In the DRC’s Virunga National Park conservationists have taken a different approach in the fight against poaching – they got themselves some good old-fashioned bloodhounds.
Category Archives: Natural history
Africanis
In the dusty rural villages of South Africa, one can expect to see dogs of all shapes and sizes roaming freely, seemingly uncared for and feral. To those who are used to the regulated pedigree world of dogs, these ‘village dogs’ are widely thought of as un-domesticated and most likely carriers of the rabies virus. …
The dog: conservation’s best friend
One of Aesop’s fables tells of a vixen taking her numerous pups out for an airing. She comes across a lioness proudly carrying a single cub. ‘Why such airs, haughty dame, over one solitary cub?’ sneers the vixen. ‘Look at my healthy and numerous litter here, and imagine, if you are able, how a proud …
Cry Wolf
The Ethiopian wolf is Africa’s most endangered carnivore. Learn what is being done to protect them in the Ethiopian highlands
Meet the Wolfpack
Gallery of fantastic images documenting the journey of an Ethiopian wolf pack from den to fully fledged members of the pack
The Rise of the Huntress
A commentary on the rising popularity of hunting among young women.
Fascinating Pangolin Facts
Get to know more about the pangolin, one of Africa’s most elusive creatures
Elephants, communities and conservation
Gail Potgieter talks about making your footprint count for conservation when touring Africa.
Pangolins: chinks in the armour
How pangolins end up in medicine, on menus and electric fences.
The Luckiest Pangolin Alive
The story of a little pangolin who’s making a big difference.
Get To Know The Gorillas
CLEARING UP THE MIST AROUND THE GREAT APES
Congo: the living forest
DEVELOPING A CULTURE OF CONSERVATION IN THE CONGO
Lion King or Commodity?
AN ANALYSIS OF
THE LION BREEDING INDUSTRY
IN SOUTH AFRICA
Ivory – the burning question
AMERICA’S ONGOING DEBATE OVER THE TRADE IN IVORY
The painted ape
The mandrill is the most colourful of all monkeys & occurs in the dense rainforests of Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Republic of Congo & Gabon
Shades of Grey
A JOURNEY FROM A BUSTLING FOREST COMMUNITY TO SOLITARY LIFE IN YOUR LIVING ROOM
Get to know the grey parrot
There are 25 species of parrot native to Africa, Madagascar and Mauritius, according to the IUCN – with preferred habitats ranging from closed forests to arid zones. Parrots are not as diverse or abundant in Africa as in Australasia and the Neotropics. The grey parrot is found in the primary and secondary rainforests of West …
A friend of the enemy
A CONSERVATIONIST INTERVENES IN THE CONFLICT BETWEEN PEOPLE AND PREDATORS
Giving life to Cape vultures
Maggie explains how the endangered Cape vultures are hatched at VulPro.
Shelley’s crimsonwing – no photos in natural habitat
A rare photograph of an elusive Shelley’s crimsonwing. There is only one other known photographed of this threatened bird.
A Namibian’s view on hunting in his home country
Namibian John K Kasaona gives a local’s view on the Namibian hunting debate.
Satao – the Giant Who Will Never Die
HOW SATAO, KENYA’S LEGENDARY TUSKER, IS A SYMBOL OF HOPE IN THE FIGHT AGAINST POACHING
How Charcoal Fuels al-Shabaab’s Terror Campaign
A POTENTIALLY GREATER THREAT TO WILDLIFE THAN POACHING
How to count elephants from a plane
THE METHOD BEHIND AERIAL SURVEYS OF AFRICAN WILDLIFE
Where the giant elephants still roam
THE GREATEST AFRICAN ELEPHANT CENSUS IN HISTORY TAKES TO THE SKIES
Just hatched! One of South Africa’s rarest birds
Rare footage of the South Africa’s rarest bird, the blue swallow, hatching from an egg.
Proteas threatened by climate change
It is an uphill battle for South Africa’s national flowers as proteas face the threats of climate change.
Drongo mimics alarm calls to steal food
Drongo mimics alarm calls to keep stealing food from other species, finds UCT biologist.
Looking after orphan elephants
Andrew White takes us through a day in the life of the elephant orphans and their keepers at the Elephant Nursery Facility at Lilayi Game Reserve in Lusaka.
Water lilies of the Delta
During a walking safari in the Delta we stop to appreciate the magnificent water lilies that litter the Okavango’s waterways.
To bee or not to bee
Farmers along the perimeter of Serengeti National Park have tried various elephant-deterring techniques, from beating tin cans to lighting fires, most of which haven’t appeared to work. But now there are beehive fences which appear to be doing the job!
Rhino horn – To trade or not to trade: Does it really matter?
The rhino horn trade is being punted as an option with ‘if it pays it stays’ philosophy. The counter argument being that we don’t understand the market, making it difficult to play with. Each a compelling argument in its own right, however are we are dividing our forces, our efforts and the rhino population while we debate the issue?
Diving with dinosaurs
We go diving with cow sharks; a shark with very few modern adaptations that makes them one of the closest links we have to dinosaurs.
The Lower Zambezi beneath a copper sky
An Australian company’s scheme to mine copper in one of Zambia’s most pristine national parks.
Fight for the fynbos fish
Learn about the redfin minnow, the most widespread group of freshwater fishes in the Cape Floristic Region, and find out why these fish face a serious risk of extinction.
Rhinos: It’s time for Plan B
We do not get a second chance if we get the economics of rhino trading wrong; all the rhino in the wild will be gone. It is time for a Plan B.
Parrots and people
The lives of parrots and people have been intimately entwined for centuries, if not millennia. Given the familiarity of many of us with some of Africa’s parrots it may come as a surprise that we still know so little about their lives in the wild.
Baboon spiders: hairy monsters or furry friends?
Baboon spiders are placid, enigmatic animals that would rather keep to themselves than risk an encounter with human beings. And believe it or not, there are people who are fascinated by them…
Scientists call for critically endangered listing for West Africa’s lions
The living dead, scientists call them: populations of animals so small their extinction is all but inevitable. At the top of the list may be lions in West Africa.
New population of critically endangered riverine rabbits found
A population of critically endangered riverine rabbits was discovered in the Anysberg Nature Reserve, bringing new hope for the species.
Wild dogs collared in the name of research
An alpha female has been re-collared and two young wild dogs collared for the first time in the 13 member-strong pack at Liuwa Plain National Park in Zambia, in anticipation of a natural split in the group. Read the full story here.
Trophy hunting in the context of community conservation
A thought-provoking blog post about how a well-managed trophy hunting operation has a positive effect on both wildlife and communities.
The birth of a pangolin
This is Roxy, the most amazing mama Cape pangolin in the whole world.
It’s a bird-eat-bird world
Bird-on-bird action as a pearl-spotted owlet catches a lovebird and proceeds to butcher and devour it in a Windhoek, Namibia garden
11 Interesting Facts about Sociable Weavers
Sociable weavers build massive colonial nests that hang 4m high in trees and telephone posts throughout the arid regions of Southern Africa
The mighty springbok migration
Gert van der Merwe’s personal account of the great springbok migration is told in Lawrence G. Green’s book Karoo. Towards the end of the 19th century, Gert’s family moved their sheep and cattle between decent grazing lands, helped by their shepherds and a San wagon leader who must have previously experienced the migration. “The trek …
The front line of lion conservation
Eventually a shout from below, and a sad find. A young lion, killed by Maasai spears. Her claws, tail and ears are gone – prizes
Scientists discover new giant mole-rat in Africa
The world’s newest species of mole-rat: Caroline’s mole-rat (Fukomys vandewoestijneae) has been identified in Zambia by scientists
Former NBA star Yao Ming stands up to poaching
Former NBA player and Chinese icon, Yao Ming, launches a major public awareness campaign about consumption of rhino horn and ivory in China
Maasai people locked out of Loliondo
Loliondo the Maasai community concession and wildlife destinations is in the spotlight as locals clash with trophy hunting companies
