

? Bateleur sunning itself. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Kate Morris

? Portrait of a painted wolf (African wild dog). Kruger National Park, South Africa © Licinia Machado

? A herd of zebras running through the savannah. Lake Natron, Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tanzania © Kirill Dorofeev

? Spotted hyena with wildebeest calf. Ndutu, Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tanzania © Kirill Dorofeev

? Cheetah photographed against the evening sky. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Matrishva Vyas

? Klaas’s cuckoo being fed by a female malachite sunbird. Riebeek Kasteel, South Africa © Mary Walker

? A purple grenadier. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Dr Pravin Jawale

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 7 – Gallery 2

Special moment between mother lion and her cubs. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Hilda Le Roux

? A special moment between a mother lion and her cubs. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Hilda Le Roux

? Elephants and Mount Kilimanjaro. Amboseli National Park, Kenya © Kirill Dorofeev

? Southern ground-hornbill snatches up a scorpion. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Karen Blackwood

? A mother spotted hyena and her young pup at the entrance to their den. Liuwa Plain National Park, Zambia © Beverly Houwing

? Cape ground squirrel peeking out of its burrow. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Daniela Anger

? An African penguin. Betty’s Bay, South Africa © Eduardo del Alamo

? An adult desert-adapted elephant making its way along the Hoanib riverbed. Namibia © Wayne Marsh

Mundari gather together in huge cattle camps where about 5,000 cows converge at night alongside the Nile River. South Sudan © Mario Gerth

? Mundari people gather together in huge cattle camps where about 5,000 cows converge at night alongside the Nile River. South Sudan © Mario Gerth

Giraffes at a small waterhole. Etosha National Park, Namibia © Jeff Harrisberg

? Giraffes at a small waterhole in Etosha National Park, Namibia © Jeff Harrisberg

? Up close with a zebra. Nelspruit, South Africa © Peter Reitze

An elephant takes a swim. Chobe National Park, Botswana © Subi Sridharan

? An elephant takes a swim in the Chobe River. Chobe National Park, Botswana © Subi Sridharan

A lion pride take a drink at a waterhole. Etosha National Park, Namibia © Owen Jason Kandume

? Lion pride members take a drink at a waterhole in Etosha National Park, Namibia © Owen Jason Kandume.

Serval hunting. Kafue National Park, Zambia © Eduardo del Alamo

? Serval hunting in Kafue National Park, Zambia © Eduardo del Alamo

? Lesser flamingo striding through the shallows. Walvis Bay, Namibia © Michael Wessels

? A female leopard makes very clear her displeasure at a male’s advances. Mara North Conservancy, Kenya © John Piper

? Family of bat-eared foxes. Addo Elephant National Park, South Africa © Johan Swart

? A lone zebra drinks at a waterhole. Etosha National Park Namibia © Owen Jason Kandume

Red-knobbed coot. Zibulo Bird Hides, Mpumalanga, South Africa © Tracey Graves

? Red-knobbed coot. Zibulo Bird Hide, Mpumalanga, South Africa © Tracey Graves

Vultures descend to make the most of a large giraffe carcass. Greater Kruger National Park, South Africa © Sophie Brown

? Vultures descend to make the most of a large giraffe carcass. Greater Kruger, South Africa © Sophie Brown

? Male lion leading his pride. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Raymond Stone

Female leopard with impala kill. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Licinia Machado

? Female leopard with her impala kill. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Licinia Machado

? Up close and personal with an elephant. Addo Elephant National Park, South Africa © Leon Heyes

? Young cheetah with a Thomson’s gazelle calf. Ndutu, Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tanzania © Kirill Dorofeev

Rhino silhouette at sunset. Game reserve in South Africa © Zac Dykstra

? Rhino silhouette at sunset. South Africa © Zac Dykstra

? Lion cubs suckling from their mother. Ndutu, Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tanzania © Patrick Hozza

Saving the Northern White Rhino: Third Embryo Successfully Created

One of two females that hold the key to the survival of a subspecies © Justin Mott

A third viable northern white rhino embryo was created over December 2019 in a joint mission between Kenyan Government and scientists. In a press release, the Ol Pejeta Conservancy reported that the team had repeated the procedure performed in August 2019 on the two female northern white rhino, Najin and Fatu, on the 17^th of December 2019. With the support of Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of Tourism and Wildlife Hon. Najib Balala, the joint effort of the Kenya Wildlife Service, Ol Pejeta Conservancy, Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Avantea Laboratory and Dvůr Králové Zoo marks the next step in attempting to save the species from extinction.

31-year-old Najin and her 20-year-old daughter Fatu are the only living northern white rhino in the world and both were placed under anaesthetic in order to harvest nine oocytes (immature eggs cells) from their ovaries. These oocytes were then rushed to the Avantea Laboratory in Italy where they were matured before scientists attempted to fertilise them using a system known as Intra Cytoplasm Sperm Injection (ICSI). The procedure was successful on one of Fatu’s eggs and the resulting embryo was incubated using a highly advanced monitoring system before placed in liquid nitrogen with the previous two embryos created in the same manner.

Embryo development © Avantea-Cesare Galli

The team hopes to artificially inseminate a surrogate southern white rhino female from the Ol Pejeta Conservancy using procedures trialled by European zoos some time in 2020. If successful, it would mean the first northern white rhino born into the wild in decades.

The project is all part of the “BioRescue” research, a consortium comprising of internationally renowned institutions from Germany, Italy, Czech Republic, Kenya, Japan and the USA, with a comprehensive ethical assessment courtesy of the University of Padova and partially funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research. Hon, Najib Balala said of the achievement: “I urge scientists to continue digging deeper into technology and innovations to ensure that not only this concerned species does not go extinct, but other species that are faced with similar threats. The fact that Kenya is at the centre of this scientific breakthrough also makes me very proud. It’s amazing to see that we will be able to reverse the tragic loss of this subspecies through science”.

The process of oocyte collection © Ami Vitale

Communities delivering conservation impact & wildlife recoveries

Rangers in a vehicle with elephant herd in background — Conservancies and other local conservation areas play an increasingly important role in protecting populations of elephants and other wildlife © Honeyguide

OPINION POST by Fred Nelson, Maliasili

Driving on the road to Randilen Wildlife Management Area (WMA), the landscape changes dramatically from bare ground to lush waist-high grass as one crosses into the WMA from surrounding community lands. Herds of elephant wander calmly across the savannah woodlands throughout the 30,000-hectare WMA, accompanied by giraffe, herds of zebra, and rarer antelope such as fringe-eared oryx. Located adjacent to Tarangire National Park, in northern Tanzania, Randilen embodies a growing trend across eastern and southern Africa: community-managed conservation areas that are effectively managed and delivering conservation results equivalent to government parks and reserves.

Like other conservation initiatives across eastern and southern Africa that are managed by communities, WMAs originated in the late 1990s as a management response to the need in Tanzania to change the relationship between local communities and wildlife. During the 1980s and 90s, wildlife, including huge herds of elephants and nearly all the country’s black rhinos, were subjected to heavy poaching. Government agencies and foreign donors, including the US and German governments, worked to reform the conventional conservation approaches based on protected areas and anti-poaching enforcement, to also offer communities an economic stake in wildlife’s future. WMAs were intended to provide that by devolving rights to make management decisions and capture revenue from wildlife utilisation, including both photographic tourism and trophy hunting, on community lands adjacent to national parks and game reserves.

Northern Tanzania — Wildlife Management Areas in northern Tanzania help protect key wildlife habitats bordering national parks © Honeyguide

For many years, though, these WMAs languished, mainly due to the unwillingness of government agencies to devolve sufficient rights and control over wildlife revenues to the local scale. But within the last five years, there is new evidence that WMAs are finally beginning to make community-based conservation a reality in parts of Tanzania. Researchers published findings in 2018 showing that giraffe and other wildlife populations in Randilen had increased markedly following WMA establishment. More recently, another group of researchers published new findings showing that in the nearby Burunge WMA, which also borders Tarangire National Park, elephant and wildebeest populations increased from 2011 to 2018. They also found that wildlife densities between the WMA and Tarangire were overall similar, and that community conservation areas could support wildlife populations similar to national parks.

Zebras drinking at waterhole in northern Tanzania — Zebras in a community conservation area in northern Tanzania © Honeyguide

At the same time, these community conservation initiatives are delivering improved returns to local people from wildlife. Randilen’s tourism income increased by over 40% from 2016 to 2018, when it generated over $200,000 for the WMA’s management and member communities’ village governments.

Much more importantly for the future of wildlife in Africa, in the face of growing economic and demographic pressures, is that this kind of progress reflects wider regional trends in community-based conservation.

In Namibia, undoubtedly eastern and southern Africa’s leader in community conservation, the ‘communal conservancies’ that were first established in policy and legal reforms during the mid-1990s now cover nearly 17 million hectares across the country. The conservancies play a key role in Namibia’s conservation achievements including the widespread recovery of wildlife across the country over the past two decades, including the tripling in the country’s elephant population from around 7,500 to nearly 23,000 today. The scaling up of Namibia’s conservancies has also driven significant revenue to rural communities that, two decades ago, earned little or nothing from wildlife. Over 80 conservancies now capture around US$10 million in annual benefits from tourism, and other wildlife uses such as game meat while generating over US$60 million in total net national income for Namibia.

Elephant herd drinking at waterhole — Namibia’s communal conservancies have played an essential role in the tripling of the country’s elephant population since the mid-1990s © NACSO

Meanwhile in Kenya, a wide range of community conservation initiatives that had emerged on the local scale as early as the 1990s have more recently coalesced into a national conservancies movement that is now at the centre of the country’s conservation strategies. A key factor has been the 2013 Wildlife Conservation Act, which gave conservancies a legal definition in Kenyan law for the first time. It has led to more significant support for community-based approaches across government, NGOs, and communal and private landholders.

Conservancies in Kenya now cover over 6 million hectares, roughly doubling the country’s wildlife estate, and are also showing significant conservation impacts as well as a wide range of social and economic benefits. For example, researchers have found that in conservancies in northern Kenya, poaching levels were about one-third lower than in adjacent community lands. In Kenya’s second-largest elephant population in the Laikipia-Samburu system, where around 7,000 animals roam across community conservancies and private ranches, poaching rates declined by 53% between 2012 and 2015, while elephant numbers increased by 12% from 2012 to 2017. Other critically endangered species including black rhino, Grevy’s zebra, and the hirola, an endemic antelope, are all being supported by conservancies.

Hirola antelope in the wild communities — Conservancies in Kenya are playing a vital role in the conservation of endangered species such as the endemic hirola antelope © Kenneth Coe

At the same time, a new World Bank report on conservancies, titled ‘When Conservation Becomes Good Economics’, estimates that tourism income in conservancies as of 2017 was about $12 million, and concludes that “a strategic expansion of conservancies offers an opportunity to complement the government’s current focus [on national parks].”

The scaling up of community conservation – between Kenya and Namibia alone, community conservancies now cover nearly 23 million hectares, or an area roughly equivalent to the entire land area of Uganda – is one of the most important trends in African conservation over the past decade. As conservationists are faced with the urgent need to scale up effective conservation solutions further, this creates critically important opportunities to further expand the scope and impact of conservancies and similar community-based models. There are three key priorities to do this in the near-term.

First, most of the progress of community conservation is attributable to a growing cadre of talented African conservation organisations that often have emerged specifically to advance community-based approaches in different sites and countries. In Namibia, local groups such as IRDNC have played a key role in providing the vision, local facilitation, and long-term presence that has been critical to the development of conservancies. In Kenya, the Northern Rangelands Trust has pioneered conservancies in the northern part of the country. At the same time, newer community groups such as the Maasai Mara Wildlife Conservancies Association are now playing a pivotal role in other key landscapes. At the national scale, the Kenya Wildlife Conservancies Association plays a crucial role in engaging with government on significant policy issues.

Two Maasai warriors in Kenya communities — Community conservancies have spread across Kenya rapidly over the past decade, including in key regions such as the Maasai Mara © Kenya Wildlife Conservancies Association

Similarly, in Tanzania, the progress made by Randilen has been possible mainly due to the recent efforts of Honeyguide, a local organisation that has brought critical business development and professional management skills to the support of WMAs in the northern part of the country. Providing external support to these key local organisations is fundamental to strengthening and scaling up community-based conservation models.

Second, funding models are needed that provide long-term support to community conservation. Funding needs to be tailored to different stages of conservancy development, from early-stage seed funding to longer-term support through trust funds and similar mechanisms. For example, Namibia has recently established a Community Conservation Fund of Namibia to provide long-term sustainable financing of conservancies that are not yet financially self-sufficient and to provide other needed services.

People at Torra conservancy office communities — Namibia’s conservancies have played a key role in increasing local incomes from wildlife and improving natural resource governance institutions © NACSO

Lastly, conservation efforts need to continue to grow private sector investment as the core source of long-term financing for conservancies and other conservation efforts driven by communities. The growth of tourism investment in conservancies in Namibia and Kenya has been key to progress in those countries, as communities are gradually able to capture a growing share of the regional wildlife and tourism economy. But community conservation needs to move beyond an exclusive reliance on tourism as well. Significant efforts are underway to integrate livestock markets and trade with conservancies in Kenya, and to develop substantial flows from carbon credits derived from improved forest management in several community conservation areas in Kenya, Tanzania and Zambia.

As the new decade begins, conserving Africa’s wild landscapes faces unprecedented pressures from illegal wildlife trade, habitat loss, infrastructure development, and the effects of climate change. But conservation progress delivered by communities provides perhaps the most significant opportunity to expand the area of land under conservation, while dramatically broadening conservation’s local stakeholders. All efforts should be made to capitalise on this opportunity.

Fred Nelson is the Executive Director of Maliasili, a US-based organisation that supports leading African conservation organisations to increase their impact and effectiveness.

Killifish – suspended animation & shortest lifespan of any animal with a backbone

The tiny killifish lives in a state of suspended animation – until seasonal rains trigger the shortest known lifespan of any animal with a backbone. This rapid lifecycle has scientists scrambling to unlock secrets to our own ageing processes.

The turquoise killifish (Nothobranchius furzeri) lives in temporary pools of water in some semi-arid regions of Mozambique and Zimbabwe, and, when the water dries up, the adult fish die and their drought-resistant eggs and embryos are entombed in hard mud where they enter a state of suspended animation (diapause) until the next rainfall event – months or years away.

The arrival of precious rains triggers a frenetic race against time to hatch, grow to sexual maturity, mate and lay the next generation of eggs before their puddle dries up. After hatching, the turquoise killifish only lives for about nine to ten weeks in the wild before succumbing when the water dries up and has the dubious distinction of reaching sexual maturity sooner than any other vertebrate species – at about 14 days.

Killifish age cycle — Stages of killifish growth ©Dario R. Valenzano

Studies of captive turquoise killifish and a related species, Nothobranchius kadleci, show that their body length increases by up to a quarter every day in their first two weeks of life.

Killifish are predators, eating small crustaceans and aquatic insect larvae that co-exist in the same temporary pools of water. Captive juvenile killifish have been known to cannibalise on smaller killifish, but this has not been recorded in the wild.

Males are more colourful than females, with some species reflecting colour morphs (red and yellow morphs in the case of N. furzeri). Populations of wild killifish are female-biased, with the ratios increasing towards the end of the life cycle. Ratios of N. furzeri have been recorded as increasing from 1:2,7 at the beginning of the breeding season to 1:4,7 later in the season. The reason for the sex-bias is presumed to be that more males die due to their brighter colouration attracting a higher predation rate as well as aggressive competition amongst males for access to females.

The ways in which killifish disperse are unknown, but scientists assume that the fish are swept from their natal pools during flooding to settle into new pools and that eggs are transported between pools on the skin of large herbivores that drink and mud bath there. In his story about Gonarezhou National Park in Zimbabwe, Africa Geographic CEO Simon Espley described how it is possible that eggs are carried upstream by elephants, and that the reduction of elephant populations and restriction of their historical migration routes could conceivably impact on some killifish populations. Dario Valenzano, co-author of the attached report agrees: “I strongly believe that lack, presence, diversity and in general density of large herbivores can be key to killifish survival as a species.”

The killifishes reveal how animals can adapt to extreme environments by evolving extreme lifespans. Research on captive populations of killifish focuses on unlocking the secrets about growing old and, specifically, how to hold back the ageing process.

Full report: From the bush to the bench: the annual Nothobranchius fishes as a new model system in biology. Alessandro Cellerino, Dario R. Valenzano and Martin Reichard. Wiley Online Library.

Conservation needs diversified approaches – opinion

Elephants in Majete Wildlife Reserve, Malawi

Elephants in Majete Wildlife Reserve, Malawi nature — Elephants in Majete Wildlife Reserve, Malawi © Jason I. Ransom

OPINION EDITORIAL by Mucha Mkono, The University of Queensland; Jason I. Ransom, National Park Service; Katarzyna Nowak, University of the Free State, and Patrick O. Onyango, Maseno University

Conservationists don’t always agree about the best ways to reinforce the protection of nature. Debates about it can become confrontational.

But at the heart of the issue is how to include more people in nature conservation efforts. As a group of scientists, we believe it is important to steer the discussion towards a more diverse and inclusive blueprint for protecting biodiversity and ecosystems.

In a letter to the journal Science, we argue that the model of trophy hunting in Africa to finance conservation is neither sustainable nor equitable. We offer some alternatives. We suggest meeting the needs and values of a variety of stakeholders and local communities. Doing so involves empowering people to participate in decisions that affect them.

We support the following strategies for conserving natural landscapes and their ecological functions.

Connecting local needs with the wider world

One approach is to connect small and big investors directly to communities that are associated with wildlife wealth. This can be done through blockchain technology and carbon and biodiversity credits.

An example is GainForest, an app that aims to help maintain and restore forests. GainForest gets funding from the crypto community to provide finance to community members if they maintain their patch of land for an agreed duration. The GainForest team uses publicly available data from GlobalForestWatch to monitor and evaluate community success. It is also developing advanced artificial intelligence algorithms to help forecast future forest cover.

Another strategy is the United Nations programme on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) in developing countries. The programme encourages developing economies to lower their carbon emissions through a variety of habitat management schemes and is donor-funded. The United Nations supports partner countries to run REDD+ programmes and trains them in best practices. The Kariba REDD+ project in Zimbabwe is one example. The project has protected 785,000 hectares from deforestation and land degradation. This has helped prevent more than 18 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions.

Community-led sustainable practices

Conservation practices that generate direct financial benefits for local communities have also been successful. An example is a Tanzanian wildlife project which reduces the costs of living with wildlife. It assists livestock owners with constructing “living walls”, made of plant materials, to protect domestic animals from predation. The project also supports microfinance and community enterprises such as beekeeping and a bush camp.

Another approach is to reform land use in ways that meet the values and needs of local people. In Peru, Costa Rica, Canada, Kenya, Scotland and Amazonia, local communities have been granted land titles by national governments. This has been positive for livelihoods and for biodiversity conservation. For example, when the Indigenous Tsilhqot’in Nation in British Columbia, Canada, was granted title to traditional lands in 2014, they stopped public hunting based on their own wildlife management strategy.

Agricultural practices can be made more compatible with nature conservation, as has been achieved by It’s Wild in Zambia. Farmers and former poachers came up with certain conservation principles and agreed to follow them. Profits from farm products grown sustainably go directly back into conservation efforts. Women get empowered by selling their crops and acquiring accounting skills.

Reducing negative interactions between people and wildlife

It is important to find creative ways of avoiding or reducing negative interactions between people and wildlife. Lion Guardians in Kenya, Ecoexist in Botswana and the Southern Tanzania Elephant Programme are examples.

This positive coexistence happens through partnerships, participation, and fostering tolerance. The projects create incentives for wildlife-friendly actions that are rooted in science and rural economic development. Such “coexistence buffer zone” projects can promote awareness and tourism by being part of visits to national parks.

Zebras in Majete Wildlife Reserve, Malawi nature — Zebras in Majete Wildlife Reserve, Malawi © Jason I. Ransom

Tourism reforms and participatory approaches

Growing the domestic wildlife-watching market is a potential strategy. Compared with international tourism, domestic tourism can have a lower carbon footprint (through less travel), foster local interest in nature, and provide a more reliable income flow. Local hospitality in the form of homestays can help reduce the environmental footprint that big hotels leave.

A more diverse model will be environmentally respectful, promote local knowledge and cultural exchange, and encourage the participation of women. Bushcraft training is one example.

Participatory science and monitoring also have conservation potential. For example, the Grevy’s Zebra Warriors earn income by monitoring endangered zebra in Kenya and Ethiopia. The illegal killing of elephants has also been successfully monitored using participatory surveys. In addition to income, such programmes provide a means for exchange between traditional ecological knowledge keepers, local naturalists, scientists and conservation practitioners.

A mix of “alternative” ways of encouraging and sustaining conservation is urgently needed now. The way forward in conserving nature is through building grassroots domestic conservation actions with direct and positive socioeconomic outcomes. Contributions to shared, interconnected ecosystems that yield a strong sense of sustainable stewardship are ones that create value, foster lasting relationships and nurture deeper connections with the living world.

This article had inputs from our colleagues Phyllis Lee, Jorgelina Marino, Hannah Mumby, Andrew Dobson, Ross Harvey, Keith Lindsay, David Lusseau and Claudio Sillero-Zubiri.

Mucha Mkono, Research Fellow (Australian Research Council DECRA Fellow), Business School, The University of Queensland; Jason I. Ransom, Wildlife Ecologist, National Park Service; Katarzyna Nowak, Fellow, The Safina Center; Research Associate, University of the Free State, and Patrick O. Onyango, Lecturer, Maseno University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 6 – Gallery 2

Our Photographer of the Year 2020 is now in full swing and open for submissions!
There are two galleries showcasing this week’s Weekly Selection. To see the other gallery click here: Weekly Selection Gallery 1

? Close-up of an elephant’s eyelashes. Kariega Private Game Reserve, South Africa © Peter Reitze

? A walia ibex. Simien Mountains National Park, Ethiopia © Kevin Dooley

rough-scaled bush viper (Atheris hispida). West of Kampala, Uganda © Daniel Wakefield

? A rough-scaled bush viper (Atheris hispida) seen west of Kampala, Uganda © Daniel Wakefield

? Cape buffalo on the lookout. Lake Nakuru National Park, Kenya © Dean Bricknell

? A shovel-snouted lizard (Zeros anchietae). Sossusvlei, Namibia © Inger Vandyke

? Starscape. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Matrishva Vyas

? A Cape ground squirrel defends its den from a Cape cobra. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Bomber Kent

? Lightning strikes as the sun sets. Kalahari Desert, Botswana © Eben Van Heerden

? An African darter catches a fish on the Chobe River. Chobe National Park, Botswana © Stephen Smith

? Curious leopard cubs. Samburu National Park, Kenya © Yaron Schmid

? A spotted hyena takes cover inside the hollow trunk of a large tree. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © John Piper

? A red-billed oxpecker flees as tempers flare between hippos. Okavango Delta, Botswana © Cindee Beechwood

? A pack of painted wolves (African wild dogs) watch a herd of impala on the other side of the Khwai River. Okavango Delta, Botswana © Eben Van Heerden

? A pile of young spotted hyenas. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Lennart Hessel

Lilac-breasted roller and a zebra. Masai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Yaron Schmid

? Lilac-breasted roller and zebra. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Yaron Schmid

? Silhouette of a giraffe mother and her baby. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Matrishva Vyas

ALSO IN THIS WEEK’S ISSUE

GALLERY
To see the other gallery for this week’s selection click here: Weekly Selection Gallery 1

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 6 – Gallery 1

An elephant calf is met by a large bull. Addo Elephant National Park, South Africa © Charmaine Joubert

? A large bull meets an elephant calf. Addo Elephant National Park, South Africa © Charmaine Joubert

Springbok at a dusty sunrise. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, Botswana © David Papenfus

? Springbok during a dusty sunrise. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, Botswana © David Papenfus

? Painted wolves (African wild dogs). Laikipia, Kenya © Dean Bricknell

? Lion cubs rest during a zebra meal. Serengeti National Park, Tanzania © Kaido Haagen

? A moment captured with Siligi the cheetah and four of her seven cubs. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Mauritz Janeke

A male boomslang (tree snake) seeks warmth after a strong summer rain shower. Greater Kruger National Park, South Africa © Sophie Brown

? A male boomslang (tree snake) seeks warmth after a torrential summer downpour. Greater Kruger National Park, South Africa © Sophie Brown

A wildebeest covered in dry mud amongst golden grass. Etosha National Park, Namibia © Vittorio Ricci

? Wildebeest, dry mud and golden grass. Etosha National Park, Namibia © Vittorio Ricci

? A long-tailed widowbird displays its plumage. Marievale Bird Sanctuary, South Africa © Gavin Duffy

Rock hyraxes on a rock shelf high up a cliff. Leopard Gorge, Mara North Conservancy, Kenya © John Piper

? Rock hyraxes high up on a cliff rock shelf. Leopard Gorge, Mara North Conservancy, Kenya © John Piper

A tree squirrel producers a mirror image reflection while drinking water. Karongwe Private Game Reserve, South Africa © Braeme Holland

? A tree squirrel meets its mirror image while drinking water. Karongwe Private Game Reserve, South Africa © Braeme Holland

? A ground pangolin, also known as Temminck’s pangolin, foraging for ants and termites. South Africa © Brad Love

Distant thunderstorm. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, Botswana © David Papenfus

? Distant thunderstorm in Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, Botswana © David Papenfus

Zebras resting with caution near to a waterhole. Etosha National Park, Namibia © Vittorio Ricci

? Zebras resting at a waterhole in Etosha National Park, Namibia © Vittorio Ricci

A mossy leaf-tailed gecko. Andasibe-Mantadia National Park, Madagascar © Bill Klipp

? A mossy leaf-tailed gecko in Andasibe-Mantadia National Park, Madagascar © Bill Klipp

? A genet takes a quick look out of a tree it has chosen to sleep in for the day. Klaserie Private Nature Reserve, South Africa © Sophie Brown

? A large adult gaboon viper (Bitis gabonica) in a rainforest west of Kampala, Uganda © Daniel Wakefield

? The essence of a safari, set against a magical African sunrise. Mara North Conservancy, Kenya © John Piper

ALSO IN THIS WEEK’S ISSUE

GALLERY
To see the other gallery for this week’s selection click here: Weekly Selection Gallery 2

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 5 – Gallery 2

Our Photographer of the Year 2020 is now in full swing and open for submissions! There are two galleries showcasing this week’s Weekly Selection. To see the other gallery click here: Weekly Selection Gallery 1

? A ring-tailed lemur suns herself while her baby keeps a firm hold on her back. Berenty Reserve, Madagascar © Beverly Houwing

? Portrait of a ground pangolin (Smutsia temminckii). South Africa © Inger Vandyke

A playful seal during a dive near Seal Rock island. Partridge Point, Cape Peninsula, South Africa © Dr Peet J. Van Eeden

? A playful Cape fur seal during a dive near Seal Rock island. Partridge Point, Cape Peninsula, South Africa © Dr Peet J. Van Eeden

Portrait of a Muhimba woman. Southern Angola © Inger Vandyke

? Portrait of a Muhimba woman in Southern Angola © Inger Vandyke

? A spiny flower mantis. Odzala-Kokoua National Park, Republic of the Congo © Alice Paghera

? A lion and lioness bring out the claws after mating. Madikwe Game Reserve, South Africa © Armand Steyn

? A baby hippo rests on its mother’s back in the Luangwa River. Luambe National Park, Zambia © Ralph Stutchbury

? Sub-adult cheetah cubs clean each other after feasting on a Thomson’s gazelle. Mara North Conservancy, Kenya © John Piper

? The basket star on a palmate sea fan. False Bay, Cape Town, South Africa © Dr Peet J. Van Eeden

? Aerial view of the landscape of Iona National Park, southern Angola © Inger Vandyke

The late Ximpoko, the mighty King of the Timbavati, during a late afternoon sighting. Motswari Private Game Reserve, South Africa © John Piper

? The late Ximpoko, during an afternoon game drive in Timbavati Private Nature Reserve, South Africa © John Piper.

A lioness from the Cheli Pride shakes the rain off after a heavy rainstorm. Mara North Conservancy, Kenya © John Piper

? A lioness shakes the rain off after a heavy rainstorm. Mara North Conservancy, Kenya © John Piper

? An early morning mist covers the grassland in the Busanga Plains where puku and lechwe rest and graze. Kafue National Park, Zambia © Beverly Houwing

A fish eagle flies by on the Chobe River, Botswana © Fay Olive Luyt

? A fish eagle flies over the Chobe River, Botswana © Fay Olive Luyt.

A lioness and her three cubs having a feast at the giraffe carcass. Savuti, Botswana © Margie Botha

? A lioness and her three cubs feasting on a giraffe carcass. Savuti, Botswana © Margie Botha

A leopardess named Fig surveying her land after sunset. Olare Motorogi Conservancy, Kenya © Yaron Schmid

? A leopardess surveys her land after sunset in Olare Motorogi Conservancy, Kenya © Yaron Schmid.

? A baby dwarf mongoose peers out from one of the many entrances to the den. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Karen Blackwood

? A Verreaux’s sifaka clings to a branch with her baby on her shoulder. Berenty Reserve, Madagascar © Beverly Houwing

An elephant herd on the move. Zakouma National Park, Chad © Lennart Hessel

? An elephant herd on the move in Zakouma National Park, Chad © Lennart Hessel

A juvenile bateleur. Manyoni Private Game Reserve, South Africa © Burkhard Schlosser

? A juvenile bateleur in Manyoni Private Game Reserve, South Africa © Burkhard Schlosser

ALSO IN THIS WEEK’S ISSUE

GALLERY
To see the other gallery for this week’s selection click here: Weekly Selection Gallery 1

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 5 – Gallery 1

A yellow mongoose passes through camp. Kgalagadi Transfrontier National Park, South Africa © Daniela Anger

? A yellow mongoose passes through camp. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Daniela Anger

? A young Mucubal boy herds his goats into the dust at sunrise. Southern Angola © Inger Vandyke

Two male southern masked weavers fight to establish dominance while sparrows watch on. Bloemfontein, South Africa © Willem Kruger

? Two male southern masked weavers fight to establish dominance while a pair of Cape sparrows watch on. Bloemfontein, South Africa © Willem Kruger

? Oryx (gemsbok) on the dunes of Sossusvlei at sunrise. Namib Desert, Namibia © Inger Vandyke

? A Maasai tribesman in traditional dress, armed with his spear, looks towards the rising sun. Mara North Conservancy, Kenya © John Piper

? Two lion brothers blend into the dry grass. Serengeti National Park, Tanzania © Ankit Desai

Flatid leaf insects in the nymph stage congregate on a branch. Berenty Reserve, Madagascar © Beverly Houwing

? Flatid leaf insects in the nymph stage congregate on a branch. They excrete a white waxy-like substance, which looks like long wispy feathers, that helps with camouflage and protects the larval stage during development. Berenty Reserve, Madagascar © Beverly Houwing

A fossa spotted resting along a dirt road. Kirindy Mitea National Park, Madagascar © Beverly Houwing

? A fossa resting on a dirt road in Kirindy Mitea National Park, Madagascar © Beverly Houwing

? Up close with a rain spider. Cape Town, South Africa © Dr Peet J. Van Eeden

? Zebra drinking in the early morning at Okaukuejo waterhole, Etosha National Park, Namibia © Owen Jason Kandume

? Fishermen bring in their catch at Tombwa fishing village, Southern Angola © Inger Vandyke.

? Portrait of a kudu bull. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Licinia Machado

A Rüppell's starling attacks a species of blind snake. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Andy Richardson

? A Rüppell’s starling attacks a blind snake. Mara North Conservancy, Kenya © Andy Richardson

A lioness walks with cubs down a dirt road. Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tanzania © Giovanni Mari

? A lioness and her cubs walk along a dirt road in Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tanzania © Giovanni Mari.

? Silhouette of Karo tribesmen against the setting sun. Southern Ethiopia © Jason Clendenen

? A three-banded plover chick. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Fay Olive Luyt

A buffalo enters a muddy waterhole, getting a bit too close to a hippo, during a drought © Burkhard Schlosser

? A buffalo and hippo are forced to share a muddy waterhole during a drought. Timbavati Private Game Reserve, South Africa © Burkhard Schlosser

? Aerial view of the saltworks near Tombwa, southern Angola © Inger Vandyke

A Perinet chameleon (Calumma gastrotaenia). Moramanga Orchid Garden, Madagascar © Swayamsiddha Mohapatra

? A Perinet chameleon (Calumma gastrotaenia) in Moramanga Orchid Garden, Madagascar © Swayamsiddha Mohapatra

? Wildebeest linger near a waterhole as the sun sets, silhouetted in the warm light. Liuwa Plain National Park, Zambia © Beverly Houwing

ALSO IN THIS WEEK’S ISSUE

GALLERY
To see the other gallery for this week’s selection click here: Weekly Selection Gallery 2

Lion poaching: Escalating demand for claws and teeth

Carcass of a lion — © Greater Limpopo Carnivore Programme

DECODING SCIENCE by AG Editorial

Evidence is emerging of the growing threat to wild lion populations of targeted poaching for lion body parts – teeth and claws.

The Panthera study provides evidence of an emerging threat to African lion conservation: the targeted poaching of lions for body parts – specifically teeth and claws. The study warns that this growing threat could have devastating impacts on lion populations that mirror similar implications for wild tiger populations.

The study was conducted in the Mozambican portion of the Greater Limpopo Transfrontier Conservation Area – which includes South Africa’s Kruger National Park. The targeted poaching of lions for body parts accounted for 61% of mortalities within Limpopo National Park and 35% of known human-caused mortalities across the greater landscape. The researchers also found that retaliatory killing for livestock conflict accounted for 51% of total mortalities, but body parts were removed in 48% of conflict cases, suggesting that the demand for body parts is escalating conflict killings. Teeth and claws were the body parts most frequently harvested, and there has been an alarming and dramatic increase since 2014.

Map showing study area and locations of lion mortality events in Limpopo National Park — Map showing the study area and locations of lion mortality events © Everatt, K.T (et al.)

We previously reported similar conclusions made by the Greater Limpopo Carnivore Program, who were participants in this Panthera study.

The study linked the escalation in poaching of wild lions and South Africa’s increasing export of captive-bred lion skeletons and body parts, which has shown exponential growth since 2007. This trade feeds a growing market among upwardly mobile Asians for luxury products, such as lion bone wine, with lion bones used instead of tiger bones as tiger parts become increasingly scarce.

The rising demand for lion body parts could exacerbate motives to kill lions in the vicinity of communities and livestock, irrespective of livestock losses or a perceived threat of losses. Incentivising the killing of lions by demand for body parts could seriously undermine conflict mitigation efforts.

Lion poaching for body parts has also increased in the Niassa reserve in northern Mozambique (C. Beggs Niassa Lion Project pers coms) and of captive lions in the Limpopo province of South Africa (K. Marnewick Endangered Wildlife Trust pers coms). Lions killed for conflict in the Caprivi region of Namibia also had teeth and claws removed (L. Hansen Kwando Carnivore Project pers coms).

Carcasses of three lions that were poached — © Greater Limpopo Carnivore Programme

Lion populations have declined across Africa by an estimated 43% over the past 21 years, and their range has declined by 75% over the past 50 years. Declines have been predominantly caused by loss of prey and habitat and by persecution from livestock farmers. The study notes that, at times, unsustainable trophy hunting has also caused decreases in lion populations.

Dr Paul Funston, Director of Panthera’s lion program, stated, “We hope this study alerts the global conservation community, and any governments participating in the lion bone and body part trade, to the serious threats it poses. We have seen the toll this trade has had on other wild cat species and must be vigilant about how it impacts lion conservation efforts across Africa.”

The remains of a lion, skeleton, carcass — © Greater Limpopo Carnivore Programme

Full report: Everatt, K.T., Kokes, R. & Lopez Pereira, C. (2019). Evidence of a further emerging threat to lion conservation; targeted poaching for body parts. Biodivers Conserv. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-019-01866-w

Another mass vulture poisoning raises alarm in South Africa

The contaminated carcass of a vulture is burnt to ash to remove the poison from the ecosystem. Image courtesy Wildlife ACT

NEWS DESK POST by Fred Kockott, for Mongabay

Just two days before Christmas a mass vulture poisoning incident was discovered by the Wildlife ACT rangers in the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal, sparking warnings that the region’s diminishing vulture populations could face extinction unless the root cause of the killings is addressed.

On 23rd December, rangers found fifteen white-backed vultures (Gyps africanus) as well as a young lappet-faced vulture (Torgos tracheliotos) who all died after feeding on a poison-laced impala carcass in northern Zululand. It is the fourth vulture poisoning incident in the province this year, bringing the total recorded number of vultures harvested for body parts in this region alone to 53.

“Arriving at a scene like this with everything so fresh, but too late to assist in saving any poisoned birds is heartbreaking. Losing one vulture is always a tragedy. Losing at least 16 birds at one feeding is a crisis,” said PJ Roberts, manager of Wildlife ACT’s Emergency Response Team.

Wildlife ACT works closely with Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife, local farmers and communities, and other conservation groups to protect three endangered vulture species in KwaZulu-Natal.

Signs that the vulture poisoning was deliberate were immediately apparent after inspection of the first bird they came across, a white-backed vulture. “It had a full crop (still containing undigested food), contorted feet and many dead flies were scattered around its remains – all clear signs of fast-acting poison,” said Roberts.

The team swept the area, but it took an aerial search to locate more victims. “No more than 30 metres away, the morbid discovery of 13 processed and harvested white-backed vultures, with their heads and feet removed, were found very purposefully hidden in a thick bush,” added Roberts.

All of the contaminated carcasses were burned by the rangers to remove the poison from the ecosystem.

Wildlife ACT response team with the bodies of 13 white-backed vultures, poisoned for the traditional medicine trade. Image courtesy Wildlife ACT

The Endangered WildLife Trust’s (EWT) Vultures for Africa Programme manager, Andre Botha, said it was difficult to quantify how many vulture poisoning incidents relate to harvesting of body parts. According to records kept by EWT, more than 1,200 vultures have been deliberately poisoned in Southern and Eastern Africa this year. Culprits include poachers who poison the carcasses of elephant and other game in an apparent effort to conceal illegal activities from rangers. These poisonings are referred to as “sentinel poisonings”, as vultures circling over poached animals alert rangers to the killings.

Africa’s vulture populations have already declined by an average 62% over the past three decades — with seven species crashing by 80%.

In Africa vultures are under threat due to habitat loss, ingestion of lead ammunition, collisions with power lines, accidental drownings in farm water reservoirs, and the use of poisoned bait by livestock owners to kill predators like jackals. Vultures feeding off the carcasses subsequently die, often in significant numbers.

But many more are poisoned deliberately to harvest body parts for belief-based use.

“The vultures are killed for their heads and feet and other parts,” said Chris Kelly, a species director at Wildlife ACT. “This is definitely the single biggest threat to diminishing vulture populations in this province.”

In many parts of Africa, vultures are believed to have psychic powers, including an ability to see into the future. According to a fact sheet from EWT, the brains of the bird are dried, rolled and smoked as joints or simply burnt and the fumes inhaled. Users believe this improves their odds when they gamble on the lottery or place bets on sport. Students take it when preparing for exams. Other reported uses of vultures include consuming their eyes to improve eyesight, their beaks for protection, or their feet to heal fractured bones or make a person run faster.

In 2014, EWT estimated that 130,000 traders, hunters and traditional healers were operating in South Africa. This figure is believed to have increased, sparking calls from conservationists, environmental scientists and wildlife experts at this year’s Conservation Symposium for an awareness-building campaign to reduce this consumption and demand for vulture parts.

“Vultures provide critically important ecosystem services by cleaning up carcasses thus reducing the spread of dangerous diseases such as anthrax and rabies and resulting in highly significant economic and human health benefits,” said Brent Coverdale, an animal scientist for Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife at the symposium. “We really can’t afford to lose them.”

As vultures are protected by law, it is illegal to possess or kill any of the six vulture species found in South Africa. Nevertheless, deliberate killings continue.

Carcass of a poisoned vulture — More than 1,200 vultures have been deliberately poisoned in Southern and Eastern Africa in 2019. Image courtesy Wildlife ACT

Citation: Ogada, D., Shaw, P., Beyers, R. L., Buij, R., Murn, C., Thiollay, J. M., … Sinclair, A. R. E. (2015). Another continental vulture crisis: Africa’s vultures collapsing toward extinction. Conservation Letters. https://doi.org/10.1111/conl.12182

Elephant poaching decimates key Gabon reserve

African forest elephant herd © Tony Camacho

DECODING SCIENCE by AG Editorial

The forest elephant population in one of Central Africa‘s largest and most important protected areas has declined by 80% in 10 years because of poaching, with an estimated 25,000 elephants poached between 2004 and 2014, says a new Duke University-led study.

Gabon’s Minkébé National Park was explicitly declared to protect elephants and hosted the highest density of forest elephants in Central Africa at the turn of the century. It was thought that the large size (7,570 km²) and remoteness of the national park would keep elephants safe from poaching.

“Our research suggests that more than 25,000 elephants in Minkébé may have been killed for their ivory between 2004 and 2014,” said John Poulsen, assistant professor of tropical ecology at Duke‘s Nicholas School of the Environment. The elephant population was estimated at 35,404 in 2004 compared to 6,542 in 2014.

“With nearly half of Central Africa‘s estimated 100,000 forest elephants thought to live in Gabon, the loss of 25,000 elephants from this key sanctuary is a considerable setback for the preservation of the species,” he said.

The researchers estimated the extent of the population losses by comparing data from two large-scale surveys of elephant dung in Minkébé National Park from 2004 and 2014, using two different analytic methods to account for periods of heavy rainfall that might speed the dung’s decay and skew the surveys’ accuracy.

The report explained that portions of the national park with major roads nearby (6.1 km away) were “emptied” of elephants. In contrast, populations of elephants in areas further away from major roads (58 km) were “somewhat reduced”. The proximity of major roads makes it relatively easy for poachers to access the park and transport their illegal haul across the Gabon/Cameroon border to Cameroon’s largest city, Douala, a major hub for the international ivory trade.

Gabon was one of several African countries which burned its stockpile of ivory, in a public display of rejection of elephant poaching and opposition to countries which wish to trade internationally in their ivory stocks.

Full report: John R. Poulsen, Sally E. Koerner, Sarah Moore, Vincent P. Medjibe, Stephen Blake, Connie J. Clark, Mark Ella Akou, Michael Fay, Amelia Meier, Joseph Okouyi, Cooper Rosin, and Lee J. T. White (2017). Poaching empties critical Central African wilderness of forest elephants. Current Biology. https://doi.org/10.1093/jel/eqz032

Large herd of elephants seen in Nigeria’s war-torn northeast

A large herd of elephants seen moving across the savannah close to Rann in Borno State, Nigeria on 19 December, 2019. Image source: RFI/UNHAS

NEWS DESK POST with information sourced from RFI

In an exciting discovery, a large herd of about 250-300 elephants has been spotted in Nigeria’s far northeast corner, close to the borders with Cameroon and Chad. It is the first reported sighting of elephants in the region since Boko Haram invaded the area a decade ago.

Up until a decade ago hundreds of elephants used to migrate through the region, with three major migration routes passing through Sambisa Forest, a reserve in Nigeria’s Borno State that is the size of Belgium and The Netherlands. This reserve became synonymous with Boko Haram terrorism as the same migration routes were used by insurgents to escape military bombardment. The heavy exchange of artillery fire between the military and the insurgents drove most wildlife away from the reserve.

Up until now, it had been unclear what happened to the elephants that once roamed the Sambisa Forest and savannahs in Borno and Yobe states.

A map showing elephant migration routes through the Sambisa Forest in 2006, Nigeria — A map showing elephant migration routes through the Sambisa Forest in 2006 © P. Omondi

This large herd of elephants was spotted a few kilometres from Rann during a humanitarian mission carried out by helicopter. Rann has become a place synonymous with the horrors of the insurgency.

“We have dispatched our director of forests Peter Ayuba, to confirm the sighting and to carry out an impact assessment,” said Kabiru Wanori, Borno State’s environment commissioner.

Although the great elephant census did not cover Nigeria, it was estimated that there are 250 in the country with the largest concentration (100-150) being in Bauchi State in the Yankari Game Reserve. Yankari, under the management of the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), which operates under challenging political, economic, and security environment. This sighting of a previously unknown herd would therefore effectively double the estimated Nigeria elephant population. Nigeria’s elephant population includes scattered populations of both savannah elephants in the north of the country and forest elephants in the south of the country.

Leopard hunting: CITES quotas not sustainable, say researchers

DECODING SCIENCE by AG Editorial

A recent report published in Oxford Academic by Trouwborst, Loveridge and Macdonald compares CITES hunting trophy export quotas for African range states to established benchmarks. The report concludes that leopard hunting quotas that have been rubber-stamped for decades by CITES are arbitrary and lacking in robust scientific basis and without regular adjustment. Further, the report suggests that CITES-approved leopard trophy hunting quotas are “fundamentally at odds with the principles of sustainable use, precaution and adaptive management”.

Editorial note: Many countries do not make use of their full CITES export quotas. For example, South Africa has access to a CITES export quota of 150 leopards (see table below), but in 2018 permitted a quota of seven leopards.

Here follows a summary of the report, titled ‘Spotty Date: Managing International Leopard (Panthera pardus) Trophy Hunting Amidst Uncertainty’. We encourage you to download and read the entire report.

There is a widespread but misplaced assumption that the conservation status of leopards is assured and, as a result, leopards do not enjoy the same level of conservation and research attention as do lions, tigers and snow leopards. Now that their numbers too are thought to be plummeting, researchers expect them to start receiving as much publicity as the other big cats.

There is a significant lack of hard data on leopard population numbers, often compensated for by optimistic ‘guesstimates’ and many stakeholders in sub-Saharan Africa rely on outdated population assessments from the late 1980s.

Leopards have been listed under Appendix 1 since the 1975 inception of CITES – which means that trade for primarily commercial purposes is forbidden. Legal international trade is limited to hunting trophies and skins under export quotas for range states, as defined in the table below. Of course, illegal trade remains a significant problem for leopard populations.

Table showing the development of CITES leopard quotas over time — Table 1. The development of CITES leopard quotas since 1983 © Trouwborst, Loveridge and Macdonald

Quotas should be based on best available information, and be adjusted regularly to changing circumstances. They should reflect a sustainable leopard hunting offtake – not detrimental to the survival of the species, based on a science-based assessment and where harvests are well-managed and adaptive. Importantly, the process of setting quotas must be guided by the overarching ‘precautionary principle’: erring on the side of caution, especially in situations where scientific data is scarce. CITES quotas are not ‘targets’, and the full amount need not be met.

A closer look at CITES leopard quotas

The report touches on various countries, as examples of how leopard hunting quotas are determined, including:

1. Mozambique requested a quota of 120 leopards annually, based on an estimated countrywide population of 37,000 leopards. This estimate was derived from a 30-year-old prediction model created by Martin and De Meulenaar that assumes maximum densities across specific rainfall and vegetation types, and excludes critical factors such as prey availability and human-related pressures;
2. Tanzania and Namibia used the same model to increase their CITES quotas from 250-500 and 100-250 respectively significantly;
3. South Africa is the only African country where robust data is available – camera-trap surveys over the period 2013-2017 reflect an annual 8% decline in leopard populations. After years of unsustainable trophy hunting offtake and high pressure from illegal killing for traditional medicine and ceremonial purposes, South Africa has adopted an adaptive management framework by adjusting quotas annually based on population trends and only allocating quotas to areas with robust available data;
4. Ethiopia has an extraordinarily high CITES quota of 500 leopards when only five are hunted per year. The reason for that country’s request to retain the full CITES quota despite the demonstrated lack of available leopards possibly relates to politics and the lack of trust that most African countries have in the machinations of CITES. This situation (high quota, low available leopard population) is mirrored in other countries such as Zimbabwe, Zambia, Tanzania and South Africa.

The system does not work, so change it

The report suggests that continuation of the status quo is not an option, and indicates that the following are the three alternative ways forward:

1. Abandon the current CITES Council of Parties (COP) quota system and replacing it with a per-case permit system – an extremely bureaucratic system;
2. Retain a COP quota system, but scrutinise at every COP meeting – thus ensuring adaptive adjustments;
3. Abandon the current COP quota system, and each range state would set their own quota using a uniform blueprint based on ensuring sustainable offtakes.

The report notes that when it comes to being rigorous, science-based, precautionary, sustainable and adaptive, the approach recently introduced in South Africa seems to hold particular promise and could be instituted relatively cheaply by other countries.

Conclusion

The report concludes that “a science-based, precautionary and adaptive approach to quota-setting along the lines explored above could go some way to ensuring that trophy hunting of leopards and other species occurs sustainably even when the available information is spotty”.

Full report: Arie Trouwborst, Andrew J Loveridge, David W Macdonald (2019). Spotty Data: Managing International Leopard (Panthera pardus) Trophy Hunting Quotas Amidst Uncertainty. Journal of Environmental Law. https://doi.org/10.1093/jel/eqz032

Smoked baby chimpanzee on hotel menu, says NGO

NEWS DESK POST by AG Editorial

A prominent hotel in Kinshasa has been offering smoked baby chimpanzee on their menu, says local NGO Conserv Congo.

Conserv Congo director and former investigative reporter Adams Cassinga was advised by a tourist that the 4-star Beatrice Hotel (website + Facebook + Twitter) in Kinshasa, the capital city of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), offered chimp on the menu, but plans for a sting operation were foiled when staff at the hotel were alerted to the situation, and removed the item from the menu.

According to the menu available at the time, a serving of smoked baby chimpanzee would set customers back US$35, and requires 24-hour notice.

Menu showing smoked baby chimpanzee — The menu from the Beatrice Hotel showing smoked baby chimp (*bébé chimpanzé fumé*) for $35

Hotel management subsequently denied the claims on social media, stating that they no longer offer chimpanzee meat to customers, blaming the error on the cook. Cassinga dismisses this explanation, saying “How can they claim to ‘no longer’ offer chimpanzee meat? The hotel is ten years old and it has been illegal to offer chimpanzee meat for 15 years. In any case, we have witnesses who have eaten chimpanzee meat at this hotel”.

Speaking to Africa Geographic, Cassinga said that Beatrice Hotel owner Mr André Kadima has popped up on his radar a few times over the last few years, in connection with allegations of wildlife trafficking, of both dead and live animals. He is a former employee of ICCN (the parastatal in charge of DRC fauna and Flora) and owns a zoo 60 km north of Kinshasa – ‘Kadima’s Pride of Africa.’

Conserv Congo has instituted legal action against Kadima, on the grounds that it is a criminal offence to hunt, injure, kill, sell or buy, gift or detain a protected species of animal or plant, and that the common chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) falls into the protected species category. Potential punishment is 1-10 years in prison and/or up to US$20,000 fine.

Cassinga said that Conserv Congo recently won the first wildlife trafficking case in DRC, when three bonobo/pygmy chimpanzee (Pan paniscus) traffickers were sentenced to five months in prison and a fine of US$5,000 each. He went on to say that, at any given time in Kinshasa alone, there are at least ten great apes for sale. Red-tailed monkeys are butchered in hundreds daily as bushmeat, and many are held as pets and as symbols of wealth and status. He suggests that conservation plans are failing in Africa because of the demand for wild animals, which is based on greed, superstition and bad habit – and had nothing to do with cultural identity.

Consumption of bushmeat across the central African rainforests has escalated due to increasing commercialisation of what was previously a localised food source. Road and trucking networks provided by mining and hardwood forest logging companies facilitate easy access to otherwise remote and inaccessible areas, and meat is now being transported to major African cities and even to Europe and the United States, which host expatriate African communities.

Recently we exposed Instagram influencers Jessica Nabongo and Sal Lavallo for eating pangolin meat in a Gabon restaurant, and promoting the experience to their followers.

The Conserv Congo mission statement is to ‘preserve the biodiversity of the Congo basin’ and they do this primarily via investigating illegal trafficking and assisting the authorities in arresting and prosecuting offenders. They also educate members of the public about wildlife laws, promote alternative livelihoods to poaching and rescue trafficked wildlife, which they place in sanctuaries. In this video founding director Adams Cassinga explains more about Conserv Congo. Cassinga is a Mandela Washington Fellow, Young African Leaders Initiative Fellow, DRC honorary park ranger and a member of the Game Rangers Association of Africa.

How can you help?

Conserv Congo director Adams Cassinga has requested supporters to donate money that will be used to fund the legal action taken against Beatrice Hotel owner Mr André Kadima, who is a wealthy man with significant legal resources at his disposal. Please contact him via this email address: aminiadams16@hotmail.com

Read more about chimpanzees here– includes wonderful images.

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 4

Our Photographer of the Year 2020 is now in full swing and open for submissions!

A red-billed oxpecker and a buffalo take a drink together. Zimanga Private Game Reserve, South Africa © Alan Nixon

? A red-billed oxpecker and buffalo take a drink together. Zimanga Private Game Reserve, South Africa © Alan Nixon

? Painted wolves (African wild dogs) with the remains of their meal. Selinda Concession, Botswana © Gerhard Thom

A lion after a fight with his brother. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Kevin Dooley

? A lion after a scrap with his brother. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Kevin Dooley

? Sunset across the Namib Desert. Damaraland, Namibia © Alastair Marsh

An elephant calf, too young to know how to use its trunk yet, drinks from the Chobe River. Chobe National Park, Botswana © Willem Kruger

? An elephant calf, still too young to know how to use its trunk, drinks from the Chobe River. Chobe National Park, Botswana © Willem Kruger

Moments before a spotted hyena catches an eland calf. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Hilda Le Roux

? A springbok enjoying the flowers after the first shower of rain. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Hilda Le Roux

Children by a traditionally carved door. Stone Town, Zanzibar © Kathryn du Toit

A Namaqua chameleon surveying its surroundings in the Namib Desert. Near Swakopmund, Namibia © Alastair Marsh

A baboon picks up a baby after time spent drinking from the Chobe River. Chobe National Park, Botswana © Willem Kruger

? A baboon picks up its baby after time spent drinking from the Chobe River. Chobe National Park, Botswana © Willem Kruger

A very curious lion cub on a red dune. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Margie Botha

A gabar goshawk takes off after bathing at a waterhole. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Willem Kruger

Zebra playing at dawn. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Ivan Glaser

Juvenile bateleur. Kgalagadi Transfrontier National Park, South Africa © Daniela Anger

A lion sits in the rain. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Hilda Le Roux

A tawny eagle having his share of a carcass. Zimanga Private Game Reserve, South Africa © Alan Nixon

Impala with reflections on a waterhole. Londolozi Private Game Reserv, South Africa © Pranav Chadha

A great white egret catches his lunch at Sunset Dam. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Leon Heyes

Millipedes – 10 facts that we find interesting

Millipedes of all shapes and sizes are a common sight in Africa, particular after rain, when they are seen marching around in search of decaying plant matter to eat. Some are HUGE – easily the size of your hand, and many have brightly coloured bodies and legs – possibly to scare off predators.

We rounded up ten interesting facts about these beautiful creatures:

• The indigenous people of southern Africa call the millipede ‘shongololo’, which is derived from from the Xhosa and Zulu word ‘ukushonga’, meaning to roll up…

• The name “millipede” is derived from Latin, meaning “thousand feet”. However, no known species has that many legs, and the record for the most legs on a millipede species belongs to Illacme plenipes, who has 750 feet.

• There are about 12,000 described species of millipedes!

• Their primary defence mechanism is to release a foul-smelling toxin, which is made up of hydrochloric acid (which burns) and hydrogen cyanide (which asphyxiates). This keeps most predators at bay, except for shrews and civets, which appear to be immune to these toxins. Millipedes also curl up into a tight ball when threatened, to protect their soft underparts.

• When disturbed, millipedes escape predation by moving away in a slithering, snake-like motion, which may scare off some predators.

• Hornbills have been observed using crushed millipedes to line their cavity nests in trees – possibly to avoid mite and other infestations. Some primates have been observed intentionally disturbing millipedes to obtain the foul-smelling toxins which they rub onto their bodies, also as a repellent.

• Millipedes are some of the oldest land animals on Earth. The first known millipede, Pneumodesmus newmani, was only 1 cm long and appeared during the Paleozoic era, 252-541 million years ago. This is the oldest known creature to have lived on land, and was discovered in 2004 from a single specimen in Scotland.

• Some extinct prehistoric millipedes (Arthropleura spp.) grew up to 2 metres in length!

• The longest living millipede is the giant African millipede (Archispirostreptus gigas), reaching a length of up to 38.5 cm.

• It is thought that the bright body and leg colours of some millipedes is to warn off or repel predators.

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 3

Our Photographer of the Year 2020 is now in full swing and open for submissions!

A sub-adult lion comes in to steal a kill made by spotted hyenas, Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Pranav Chadha

? A sub-adult lion comes in to steal a kill made by spotted hyenas, only to find very little for himself. The hyenas did not bother getting their meal back because they had had their full. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Pranav Chadha

? This huge bull elephant was busy drinking water in the Zambezi River. I crawled down to the riverbank and, with a low angle, I got this image. Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Kevin Dooley

A meerkat enjoys a scorpion as a meal. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Braeme Holland

? An orange-breasted sunbird in search of the sweet nectar from a common pagoda. Taken Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, Cape Town, South Africa © Braeme Holland

? A mother baboon looks protectingly over her baby as another adult endeavours to gently touch the young one. Chobe River, Botswana © Braeme Holland

A variable bush viper in its rainforest habitat. Mityana district, west of Kampala, Uganda © Daniel Wakefield

? A variable bush viper in its rainforest habitat. This area of Uganda is mostly agricultural, and only a few small pockets of lowland rainforest remain. Mityana district, west of Kampala, Uganda © Daniel Wakefield

Week-old lion cubs suckle from their mother. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Matrishva Vyas

? A macro closeup of a male carpenter bee on a salvia plant. Carpenter bees construct their nests by boring tunnels in wood – hence their name. They are important pollinators of open-faced flowers. The males are greenish-yellow in colour, and the females are black with two yellow bands over the hind thorax and first abdominal segment respectively. Cape Town, South Africa © Peet J. Van Eeden

A leopard descends a large tree. South Luangwa National Park, Zambia © Raymond Stone

Straw-coloured fruit bats. Kasanka National Park, Zambia © Ralph Stutchbury

? Every year between October and December the largest mammal migration on Earth takes place when over ten million straw-coloured fruit bats take up residence in a few hectares of the ‘Bat Forest’ in Kasanka National Park’s mushitu swamp forest. Each evening at sunset, they leave their roosts to search for food. Kasanka National Park, Zambia © Ralph Stutchbury

A cheetah cub rests against the curved wall of a concrete pipe. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Nick Dale

? A purple heron proudly displays a Mozambique tilapia before swallowing the sizeable fish. Intaka Island Wetlands, Cape Town, South Africa © Braeme Holland

The Milky Way and night sky over our tent. Serengeti National Park, Tanzania © Bill Klipp

A marabou stork scavenges at a rubbish tip. Talek, Kenya © Diana Knight

An elephant mother with her calf. Okavango Delta, Botswana © Kevin Dooley

A lioness in the process of moving one of her cubs. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Lennart Hessel

? A lioness in the process of moving one of her cubs to a new den site. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Lennart Hessel

An elephant family herd pass by with Mount Kilamanjaro in the background. Amboseli National Park, Kenya © Josef Friedhuber

? An elephant family herd pass by with Mount Kilimanjaro in the background. Amboseli National Park, Kenya © Josef Friedhuber

? Interwoven brittle stars with a sandy anemone. Outer Photographer’s Reef near Simonstown, South Africa © Peet J. Van Eeden

A caracal spotted by the Rooiputs waterhole. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Margie Botha

A leopard sits in the forked trunk of a tree. Serengeti National Park, Tanzania © Nick Dale

Migrating wildebeest – nature's most accomplished endurance athletes – soar through shadows and dust as the hurl themselves into the Mara River. The few minutes required for this crossing are the most perilous of their hazardous, 800-kilometre trek. Mara Triangle, Kenya © Deji Odetoyinbo

? Migrating wildebeest – nature’s most accomplished endurance athletes – soar through shadows and dust as they hurl themselves into the Mara River. The few minutes required for this crossing are the most perilous of their hazardous, 800-kilometre trek. Mara Triangle, Kenya © Deji Odetoyinbo

A gemsbok in the early morning. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Hilda Le Roux

An elephant takes a dust bath. Chobe National Park, Botswana © Nick Dale

Lion cubs play on their mother while she tries to rest. Sabi Sand Private Game Reserve, South Africa © Julie Escoffier

? A water monitor carries a fish through a rocky section along the Sand River. Sabi Sand Private Game Reserve, South Africa© Cal Butler

A rather mischievious-looking vervet monkey eyes out the photographer. Greater Kruger, South Africa © Braeme Holland

A young lion chews on the remains of a wildebeest. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Eduardo del Alamo

Two painted wolf (African wild dog) puppies folic playfully in the later afternoon sun. Zimanga Private Game Reserve, South Africa © Braeme Holland

? Two painted wolf (African wild dog) puppies frolic playfully in the late afternoon sun. Zimanga Private Game Reserve, South Africa © Braeme Holland

Up close of lichen growing on a bougainvillea plant. Pietermaritzburg, South Africa © Leon Heyes

A rock kestrel on the lookout for potential prey. Giant's Castle, Drakensberg, South Africa © Leon Heyes

The lioness named "Longneck" and three of her cubs. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Ivan Glaser

Aerial photo of the wetlands in the summer season. Gauteng, South Africa © Deborah Jordan

? A lilac-breasted roller carrying a dead grasshopper in its beak lifts its wings to take off. Tarangire National Park, Tanzania © Nick Dale

An aardvark foraging in the evening light. In winter these elusive animals tend to come out of their burrows in the afternoon to maximise their feeding time. Southern Kalahari, South Africa © Laura Christie

? An aardvark foraging in the evening light. In winter, these elusive and usually nocturnal animals tend to come out of their burrows in the afternoon to maximise their feeding time. Southern Kalahari, South Africa © Laura Christie

6 Swahili food dishes you won’t want to miss!

Safaris are made all the better when you eat local food, and Swahili food dishes are delicious. With a beautiful blend of Arab, Indian and Portuguese influences, Swahili cuisine uses a variety of spices like coriander, clove, chilli and black pepper together with a range of staples like maize, cassava, rice, wheat and sorghum.

Here are a few examples of delicious East African safari food – as eaten by the local people:

Nyama choma

This “charred meat” is a rich, filling barbecue of beef, chicken or goat, marinated in garlic, lemon juice, curry powder and turmeric and slow-roasted over hot coals until supremely tender. It’s a very social food and a dish that’s enjoyed by communities everywhere in Africa.

Wali na maharage

Swahili beans is a favourite of vegetarians or meat-eaters alike and blends dried beans with local, flavoursome ingredients to produce a filling bean stew that could be sweet or spicy. Cooked beans are sautéed with onions, ginger, tomatoes and coconut milk.

Pilau

Pilau is a typical rice dish all over the world, but the secret to the Swahili version is that it’s flavoured with the spices fresh from the “Spice Island” – Zanzibar. Famous for clove and cinnamon, and with the addition of cardamom, Swahili pilau is a delicate and fragrant rice dish.

Chipsi mayai

Think of this dish as a delicious sautéed potato omelette – and it’s easy to prepare! After you’ve sautéed your potatoes, whisk up an egg or two and add it to the pan. Mix it around a bit, and soon it’ll cook into a slab of eggy-potatoey loveliness.

East African meals — Chipsi mayai – potato chip omelette

Ndizi na nyama

Got meat? Got bananas? Then you’re ready for ndizi na nyama – a meat and banana stew. For those of you who think that fruit and meat are an unholy alliance, think again. This tasty, unusual stew uses unripe rather than sweet plantains which, when added during the last ten minutes of cooking, become tender and delicious.

Ugali

The most ubiquitous food across all of East Africa is ugali – a starchy accompaniment made of cornmeal, semolina or sorghum flour and water. Because it’s easy to make and the ingredients are low-cost, it’s a popular food, and you’ll see it often during your safaris in East Africa.

Swahili food dishes — Ugali – a firm flour porridge

And to drink?

Tea and coffee are plentiful in East Africa, as are fresh-pressed pineapple, orange, sugar cane and papaya juices – a sweet and thirst-quenching way to end your safari day. There’s also a variety of refreshing local beers available – such as Tusker, Serengeti and Kilimanjaro. Be aware though that in Muslim areas, alcohol is only sold in the tourist hotels, bars and cafes.

These are only a taste of some of the delicious Swahili food choices that East Africa offers. In the end, there truly is nothing better than watching an African sunset with a beer in hand and a full, satisfied tummy! And next time you order your safari meal, be sure to speak Swahili like a local!

Mountain gorilla population continues to rise

Silverback mountain gorilla in Bwindi, Uganda — A silverback mountain gorilla in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Uganda © Christian Boix

NEWS DESK POST by International Gorilla Conservation Programme (IGCP)

The population of mountain gorillas (Gorilla beringei beringei), one of the world’s most endangered species, is on the rise, and now stands at an estimated 1,063 individuals (1,004 in 2018).

This after a population survey was performed in the Bwindi-Sarambwe area, one of the two remaining areas where this critically endangered great ape is still found (the other being the Virunga Massif area).

The survey results revealed that the population in Bwindi-Sarambwe has increased to 459 from an estimated 400 in 2011. When combined with the previously published figure of 604 mountain gorillas from the Virunga Massif area, the total population now stands at an estimated 1,063 mountain gorillas.

“Slowly but surely a solid future for mountain gorillas is emerging, proving that long-term, collaborative conservation efforts can pull species back from the brink of extinction. This was demonstrated last year with the IUCN reclassification from ‘Critically Endangered’ to ‘Endangered’.” said Anna Behm Masozera, Director of the International Gorilla Conservation Programme (IGCP), which provided technical and financial support to the exercise under an agreement with the intergovernmental Greater Virunga Transboundary Collaboration.

The increase in mountain gorillas is attributed to the effectiveness of conservation policies and strategies, regulated tourism, daily protection and veterinary interventions, intensive law enforcement, community conservation projects, and transboundary collaboration among government institutions and NGOs. Further, these results are a testament to the tireless effort of the rangers and trackers who daily protect and monitor mountain gorillas and their habitat, including those that have been killed in the line of duty.

It is also essential to recognise the role of the communities that live close to these national parks who co-exist with mountain gorillas and contribute to conservation efforts. That said, the survey findings also indicated that the threat of illegal human activities to mountain gorillas and other wildlife has not declined in Bwindi-Sarambwe since 2011, despite the positive developments in community engagement and conservation and tourism initiatives. For instance, survey teams found and destroyed 88 snares during their work.

Team members collect faeces at a mountain gorilla nest site for genetic evaluation © Winnie Eckardt

The exercise involved more than 75 trained survey members from 13 participating institutions along with the support of local governments and communities living around the protected areas. Survey teams walked pre-determined reconnaissance trails, ensuring thorough coverage of all forest areas to sweep the Bwindi-Sarambwe and search for signs of gorillas, other key mammals, and human activities. When fresh gorilla signs were detected, the teams followed the gorilla trail to locate three recent night nest sites. At each of these nest sites, the teams collected faecal samples from nests. The process was completed twice; first from March to May 2018 (62 days), and second from October to December 2018 (60 days). A second sweep allows finding gorillas that were undetected during the first sweep and thus provides more reliable numbers of gorillas. Faecal samples were analysed genetically to determine individual genotypes. Additional scientific publications are expected from the survey.

Despite the rise in numbers, the two populations of mountain gorillas remain relatively small and vulnerable to a potential rapid decline due to factors such as their limited habitat, climate change, dependence on resources in the park by people, and the risk of disease transmission.

Team members in Bwindi preparing for mountain gorilla population census — Team members practice ahead of the census start © Winnie Eckardt

Swahili – a brief safari guide to key words and phrases

Swahili (Kiswahili) is a Bantu language that’s spoken by the Swahili people across and beyond East Africa, including Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Somalia, Rwanda, Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi, Zambia and Mozambique. Strongly influenced by and initially written in Arabic, Swahili is now more commonly written using the Latin alphabet. Visitors to East Africa should master at least a few Swahili words and phrases – and enjoy friendly banter with local people. Of course, Swahili culture has its idiosyncrasies and subtleties, which may embarrass all involved – but expect a high degree of forgiveness if you get some things wrong.

Here then are a few general guidelines to rewarding interactions with the peoples of East Africa:

Greetings are important

In Swahili culture, greeting etiquette is tremendously important, and it’s considered impolite not to greet correctly. How you greet someone in Tanzania has an impact on how they will behave towards you. For instance, if a person doesn’t greet their neighbour, it’s usually assumed that they dislike each other.

Ask questions

Key to a rewarding conversation is to spend some time asking about the other person – such as their health and that of their parents and family, and how business/farming is going. Social relationships are very important in Africa, so it’s important to take the time to understand their situation and wellbeing. You will probably not have too much Swahili in your vocabulary, so this conversation will probably be in English, after the initial Swahili greetings

Physical contact

Handshakes (right hand only) are extremely important and sometimes hands are held much longer than you might be used to – sometimes for the duration of the conversation. Your hands might meet and gently entwine fingers, or perhaps there might be some wrist-holding. There are a few variations, so don’t get hung up about what and how – relax and enjoy the moment. If you’re respectful and friendly, no one will take offence at your awkwardness.

Key Swahili phrases

Learning a few basic Swahili phrases will help you during that initial, sometimes awkward, greeting phase, and earn the respect of your Swahili-speaking friend. Here are a few of the most useful phrases (the syllables to stress are in bold):

♦ “Hello”: “Hujambo”, often shortened to “jambo”. You can also use “habari” which roughly translated means “What’s the news about….?”. Use any of these, and smile, as you’re going in for the handshake

♦ “Good morning!”: There’s nothing like a cheerful “habari za asubuhi!” to show friendliness and good wishes. Use “habari za mchana” for “good afternoon.”

♦ “How are you?”: Ask “habari gani?”. But if your friend gets in first with “habari gani?” then answer: “nzuri, ahsante!” (“good, thanks!”). You can also say, “poa” or “safi!” or, if you’re already on good terms, you can be less formal: “Poa, kichisi kama ndizi kwenye friji” (“I am cool like a banana in the fridge”)

♦ “Please”: “Tafadhali”

♦ “Thank you (very much)”: “Ahsante (sana)”

♦ “Goodbye”: “Kwaheri”

♦ “Good night”: “Usiku mwema” or “habari za jioni”

♦ “Enjoy your trip”: “Safari njema“:

“Habari” – the most useful Swahili word

“Habari” is a handy word as you can use it to say “hello” AND to ask what’s the latest news. You’ll impress if you ask “habari za familia?” (“how is your family?”) and follow it up with “habari za kazi?” (“how is work?”). You can also try “habari za kutwa?” (“how was your day?”).

If you invest the time to master the above smattering of Swahili, your social credibility will sky-rocket, and you will enjoy the familiarity and respect that adds layers of enjoyment to your safari. Safari njema!

Survival against the odds – 2 special elephants

These are the stories of two elephants who display enormous tenacity and will to survive, despite significant obstacles. As told by Dr. Michelle Henley – Elephants Alive Director, Co-founder and Principal Researcher.

MATAMBU

Most of the staff and residents of the Associated Private Nature Reserves – Klaserie, Umbabat, Timbavati, Balule & Thornybush (APNR) in the Greater Kruger – have come to know Matambu. He is a true gentle giant amongst elephants, in every sense of the word, often bestowing on us the great honour of contact rumbling when he senses us. This could be because we have regularly visited him since first sighting him on 16 June 2005, and so he has come to recognise the sound of our research vehicle and the scent of its passengers. You see, Matambu is almost totally blind. During our recent annual aerial census, Matambu was seen walking closely on the heels of a younger bull, tracking him as he weaved his way through the bushveld. We have often found him in the company of Whispers, who would protectively charge at us when we immobilise his ailing companion – surely a sign of loyalty and concern for his safety.

In May of this year, we thought we were going to lose Matambu after he suffered a severe infection near the base of his tail and his underparts, probably after being attacked by another bull. We turned to Wildlifevets (Drs. Ben Muller and Joel Alves) three times to treat Matambu’s wounds.

Wound on elephant, Matambu, being treated by vets in Greater Kruger, South Africa elephants — Matambu’s wound is treated by vets © Dr. Michelle Henley

A deep sadness hung over our team at Elephants Alive when we were told during the last treatment that we needed to let him pass on. But, as we mentally prepared ourselves, Matambu had other plans and a clear will to live, and slowly but surely his condition improved. Almost six months after his injury he is still thin and has a less severe infection, but the flushing green grass will hopefully give him the kick-start he needs to boost his immune system and fight off the infection. We are delighted to be approaching the festive season and the New Year with this special elephant. Keep fighting Matambu, as we need your continued existence to bring us added joy!

RHANDZEKILE

Rhandzekile, meaning ‘loved’ in Shangaan, was first sighted in 2009 in the Umbabat Private Nature Reserve as a young sub-adult cow. Through the years since then, people who see her have expressed shock and awe that she has kept going. Rhandzekile has a large hole below her forehead, through which she breathes. Our vets suspect that her handicap is congenital. She appears on and off in the APNR and recently was seen lactating, with a calf in tow.

The hole in her forehead was recently oozing puss, and so we again called Wildlifevets to the rescue, who examined her and administered booster injections. Miraculously, only 2% of her breathing is through her trunk – the rest is via the hole in her forehead, with much audible sucking and blowing. Subsequent to this treatment she moved out of Balule Private Nature Reserve all the way down to Skukuza over the period of a month, clearly showing us that her handicap does not hold her back in anyway.

Elephant cow, Rhandzekile, sedated while vets look at hole in head, Greater Kruger, South Africa — Rhandzekile is sedated while the vets inspect the hole in her forehead © Dr. Joel Alves

Rhandzekile has the company of her family herd, and we wonder who in that herd helps her to drink by squirting water into her mouth, as she will not be able to suck water very effectively?

So it is in the lives of elephants – they care for each other – and sometimes we are privileged enough to catch a glimpse into their world of absolute bonds and friendships that last a lifetime and allow handicapped individuals to live long and fruitful lives.

Elephant cow with hole in head, birth defect, Greater Kruger, South Africa elephants — The vets believe that the hole in her forehead is congenital © Dr. Joel Alves

Thank you to all the landowners of the APNR for reporting sightings of this cow. We would like to monitor her more closely and fit a collar so your sightings are valuable. Thank you to the wardens and especially to Ian Nowak (general manager of Balule) for helping with the location of this cow for examination.

Collared elephant hunted in Botswana, tracking device destroyed

elephant collar, Botswana elephant hunting — A typical elephant collar with tracking device (not the collar in question) © Mara Elephant Project

NEWS DESK POST by AG Editorial

A collared elephant has been hunted in Botswana, and the tracking device destroyed. Four other elephant bulls were hunted by the same party. The hunts took place in a remote area near the Dobe border post between Namibia and Botswana.

The hunting party destroyed the tracking device, according to a statement by Botswana Wildlife Producers Association chairman Basimane Masire. He went on to say that the professional hunter and owner of the elephant hunting license subsequently forfeited their hunting licenses and have cooperated with the official investigation.

The Botswana Government’s Ministry of Environment, Natural Resources Conservation and Tourism confirmed yesterday that professional hunter Michael Lee Potter and Botswana citizen Michael Sharp, a citizen who holds the hunting license, claimed not to have noticed that the large bull elephant had a research collar around its neck.

Collared elephant bulls are usually older animals with large tusks, making them attractive hunting trophies. Despite the hunting of collared elephants being contrary to most trophy hunting ethics protocols, and often illegal, incidents of this occurring are not infrequent.

Journalist Don Pinnock reported in Daily Maverick that Zimbabwe professional hunter Adrian Read had the following to say about trophy hunters claiming not to notice that their targets carried research collars: “The collar is very visible from the front as well as from the sides. And you wouldn’t shoot an elephant facing directly away from you because you have to assess the tusk size. In my opinion, anyone shooting a collared elephant and saying he did not see the collar can only be shooting after dark (which is illegal).”

Map showing location of Botswana elephant hunt — The elephant hunt took place in a remote area known as NG3, near the Botswana/Namibia border post of Dobe

Controversy has reigned since the Botswana government made the decision to resume the hunting of elephants, including chaos during the auction process when Botswana citizens had the opportunity to bid for elephant hunting permits.

Included in the reasoning provided by the Botswana government when they made this decision, was that elephants would be hunted in areas with high incidences of elephant-human conflict so that the local people derive benefits from the hunts. In his report, Pinnock continues that a representative of the local San people, Dahem Xixae, explained “We have no conflict. Only the hunters are the winners here, whereas local poor people remain in sorrow… There’s no benefit to the community from the hunting of elephants and there are dangers. First of all, the Ju/’hoansi do not eat elephants, because elephants behave like human beings. The five elephants hunted were not transients but local ones. This will make the (other elephants) more aggressive and if any were wounded they will be very dangerous to the local community.” Xixae went on to say that “his community was not advised of this elephant hunt”.

For further information about the process leading up to the decision by the Botswana government to resume the hunting of elephants and other species read this compendium of articles.

Lions in Gorongosa show population increase

Lion cubs in Gorongosa, Mozambique — © Paola Bouley (Gorongosa Lion Project Director and Co-Founder)

NEWS DESK POST – source Lusa

Lions in Gorongosa National Park (Mozambique) are benefitting from better conservation measures, and show a population increase to 146, the nature reserve announced on Wednesday.

“It is something I have not seen in the seven years we have studied the lion population,” Paola Bouley, deputy director of conservation, who leads the park’s Carnivores Project told Lusa.

According to a statement distributed on Wednesday, 13 new young males have travelled through the central area of Gorongosa Park, underscoring the importance of a growing lion population for biodiversity.

“The lions are sentinels. When conditions are bad, they suffer the first impact, but when life goes well, they recover quickly and that’s what we’re seeing,” Paola Bouley added.

Unlike in the past, none of the new males has been caught in traps. Before 2015, one-third of the lions in the park were captured, mutilated or killed by human activities, but the Gorongosa inspectors have turned the situation around, the deputy director said.

“They provide the lions with the security they need to prosper,” she added.

African lions in the wild have fallen 70% in the last 50 years and disappeared from an area corresponding to 80% of their historically occupied space, the statement added.

Gorongosa National Park is Mozambique’s main wildlife national park, located at the southern end of the East African Rift Valley. It is home to some of the most biologically rich and geologically diverse ecosystems on the continent and is co-managed by the Government of Mozambique and the Gorongosa Project.

“The Park integrates conservation and human development with the understanding that a healthy ecosystem and healthy human communities are two sides of the same coin,” the statement said.

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 2

Our Photographer of the Year 2020 is now open for submissions!
Here is the first gallery of entrants:

? A spotted hyena pops its head out of the carcass of a giraffe that had died while giving birth. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Nitin Michael

A bull elephant in Nxai Pan douses himself in the white powder so iconic of the Makgadikgadi Salt Pans network in Botswana © Melanie van Zyl

? “Ashes to ashes, dust to dust”. A bull elephant in Nxai Pan douses himself in the white powder so iconic of the Makgadikgadi Salt Pans network in Botswana © Melanie van Zyl.

A southern ground-hornbill snacks on a grasshopper. Moremi Game Reserve, Botswana © Willem Kruger

A saddle-billed stork with a mud fish in the Sand River. Ulusaba Private Game Reserve, South Africa © Anthony Goldman

A Temminck's ground pangolin is released back into the wild after being confiscated from the illegal wildlife trafficking trade © Jo Taylor

? “Disappearing textures”. A Temminck’s ground pangolin is released back into the wild after being confiscated from the illegal wildlife trafficking trade © Jo Taylor

A yellow-billed hornbill. Madikwe Game Reserve, South Africa © Jo Taylor

? A yellow-billed hornbill waits his turn to try and steal the biscuits I was enjoying with my morning coffee. Madikwe Game Reserve, South Africa © Jo Taylor

? A brown hyena tries to intimidate black-backed jackals at an eland carcass – that was killed the night before by lions – by raising its hair to look bigger. Kij Kij waterhole, Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa/Botswana © Willem Kruger

A coalition of lions intently focus on potential prey. Ndutu, Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tanzania © Marino Bilato

Kudu bull at sunset. Gonarezhou National Park, Zimbabwe © Ralph Stutchbury

? A male leopard makes his way to higher ground after a morning drink at the waterhole. Thornybush Private Game Reserve, South Africa © Michael Raddal

A crested francolin on a windy day. Karongwe Private Game Reserve, South Africa © Willem Kruger

A spotted hyena makes off with a zebra leg. Welgevonden Private Game Reserve, South Africa © Michael Wessels

A coalition of five male cheetahs successfully take down a wildebeest. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Diana Knight

? A coalition of five male cheetahs successfully takes down a wildebeest. Maasai Mara National Reserve, Kenya © Diana Knight

? A battle between a small monitor lizard and a baboon spider. After about 15 minutes, the lizard eventually took control and overpowered the spider and carried it off. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Ruggiero Barreto

A Coqui francolin slinks across the road. Pilanesberg National Park, South Africa © Jo Taylor

? A mother elephant comes to the rescue to save her calf from a lioness. Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Kevin Dooley

A mother cheetah with her thirsty cubs. Etosha National Park, Namibia © Kevin Dooley

The Return of Malawi’s Cheetahs

A total of 5,645 kilometres… That is 845 km more than the distance across the United States of America, 2,500 km further when travelling east to west across Australia, and 2,845 km more than the distance across South Africa. That distance does not even count all the little trips in between, including the time spent travelling to and from the various holding sites along the way.
Three countries and 5,645 km later, it all comes down to this moment… The gate is pulled open, and everyone holds their breath, waiting. Cell phones set to video mode are held out, GoPros and professional cameras held steady. All eyes are on the impala leg just outside the gate of the holding boma (enclosure) – a lure, an offering, one last easy meal before the uncertainty of hunting in the wild. After what feels like an eternity, a flash of spotted gold races out of the gate and passes the free meal. He then stops, briefly assessing the situation and his newfound freedom. The large male doubles back and grabs the leg before disappearing into the bush.
Smiles break out throughout the group, and everyone breathes a sigh of relief. It has been a long journey of 5,645 km and now the first wild cheetah in southern Malawi in over 90 years has left his footprints in the soil.

Moments later, the sound of branches snapping and a bushbuck races past us, barking loudly, with a spotted predator in pursuit. There is a new danger on the block. The cheetah gives up his half-hearted attempt on the bushbuck and heads back to the meat that does not require chasing. He eats a portion and then heads off past ancient baobabs to explore his new home in Majete Wildlife Reserve.

The female cheetah, named Samara, remains cautious and on alert after being released into her new home in Majete Wildlife Reserve in Malawi © Jo Taylor — A female cheetah, named Samara, remains cautious and on alert after being released into a holding enclosure in Majete Wildlife Reserve in Malawi © Jo Taylor

At the beginning of the 20th Century, over 100,000 cheetahs roamed Africa and Asia, but by the end of that century, the wild cheetah population had reduced to 15,000. Currently, the total population is estimated at 7,100 adult and adolescent animals, with 4,297 living in Southern Africa, 2,290 in Eastern Africa and 457 in Western, Central, and Northern Africa. Cheetahs are listed as ‘Vulnerable’ by the IUCN Red List and have been eradicated from 90 percent of their historical range in Africa, while in Malawi the entire population was extirpated in the 1980s after decades of habitat loss, human-wildlife conflict and poaching.
Now, in a bid to restore what once was, a collaboration between African Parks, the Malawian Department of National Parks and Wildlife (DNPW), and the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) has allowed five carefully selected cheetahs to be successfully reintroduced into Malawi’s Majete Wildlife Reserve – with the hopes that this crucial founder population will help to grow the population range of this vulnerable big cat.
The cheetahs were donated by Welgevonden, Samara, Dinokeng and Madikwe game reserves in South Africa. Each individual was carefully selected via the EWT’s Cheetah Metapopulation Project, which creates safe spaces for cheetahs while managing populations across reserves to ensure genetic diversity. This reintroduction of five wild cheetahs, in conjunction with a successful reintroduction into Liwonde National Park in 2017, now increases the nation’s total population to 20 individuals. These translocation initiatives are critical for the preservation of the species – and they help to promote tourism, which generates vital funding for the parks and local communities.

**Clockwise from top left: 1)** Majete Wildlife Reserve rangers Nelio Stewart, Tizola Moyo and Dickson Kalikokha use telemetry to monitor and safeguard Majete’s black rhino population © Jo Taylor; 2) The Ford Wildlife Foundation bakkie (pickup truck), loaded up with the latest female cheetah, waits for all the paperwork to be checked over at the Mozambique border post © Jo Taylor; 3) Jo with rangers Dickson, Tizola and Nelio after a morning of tracking © Johan “Vossie” Vorster; 4) Jo using a high vantage point to lookout while monitoring the cheetahs © Johan “Vossie” Vorster; 5) Vincent chats with a little girl and her family at the Malawi border post as we wait for more paperwork to be checked before crossing © Jo Taylor.

The most recent move of a female cheetah – named ‘Samara’ – to Majete was by vehicle in a bakkie (pickup truck). Vincent van der Merwe (EWT Cheetah Metapopulation Project manager and National Geographic Explorer), Johann “Vossie” Vorster (National Geographic filmmaker) and I crossed three international borders to relocate her from South Africa to Malawi. The cheetah was a trooper as her transport container bounced along poorly maintained roads, waiting at border posts for all the correct documents to be checked over by officials, and travelling day and night for over 55 hours. At the border posts, people would gather around to try and get a glimpse of what was in the wooden boxed labelled with African Parks and EWT stickers. Rumours of leopards and tigers were whispered amongst the crowds.

Travelling through Tete in Mozambique was the warmest part of the journey, but thanks to Vincent’s innovative thinking, we rigged up a system to deliver cool air conditioning from the bakkie directly into the cheetah’s container. This kept her from overheating during the hot portions of the trip.
Many cups of coffee, packets of pistachios and power bars later we made our way down the winding roads to Majete’s gate, where the cheetah was able to stretch her legs in the holding boma. Here she will remain for a few weeks as she acclimatizes to her new surroundings, as did the other cheetahs before their release into the wilds of Majete. We have high hopes for this female and for the four other cheetahs who have travelled such vast distances to make this reintroduction dream come true.
Read more about cheetahs here: The Cheetah, and continue reading below for information about Majete, African Parks and the Endangered Wildlife Trust.

**Clockwise from top left: 1)** Preparing for the release of the two Welgevonden cheetah siblings © Jo Taylor; 2) Just before the big moment when the very first cheetah, from Madikwe, is released from the holding boma and into Majete’s wilderness © Jo Taylor; 3) Andrew, Jo and Vincent carry meat to feed the remaining cheetahs in the holding boma. The cheetahs were kept here for several weeks to acclimate to their new environment © Johan “Vossie” Vorster; 4) Vincent, Andrew and Jo take a breather after climbing to the highest point to search for signals on the telemetry set while tracking the cheetahs © Johan “Vossie” Vorster; 5) The male sibling from Welgevonden proves that he is more than capable of living as a wild cheetah in Malawi days after being released © Jo Taylor.

ABOUT MAJETE WILDLIFE RESERVE

When African Parks assumed responsibility of Malawi’s Majete Wildlife Reserve in 2003, the park was practically devoid of all wildlife, and the charcoal trade was driving the systematic removal of trees. Since then, Majete has become a case study for positive conservation development, with a pioneering rehabilitation and restocking programme that has set a precedent for similar projects across Africa. Today, Majete is flourishing, so much so that wildlife is being moved to populate other parks and private reserves within Malawi.
Within five years of African Parks taking responsibility for the reserve, over 2,000 animals had been reintroduced, including black rhinos in 2003; elephants in 2006; lions in 2012, and a host of other wildlife – making this budding reserve Malawi’s only Big 5 destination with now more than 12,200 animals thriving within its perimeter.
Park management has maintained a 15-year track record of zero poaching of rhinos and elephants since their introduction; and tourism has increased 14 percent from last year, with over 9,000 visitors (half of whom were Malawian nationals) – bringing in over US$550,000 to the reserve and communities.
Although Majete is open all year-round, the weather conditions vary according to the season. The wet season occurs from November to March, while the dry season runs from April to October. Temperatures range from 11 to 40 degrees Celsius, depending on the season.

ABOUT AFRICAN PARKS

African Parks is a non-profit conservation organisation that takes on the complete responsibility for the rehabilitation and long-term management of national parks – in partnership with governments and local communities. Africa’s largest NGO (based on counter-poaching presence and area under protection), African Parks manages 15 national parks and protected areas in nine countries – covering over 10.5 million hectares in Benin, Central African Republic, Chad, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Republic of Congo, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda and Zambia.
African Parks and Malawi’s Department of National Parks and Wildlife (DNPW) have been working closely together to rehabilitate habitat and restore biodiversity to the country’s parks since 2003 when a public-private partnership was formed for the management of Majete. African Parks subsequently assumed management of Liwonde (and Nkhotakota Wildlife Reserve) in collaboration with DNPW in 2015, following the successful track record achieved in Majete.

ABOUT ENDANGERED WILDLIFE TRUST

The Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) has worked tirelessly for over 45 years to save wildlife and habitats, with its vision being a world in which both humans and wildlife prosper in harmony with nature. From the smallest frog to the majestic rhino; from sweeping grasslands to arid drylands; from our shorelines to winding rivers: the EWT is working with you, to protect our world. The EWT’s team of field-based specialists is spread across southern and East Africa, where committed conservation action is needed the most.
Working with its partners, including businesses and governments, the EWT is at the forefront of conducting applied research, supporting community conservation and livelihoods, training and building capacity, addressing human-wildlife conflict, monitoring threatened species and establishing safe spaces for wildlife range expansion.

The female cheetah, Samara, that the team transported via vehicle for over 55 hours, cautiously explores her new home in the holding boma © Jo Taylor

ABOUT THE AUTHOR, JO TAYLOR

The post-release cheetah monitoring team: Vincent van der Merwe, Andrew Rietmann and the author, Jo Taylor © Vincent van der Merwe

Jo is a carnivore ecologist based in South Africa. Born in America, her passion for wildlife and conservation resulted in her immigrating to Namibia and then on to South Africa, where she currently resides. Jo has worked for Panthera’s Leopard Program, running camera trap surveys looking at leopard populations, and freelances with various projects working on cheetah, painted wolf (African wild dog) and rhino conservation, as well as working as an Honorary Officer for North West Parks Board. Jo is currently working on her Masters in Conservation Biology through the University of Cape Town, looking at the influence of camera trap deployment on serval density estimates. She enjoys sharing her passion and inspiring others through her photography and stories. You can learn more about Jo’s projects and see more of her photos on her website, her Instagram or her Facebook page.

Uganda birding – 10 best spots

Bar-tailed trogon on safari with Africa Geographic

Uganda birding with Africa Geographic — Africa Geographic clients birding in Bigodi Wetland Sanctuary, near Kibale, Uganda © Simon Espley

Uganda birding offers a feast of rare and colourful species, and the chance to improve dramatically on your species life list. More than 1,065 bird species inhabit a range of habitats – from montane forests to wetlands, agricultural lands, lakes and savannahs. Uganda is on the equator, and the endemic species-rich Albertine Rift valley separates the west of the country from DR Congo and Rwanda, so expect impressive biodiversity.

In no particular order, here are arguably the best birding spots in Uganda:

1. Mabamba Swamp at Lake Victoria

Mabamba Swamp is one of the best places to catch a glimpse of the highly-prized shoebill. Lake Victoria is the largest freshwater body in Africa and is home to about 260 bird species. Look out for the shoebill, blue swallow, pallid harrier, papyrus gonolek, swamp flycatcher, pigmy goose, lesser jacana, white-winged warbler, Viellot’s weaver, grosbeak weaver, palm-nut vulture, black-headed weaver, northern brown-throated weaver, Clarke’s weaver and Carruther’s cisticola.

Mabamba Swamp shoebill, Uganda birding with Africa Geographic — Searching for shoebills in Mabamba Swamp, near the airport city of Entebbe, Uganda © Sherry Mckelvie

Shoebill stork Uganda with Africa Geographic — Shoebill © John van Zyl

2. Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park

Bwindi is the heart and soul of Ugandan birding, the make-and-breaker of bird lists and the home of many endemic and rare bird species. This forested heaven boasts about 350 species, including 23 Albertine Rift endemics of which 14 are not recorded anywhere else in Uganda.

The forest trails around Buhoma are ALIVE with opportunity as you stand your best chance to catch a glimpse of olive long-tailed cuckoo, bar-tailed trogon, dusky tit, Abyssinian (Kivu) groundthrush, white-bellied robin-chat, equatorial akalat, grey-chested iladopsis, red-throated alethe, white-bellied crested flycatcher, white-eyed slaty flycatcher, the enigmatic Chapin’s flycatcher, white-browed crombec, Neumann’s warbler, black-faced prinia, handsome francolin, Jameson’s antpecker, black-faced rufous warbler, northern double-collared sunbird, Willcock’s honeyguide, black bee-eater, black-billed weaver, magpie mannikin and newly described Willard’s sooty boubou.

Scan snags and canopy contours for sooty flycatcher and forest starlings – including Waller’s, Stuhlmann’s and narrow-tailed.

Transitional areas such as “The Neck,’ between Buhoma and Ruhiza are popular areas to look out for black sparrowhawk, western bronze-naped pigeon, cinnamon-chested bee-eater, Cassin’s honeybird, Petit’s cuckooshrike, white-chinned prinia, mountain wagtail, pink-footed puffback, the rare tiny sunbird and the dapper brown-capped weaver.

Away from the indigenous forests, amongst pioneer vegetation fringing the tea estates you can strike it lucky with the highly sought-after dusky twinspot, yellow-bellied, Kandt’s and black-crowned waxbills, streaky and thick-billed seedeaters, western citril and yellow-crowned canary, noisy Chubb’s cisticola, alert Mackinnon’s shrikes, and with luck marvel at a sigh of the striking Doherty’s bushshrike.

Ruhija is your next hotspot in Bwindi, and although the walk down to Mubwindi Swamp is not for the faint-hearted, this is an obligate pilgrimage for the serious birder, since it is down there that resides the MOST coveted of Bwindi’s Albertine Rift endemics …. the rare and localised Grauer’s broadbill, one of Africa’s most sought-after birds. This globally threatened species is only known from two sites in the world, the other being a remote forest in eastern DR Congo.

Other species to watch out for in Ruhija include Carruthers’s cisticola and the localised Grauer’s swamp warbler, red-chested flufftail, black-billed turaco, barred long-tailed cuckoo, white-headed wood-hoopoe, western tinkerbird, olive woodpecker, thick-billed and the elusive dwarf honeyguide, black saw-wing, grey cuckooshrike, olive-breasted and yellow-streaked greenbuls, Abyssinian thrush, white-starred robin, Archer’s ground-robin, stripe-breasted tit, mountain illadopsis, Rwenzori hill-babbler, mountain masked, Rwenzori, and chestnut-throated apalises, cinnamon bracken, mountain yellow, red-faced woodland and Grauer’s warblers, white-tailed blue flycatcher, yellow-eyed black flycatcher, Rwenzori batis, mountain sooty boubou, the rare Lagden’s bushshrike, Sharpe’s starling, mountain oriole, strange weaver, and oriole finch. Flowering symphonias attract the incredible blue-headed, regal and scarce purple-breasted sunbirds, all highly desired Albertine Rift endemics. Dusky, red-faced and the phantom-like Shelley’s crimsonwing occur here too.

As the sun sets, Ruhija offers your best-bet Rwenzori Nightjar, African wood owl, and if you are exceptionally fortunate, the rare Fraser’s eagle-owl.

Mubwindi Swamp, Bwindi, Uganda birding with Africa Geographic — Mubwindi Swamp, Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park, Uganda © Simon Espley

3. Murchison Falls National Park

Murchison Falls is Uganda’s oldest and largest national park, named after the mighty waterfall of the same name – formed as the mighty Nile River is forced through a 7-metre gap in the rocks. The park is home to about 450 bird species, and birding can be done on a game drive, via a boat trip (on the Nile) or a nature walk. Habitat types include forest, swamp, riverine woodland, palm savannah and acacia-dotted plains.

The riverine thickets hold white-crested turaco, double-toothed barbet, red-throated bee-eater, Heuglin’s francolin, brown babbler, silverbird, buff-bellied warbler, black-headed batis, and bar-breasted firefinch. Puvel’s illadopsis can also found near the chimp researchers’ camp. There is plenty of open palm savannah, which is an excellent haunt for Abyssinian ground-hornbill, Senegal lapwing, Shelley’s rufous sparrow and the strange-looking piapiac. The Nile delta is of course home to the near-mythical shoebill stork. Night drives can produce a plethora of species such as pennant-winged and standard-winged nightjar and greyish eagle-owl.

Murchison Falls, Uganda with Africa Geographic — Murchison Falls, Uganda © Simon Espley

4. Queen Elizabeth National Park

Queen Elizabeth National Park is a birdwatcher’s haven, with about 600 bird species across a variety of habitats – from sprawling savannah to dense forest, lakes and wetlands.

Moving from Ishasha to Mweya you will do well keeping an eye out for African crake, blue-throated roller, flappet lark, sooty chat, black-and-white shrike-flycatcher, northern black flycatcher, black-headed gonolek, moustached grass warbler, red-chested sunbird, and slender-billed weaver. And along the banks of the Kasinga channel, you can expect grey crowned-crane, hamerkop, African jacana, flocks of African skimmer, gull-billed tern, and grey-headed and lesser black-backed gulls.

Queen Elizabeth National Park, with Africa Geographic — Africa Geographic clients in Queen Elizabeth National Park, Uganda © Simon Espley

5. Mgahinga Gorilla National Park

Mgahinga Gorilla National Park is home to about 180 bird species, including some of the spectacular Albertine Rift endemics. It is located in the southern part of Uganda, bordering Rwanda and DR Congo and comprises dense highland forest on the slopes of 3 extinct volcanoes. Mgahinga offers excellent bird viewing opportunities along the gorge trail, bamboo trail and farm/community trail. The bird species to look out for include Kivu ground thrush, handsome francolin, dusky crimsonwing, red-throated alethe, blue-headed coucal, Rwenzori nightjar, Rwenzori batis, Archer’s robin chat, black-headed waxbill, western green tinkerbird and stripe-breasted tit.

Bird watching in Mgahinga with Africa Geographic — Birding Sabyinyo Gorge, Mgahinga National Park, Uganda © Simon Espley

6. Semuliki National Park

Semuliki National Park, in the Albertine Rift Valley of western Uganda, has about 440 species in its riverine, forest and grasslands avian habitats. It hosts Guinea-Congo biome species in its lowland forest. The species to look out for include the Congo serpent-eagle, long-tailed hawk, African piculet, Maxwell’s black weaver, blue-billed malimbe, yellow-throated nicator, black dwarf hornbill, Nkulengu rail, piping hornbill, yellow-throated cuckoo, dwarf honeyguide, orange weaver, white-crested hornbill, red-billed dwarf hornbill, black-wattled hornbill, lyre-tailed honeyguide, capuchin babbler and swamp palm bulbul.

7. Kibale National Park

Kibale Forest is a prime birding spot with about 375 bird species, including six Albertine Rift endemics. It is an excellent birding spot with habitats ranging from wet and dry tropical forest to woodland and savannah. The number one sought-after bird in the Kibale Forest is the green-breasted pitta. This “mega” has recently become available, though finding it still takes a good measure of luck.

Kibale offers an impressive bag of goodies replete with gems such as various forest robins, scores of brown and scaly-breasted illadopses, brown-chested alethe, phantom-like black-eared and Abyssinian ground-thrushes, joyful and Toro olive greenbuls, black-bellied seedcracker, collared and black-capped apalis, grey-throated, yellow-spotted and yellow-billed barbets, blue-throated roller, black bee-eater, crowned eagle, red-chested owlet, African grey parrot, African finfoot, afep and white-naped pigeons and the comical, hulking great blue turaco.

The Bigodi Wetland Sanctuary within the park is a great haunt for specials such as speckled tinkerbird, speckle-breasted woodpecker, white-spotted flufftail, snowy-crowned robin-chat, Bocage’s bushshrike, and western nicator. Nearby patches of papyrus support the shy and cautious white-winged swamp-warbler.

Green-breasted pitta in Kibale National Park — A green-breasted pitta in Kibale National Park, Uganda © Christian Boix

8. Rwenzori Mountains National Park

The Rwenzori Mountains in Uganda are home to about 220 bird species, including 19 Albertine Rift endemics, with habitats ranging from high elevation forest and open montane grasslands, to peat bogs, snowfields and glaciers. The mountains lie in western Uganda, with snowcapped peaks reaching 5,110m. Most of the birding in the forest zone and species to see include Rwenzori turaco, long-eared owl, Archers’ robin-chat, Lagden’s bush-shrike, blue-headed and golden-winged sunbird, white-starred robin, slender-billed starling, cinnamon-chested bee-eater and bearded vulture.

Birding in Kasangali, Rwenzori, Uganda with Africa Geographic — Birding in Kasangali, Rwenzori mountains, Uganda © Simon Espley

9. Lake Mburo National Park

Birding is one of the major activities in Lake Mburo National Park, and the best spots for birding are near the lake swamps at Warukiri and Rwonyo. Other habitats include dry hillsides, rocky outcrops and dense savannah. The park is home to about 320 bird species, which include red-faced barbet, brown parrot, barefaced go-away bird, black-billed barbet, blue-napped mousebird, Nubian woodpecker, papyrus canary, papyrus gonolek, African finfoot and shoebill.

There are a few very localised species in Uganda that only occur in Mburo, and topping that list are red-faced barbet, Tabora cisticola, green-capped eremomela, golden-tailed woodpecker, spot-flanked barbet, and grey penduline tit.

At the lake swamps, the main targets are African finfoot, papyrus gonolek, white-winged warbler, African water rail and white-backed night-heron. Yellow-throated leaflove chatter loquaciously in dense, waterside thickets and giant kingfishers wait patiently on overhanging branches.

Mixed woodlands are best for Coqui francolin, black-bellied bustard, African wattled plover, brown parrot, red-headed lovebird, barefaced go-away-bird, blue-napped mousebird, lilac-breasted and broad-billed roller, green wood-hoopoe, common scimitarbill, Narina trogon, Nubian woodpecker, trilling cisticola, northern black flycatcher, chin-spot batis, rufous-chested swallow, yellow-throated longclaw and southern red bishop.

Small numbers of the migratory brown-chested plover are regularly observed in the grasslands that access the park, in addition to the impressive Abyssinian ground-hornbill. Night drives may reveal African scops owl, marsh owl, Verreaux’s eagle owl, swamp and pennant-winged nightjars.

10. Budongo Forest

Budongo Forest has two main sections – Kaniyo Pabidi (Murchison Falls National Park), and the Royal Mile and Busingiro areas found south of Murchison. It lies at the edge of the Albertine Rift valley, protecting the most extensive natural forest area in East Africa. Budongo is home to about 360 bird species. At Royal mile look out for the elusive and skulking Nahan’s francolin, the fleeting Cassin’s spinetail, and the dainty chestnut-capped flycatcher. Also search for the stunning chocolate-backed, blue-breasted and African dwarf kingfishers. The forest is full of illadopses and alethes, and the diversity of greenbuls here is simply incredible. But for those who don’t fancy cryptic birds, there are plenty of more colourful species such as the white-thighed hornbill and black bee-eater. Other species include Cassin’s hawk-eagle, Ituri batis, black-collared lovebird and brown twinspot.

For your next Uganda birding adventure, consider these accommodation options at the best prices: private travel & conservation club. If you are not yet a member, see how to JOIN below this story.

Uganda bird watching with Africa Geographic — Africa Geographic clients birding the Royal Mile in Budongo Forest, Uganda © Simon Espley

Photographer of the Year 2020 Weekly Selection: Week 1

Our Photographer of the Year 2020 is now open for submissions!
Here is the first gallery of entrants:

A leopard cub pops his head out of an excavated termite mound. Madikwe Game Reserve, South Africa © Jo Taylor

A spotted hyena carries the remains of a kill. Etosha National Park, Namibia © Manuel Graf

A young mouse feeds on grass seeds. Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, Cape Town, South Africa © Cheryl Cranfield

? A young four-striped grass mouse feeds on grass seeds. Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, Cape Town, South Africa © Cheryl Cranfield

A Cape turtle dove is not impressed with a crested barbet sitting on a branch and tries to chase it away. From a garden in Bloemfontein, South Africa © Willem Kruger

? A laughing dove is not impressed with a crested barbet sitting on a branch and tries to chase it away. From a garden in Bloemfontein, South Africa © Willem Kruger

A lioness gets in a quick evening drink. Mashatu Game Reserve, Botswana © Kevin Dooley

A mother spotted hyena cleans her cub. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Landie Fourie

A honeybee busily collects pollen for the hive. Jeffreys Bay, South Africa © Jean Goldstone

A leopard gets a better view after finding a zebra colt. Mashatu Game Reserve, Botswana © Kevin Dooley

An impressive close up of a mountain gorilla. Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Uganda © Manuel Graf

? A helmeted guineafowl forages around the edge of a waterhole. Karongwe Private Game Reserve, South Africa © Willem Kruger

A painted wolf (African wild dog) takes a short break from running in the harsh summer heat, and takes a dip in a muddy puddle to cool down. A moment of brief tranquillity before jumping back up to join the nomadic pack. Klaserie Private Nature Reserve, South Africa © Samuel Cox

? A painted wolf (African wild dog) takes a short break from running in the harsh summer heat, in a muddy puddle. A moment of brief tranquillity before jumping back up to join the nomadic pack. Klaserie Private Nature Reserve, South Africa © Samuel Cox

A cheetah with its kill close to Twee Rivieren Camp. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Manuel Graf

? Thousands of red-billed queleas erupt and fill the skies, dwarfing the grazing Crawshay’s zebras. South Luangwa National Park, Zambia © Samuel Cox

A lion lies in a thick bush by the side of a road with his wildebeest kill. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa © Manuel Graf

A yellow-billed hornbill with a large toad. Kruger National Park, South Africa © Willem Kruger

? A newly introduced cheetah keeps a sharp eye out after relocating from South Africa to Malawi. Majete Wildlife Reserve, Malawi © Jo Taylor

? A pearl-spotted owlet enjoys the last of the sun’s rays while looking out for a potential snack. It is sitting on a wooden board at Dedeben Research Center in Tswalu Kalahari Reserve, South Africa © Thilo Beck

A beautifully back-lit capture of a dominant lion. Serengeti National Park, Tanzania © Ankit Desai

A yellow baboon relaxes on a rock by the Chobe River. Chobe National Park, Botswana © Willem Kruger

Riff Raff the “problem” elephant receives extended protection against destruction

Riff Raff, a mature elephant bull — Riff Raff, a mature bull elephant has been dubbed a ‘problem’ animal © Waldo Swiegers/AP Images for Humane Society International

NEWS DESK POST by Humane Society International/Africa (HSI/Africa)

Wildlife campaigners at Humane Society International/Africa are celebrating a South African High Court ruling that grants extended protection for Riff Raff, an elephant dubbed a “problem” animal for trampling fences erected through his range in Limpopo. As elephants and people increasingly compete for land across South Africa, landowners often resort to lethal solutions to eliminate the problem. That is unjustified, says HSI/Africa, particularly when a reserve more than 400 km away is offering Riff Raff a new home.

HSI/Africa and its partner Global Supplies have been working for more than two years to save the 40+ year-old, dominant male elephant from destruction after a landowner applied to have him shot. Riff Raff was declared a damage-causing animal by the provincial environmental government for trampling fences to gain access to land that has been his core bull zone for more than half his adult life. The fences were erected by a landowner on Riff Raff’s reserve in 2016, directly excluding him from this long-established area of land to which, as one of the oldest and most dominant bulls on the property, he was genetically hard-wired to return.

To save Riff Raff, HSI/Africa and Global Supplies relocated him to another reserve last year, but it was too close to his historical range and he walked the 64 km journey back home. When a new destruction permit was applied for, and the campaigners’ request to relocate Riff Raff to a new reserve 400 km away was rejected by the Limpopo government, they asked the High Court to intervene and review the decision. Judge President Makgoba has now granted Riff Raff extended protection at his current reserve, pending a full review next year. The new location, being much further away, in a new terrain and with new females, where Riff Raff would be the most dominant bull, mimics bull’s natural dispersal to areas outside of their natal range, and therefore has greater chances of success.

Across Africa, elephants are under threat from poaching, trophy hunting, habitat encroachment and climate change, and should be protected wherever possible. HSI/Africa believes that Riff Raff’s ranging behaviour is nothing more than normal bull elephant instinct. As current legal definitions of so-called damage-causing animals fail to take this natural behaviour into account, it has become easy for landowners to exploit this behaviour to have elephants on their land destroyed.

Audrey Delsink, HSI/Africa’s wildlife director and an elephant behaviourist who has studied Riff Raff for more than 20 years, said: “We are deeply relieved at the High Court’s decision to grant Riff Raff an extended stay of execution and the chance of a new life. He has come to symbolise an ever-increasing human-elephant conflict in South Africa that all too often ends with elephants paying the price. People and elephants increasingly compete for the same space, with lethal solutions sadly seen as the easiest and quickest option. Lethal management interventions, particularly in the case of human-elephant conflict, should be the absolute last resort and never employed where any other humane alternative exists. We share this land with these magnificent giants, it should be utterly unthinkable to kill them simply because to do so is easier than managing the land in a way that considers their normal biological drivers.”

HSI/Africa is extremely thankful to its attorneys, Lawton’s Africa, and to Advocate Mpho Sethaba and Lebogang Phaladi for their pro-bono services on Riff Raff’s case. The elephant’s final fate will be determined next year, when the 2018 decision not to allow his relocation will be reviewed by the court.

Spider Macro Magic

With a record-breaking, never-before-seen 29,887 entries received for our Photographer of the Year 2019 competition, our judges had an incredibly tough time deciding on our winner and runners-up. But at the end of the day, it was the pure macro-magic of Eraine van Schalkwyk’s jumping spider that caught the eye of our judges, and she was crowned our winner for 2019.
What made this image stand out head-and-shoulders above the other macro entrants was that she managed to include so much of the habitat in her capture. So often macro photography involves tight focus and shallow depth of field, where only the subject is clear. This tiny predator appears to be surfing in a tube wave, as it gazes straight at the camera. This added sense of place makes this an excellent image.
And so we launch our Photographer of the Year 2020 by sharing with you a selection of reigning Photographer of the Year Eraine’s stunning photos, along with her thoughts on photographing spiders. Do enjoy this magnificent gallery and we look forward to another successful year of celebrating wildlife photography with you all!

Jumping spider (Hyllus sp.) amongst leaf litter, spider, arachnid, macro photography

? The winning image: This friendly, 1cm in length, jumping spider (Hyllus sp.) was found wandering in leaf litter. Jumping spiders are curious creatures, and often intrigued by the camera flash. They are harmless to humans. Greater Kruger National Park, South Africa. Canon MP-E 65mm f/2.8 1-5x Macro lens (f/9 | 1/250 | ISO 400)

“We are beginning to learn that each animal has a life and a place and a role in this world. If we place compassion and care in the middle of all our dealings with the animal world and honour and respect their lives, our attitudes will change” ~ Jane Goodall
A few years ago, while visiting Punda Maria camp in northern Kruger National Park, I stood on the bed, shoe in hand, trying to figure out the best approach to kill the spider that was on the floor. We often fear that which we do not understand – I knew little of these tiny creatures and yet I was frightened of them. It was only when my knowledge grew that my fear diminished and was replaced with curiosity.
I’m fortunate to have grown up in a family of nature enthusiasts who frequent national parks around South Africa and had a grandfather whose passion and knowledge of nature photography inspired my parents and myself. I’ve always had a great love and appreciation for the natural world and its inhabitants, but never quite respected spiders in the same way.

Green jumping spider, spider, arachnid, macro photography

?Jumping spider (Asemonea sp.), St. Lucia, iSimangaliso Wetland Park, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Canon MP-E 65mm f/2.8 1-5x Macro lens (f/9 | 1/400 | ISO 400)

Male jumping spider, spider, arachnid, macro photography

?Male jumping spider (Harmochirus luculentus) with a brush of hair on front legs. Sabiepark Private Nature Reserve, Mpumalanga, South Africa. Canon MP-E 65mm f/2.8 1-5x Macro lens (f/10 | 1/250 | ISO 400)

Jumping spider with prey, spider, arachnid, macro photography

?As they are already skittish, photographing spiders with prey is a gamble, getting in closer with a lens often results in spiders abandoning their food. This Tusitala sp. jumping spider allowed me to take photographs as I watched it completely shred its prey to pieces. Sabiepark Private Nature Reserve, Mpumalanga, South Africa. Canon MP-E 65mm f/2.8 1-5x Macro lens (f/9 | 1/500 | ISO 400)

Green pea spider with prey, spider, arachnid, macro photography

?Green pea spider (Araneus apricus) with prey. These spiders build their webs at night to catch flying and jumping insects. The web is then removed early in the morning, and the spider retreats to a cluster of leaves close to the web site. Sabiepark Private Nature Reserve, Mpumalanga, South Africa. Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM lens (f/9 | 1/250 | ISO 400)

South Africa is home to about 2,200 described species of spiders, and only a few of those are known to produce a bite that requires medical attention. An individual’s response to spider venom depends on many factors including age, health and sensitivity to the venom (much like people vary in sensitivity to a bee sting). Should a spider bite you, it would be out of self-defence or when they feel threatened, such as when they become trapped between clothes and the skin, or if they are aggravated.

?Myrmarachne ichneumon male jumping spider (left) mimicking a Tetraponera sp. ant (right). Ant-mimicking jumping spiders have physical and behavioural modifications to look like ants. Some ant mimics, like the Myrmarachne, gain protection by living near ants, while others mimic them to feed on them. Taken in iSimangaliso Wetland Park, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Both photographed with Canon MP-E 65mm f/2.8 1-5x Macro lens. Left: (f/10 | 1/250 | ISO 500), Right: (f/9 | 1/250 | ISO 400)

With a taste for insects, spiders perform the essential ecological role of controlling insect populations, including those that damage wild vegetation and our crops, and insects capable of spreading diseases like mosquitoes. Spiders are a food source for a variety of animals, including other invertebrates, reptiles, amphibians, birds and mammals. The food web is very intricate, and the removal of spiders from the food chain could have a devastating effect on the rest of the food chain.

Armed with new knowledge, I set out to explore spiders and found that they’re not the malicious creatures I once thought they were. From the first time that I looked into the eyes of a jumping spider, their beauty and quizzical gaze captivated me.

Crab spider on a water lily, spider, arachnid, macro photography

?Crab spider (Thomisus stenningi) patiently awaiting its next meal on a water lily. Females of this species can change their colour and are often found on flowers of the same shade. Their cryptic colouration allows these spiders to fool their prey, ambushing them when they stray too near, as well as to escape predators. Sabiepark Private Nature Reserve, Mpumalanga, South Africa. Canon MP-E 65mm f/2.8 1-5x Macro lens (f/9 | 1/250 | ISO 400)

jumping spider, spider, arachnid, macro photography

?I spotted this Heliophanus sp. jumping spider on a beautiful pink and white flower and thought it had the potential to make a lovely image. On my approach, it ran off into the leaves, but its curiosity of the light bouncing off my flash allowed for a few photographs. Sabiepark Private Nature Reserve, Mpumalanga, South Africa. Canon MP-E 65mm f/2.8 1-5x Macro lens (f/9 | 1/320 | ISO 400)

Jumping spider on lichen, spider, arachnid, macro photography

?Jumping spider (Langelurillus squamiger), on a lichen landscape. Cape Vidal, iSimangaliso Wetland Park, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Canon MP-E 65mm f/2.8 1-5x Macro lens (f/10 | 1/250 | ISO 500)

Jumping spider (Hyllus treleaveni) with a processionary caterpillar, spider, arachnid, macro photography

?Jumping spider (Hyllus treleaveni) with a processionary caterpillar as prey photographed against a windowpane. Sabiepark Private Nature Reserve, Mpumalanga, South Africa. Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM lens (f/8 | 1/160 | ISO 400)

Spider in an orb web, spider, arachnid, macro photography

?A Cyclosa insulana juvenile spider in an orb-web decorated with a circular stabilimentum. Skukuza Indigenous Nursery, Kruger National Park, Mpumalanga, South Africa. Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM lens (f/9 | 1/200 | ISO 400)

That’s how I found myself reflecting in the same room in Pundu Maria, where I had once dispatched a harmless wall spider. I was here again, but with a different goal in mind. I wanted to photograph spiders, and hopefully take people with the same fear I once had on a journey with these spectacular, misunderstood creatures.
I started photographing spiders using an Olloclip for my iPhone and currently use a Canon 70D and Canon MP-E 65mm f/2.8 1-5x Macro lens, Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM lens, Canon Macro Twin Lite MT-24EX Flash and MagMod diffusers. All my images are handheld and single exposures (not stacked). All spiders are photographed in their natural habitat.

? Left: A well-camouflaged crab spider (Oxytate argenteooculata). Sabiepark Private Nature Reserve, Mpumalanga, South Africa. Canon MP-E 65mm f/2.8 1-5x Macro lens (f/9 | 1/250 | ISO 400); Top right: Fish-eating spiders are found at freshwater sources where they feed on tadpoles, adult frogs and aquatic invertebrates. I watched this Nilus massajae eyeing an Argus reed frog – I wonder if it had it for dinner! St. Lucia, iSimangaliso Wetland Park, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM lens (f/13 | 1/250 | ISO 400); Bottom right: Lynx spider (Oxyopes jacksoni). Lynx spiders are so named because of the way they hunt – they run over vegetation and jump on their prey. Sabiepark Private Nature Reserve, Mpumalanga, South Africa. Canon MP-E 65mm f/2.8 1-5x Macro lens (f/8 | 1/250 | ISO 400)

Jumping spider on tree trunk, arachnid, macro photography

?Jumping spider (Thyene sp.) on a tree trunk. Mkuze Game Reserve, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Canon MP-E 65mm f/2.8 1-5x Macro lens (f/11 | 1/250 | ISO 400)

Crab spider on fever tree root, arachnid, macro photography

?Crab spider (Thomisus granulatus) on the exposed roots of a fever tree. Sabiepark Private Nature Reserve, Mpumalanga, South Africa. Canon MP-E 65mm f/2.8 1-5x Macro lens (f/9 | 1/200 | ISO 400)

Jumping spider on tree, arachnid, macro photography

?Jumping spider (Phintella sp.) at the base of a bold and beautiful tree trunk. I’ve seen this species of jumping spider maybe a dozen times or so. My first attempts left me with no images and very disappointed as they had scampered away. This Phintella was comparatively relaxed and allowed me to get close. Sabiepark Private Nature Reserve, Mpumalanga, South Africa. Canon MP-E 65mm f/2.8 1-5x Macro lens (f/8 | 1/250 | ISO 400)

Photography is a powerful means of communication. Macro photography allows me to capture detailed images of living organisms that are too small to be appreciated with the naked eye.
I want to thank Africa Geographic for providing the platform to show some of my images of spiders, and hope that these photographs will contribute towards an appreciation and understanding of them. Spiders and other tiny creatures are as magnificent as Africa’s bigger wildlife and are just as worthy of being respected and protected.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I’m indebted to Prof. Ansie Dippenaar-Schoeman for fact-checking and assistance with spider identification, and Vida van der Walt and Prof. Charles Haddad for assistance with spider identification.

Jumping spider on edge of leaf, arachnid, macro photography

?One of my very first and favourite photographs. Jumping spider (Branchus mustelus). Sabiepark Private Nature Reserve, Mpumalanga, South Africa. Canon MP-E 65mm f/2.8 1-5x Macro lens (f/8 | 1/100 | ISO 400)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR, Eraine van Schalkwyk

Eraine holds a degree in Microbiology, and it is during the zoology part of her course that she learned more about spiders, prompting her interest in spider photography. For the past two and a half years, she has spent most of her free time searching for and photographing these interesting creatures. To see more of her photographs take a look at her website, and her Facebook and Instagram pages.

Namibia: Spectacular colours of a magnificent wilderness destination

Burchell’s zebra in Etosha, Namibia — During the rainy season herds of Burchell’s zebra spread out on the green grass plains of Etosha to make the most of the abundant food source © Claudia & Wynand du Plessis

GUEST POST by Claudia & Wynand du Plessis

Namibia is bestowed with many true wilderness areas where the hand of man is hardly noticeable. Spending time in Namibia’s wild nature is a true blessing for the soul and a visual feast – especially during the golden hours of the day. We’d like to inspire you with a selection of our images where we’ve captured Namibia’s extraordinary light.

Quiver trees at sunset in southern Namibia © Claudia & Wynand du Plessis

The far south of Namibia is very rugged and isolated. Only the hardiest of plants, such as quiver trees, survive and even thrive in this region. During the day the landscape often appears bleak in the harsh light, but for a brief time at sunrise and sunset the scenery becomes magical with stunning colours, shapes and silhouettes.

View from Elim Dune near Sesriem towards the Naukluft Mountains, Namibia — View from Elim Dune near Sesriem towards the Naukluft Mountains © Claudia & Wynand du Plessis

When you sit on top of Elim Dune in the late afternoon, the view is simply breathtaking. Towards the west the dunes stretch as far as the eyes can see, while towards the east you are rewarded with a magnificent view over the gravel plains towards the mighty Naukluft Mountains.

Even though Elim Dune lies very close to Sesriem camp, only three kilometres away, it is truly part of the Namib Desert – one of the most impressive wilderness destinations in the world.

Springbok and gemsbok in Etosha, Namibia — Springbok and gemsbok in a dusty landscape at sunset in Etosha © Claudia & Wynand du Plessis

In the late dry season when thousands of thirsty animals visit Etosha’s waterholes daily, the hooves of springbok and gemsbok visiting at sunset kick up huge dust clouds from the trampled soil, which make for great backlight images against the setting sun.

The Etosha National Park in northern Namibia is one of the prime destinations for wildlife enthusiasts. Even though it is fenced and many of its waterholes are artificial, it can be considered a true wilderness area because of its enormous size (22,915 square kilometres) and the minimal influence by man (be it the park’s management, visitors, or the farmers living around the park).

Spitzkoppe Mountains and a thunderstorm, Namibia — Rare thunderstorm at the Spitzkoppe Mountains © Claudia & Wynand du Plessis

In the rainy season, when dramatic storm clouds cover the sky, a rare thunderstorm over Spitzkoppe at sunset paints the landscape in pink.

Although Spitzkoppe is not a true wilderness area, you quickly get the feeling of being stranded on an isolated island when you climb up the steep granite mountain or camp in a sheltered spot.

Lilac-breasted roller, bird, avian — Lilac-breasted roller © Claudia & Wynand du Plessis

The lilac-breasted roller must be one of the most colourful birds occurring in Namibia. Its bright shades of olive green, orange, lilac, pink and blue are in stark contrast to the earthy tones of the savannah – its favourite habitat – and make it a beautiful photographic motif for wildlife photographers.

The Namib Desert at Sossusvlei, Namibia — The Namib Desert at Sossusvlei © Claudia & Wynand du Plessis

When you stay an entire day at Sossusvlei, you’ll witness the most dramatic colour changes on the dunes. During the day, when the sun stands high in the sky, the terrain looks rather bleak and washed out. During the golden hours at sunrise and sunset, however, the sand glows in magnificent shades of orange, transforming the landscape into a magical desert world.

The vast dune sea of the Namib Desert is one of the driest desert regions on the planet. Despite the fact that the area around Sossusvlei is a tourist-magnet because of its beauty and accessibility, the actual impact of man on this magnificent, protected national park, the Namib-Naukluft Park, is negligible.

Elephant herd at a waterhole in Etosha, Namibia — Elephant herd at sunset at the Halali waterhole in Etosha © Claudia & Wynand du Plessis

Watching a herd of elephants approaching a waterhole and spending time to drink, bath, play and socialise nearby is the epitome of a true wilderness experience.

At Halali waterhole you can enjoy this spectacle from a vantage point inside the camp 24/7. At the height of the dry season elephant herds with babies prefer to visit the waterhole at the end of a hot day. With the setting sun basking the dusty scene in radiating warm light, this affords photographers great opportunities for capturing atmospheric images.

Sunrise in Namib Desert, Namibia — At first light in the Namib Desert © Claudia & Wynand du Plessis

Observing the sunrise from top of a dune is a magical experience. The radiating orange colours of the landscape leaves you speechless, and the sense of wilderness is tangible when you sit with your feet dug into the cool sand, engulfed by absolute quietness and peace.

Sunrise in Etosha, Namibia — Sunrise over the plains of Etosha © Claudia & Wynand du Plessis

Being out at first light in Etosha’s wilderness is equally rewarding. Watching the sun rise behind a lone acacia tree in an array of pink, lilac and orange colours is a wonderful experience. Paying attention to the large expanse of the Etosha Pan on the horizon helps one comprehend the vastness of this grand place.

Herd of gemsbok at the Naukluft Mountains, Namibia — Herd of gemsbok at the Naukluft Mountains © Claudia & Wynand du Plessis

As the sun sets, a herd of gemsbok moves towards the Naukluft Mountains for their nightly rest. There is a short window of time when the scenery is transformed into heavenly pastel colours just before the sun disappears beyond the horizon.

Fish River Canyon before sunrise, Namibia — The Fish River Canyon before sunrise © Claudia & Wynand du Plessis

The Fish River Canyon is an area of extremes in temperatures and also in beauty. Whilst the rugged terrain appears bleak and inhospitable during noon, it looks rather mysterious and inviting around dusk and dawn.

Sand dunes in Namibia — Ripples in the sand dunes © Claudia & Wynand du Plessis

The early morning light in the Namib Desert is not only good for rich and warm colours, but also brings out the diverse textures and patterns of the landscape. The great escarpment (as seen in the background of the above photo) runs south to north along most of western Namibia has for the most part has very rugged terrain with hardly any human influence.

Want to go on safari to Namibia? To find lodges, search for our ready-made packages or get in touch with our travel team to arrange your safari, scroll down to after this story.

Critically endangered addax antelope to be reintroduced in Chad

Addax antelope during reintroduction in Chad — Addax are on the brink of extinction with possibly only three left in the wild © Environment Agency Abu Dhabi

NEWS DESK POST by Anna Zacharias, The National

The wild addax antelope (Addax nasomaculatus) is perhaps the loneliest mammal on the planet. These majestic, snow-white (in summer) antelope once roamed in abundance across North Africa but poaching and industrialisation pushed the wild population to the brink of extinction. By 2016 just three remained in the wild, and they were only discovered after a 700 km ground search and a 3,200 km aerial survey led by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

Now the species is about to get a second chance.

The Environmental Agency Abu Dhabi plans to bring back the antelope from the knife-edge of extinction with the re-introduction of addax antelope bred in captivity. Just recently the agency flew 15 addax by cargo plane from the UAE to Chad, where they will be acclimatised in a holding boma before their release into the wild later this year.

The addax is perfectly adapted to surviving in one of the most extreme climates in the world – the desert. They have broad hooves that enable them to travel efficiently on fine desert sand and a white coat that reflects the harsh rays of the sun. The species is so spectacularly adapted to dry environments that it can get most of the water it needs from a diet of grass, tubers and desert scrub.

Over a period of six years (from 2010) the wild population plummeted from 200 to just three when its habitat became a region of drug and weapon smuggling and illegal wildlife trade after the 2011 political collapse in Libya. Oil installations by China National Petroleum Corporation wreaked havoc on its habitat, and poaching by the soldiers protecting the oil sites significantly increased in one of the species’ last safe havens in Niger, according to the IUCN.

Addax antelope are released into holding boma in Chad — Addax are released into a holding boma in Chad where they will be acclimatised before their release to the wild later this year © Environment Agency Abu Dhabi

The EAD hopes the reintroduction of the addax will emulate the success of the scimitar-horned oryx, which was reintroduced by the EAD in partnership with Chad and the Sahara Conservation Fund.

Today, 202 scimitar-horned oryx roam the Ouadi Rimé-Ouadi Achim Game Reserve Protected Area, following the birth of more than 40 calves this summer.

“We take great pride in the efforts being made to bring the scimitar-horned oryx back from the brink of extinction and to see our ‘World Herd’ of this species thriving once again in the desert regions of Chad,” said Dr Shaikha Al Dhaheri, the EAD Secretary-General.

Hundreds of oryx will be reintroduced over the course of a five-year programme. The programme’s success has affected the scale and ambition of future species projects, said Dr Al Dhaheri.

“Many lessons have been learnt since the inception of the programme and we hope that the valuable knowledge and technical expertise we gained will pave the way for the reintroduction of these other highly endangered antelope species into the Ouadi Rimé-Ouadi Achim Game Reserve.”

Experience an art safari in the Big 5 Greater Kruger

Sketching elephants while on safari in Greater Kruger, South Africa — © Alison Nicholls

TRAVEL POST by Alison Nicholls – wildlife artist

What is an art safari? It’s a safari where you learn to sketch wildlife quickly and confidently. It might seem a little intimidating, but it’s amazing how much your sketching can improve when you spend several hours each day practising. There are only six guests on each safari and artists with any level of experience are welcome. We sketch from our private vehicle on our twice-daily drives and I lead sketching and watercolour workshops at the lodge during the middle of the day. It’s a great way to improve your sketching, enjoy an amazing few days watching South Africa’s iconic wildlife, and meet like-minded travel companions. Non-sketching friends and partners are also welcome.

Find out about Greater Kruger for your next African safari. We have ready-made safaris to choose from, or ask us to build one just for you.

Sketching a lion on an art safari in Greater Kruger, South Africa — © Alison Nicholls

The following is a selection of guest reviews from our 2019 art safaris:

I really can’t say enough good about the art safari; it was FABULOUS! All that I had hoped for and more, and I am still revelling in the memories and reliving it through my sketches. I have no suggestions for improvement because I thought it was perfect. Thank you so much! ~ Melissa F.

I have just experienced the adventure of a lifetime. Africa Geographic and Alison Nicholls have put together a trip for Africa rookies and old-timers alike… I could not have created a better forum for Africa and my art. ~ Kelly G.

After a wonderful first two legs of my trip (Cape Town and Victoria Falls), I honestly thought that the trip could not get any better. Boy was I wrong. The art safari was one of the greatest experiences. ~ Sarah L.

Two images of guests sketching a buffalo and elephant in Greater Kruger, South Africa — © Alison Nicholls

Kambaku is a beautiful lodge. The staff were all wonderful and helpful. The safari drives were such amazing experiences and I will cherish those sweet memories forever. ~ Emily S.

The art safari far exceeded my expectations. The accommodations were top-notch, and the game drives were truly a lifetime experience. ~ Betsy W.

Artist looking at their work at a lodge in Greater Kruger, South Africa — © Alison Nicholls

Thanks for such a wonderful workshop! I have more confidence now than before, for sure. I also love Alison’s demonstrations of watercolour painting with her unique style. ~ Emily S.

Two images of a sleeping lion cub being sketched and art books on a table by a lodge in Greater Kruger, South Africa — © Alison Nicholls

Alison asked us each individually what our goals were, and I shared that I really just wanted to try to sketch profiles of the animals and try to master that. However, by the end of the safari, I found myself enjoying sketching from life much more than from pictures, and really trying to sketch the animals from different angles. I really had such a wonderful time attempting this. ~ Sarah L.

Alison was a patient and versatile teacher. She did a great job of catering to students of different levels. ~ Betsy W.

Guests watching a giraffe on a game drive in Greater Kruger, South Africa — © Alison Nicholls

The other members on the safari, I now consider friends. I plan to keep in touch with everyone and look forward to seeing everybody’s art. I left the art safari very sad that it was over, but also very happy because I now consider myself an artist. I plan to continue with my sketching, as well as experimenting with watercolour. The art safari is something that I would love to do again, and I would suggest to everybody I know to do something like this. ~ Sarah L.

The art safari with Alison Nicholls was one of the most amazing experiences I have ever had! I grew so much as an artist and learned so much about art and African animals and birds. I really appreciated Alison’s approach to teaching art. She is very knowledgeable about the animals, birds and plants in South Africa. She was able to easily identify the areas where my sketching needed to improve. She had quick tricks and skills that made my ability to sketch moving animals much better. ~ Linda M.

Wild Babies

It’s only one week until entries open for our Photographer of the Year 2020! We’re brimming with excitement about what gems will be unearthed this year, and to get in the mood, we’re showcasing another great gallery of adorably cute wild baby animals – from Photographer of the Year 2019.
Our Photographer of the Year 2020 will officially open for entries on Friday, 29th November 2019 – details on how to enter will be available on the day!

Two African wild dog, painted wolf, pups booping snoots

? “Comparing baby teeth” – painted wolf (African wild dog) puppies at Tswalu Kalahari Reserve, South Africa © Elissa Title

Three lions cubs running and playing with each other

Two juvenile mongooses staring at the camera

? Clockwise from top left: 1) Three elephant calves are herded towards the waterhole in Mashatu Game Reserve, Botswana © Janet Pitts; 2) Two young geladas (also known as bleeding heart monkeys) in the Ethiopian Highlands, Ethiopia © Kevin Dooley; 3) A trio of friendly warthog piglets outside Mopani Camp in Kruger National Park, South Africa © Alfred Mark Watts; 4) Two black-backed jackal pups play a tug-of-war in Rietvlei Nature Reserve, South Africa © Henning de Beer

? Lion cubs share an intimate moment with mom while at a wildebeest kill in Sabi Sands Private Game Reserve, South Africa © Daniel Koen

A pile of juvenile African wild dog, painted wolf, pups sitting together

? “Curiosity” – juvenile painted wolves (African wild dogs) huddle together in Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe © Vikram Ghanekar

Two warthog piglets lying on their mother

Using ‘chilli balls’ to reduce human-elephant conflict in Zambia

Two men on patrol near South Luangwa National Park, Zambia — Image source © Flatdogs Camp

Communities surrounding the South Luangwa National Park in Zambia often face huge losses due to elephant conflicts. The booming development of the Luangwa Valley has resulted in more farms and infrastructure being built, which has caused an increased level of human-wildlife conflict in the community. During the crop-growing season, elephants cross the Luangwa River and enter the surrounding villages, where they raid crop fields and damage property in their forage for food. This can result in devastating outcomes for local farmers who lose their livelihood, and the elephants who are met with negative retaliations.

To help mitigate this conflict, 20 volunteers from Conservation South Luangwa (CSL) have been using ‘chilli balls’ (ping pong balls filled with chilli oil) to deter elephants from crop fields. Volunteers in Kakumbi Chiefdom have been equipped with boots, rain jackets, overalls and torches to enable them to patrol high-risk zones that are likely to be raided by elephants. The volunteers patrol during the night as this is when the elephants are most active in the village.

Man demonstrating the chilli 'gun' — Image source © Flatdogs Camp

Once an elephant begins to approach a crop field, the CSL volunteer ‘chilli patrollers’ fire a small chilli ball at the hindquarters of the elephant to deter it. The balls leave chilli oil on their skin, causing them no harm other than a mild discomfort due to the smell of chilli, which acts as enough of a deterrent.

The chilli blasters are simple devices, designed to deter but not hurt an elephant. To fire a chilli ball, the wide end chamber of the chilli blaster is unscrewed and a ping pong ball filled with chilli oil is placed inside it. Flammable insect spray is sprayed into the chamber, and then it is quickly closed. There is an igniter mounted at the back of the device which when clicked provides a spark that ignites the gas, firing the ping pong ball out of the narrow tube with a loud bang. For each round the device needs to be unscrewed and re-loaded. So the chilli patroller is careful to fire with control and make every shot count.

The ball explodes when it hits the hindquarters of the elephant, the gas quickly evaporates, leaving some chilli oil on the skin. When the elephant uses its trunk to investigate the spot, it finds the unpleasant chilli mixture. It usually takes a few attempts for the combination of the loud bang and the chilli oil to take effect, and for the elephant to decide to move on and feed elsewhere. The oil is then easily washed away when the elephant next mud bathes or sprays itself with water.

If communities are not supported in wildlife conflict zones, then they often resort to throwing rocks, fireworks, or will even use illegal firearms. All of these cause much more harm to elephants than the chilli patrollers with their blasters.

Two men demonstrating the chilli blaster to ward off elephants — Image source © Flatdogs Camp

The chilli-patrolling efforts are utilised with chilli brick burning, elephant restraining fences, as well as the use of safe-grain stores which elephants cannot break into. These initiatives, combined with support from the local community, have been key to the success of the project. During this year’s farming season, over 3,000 incidences of human-elephant conflict were averted – 1,363 of these being in the Kakumbi Chiefdom.

Due to the success of the project, CSL are planning on increasing the number of patrollers to 30 for next year’s crop-growing season to continue working side by side with the community to minimise this conflict.

Three men inspecting the chilli blaster — Image source © Flatdogs Camp

Emma Robinson, HWC Program Manager says: “The nine chilli patrollers achieved 1,333 man-nights, firing 839 chilli ping pong balls to deter over 1,363 elephants in four months. This real practical help makes such a difference to the farmers, who are supportive of the project. In return, they help the patrollers by clearing pathways to their fields, so they can move around easily and safely after dark. They also increase the patrollers’ effectiveness by raising an early warning when they see approaching elephants. Not surprisingly, it’s much easier to move an elephant on, before its found a plentiful supply of deliciousness.”

“Before the patrollers started, farmers could lose their entire harvest, whereas working with the chilli patrollers they will always harvest at least two bags of maize. We hope that by increasing the number of patrollers next year and adding a fourth chiefdom, we will be able to see the benefits of reduced human-elephant conflict, reaching even more farmers.”

To find out more about this, please visit www.cslzambia.org.

Chilli blaster patrollers near South Luangwa National Park, Zambia — Image source © Flatdogs Camp

Opinion: Zimbabwe’s shameful export of baby elephants under the guise of ‘sustainable use’

Wild-caught young elephants held captive in a fenced boma in Zimbabwe — Wild-caught young elephants are held captive in a fenced boma by Zimbabwe authorities awaiting shipment to China in October 2019 © Oscar Nkalain / Humane Society International/Africa

OPINION POST by Audrey Delsink (Wildlife Director, Human Society International/Africa), Keith Lindsay (Collaborating Researcher, Amboseli Trust for Elephants), Adam Cruise (Journalist) and Ross Harvey (Independent Economist)

Despite local and international protestation, Zimbabwean authorities have gone ahead with exporting baby elephants from the country. In a clandestine act, thirty-two elephants were moved from their holding pens at Hwange National Park during the night of the 23^rd of October and flown out of Victoria Falls on a Saudi Arabian Airlines Cargo plane, Saudia.

The other five (of the thirty-seven originally captured elephants) were deemed too unhealthy to travel, which in itself is an indictment on the Zimbabwean authorities for their inhumane handling of the situation. On several occasions, the Zimbabwean National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ZNSPCA) was denied access to the holding facilities, further demonstrating the lack of transparency surrounding this matter. Coincidentally – or more likely, purposefully – the elephants were flown out of the country on the same day as the ZNSPCA filed an urgent chamber application to gain access to the boma facility to assess the elephants’ condition following several delays. A legal case is currently before the courts, which argues that the export violates Zimbabwe’s national legislation. The case is yet to be heard by a judge. Therefore, the Zimbabwean Parks Authority (ZimParks’) decision to push ahead with the export demonstrates its distaste for accountability and the rule of law. The complainants are Zimbabwean NGOs whose members have shown bravery in standing up to a brutal authoritarian regime. To label them as being in the pockets of ‘animal rights’ organisations is as callous as it is inaccurate.

The young elephants were cruelly separated from their families nearly a year ago and have been held in captivity since then. They have now been sold to China, presumably to safari parks near Shanghai, the apparent port of arrival according to the cargo carrier’s flight path. As ZimParks has not provided any documentation, the final destination of the elephants cannot be confirmed, though it is alleged that the group will be further split into 12 smaller groups. In line with past form, the extraction of cash from the country’s remaining natural heritage is thought to go towards paying off debt owed to China or paying soldiers’ salaries (or both). China should know better, as it has recently initiated an ‘Ecological Civilisation’ programme, which inter alia discourages the purchase of ivory. To be consistent, this programme should be extended to discourage the viewing of wild animals in unnatural captivity, especially elephants. To their credit, Chinese activists have reacted with outrage at the new imports.

The baby elephants chew on dry sticks inside their boma in Zimbabwe © Oscar Nkalain / Humane Society International/Africa

A recent fundraising event for wildlife by the Sino-Zim Wildlife Foundation demonstrates the deep tie between Zimbabwe and China. Headed by infamous wildlife trader Li Song and ZimParks, and supported by presentations from the Director-General and the Permanent Secretary of the Minister of Environment, Tourism and Hospitality Industry, with a “donations” slot, this event, held on the 29^th October, is a clear attempt to persuade the world that these sales somehow benefit wildlife conservation.

It is well within the bounds of conventional science to assert that this exercise in terrifying, brutal capture followed by decades in sterile conditions of captivity is a fate worse than death, as the affected elephants demonstrably suffer post-traumatic stress disorder. Elephants are highly social beings who require interaction with other elephant companions, large amounts of foraging and roaming space, environmental richness and freedom of choice. Human removal of any of these factors is tantamount to cruelty and abuse.

For this reason, members to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) – at the 18^th Conference of the Parties (CoP18) in Geneva in August this year – overwhelmingly decided that African elephants may no longer be removed from their natural or historic range except under extraordinary circumstances. This is the first time that the convention has recognised the importance of welfare in conservation. Despite detractors – mostly proponents of consumptive ‘sustainable use’ or ‘harvesting’ of wildlife – wailing that the decision reflects an ‘animal rightist’ agenda, there is no science that positively supports the extraction of a range of animals from their functional roles in natural ecosystems, akin to removing piece after piece from a jigsaw puzzle, or Jenga tower. There is also increasing legal precedent for recognising the importance of welfare as integral to conservation. In South Africa – still a hotbed for consumptive use and crude utilitarianism – the Constitutional Court ruled in 2016 that conservation and welfare are intertwined values. On the back of this ruling, the Gauteng provincial High Court ruled in August this year – shortly prior to CoP18 – that the sale of lion bones out of the country is illegal because it violates welfare considerations.

CITES Resolutions technically only come into effect 90 days from the end of a CoP, although this point is a ‘grey area’; sections of Resolutions that are not under Recommendation may come into effect immediately. In addition, the 90-day period is intended to allow time for States to confirm that national legislation or regulations are in line with the international ruling; not to allow a country to sell off its existing ‘stock’. Clearly, Zimbabwe rushed to sell its elephants before three months passed after CoP18 (26 November 2019), in direct violation of the spirit of the Convention. Being arguably within one’s ‘sovereign rights’ exhibits a mercenary mentality that undermines conservation. In this particular case, it is also immoral and obsolete.

A handful of southern African nations are crying foul regarding the CITES decision, especially because it complements another decision to maintain the international moratorium on the ivory trade. Rowan Martin has written, for instance, that CITES ‘does wildlife conservation no favours’. CITES clearly has its difficulties, but Martin’s misgivings have little to do with the governance and enforcement challenges facing the protection of species from extinction through over-exploitation. His is a philosophical misgiving, in which he axiomatically rejects any ruling that questions his predisposition towards consumptive use, something he deems to be a country’s ‘sovereign right’, whether or not it affects the survival of a species in other, even most, sovereign States across its geographical range.

It is this presuppositional commitment to consumptive use on which ZimParks has justified the sale of baby elephants to China. Hiding behind ‘sovereign rights’, the argument is that Zimbabwe answers to no one and can do with its elephants as it pleases. It further hides behind the view that there are ‘too many elephants’ which have exceeded the country’s ‘carrying capacity.’

These views must be debunked.

First, there is no such thing, scientifically, as ‘too many elephants.’ The concept is predicated on an agricultural notion that views national parks as farms that have a static ‘carrying capacity’, a term that has been applied to large mammals most commonly in the context of commercial livestock production. Martin’s perspective exhibits an aesthetic commitment to a utopian state of eternally attractive woodlands (normally with an idolisation of a perfect number of large trees). Almost any number of elephants, which forage naturally on woody plants, may thus be ignorantly viewed as marauding tree destroyers. Fluctuations of animal and tree populations, in the face of droughts, deluges or other disturbances are the prevailing drivers of highly variable semi-arid savannah ecosystems. Animal populations self-regulate in relation to their food supply through births and deaths, or dispersal. There is no basis for a fixed ‘carrying capacity’ for elephants, except in the mind of man.

ZimParks, confusingly, initially stated that the exports were not happening and that there was nothing secretive about it. They nonetheless took the opportunity to point out that the drought had killed 55 elephants, evidence somehow that there were tens of thousands ‘too many’ of them. To state the obvious, none of this adds up. As already noted, droughts are part of natural cycles that fluctuate, now exacerbated to greater extremes by climate change. Elephants, through their foraging, can change landscapes as ecosystem engineers, a keystone species. Their role is pivotal and irreplaceable. Left to disperse in large, dynamic ecosystems, they produce patch heterogeneity – uneven impact across a landscape – that keeps the system healthy.

Managing a dynamic ecosystem as if it is a farm necessarily obstructs the system’s ability to function through ecological processes. Culling, hunting and removal of baby elephants are justified as necessary management interventions under the premise that there are ‘too many’, but culling has been exposed, even by its initial proponents, as a cruel mistake. Hunting has genetically selective effects by removing the biggest and best animals and creates extensive social and ecological problems. Removing baby elephants from their families, in which they would be nurtured and taught life skills, is abhorrent. The idea that the revenue accruing from the sales will somehow be ploughed back into conservation is a deception.

Second, the ‘sovereign rights’ clarion call does not make biological sense. At least 76% of Africa’s elephants are shared across borders. The solutions to southern Africa’s conservation problems are not to be found in trying to generate short-term and unsustainable revenue from hunting and exporting the last remnants of our shared natural heritage. Rather, the solutions lie in better, regionally integrated land-use planning. Movement corridors that allow elephants to reduce local numbers and avoid conflict with people have been identified in, for example, Botswana, but these need to be actively protected by genuine community co-ownership.

Paper parks like the Kavango Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA) are struggling to achieve relevance because the political will to work together across its five countries is lacking at important ministerial levels. Meanwhile, efforts at the grassroots level to involve local communities both within and across borders in ecotourism value chains and conservation-compatible agriculture have greater potential for improving regional conservation outcomes and rural economic development. Blindly supporting ‘consumptive use’ of wild species on the grounds that a nation somehow ‘owns’ its elephants or that there are ‘too many’ crowds out the urgency of building viable alternatives to the status quo. Rural communities are hardly served by exporting, culling or hunting elephants. They are served by carefully crafted plans that recognise the biological and economic needs of both elephants and people, and put money straight into citizens’ pockets, particularly for women.

Zimbabwe’s decision to undermine a significant CITES resolution is indicative of the contempt it has for conservation. Equally, China’s decision to import the elephants is a violation of its own efforts to build an ‘Ecological Civilisation’. Both countries are member parties to CITES and they would do well to observe the spirit of its collective decision-making process. Instead of dismissing decisions that don’t go their way as evidence that ‘animal rights extremists’ have somehow manipulated the CoP, they should respect the independent minds of two-thirds of the Parties present. Crude utilitarianism – the willingness to sacrifice individual animals to achieve an evasive aesthetically-defined ‘carrying capacity’ – has no place in modern conservation that should strive to be both effective and ethical. We have to do better; we can do better.

Klaserie Capers

He emerged silently from the gloom and ambled towards us with that gentle rocking gait that big bull elephants use to cover vast distances with minimal effort. His white tusks glowed in the moonshine, but otherwise, he was just a huge dark grey smudge that loomed larger by the second. The eight of us sat motionless on the ground and in his path, wondering if he had seen us, and felt extremely insignificant.
At about fifteen metres, he noticed the eight seemingly legless humans and came to an abrupt halt, ears outspread, inquisitive and indecisive. Silence blanketed our group and the minutes ticked by as the elephant considered his options. Occasionally, he shuffled a little closer to get a better look at us, and as he raised his tusks in a bid to appear even larger and more intimidating, he was almost comical. Almost.

Next to me, Lizz was bravely staring wide-eyed at the gentle giant towering over us. I could hear her heart beating and sense her agitation, as fear and wonder battled for dominance. The instinct to stand up and run was almost overwhelming, but we obeyed Alan’s calm hand-signal instructions and wordlessly held our ground. At one stage, the huge grey ghost took a few steps towards one member of our team who was set apart from the rest by a few metres and Alan shifted his foot slightly as a distraction. The effect was dramatic as the elephant gave an exaggerated ear-clap, hit reverse gear and shuffled off. He met up with another bull about eighty metres away, and they had a brief discussion about us; often pointedly glancing in our direction. Discretion seemed to win the day, as they turned and melted away into the moon-shadows, like spirits of the African night.

We remained seated for a while, each lost in our thoughts, before picking our way back to the game drive vehicle about a hundred metres away. Not a word was spoken during the encounter, and no photos were taken, though I doubt that our gentleman elephant would have appreciated the flash. We all agreed that the overriding sense that we got from the giant creature was one of surprise and confusion, followed by curiosity. There was no anger, malevolence or belligerence. Alan drove the ten kilometres to our surprise bush dinner location on a hilltop with the vehicle lights off – the poacher’s moon provided ample light for navigation – which was a surreal and fitting end to a profoundly personal elephant encounter that will stay with each of us for the remainder of our days.
Naturally, this is an unusual way to encounter elephants and certainly should not be assumed to be the norm or attempted. I do provide context at the end of this story.

Our 2019 Photographer of the Year winner and two runners-up had joined Lizz and me on safari in Klaserie Private Nature Reserve, along with their companions. We enjoyed five days of fantastic wildlife sightings, culinary delights, wine and gin tastings and two fascinating and informative presentations from experts in their respective fields.

What follows is a selection of images from our group, with extended captions to provide the full story behind the photographs.

Giraffe drinking at a waterhole, Klaserie Private Nature Reserve, South Africa

A giraffe bull interrupts his drink and jerks his head up in reaction to an impala alarm snort. The lips and epiglottis of a giraffe form two valves and the pumping action of the jaw creates the push effect for the water. This allows them to counteract gravity and pump water up the neck and into the oesophagus.

Elephant calf suckling from mother in Klaserie Private Nature Reserve, South Africa

A baby elephant nurses from his mother. We were parked at a waterhole when a small family group arrived to drink water. They were unfazed by our presence a few metres from where they chose to drink, although a few tiny youngsters rolled their eyes at us and positioned themselves on the other side of larger herd members. The matriarch was always watching us and frequently rumbled to her herd as if to reassure them of our good intentions.

Jumping spider, macro photography, arachnid, Klaserie Private Nature Reserve, South Africa

Jumping spider (subtribe Aelurillina). Our 2019 Photographer of the Year managed to find jumping spiders in the grounds of Amani Safari Camp and was lost in her own world for hours as she planned and took this image.

The group at sunset in Klaserie Private Nature Reserve, South Africa

Yet another stunning sunset drinks stop, after a day of exploring Klaserie Private Nature Reserve.

Jens waited patiently for about 30 minutes for this stunning sequence. The immature gabar goshawk perched patiently and in full view on a dead tree overlooking a waterhole, as squadrons of golden-breasted buntings, lark-like buntings, red-billed queleas, blue waxbills, yellow-fronted canaries and Namaqua doves pulsed back and forth from the water’s edge. This golden-breasted bunting ventured too close to the raptor and paid for the mistake with his life. Jen’s reactions were lightning-fast, and burst mode settings ensured this marvellous sequence of images.

Leopard in Klaserie Private Nature Reserve, South Africa

This young male leopard spent the better part of an hour lounging insouciantly around our game drive vehicle before deciding to relieve his boredom with several uncommitted hunting attempts. A scrub hare was the first to draw his attention, followed by a Natal francolin and finally, a party of blue waxbills drinking at a puddle of water!

A highlight for many was a presentation by respected herpetologist Donald Strydom, whose passion for his topic had us enthralled and fascinated for over three hours. Donald debunked several myths about venomous snakes, including demonstrating just how reluctant puffadders and snouted cobras are to strike out at humans, even when provoked. He also gave a demonstration of how to handle a puffadder, for those of us likely to have to do so at some stage.
The underlying message was that wild animals belong in the wild and that every individual rescued or removed from homes was released as soon as possible into a safe area. The animals used in his demonstration were either due for release or were confiscated pets, such as the enormous birdeater spiders from South America. Donald is the curator of the Kinyonga Reptile Centre in Hoedspruit, a popular speaker at private functions and dangerous snake consultant for wildlife documentaries. We also enjoyed a thoroughly interesting presentation by Kyle Middleton of the APNR Ground Hornbill Project, and learned about this rather special and threatened bird whose haunting early morning call is such a fantastic soundtrack to wake up to. Our group was lucky enough to encounter two family parties of ground hornbills.
Clockwise from top left: 1) & 2) Goliath birdeater from South America © Jens Cullmann; 3) Boomslang (tree snake) © Keegan Schoeman; 4) Snouted cobra © Eraine van Schalkwyk; 5) Donald demonstrating how to move away from danger when in the presence of a large venomous snake such as this snouted cobra © Simon Espley.

Left: This black-collared barbet visited the swimming pool during one hot afternoon, while we lounged around drinking copious amounts of iced beverages; Right: Yellow-fronted canaries slake their thirst at a waterhole. Both photos © Keegan Schoeman

Selection of gin and tonics, Klaserie Private Nature Reserve, South Africa

Surprise, surprise! During an afternoon game drive, this is what awaited us in the shade of ancient trees along a sandy riverbed. To add to the alcoholic and culinary delights, on another evening, we were treated to a delightful wine and food pairing presented by Safari Wines of Hoedspruit – which lasted well into the night!

Elephants everywhere! There is no shortage of elephants in Klaserie, and we were treated to some exceptional encounters and learning experiences. Clockwise from top left: 1) An elephant family herd takes a drink at a waterhole © Jens Cullmann; 2) The elephants provided some great photographic opportunities © Bob Ditty; 3) A great capture of elephants heading off into the bush © Bob Ditty; 4) Jens looks on as an elephant passes by © Simon Espley; 5) A family herd with a young calf © Bob Ditty

September signals the peak of the dry season in the Kruger area and herbivores are hard-pressed to meet their nutritional needs. The versatility of the impala feeding strategy confers an enormous advantage and allows them to switch to browsing leaves when the nutritious grass is no longer available. Many of the ewes are pregnant at this time of year and early to mid-November will bring lambing season – hopefully, the first rains of the season will arrive in time!

We spent one day walking between our two lodges, which was no mean feat considering that it was September and high summer temperatures had settled in. The pace was slow, and we took every opportunity to study spoor and other signs left by denizens of this neighbourhood. The route followed various dry riverbeds and kloofs, and we often stopped in the welcome shade of huge trees, sometimes settling down for lengthy periods to listen to life going on around us. Lunchtime was a welcome interruption, with a mouth-watering spread in the shade of riverine trees.
Clockwise from top left: 1) Private guide Alan McSmith illustrates his explanations in the sand during the walk © Bob Ditty; 2) The group walks through a dry riverbed © Simon Espley; 3) Alan chats to the group while taking a brief break © Bob Ditty; 4) An incredible lunch was a welcome interruption © Simon Espley

Surprise bush dinner on a hilltop.

Klaserie’s final gift. The last game drive on the morning of our departure netted this exciting encounter. This small group of painted wolves (African wild dogs) loped over the coming rise and dashed past, all business and focus. We were simply part of the scenery to them.

Group photo under weeping boerbean tree, Klaserie Private Nature Reserve, South Africa

Our safari group, somewhere in Klaserie Private Game Reserve, under an ancient weeping boerbean tree: 2019 Photographer of the Year Eraine van Schalkwyk and her friend Keegan Schoeman; runner-up Jens Cullmann and partner Sophie Leemans; runner-up Bob Ditty and his son Luke; Africa Geographic CEO Simon Espley and his wife Lizz; private guide Alan McSmith and Klaserie Drift Safari Camps manager Dawie Jansen.

ABOUT THAT ELEPHANT ENCOUNTER, and our guide

Alan McSmith, game ranger, guide, in Klaserie Private Nature Reserve, South Africa

Alan McSmith identifying spoor in the sand.

Earlier that evening, we had spent about an hour with the same two bull elephants who were feeding peacefully next to our vehicle. We left them to enjoy sundowner drinks a few kilometres down the track. Alan McSmith is a highly regarded and experienced private guide, who regularly hosts guests all over Africa. He was chosen to guide this special safari precisely due to his understanding of elephants. During the sundowner stop, Alan invited us to join him about a hundred metres from the vehicle, where we sat down, closed our eyes and zoned into our surroundings. Amidst the usual insect and bird calls as the darkness set in, the crack of a nearby breaking branch had us all glancing at Alan.

“OK,” he whispered, “the big guys have decided to join us for sundowners. We have two choices – we can either all go back to the vehicle, or we stay. If we stay, you obey my instructions. These bulls are relaxed, they are inquisitive, and they are walking into our space – all of which means that we are quite safe – so long as we all relax and let them find us and choose their way out of here.”
By deciding to stay put, we were treated to one of the most extraordinary elephant experiences imaginable.

ABOUT KLASERIE DRIFT SAFARI CAMPS

The Klaserie Drift Safari Camps are set on 3,000 hectares of prime land in the heart of the Klaserie Private Nature Reserve, offering a genuine, exclusive retreat into nature. The camps are ideally located for guests to enjoy all the wildlife Africa has to offer, in a private and secluded setting, featuring the Big 5, incredibly diverse landscapes and comfortable accommodation with all modern amenities.

Amani Safari Camp

Amani Safari Camp provides private, tranquil accommodation for eight guests in a large thatched villa. The layout of this camp is unique, comprising a central living area and four en-suite bedrooms. Each bedroom has its private garden entrance and large windows providing access to remarkable views of the bushveld. The central living area features two open plan lounges on the ground floor, as well as a library and a TV room on the open-air second level. The lounges open onto a large wooden deck which provides the perfect setting for the ultimate dining experience. A pathway leads to another outdoor lounge area with a swimming pool to allow you a moment to relax in the sunshine.

Misava Safari Camp

Misava Safari Camp is the perfect place to unwind, relax and enjoy what the Kruger bushveld has to offer. The new camp has been designed in line with nature – the name Misava is the Shangaan word meaning Earth. The camp overlooks the Klaserie River from the vantage point of a cliff. Misava has three elegant garden-view rooms and two opulent villas overlooking the river, each with its private deck area. The main building is adjacent to the dining area with casual seating and a fully stocked bar which then leads to the open-air boma/fire pit and a wooden deck overlooking a watering hole.

Check out our preferred camps & lodges for the best prices, browse our famous packages for experience-based safaris and search for our current special offers.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR, 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.’

African grey parrots: How social media is facilitating both illegal trade and the fight against it

A Timneh grey parrot at a seller in Pretoria, South Africa © Anton Crone

DECODING SCIENCE POST by AG Editorial

The soaring popularity of the social media marketplace has created a global trade where almost anything can be procured over the internet: second-hand car parts, clothing, gadgets and, somehow inevitably, illegal wildlife. Parrots are one of the most trafficked animal orders on the planet and have long been recognised as under siege due to the pet trade. As endangered African grey parrots are removed in their hundreds from the forests of their natural habitats, a new study has highlighted how social media facilitates this trade and how governing bodies, airlines and technology companies can play their part in preventing it.

In a study published in Global Ecology and Conservation, researchers set out to investigate the role of social media in the trade of wild-sourced African grey parrots (Psittacus erithacus and P. timneh) and their conclusions suggest ways in which this method could be used in the fight against illegal trade. While the role of social media in the trade of wild animals has been recognised as a serious conservation concern for years, this study (jointly funded by the World Parrot Trust and World Animal Protection) was the first of its kind to examine the effect on parrots.

The authors of the study examined 259 posts on an unnamed social media site featuring trade in African greys during a period between 2014 and 2018, concluding that over 70% of them contravened CITES regulations. The authors set about analysing every aspect of the posts including the wording and origin of the posts; the ages of the birds (juvenile parrots are recognisable by their grey irises); the behaviour of the birds and the estimated number of birds visible in the included images (often over a hundred birds).

Where possible, they used the images in the posts to obtain information including the Cargo Tracking Code to identify the transit route used and cross-referenced this information against airline records, internal export and import records of the relevant countries and the CITES-published trade reports. In so doing, they were able to confirm which posts featured birds sourced from the wild and that the majority of these trades would have been in contravention of either local law or CITES regulations.

Map of world showing where parrots come from and where they go, illegal parrot export and import — Where do the parrots come from, and where do they go? Yellow and orange indicate exports and imports, respectively. The size of the circle is the proportionate number of social media posts © R. Martin et al

Using this method, the researchers concluded that the vast majority of the exports originated in the Democratic Republic of Congo (a country with a notably poor history of CITES compliance), with a smaller number from west Africa. The parrots were imported predominantly into western and southern Asia (notably Turkey, Pakistan, Jordan and Iraq during the study period) for an average of $203 per bird. Interestingly, in cases where the Cargo Tracking Code could be traced, all shipments of birds were flown by either Turkish Airlines or Ethiopian Airlines and transited through either Istanbul or Addis Ababa. Minimal effort was made to follow standard welfare practices, meaning that the birds were transported in overcrowded crates without perches under extremely stressful conditions.

The study calls upon both technology and social media companies, as well as airlines, to work with experts to take advantage of this newfound intel into trade routes – the former by reporting posts advertising suspected illegal activity as well as removing offending posts and the latter by reporting suspicious shipments to enforcement authorities. This has been made easier since the placement of African grey parrots on Appendix I at the beginning of 2017, meaning that all shipments of wild birds are automatically in contravention of trade regulation.

Trade routes of parrots on map — Trade routes. The different arrow styles represent the various methods used to obtain the shipment routes, and their width indicates the number of shipments © R. Martin et al

The Appendix I classification, as well as a suspension on exports from the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 2016 (which before that exported around 49% of the wild-sourced African grey parrots), made the time frame for the study particularly relevant in using the data to extrapolate the effect of such regulations.

Interestingly, the study did not find any significant variation in the trade activity across the study period, which the researchers suggest means that the reduced captive market did not increase illegal trade (which is often the contention put forward by those arguing against an Appendix I classification). There was, however, a spike in activity in the months before the enactment to the restriction of trade exported from the DRC which the authors advocate should be taken into account before the adoption of such restrictions or regulations.

The authors emphasise that there are limitations to this method of study, especially given the number of online scams and the inability to access direct private messages, and suggest that their findings present a “snapshot of trade activity”, rather than an accurate reflection of trade. However, this snapshot shows a global market where the traders advertising the sale of these birds do so publicly and seemingly without fear of enforcement.

“Social media has opened up a new front in the ongoing battle against the trapping of wild parrots. While providing new opportunities for traffickers to ply their trade, it also affords valuable insights into how to stop it” said Dr Rowan Martin of the World Parrot Trust and one of the lead authors of the study.

Full report: R. Martin, C Senni and N D’Cruze (2019). Trade in wild-sourced African grey parrots: Insights via social media. Global Ecology and Conservation. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gecco.2018.e00429

FURTHER READING
• Shades of Grey: https://magazine.africageographic.com/weekly/issue-5/shades-of-grey/
• Get to know the grey parrot: https://magazine.africageographic.com/weekly/issue-5/get-to-know-the-grey-parrot/

Samanyanga – the legendary big tusker of Malilangwe

Elephant bull, tusker, Malilangwe Wildlife Reserve, Zimbabwe — Samanyanga – a Shona word for ‘big tusker’ © Kim Wolhuter

GUEST POST by Kim Wolhuter, wildlife filmmaker and photographer

I was walking in the sandy riverbed of the Chiredzi River in southeastern Zimbabwe towards the end of the dry season. There’s always a lot of activity along the river and I find it a special place to walk. On the eastern bank, I spotted an elephant bull feeding, but all I could see was a prize view of his rear end – an image that looks like a nappy wrapped around a baby’s bum, although this was no baby. Just to the south of the elephant, there was a steep-sided gully, so I decided to follow it in order to get a better view.

I watched as the elephant stripped his last mouthful of leaves from a mopani tree and stepped around to move past it… and that was when he saw me. Without hesitation, he charged! He was only 15 metres away from me but I stood my ground, believing he wouldn’t come down into the steep gully. Thankfully I was right and as he stopped just short of the edge. And that’s when I saw his mighty tusks! Standing in this little gully with this huge pachyderm towering over me, his ivory reaching for the skies, was my introduction to Samanyanga – a true Malilangwe icon!

I hadn’t seen such an impressive elephant since the mighty tusker Tshokwane in the Kruger National Park in the 90s. Samanyanga’s ivory was already much the same weight as Tshokwane’s, but his tusks were beautifully evenly matched in length and shape. I believe that Samanyanga was truly one of the very few African elephant icons left in the world today. I couldn’t help myself and just had to film him.

It took me several days before I found him again. He was in the company of another bull feeding on the bank of the Chiredzi River. I drove over to where he was standing in the shade of a large Acacia tortilis tree. Such a gentleman, he obliged my company and continued to occasionally drag a trunk full of cool soil to toss over his back, under his belly and across his sides. Despite the giant that he was, he did this with such elegance.

Elephant bull having a dust bath, tusker, Malilangwe Wildlife Reserve, Zimbabwe — © Kim Wolhuter

He moved with ease and the demeanour of a true idol. As he sauntered down the riverbank his head swayed from side to side under the full weight of his majestic ivory. With more reason than a swaggering football player, Samanyanga was entitled to stride in his glory. As he drank from the river his seemingly endless tusks extended deep into the water. A crocodile lay peacefully on a sandbank only metres away as the gentle giant waded through the river to the other side. As he hauled his himself up the riverbank the setting sun glowed a perfect gold on his beautifully balanced pair of tusks.

I travelled home relishing the privilege I had of spending the whole day with him.

Elephant bull with one broken tusk, tusker, Malilangwe Wildlife Reserve, Zimbabwe — © Kim Wolhuter

Samanyanga remained elusive. He would be spotted every now and then, but when I actively searched I would never find him. It was only several months later when we received a report about a large tusked elephant with one of its tusks freshly broken. We immediately set off to find this elephant, and just after sunset we spotted him – it was Samanyanga. Not only was his one tusk broken but he also seemed to have lost his dignity and composure.

We sat in the vehicle in the darkness as he slowly grazed towards us. Taryn, my wife, was concerned that he was getting too close (he was only centimetres away at one point). Of that I was certain, but starting the car right then would have startled him. We sat silently as he pulled grass tufts from the loose earth, dusting them on the ground before eating them. He was very obliging and half-an-hour later he eventually moved far away enough for to me to start the car.

I followed up on Samanyanga the next morning. He was now in a very different mood and I was not about to get in his way. He was striding east towards another bull. The other bull was pretty much the same size as him but his tusks were a lot smaller. As Samanyanga approached the bull turned to challenge him. A fallen tree lay between them and in a display of strength they tossed it around. Then with their heads held high they clashed. It was an intense but brief encounter and soon both elephants backed off. That was the end of their challenge and they went their separate ways. I wondered if they hadn’t met before and perhaps that’s how Samanyanga’s right tusk had been broken.

Samanyanga spent the next few weeks hanging around this area – so much out of character – and then the rains arrived and he disappeared again. He was seen a few times to the south after that but never come back up here.

Eventually, there were no new reports coming through of his location, but then one day scouts on patrol reported a carcass of a one-tusked elephant.

Remains of an elephant bull, bones, skull, tusker, Malilangwe Wildlife Reserve, Zimbabwe — © Kim Wolhuter

Upon hearing this news I knew I had to get to the carcass. I had visions of it being Samanyanga and that was something I personally wanted to confirm or… rather not. Just getting to the location was tough, and driving the last 500 metres off-road took me half-an-hour of negotiating through thick vegetation.

Eventually, I arrived at a clearing littered with bones. One huge tusk lay curved on the ground reaching for the heavens and the other was broken about a foot from the base. There was little doubt that this was Samanyanga. His tusks were incredibly thick and truly impressive, totally dwarfing me.

Elephant bull remains, bones, ivory, tusker, Malilangwe Wildlife Reserve, Zimbabwe — © Kim Wolhuter

Bones littered the clearing, but nothing else was left of Samanyanga. Even the smell of rotting meat was all but gone. I reflected back on the first day I met him… those massive tusks towering over me. But now, in that clearing, those massive tusks laid at my feet. I tried to find clues to the cause of his death but the scavenging hyenas and vultures had left none. For Samanyanga, I’d like to believe he died a noble death – fighting.

His legacy will live on, his ivory will be forever.

Declining Dynasties – Blacktip

It is a year since the BBC first screened Dynasties: Painted Wolves and nearly three since they stopped filming in Mana Pools National Park in Zimbabwe. Since then, the dynasty has struggled. In part two of this trilogy (read part one here), Nicholas Dyer, who has followed these packs for the last seven years, continues the story with Blacktip’s tale.

African wild dog, painted wolf, Blacktip with puppies in Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe

The BBC, in their Dynasties film, painted Blacktip with something of the night about her. An aggressive creature that drove her mother, Tait, into the “Pridelands” and to her death. In doing so, she put her pack in great danger, driving them to the point of mutiny. The drama concludes with the dramatic death of a female called Tennessee to the jaws of a senseless crocodile.
After the attack, they ran “all through the day… all through the night,” as narrated by Sir David Attenborough, with a heavy dose of dramatic hyperbole. Given the speed and stamina of these animals, they would have reached Botswana. The reality was that they moved five kilometres upstream and found a tiny waterhole near a place called Mucheni.

Joy on the floodplain

What fascinated me was that they ‘camped’ here for nine consecutive days, heading off to hunt in radials at dawn and dusk. It was November and by now painted wolves (also referred to as African wild dogs) should be highly nomadic, rarely returning to the same spot on consecutive days. It appeared that Tennessee’s death shook them and Blacktip wanted a place for her subdued pack to recover from their loss near a safe supply of water.

? Left: After the crocodile attack, Blacktip found a tiny waterhole where her pack could safely drink; Top right: The magic of the pack returned after a few days; Bottom right: The waterhole also provided great entertainment value. All photos © Nicholas Dyer

Gradually the pack regained its confidence. It was punishingly hot as the Zambezi Valley waited patiently for the rains. In the late afternoons, as the brutal sun declined towards the Zambian escarpment, the pack would be released from the protective shade of the Natal mahoganies, descending a small slope to drink and play. As their self-assurance grew, so did their boisterous afternoon games as they splashed and danced in that tiny pool, while Blacktip looked on protectively. It was for me the most wondrous time I have ever spent photographing painted wolves – thirteen wolves with nine puppies doing what they loved best.

The real Blacktip

The depiction of Blacktip as a ruthless malevolent creature is not how I saw her, although her dusky features certainly lent themselves to this sinister characterisation. Like her mother before her, Blacktip was an incredible leader, commanding her pack with determination, discipline and even innovation.
I first saw Blacktip in 2014 when she led a pack of 30 painted wolves, 15 of which were her puppies. A pack that size requires cohesion and a strong leader. Rudyard Kipling summed it up perfectly:

“For the strength of the pack is the wolf,
And the strength of the wolf is the pack.”

Painted wolves, African wild dogs, eating in Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe

Blacktip and her Nyakasanga Pack were the epitome of this. As I got to know the pack over the years, I recognised that each of its members had their specialities. Her alpha male, Jiani, and three other males were spectacular hunters – swift and agile. Taku, who the BBC named Pip (after the sound her radio collar made), was a doting aunt to the pups, always attentive and willing to play. And there was Tris, a gorgeous yearling that legendary guide, Henry Bandure nicknamed “Doc” because she would always lick the wounds of the injured.
Blacktip never seemed to be an overprotective or nurturing mother. She often sat well away from the den mouth and left the babysitting to Taku. She would frequently head off with the others on a hunt, heavy milk-laden breasts swaying as she tackled fleeing impala. She loved to be in the mix on the hunt but understood the art of delegation – an essential skill in running any pack – and the un-mollycoddled pups learnt to grow up healthy.

? Left: Blacktip quickly grabs a bite to eat from Jiani, away from their gannet-like pups; Right: The pups were never mollycoddled at Blacktip’s den with yearlings pulling sleepy pups out of the cosiness of the den. Both photos © Nicholas Dyer

Blacktip, the innovator

Blacktip pioneered something that has never been recorded before – predation on baboons. The development of this critical new food source for the painted wolves of Mana Pools seemed to coincide with a boom in the baboon population.

? Blacktip pioneered the hunting of baboons, something that had never been seen before anywhere in Africa. Both photos © Nicholas Dyer

This innovation not only fed the pack, but also helped to restore some balance to the Mana Pools ecosystem. Her pack benefited by consuming less energy on the hunt and avoided many potential injuries incurred on a long chase across rough ground. Through this behaviour, Blacktip gave me two incredible gifts: a stunning photograph which got me into the final of the highly acclaimed NHM Wildlife Photographer of the Year Competition, and my first article in National Geographic, both achievements of which I am very proud. For this, I will always be grateful to Blacktip.

? Forever thankful to Blacktip for “Ahead of the Game”, highly honoured in The Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition © Nicholas Dyer

A credit to her species

Like her mother, her contribution to the dwindling painted wolf population was also exceptional. Painted wolf pups have a 50% attrition rate in their first year, but Blacktip’s record far exceeded this. In 2014 all 15 pups survived until the rains arrived, in 2015 all six survived, and in 2016 nine out of the eleven made it. The following year was less successful with only four of 14 puppies surviving, but last year she had seven, and they are all still alive today.

Painted wolf, African wild dog, Blacktip in Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe

Many of her pups have dispersed from the Nyakasanga to take their genes across the Zambezi Valley and beyond. Creatures like Tris simply disappeared, but that does not necessarily mean she met a nasty end. She could well be the mother of a successful pack as far away as Mozambique, beyond where Painted Dog Conservation (PDC) monitors resident populations.
Taku, one of Blacktip’s daughters that I knew well, dispersed with her sister Taj and met two males near the Ruckomechi River to form her own pack. Taj passed away last year, as did one of the males, but Taku is still there today with her alpha Tafara and two little pups, forming the nascent Rukomechi Pack. Last seen, she was pregnant again.

? Like her mother Tait, Blacktip added considerably to the endangered painted wolves. In 2014 alone she had 15 pups © Nicholas Dyer

The last sighting

Last November (2018) I drove into Mana Pools just before the rains, hoping to find Blacktip and the Nyakasanga. The book launch had kept me in Europe, so I had not been in the park since August. They had been sighted near the Ruckomechi River, so PDC’s exceptional tracker Thomas Mutonhori and I headed out to find them. On the way, the heavens opened for the first time that season. It was torrential, and very quickly Mana Pools turned into a lake.
Alone in our convoy of two cars, we stopped regularly to tow, dig and winch each other out of glue-like mud. Thomas picked up signal some two kilometres away – coming from a newly collared female called Tray, but neither my Landcruiser nor his Land Rover could make it any further. We decided to continue on foot, Thomas with his tracking gear and I with my kikoi-wrapped camera. We jumped over small streams and walked around massive newly formed lakes. While we would have been happy to wade, it is amazing how quickly crocodiles take up residence.
After a three-hour zigzagging walk, we found them – Blacktip and the other adults huddled under a tree against the rain. Like us, they were drenched, and the puppies seemed in awe. It suddenly occurred to me that they had never seen rain before. They stared perplexed into newly formed puddles and seemed strangely subdued by this new sensation of water falling from the sky.

I was ecstatic to be with Blacktip and Jiani again, and took a few photos but spent more time watching them. I had missed them greatly, and this was the first time I had seen her pups since the den. Eventually, she rose, summoned her pack and led them deep into the sodden bush.
As they disappeared through the dying drizzles of the storm, I wondered whether I would ever see her again. Although looking fit, she was now aged nine and bordering on the maximum life expectancy of a painted wolf. I shuddered, but not because I was cold and wet. I felt the hollow sadness of a passing era but was also grateful that I had got to see her at least one last time. Tears rolled down my face, thankfully disguised by the rain, although I could sense that Thomas felt the same. We started our long walk back in silence. This was the last anyone saw of her.

Painted wolves, African wild dogs, walking in the rain in Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe

The Three Degrees

When Thomas returned to the park the following April (2019), he messaged me to say he had found the Nyakasanga pack – minus Blacktip. The familiar few days of hope lingered until a few sightings later when Thomas confirmed that Blacktip did not make it through the rains. Her final fate is unknown, but old age was good enough for me.

I went into Mana a short while later and met up with Thomas to find the pack. We headed back along the road we took in November, laughing at the visible dried-out ruts and the memories of what caused them when we were last there. Thomas eventually picked up Tray’s signal deep in the mopane forests on the western boundaries of the park. We followed on foot – they were still on the move although it was a bit too late in the morning for hunting.
Eventually, we saw them under a tree. But there were only three painted wolves. It was Tray and two of her sisters, Poet and Lylie. Where were the others? There was no sign or tracks to suggest the rest of the pack was nearby.

We soon figured that these girls were dispersing from the main pack and out to form a pack of their own. I met up with award-winning writer Sue Watt in a nearby lodge. For the next three days, we followed them as they meandered around the park, while Thomas focused on finding the rest of the Nyakasanga.
I named the girls “The Three Degrees”. Tray and Poet were both three years old, while their younger sister, Lylie, was just two. Poet seemed to be the potential alpha, although all were incredible hunters. They were often taking two impalas between the three of them every day, getting their fill and leaving the rest for the hyenas. They were also covering considerable ground, marking their territory continuously, advertising for some wandering males.
Sue wrote a staggeringly beautiful twelve-page article in September’s issue of Wanderlust magazine, which is a joy to read. She became emotionally attached to The Three Degrees, and she expresses this so well through her writing.

? Left: Lylie is a beautiful painted wolf and incredible hunter; Top right: Poet stood out as the most likely candidate to be alpha female among “The Three Degrees”; Bottom right: Beautiful Poet. All photos © Nicholas Dyer

The rest struggle on

Meanwhile, Thomas had found the remaining members of the Nyakasanga Pack, and I joined him a few days later. Jiani, now the 10-year-old widower, was still alive but looking very frail. All his older offspring had disappeared. Now the eldest were the inexperienced two-year-olds Whiskey, Gamma and Vincent. The other seven remaining wolves were yearlings, Blacktip’s pups from last year. They were all siblings, and Jiani was the father of them all.
The outlook for this pack was now very uncertain. There was a significant lack of experience and frail leadership. The pack continued to look after the old man, but it was hard to escape the conclusion that he was holding them back and possibly even putting them in danger. Despite these challenges, they remained full of energy and joy and looked healthy and fit.
While out of the park, I received another message from Thomas to say that he had watched Jiani continually humping Whiskey. My humanness made me feel a little queasy at the thought of this randy old man and his daughter, but that soon passed when, shortly after, Thomas called me to say that a lion had killed Jiani. The old man had finally passed, and with Tammy struggling on the other side of the park, the dynasty was in peril.

Who’s the Daddy

A month later, Whiskey was looking unequivocally expectant, despite it being well outside the regular denning season. Her late father was the only suspect. She denned where she was born, a favourite spot for both her mother, Blacktip, and grandmother, Tait. She had five healthy puppies who are bizarrely both the second and third generation of Tait’s dynasty. As far as I know, this incest is unrecorded. Painted wolves’ dispersal patterns are generally designed to ensure a high genetic diversity. There is still no male that has taken up the alpha role, although as usual, all the members of the pack are enthusiastically helping to raise the pups.

They moved onto the floodplain; ten adults and five puppies, all well and strong. In mid-October this year (2019) I returned to Mana Pools in the hopes of seeing them again. Henry Bandure and Simeon Josia (who both guided the BBC) and I eventually located the pack sleeping on the western edge of the park. We watched the tightly knit bundles of fur for half an hour, but try as we may we could unfortunately only see two pups shielded in the centre.
Eventually, the pack awoke and performed a half-hearted greeting ceremony, and the two pups started hoo-calling for their lost siblings. No reply came, though the pups continued their haunting cry until the pack disappeared into the dusk.

? Left: Whiskey’s little pup looks around for her three lost siblings; Top right: The two surviving pups head off looking very sad and forlorn; Bottom right: The other ‘Three Degrees’: Henry Bandure, Nicholas Dyer and Simeon Josia – all of whom share a deep passion for the painted wolves. All photos © Nicholas Dyer

Their melancholic cry lingered in my soul for the rest of the night. Finding the pack the next morning confirmed the demise of other three pups, most likely to the jaws of deadly hyenas. These young painted wolves probably didn’t have the skills and experience to defend against a brutal attack. But some part of me couldn’t help feeling that while very sad, it was probably for the best. Through no fault of their own, the pups were severely inbred and carried with them potentially serious consequences for the local gene pool.

Young painted wolves, African wild dogs, playing at sunset in Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe

A new beginning

Meanwhile, the Three Degrees moved down the Zambezi and soon found themselves in Tammy’s territory. Tammy had just left the den with her ten pups, and the three females were regular visitors. These female rivals caused Tammy visible stress at first, although her three remaining males (Jimmy, Timmy and Taurai) were far more sanguine. But perhaps recognising the weakness of her pack, she soon accepted their presence, and while keeping them as outsiders, she increasingly allowed them to come and play with her pups.
After a few weeks of these growing encounters, Tammy’s pack was attacked by hyenas in which all but one of her pups were killed. Tammy herself sustained a massive wound to her right shoulder. Two days later, Tammy succumbed to her injuries and passed away. This left the three males to look after the last remaining pup, but unfortunately, the little pup did not survive for long.
It did not take long for the Three Degrees – Poet, Tray and little Lylie – to get together with the last surviving Nyamatusi members – Jimmy, Timmy and Taurai. Even more interesting is that they have recently been joined by another of Blacktip’s daughters, Tsoko, who dispersed earlier this year and went missing. It is now a new pack in the making, and it is yet to be decided who out of the seven will become the alphas. We will not know this until the start of the breeding season next year.
But one thing we do know for sure. With concerns over the inbreeding within what was left of the Nyakasanga, these seven painted wolves provide the strongest known thread from which the incredible dynasty of Tait, Blacktip and Tammy can continue.

Epilogue

Since the end of the filming of Dynasties, those packs made famous by the film and immortalised in my book Painted Wolves: A Wild Dogs Life, which I co-authored with Peter Blinston, have struggled. It is a time of flux, and while to the casual observer, the painted wolves continue to provide tremendous entertainment and superb photographic opportunities, underneath this, the dynasty is under pressure.
But given the terrain, the absence of people and the protection of PDC and ZimParks, Mana Pools should always remain a haven for the painted wolf and one of the most spectacular places to see them.
For me, following the painted wolves of the Zambezi Valley for the last seven years has been an incredible privilege, albeit an emotional journey. As anyone who has seen the Dynasties film will testify, they bring such incredible joy, but with that comes deep sadness when you see them suffer. They have become an integral part of my life, my feelings woven into a never-ending roller-coaster of delight, anguish and despair. But I would not stop that ride for the world.

MANA POOLS NATIONAL PARK

Mana Pools National Park in Zimbabwe is a World Heritage Site and one of the last true wildernesses in the world. It is the only park in Africa where you are allowed to walk alone, albeit at your own risk. It is also one of the best places to view painted wolves. Many of the photographs in this article were taken at the den. Nick visited the dens under the guidance and supervision of Painted Dog Conservation (PDC) and ZimParks in preparation for the campaign to raise global awareness of this endangered species. Denning season is a sensitive time for the painted wolves and Nick, and PDC would strongly discourage den visits for reasons unrelated to conservation. They would, however, strongly encourage visitors to thoroughly enjoy painted wolf sightings but always treat them with respect and observe the sensible Mana Pools’ “Code of Conduct”.

ABOUT THE PAINTED WOLF FOUNDATION

The Painted Wolf Foundation (PWF)was set up by Nicholas Dyer, Peter Blinston and leading conservationist Diane Skinner. It aims to raise awareness about this much threatened and ignored species and support organisations that conserve painted wolves on the ground. PWF is a UK-registered charity (Number 1176674).

THE BOOK

PAINTED WOLVES: A Wild Dog’s Life

The painted wolf is Africa’s most persecuted predator. It is also the most elusive and enigmatic. For six years, Nick has been tracking and photographing them on foot in the Zambezi Valley.
For twenty years, Peter has been doing all he can to save them from extinction. If there is one book that will let you into the secret world of the painted wolves, this is it, expertly narrated across 300 pages and illustrated with over 220 stunning images.
“Wildlife photographer Nick Dyer and conservationist Peter Blinston have crowdfunded a new book, Painted Wolves: A Wild Dog’s Life, which takes the reader on a fascinating journey into the lives of the painted wolves and what is being done to save them. It’s a beautiful book full of interesting facts and stunning photos, which I hope will raise the profile of the animals.” ~ Sir Richard Branson
Buy the book here.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR, Nicholas Dyer

Nick grew up in Kenya and after careers in finance and marketing in the UK, has found a new métier as a wildlife photographer, author and conservationist with a deep passion for painted wolves. He has spent much of the last six years photographing the packs of Mana Pools on foot while living in his tent on the banks of the Zambezi. He is a founder of the Painted Wolf Foundation and frequently gives talks around the world on this neglected species. He was an award winner in the 2018 NHM Wildlife Photographer of the Year Competition and leads specialist photographic safaris in Mana and across Africa so that people can experience this stunning creature. See more of his photography at www.nicholasdyer.com, and follow him on his Facebook and Instagram page.

Katavi National Park takes radical action on hippos

Hippos in a pool thickened with mud and dung near the Katavi National Park ranger station in Tanzania © Susan McConnell

OPINION POST by Susan McConnell – biologist and conservation photographer at Stanford University

Katavi National Park has a hippo problem, and according to news sources, Tanzanian President John Magufuli has ordered Tanzania National Parks (TANAPA) to undertake a radical approach to addressing the issue.

Katavi is known widely, especially among photographers, for dramatic congregations of plains game and predators around the little water that remains at the end of the dry season. As the waters of the Katuma River and its tributaries recede, large numbers of hippos amass in pools thick with mud and faeces. The high density of hippos leads to dramatic interactions as they jostle for space within the pools.

Pod of hippos in muddy pool in Kativi in Tanzania — Hundreds of hippos can congregate in a single pool at Katavi © Susan McConnell

Recent diversions of water from the Katuma River for irrigation by local farmers have caused hippos to stray from the national park into villages in search of water. This has led to intense conflicts with villagers and reports of injuries and deaths to both people and hippos. Several dozen hippos also took up residence in the waters of a dam earmarked for human use. In reaction, the Minister for Natural Resources announced a plan in August to relocate 10% of hippos and crocodiles in water located near villages, and some news reports suggested that TANAPA would cull 50 hippos to reduce the population.

On October 11, President Magufuli interceded, pointing out that the problem was caused by people and animals competing for water. In public remarks, he said, “Hippos too depend on the same resource for their survival, thus the complaints will never stop until appropriate measures are taken to address the problem”. He also noted that culling hippos would have negative consequences for tourism. Magufuli then directed TANAPA to supply water to the hippo pools in an effort to keep hippos within park boundaries. Water trucks arrived soon thereafter and replenished the water in several hippo basins.

Hippos in a pool thickened with mud and dung in Kativi, Tanzania — Water was recently replenished to the hippo pools that lie beneath a bridge over the Ikuu River © Susan McConnell

Magufuli also ordered a much more radical approach: he has asked TANAPA to construct artificial hippo pools that will provide the animals with a stable and long-term source of both water and grasses.

Within two weeks of the October 11 announcement, construction of a concrete dam wall began inside Katavi National Park. The dam is being installed roughly a hundred metres downstream from a bridge across the Ikuu River, a small tributary of the Katuma River, at the heart of one of the most active game drive circuits in the park. Workers at the dam said that the wall would be about 1 metre high, allowing the river to flow over when water levels were high and thus reach villages downstream. They also planned to dredge sand and dirt from the current hippo pool to deepen it and form a permanent basin.

Workers constructing a dam in Kativi, Tanzania — Workers have poured concrete to build a dam wall just downstream from the Ikuu bridge. Construction is expected to be complete before the heavy rains arrive this year © Susan McConnell

These actions have been taken without consideration of the broader environmental impacts of introducing dams and artificial pools to the park, including a long-term increase in hippo populations, the likelihood that Ikuu dam will affect water supplies farther up the channel, and the possibility that the entire ecology of Katavi could be altered dramatically in response.

The rapid construction of the dam is all the more puzzling in light of a news report stating that President Magufuli has directed Rukwa and Katavi regional authorities and TANAPA to conduct comprehensive research on the best way to conserve hippos in the region. The initiation of dam construction only two weeks after the President’s announcement, with no reasonable time for research, ecological analysis, or input from Katavi safari operations, gives cause for alarm. One wonders whether this decision marks a change in the management of TANAPA that will affect other national parks and reserves as well.

Hippo covered in mud in Kativi, Tanzania — A hippo encrusted with mud emerges from one of Katavi’s unaltered hippo pools © Susan McConnell

The Tanzanian Tourist Board promotes Katavi as offering “unspoilt wildlife viewing in the country’s third-largest national park, in a remote location far off the beaten track. The national park is Africa at its most wild – unadulterated bush settings, spectacular views, and rich wildlife”. It is hard to believe this will be true after the construction of the first dam is completed.

Hippo with mouth open in muddy water in Kativi, Tanzania — Dam construction threatens Katavi’s claim to unspoilt wildlife viewing in one of Africa’s wildest parks © Susan McConnell

Matusadonha National Park to be managed and restored by African Parks and Zimbabwe government

Elephant in Matusadonha National Park, Zimbabwe — © Scott Ramsay

NEWS DESK POST by African Parks

The Government of Zimbabwe and conservation non-profit African Parks signed a 20-year agreement on Friday 1st November for the management of the iconic Matusadonha National Park. At 1,470 km², the park stretches from the Matusadonha hills down to the shores of Lake Kariba. African Parks, in partnership with the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority will implement management strategies to secure the park and restore wildlife populations, unlocking its ecological, social and economic value enabling communities to derive long-term benefits. Matusadonha is the 16th protected area to join African Parks’ management portfolio.

“Zimbabwe is among the world’s richest nations in natural resources and wildlife. These are assets which have drawn millions of visitors annually and form a vital base for our economy, requiring adequate management to enhance their contributions to development” said Mr Fulton Mangwanya, Director-General of the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority. “Our public-private partnership with African Parks to restore Matusadonha helps to leverage conservation further as a sustainable mechanism for growth, promoting a tourism economy to benefit people while ensuring the protection of Zimbabwe’s wildlife.”

Elephants, aerial view, Matusadonha National Park, Zimbabwe — © Scott Ramsay

Matusadonha is an ecologically diverse landscape in the Zambezian biome. It is flanked by the Ume and Sanyati rivers, with 700 metre-high hills descending to its northern boundary on the shores of Lake Kariba. Mixed woodlands and scrublands cover the slopes and ridges of the escarpment, the plateaus and the plains, and a forest of trees semi-submerged by the lake stretches the length of the shoreline.

River in Matusadonha National Park, Zimbabwe — © Scott Ramsay

The park harbours more than 240 bird species, baobab woodlands and wildlife including elephant, lion and buffalo. However, decades of poaching coupled with insufficient management resources contributed to its decline. Elephant numbers have been drastically reduced and the once abundant population of black rhinos have been largely eliminated.

“We are proud to be partnering with the Government of Zimbabwe for the first time to develop the potential of one of its most exceptional national parks,” said Peter Fearnhead, CEO of African Parks. “Zimbabwe has a strong history of conservation excellence, and our shared ambition is to ensure that Matusadonha is revitalised as one of southern Africa’s leading protected areas. If we invest in protecting parks like these today, we’re investing in assets that will continue to provide value to the nation and the continent into the future”.

Aerial view of Matusadonha National Park, Zimbabwe — © Scott Ramsay

The Zimbabwe Government and African Parks will fully restore the park, implementing good infrastructure, law enforcement, conservation and community development programmes. Once a stronghold for black rhino, the park will be secured and reestablished as a sanctuary for these critically endangered animals and other key species. Matusadonha holds a special place for Zimbabwe as a tourism and heritage area, with its spectacular position on Lake Kariba. A management priority will be to enhance this status, enabling local communities to benefit from sustainable tourism.

Matusadonha National Park is the first protected area in Zimbabwe to come under the management of African Parks, a new milestone which expands their portfolio to sixteen protected areas, covering almost 11 million hectares across ten countries. The Wyss Foundation, Oak Foundation and Stichting Natura Africae are strategic partners of African Parks and are contributing part of the operational support for Matusadonha’s management.

Three elephants in lake in Matusadonha National Park, Zimbabwe — © Scott Ramsay

Akagera National Park: The intricate link between conservation and community

GUEST POST by Michelle Sole

Rwanda has a dark history with a civil war in 1991 and the tragedy of the 1994 genocide. Despite this, Rwanda appears to be a country that is turning itself around. There is certainly a conscious move within the country towards conservation and as a result tourism. Rwanda has a zero-tolerance of plastic bags and is considered to be one of the cleanest, if not the cleanest, country in Africa. The world could learn a lot from this small landlocked African country.

Spotted hyena in Akagera National Park, Rwanda — © Michelle Sole

Akagera National Park, the only place in Rwanda home to the Big 5, is located on Rwanda’s eastern border with Tanzania. The park is home to 480 bird species and is the largest wetland in Africa. The reserve was founded in 1934, at which time it covered 2,500 square kilometres. As a result of the civil war and the genocide, large sections of the park were reallocated as farmland and by 1997 the park had halved in size. It now spans over 1,000 square kilometres.

Due to poaching, many species including lion, rhino and a number of antelope species were wiped out. In 2010, African Parks formed a partnership with the Rwanda Development Board and assumed the management of Akagera National Park.

The landscape in Akagera National Park, Rwanda — © Michelle Sole

Since the formation of this joint partnership, the reserve has seen huge changes. In an effort to reduce friction between humans and wildlife, a 120-km solar powered predator-proof fence was erected. In 2015 lions were reintroduced and within two years the population had tripled. In 2017 two male lions were introduced to increase genetic diversity, and in the same year, 18 eastern black rhinos were reintroduced.

This project was such a success that this year, as part of the largest relocation of rhinos from Europe to Africa, five zoo-born black rhinos can now call Akagera home.

Two black rhinos in Akagera National Park, Rwanda — © Michelle Sole

In 2018, 44,000 tourists visited the park, half of whom were Rwandan nationals. In eight years the revenue generated from tourism has increased by 900 percent!

It goes without saying that the success of the reserve is important for the conservation of wildlife, but it is also a valuable source of income for the surrounding communities. The community and the national park go hand in hand; each cannot survive without the other. A percentage of the park fees goes to local communities and locals are employed within the park. Those that once poached now form part of the anti-poaching team. The locals are friendly and educated in conservation. There is an understanding of the importance of protecting wildlife.

After all, conserving pockets of paradise like this guarantees not just the preservation of species but also work for future generations. For Big 5 safaris to Akagera, click here.

Topi in Akagera National Park, Rwanda — © Michelle Sole

Large illegal logging operation uncovered in Mozambique

Aerial view of illegal logging in Mozambique — Illegal logger activity spotted during an aerial patrol © Peace Parks Foundation

NEWS DESK POST by Peace Parks Foundation

In October 2019 a successful security operation led to the arrest of several suspects involved in a large illegal logging operation in Mozambique’s Coutada 4, a hunting concession that lies on the northern border of Zinave National Park.

After hearing what sounded like chainsaw operations in an area where logging is strictly prohibited and having suspicions confirmed by aerial reconnaissance information, Zinave’s security team contacted Mozambique’s National Administration for Conservation Areas (ANAC) to secure Ministerial approval for an intervention. A large joint anti-logging operation was subsequently set in motion. The operation was coordinated by the Directorate of Protection and Law Enforcement of ANAC and involved several agencies and partner organisations working with the Mozambique Government.

Authorities inspecting a confiscated logging truck in Mozambique — Inspecting and confiscating a logging truck © Peace Parks Foundation

Using a newly installed digital radio system for communication, the operation was coordinated at ground level from Zinave’s Operations Room and had aerial support by helicopter for operations monitoring and the quick deployment of security teams, that included Zinave’s well-trained rangers. Security teams, led by the Mozambique Environmental Quality Agency (AQUA), were also strategically deployed along possible exit routes suspects may use to escape – which proved very effective as several arrests were indeed later made at these locations.

During the operation, a number of suspects were arrested and, so far, seven have been charged with the illegal extraction of wood from a protected area. Further to this, four large logging trucks, five tractors, six motor vehicles, two front end loaders and various logging equipment were confiscated. AQUA impounded another six logging trucks that were trying to leave the area.

SECURING VULNERABLE HABITATS

Although currently low in wildlife numbers, Coutada 4 has a rich variety of valuable tree species that are the target of illegal loggers. In Mozambique, the 5/2017 law applies both inside and outside conservation areas, which gives ANAC supervision and control over Coutada 4, which is, by definition a protected area.

Peace Parks Foundation has been assisting with the development of Zinave National Park since 2015 when it signed a co-management agreement with the Mozambican Ministry of Land, Environmental and Rural Development. The Dyck Advisory Group, who provided valuable advice during the operation, was later also brought on board to assist with the training and mentoring of rangers working in Zinave.

Authorities inspecting tools confiscated from illegal loggers in Mozambique — Everything from vehicles to equipment was confiscated © Peace Parks Foundation

“Securing the park’s natural resources is one of the key components in its development and a primary focus for Zinave’s management team,” says Peace Parks Foundation Senior Project Manager, Antony Alexander. Once rife, illegal logging has been completely halted within the park. “Our efforts over the years have seen five logging trucks and as many tractors confiscated from illegal operations. We’ve also confiscated two motor vehicles, made eight arrests and issued several fines. Confiscated logs have been repurposed into desks for local schools, which greatly improved the learning environment for children and created work for a local carpenter,” says Bernard van Lente, Peace Parks Foundation Project Manager working in Zinave National Park.

“We are grateful for the support received from all the partners, as well as the National Criminal Investigation Service (SERNIC) and Police. It is only through these kinds of collaborative operations, and taking action, that we will secure the future of our forests,” says Carlos Lopes Pereira, Director of Protection and Law Enforcement at ANAC.

Illegal logging machinery in Mozambique — Illegal logging is depleting valuable tree species in Mozambique © Peace Parks Foundation

Ethiopia’s Omo Valley Tribes

Black and white portrait photography is a simple aesthetic that can speak volumes. The lack of colour introduces an authentic perspective, where the use of light adds mood and intensity. This is how German photographer Victoria Knobloch approaches her work. With her direct and straightforward photographic approach, she reveals the uniqueness and natural beauty of everyday life. She limits post-production finishing methods to ensure subtle and refined outcomes.
During her latest trip to Ethiopia, she captured a series of portraits of people from various locales, including the Karo, Hamer and Mursi tribes – all of which are located in the south of the country in an area called the Omo Valley. Each one of these tribes has a unique culture and traditions, despite their geographic closeness.
The Karo – one of the smaller tribes in the area – are known for their intricate and symbolic face and body paintings, which they indulge in before important ceremonies. The women of the Hamer tribe are known particularly for their thickly plaited ochre-coloured hair that hangs down in a heavy fringe. The Mursi people are well-known for the striking adornment of large clay lip plates that the women wear.
In the following images, Victoria highlights the people at the heart of this fascinating country and its culture, without the distraction of colour. SCROLL DOWN to enjoy this gallery.

Karo tribe members posing, Omo Valley, Ethiopia — Karo tribe members with their intricate face paintings © Victoria Knobloch

Hamer tribe mother feeding her child, Omo Valley, Ethiopia — Hamer tribe mother feeding her child © Victoria Knobloch

Mursi tribe woman, Omo Valley, Ethiopia — Mursi tribe woman (without her lip plate) © Victoria Knobloch

Mursi boy laughing, Omo Valley, Ethiopia — A young Mursi boy outside a hut © Victoria Knobloch

Karo tribe boys applying face paint, Omo Valley, Ethiopia — Karo tribe boys applying face paint © Victoria Knobloch

Clockwise from top left: 1) A Hamer tribe woman adorned with animal skin, beads and cowrie shell necklaces; 2) A Hamer tribe man; 3) A Karo tribe woman; 4) A young Hamar boy poses for the camera; 5) Woman and children of the Hamer tribe. All photos © Victoria Knobloch

Karo tribe boy standing on top of wooden fence, Omo Valley, Ethiopia — Karo tribe boy standing on top of the wooden fence surrounding the boma © Victoria Knobloch

Boys from the Karo tribe, Omo Valley, Ethiopia — Boys from the Karo tribe © Victoria Knobloch

Hamer tribe woman beading, Omo Valley, Ethiopia — Hamer tribe woman beading © Victoria Knobloch

Men from the Karo tribe posing with their AK47s, Omo Valley, Ethiopia — Men from the Karo tribe posing © Victoria Knobloch

ABOUT THE AUTHOR, Victoria Knobloch

Victoria Knobloch is a German photographer who concentrates on black and white portrait art and documentary work. Her work embraces the fields of vanishing cultures, ancient traditions and contemporary cultures, with the human element as the continuous thread. Furthermore, she is always in search of tranquillity, beauty and meditative landscape moods and approaches them in a poetic way. With this, she invites the viewer to pause, contemplate, observe and reflect, if only for a brief moment. You can see more of her works on her website.