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Kruger Park e-Times

Busta ds th at n d

Cann d hunt ng s v y n s sp ns b lH tag s t plaqu s n K ug st d

200-b dh t lplann df K ug

Cl ck t cks t wa ds wat sca c ty

K az s n K ug

June 2009 - e1


2/18

Newsclips

Dr g b st nKr ger Park

Mpumalanga police have arrested

two suspected drug smugglers and con-fiscated 33kg of dagga in the KrugerNational Park (KNP), Beeld newspa-per reported on Friday May 15. PoliceInspector Oosie Oosthuizen stoppedand searched the vehicle in the KrugerNational Park, about eight kilometresfrom the Malelane gate, on Thursday,said Skukuza spokesperson InspectorOubaas Coetzer.

He found three bags of dagga worthR68 000 in the vehicle. It is believedthe men were smuggling the drugs

from Swaziland to Gauteng. The pairappeared in a Skukuza court on Fri-day.Sapa

Elephant k lls mann L mp p

A man in his fifties was trampled todeath by an elephant in the Madimboarea near Masisi in the Kruger Na-tional Park, Limpopo police said onMonday May 4, 2009.

Superintendent Ronel Otto said Nel-son Masikhwa and another man werewalking in the area around 5.30pm onSunday. Details were unclear but it ap-

pears an elephant charged the two andtrampled Masikhwa.

The other man ran to a nearby vil-lage to get help but when the man,residents and police returned Masikh-wa was already dead and the elephantgone. The elephant who trampledMasikhwa could not be identified andno elephants were shot due to the in-cident. An inquest into Masikhwasdeath was being investigated, saidOtto.

www.iol.co.za

kruger park times - 2 - kruger park times

The Kruger National Parks (KNP) acting managing executive Abe Sibiya officially

opened the new, state-of-the-art R5,2-mil-lion Mopani Conference Centre on Friday June 12, 2009.

I can proudly state at the official open-ing this facility at Mopani Rest Camp thatthe KNP has certainly arrived as a confer-ence venue with a number of world classoptions that will hopefully meet and exceedmost clients needs, Sibiya said.

Krugers tourism business has alwaysbeen seasonal with high season times coin-ciding with South African school holidays.Conferences are seen as one of the ways

in which these huge drops during off peak times could be negated, explained Sibiya.Built with the assistance to Infrastructure

Development Program (IDP) funding fromthe South African Government, the confer-ence centre can house up to 300 people cin-ema style in its main hall. The facility wasconverted from the camps shop and store-rooms and this work took nine months tocomplete.

As I stand before you, I can proudly saythat the establishment of this facility onlyhad a negligible environmental impact and

this was short term. All these buildings werealready here and all they needed was to re-organise the interior and equip them for

conferencing, said Mr Sibiya.In addition to the main conference hall,

the facility also includes three break-awayrooms which can house 21, 30 and 45 peo-ple respectively (all cinema style) and a teaarea which includes a wooden deck thatoverlooks the nearby Pioneer Dam.

The break away rooms also include 15moveable panels that can convert the threeseparate rooms into either two larger rooms(one hosting 67 people cinema style and theother housing 45 people cinema style) orone large venue which can house 150 peo-ple cinema style. All four venues, the mainhall and each of the three breakaway rooms

include screens and full audio visual aids.Mopani Rest Camp is one of the newerlarge camps in the KNP and can accommo-date 506 people. It is situated 74 kilometresnorth of Phalaborwa Entrance Gate.

In the KNP, other conference centres in-clude Berg en Dal Rest Camp, a small venueat the Elephant Hall in Letaba Rest Camp,a small conference centre at ShingwedziRest Camp and the conference facility inSkukuza Rest Camp, which is presently be-ing upgraded. For more information aboutthe new Mopani Conference Centre, access

the SANParks Website (www.sanparks.org)or contact Christa von Elling on (013) 7356535.

N w c nf nc c nt at M pan Camp p n d

Ben van Eeden, Abe S b y a andW ll am Mabasa the Kr gerNat nal Park

Garth H lt, h sp tal ty man-ager M pan rest Camp.


3/18kruger park times - 3 - kruger park times

Cann d hunt ng, a publ c sp ns b l ty

Every year thousands of people visit facil-

ities in South Africa where they can interactwith lion cubs, young Cheetah and in somecases even tigers. But seldom do people ask what happens to the cubs when they growtoo big for the facilities to manage them.

There is substantial evidence to suggestthat these animals are very often sold, orreturned to lion and other predator breed-ing facilities from which they are often soldon as trophies into the very lucrative cannedhunting industry, which has thrived in South

Africa for at least the past 12 years, saysYolan Friedmann, CEO of the Endangered

Wildlife Trust (EWT). With the inclusion of lions in the Threat-ened or Protected Species Regulations, thehunting of a captive bred lion within a pe-riod of less than 24 months post its releaseinto an extensive wildlife area is now pro-hibited.

Cubs are often taken away from theirmothers to stimulate faster reproductionand so keep up a constant supply of pet-ting lions. Visitors pay to pet the animal andhave their photograph taken with it, and ei-ther do not consider the animals situation

and what will happen to it when it growsup, or they assume that there is a conserva-tion effort associated with petting lions.

H man mpr nted

The lions are however human imprintedand have not grown up in a natural socialgroup, making it impossible to release theminto a natural habitat for the long term.This, coupled with the disease risk posed bycaptive bred animals, as well as their dubi-

ous genetic lineage renders them a risk forrelease. They therefore have no conserva-tion value and are purely a source of in-come for those exploiting them.

Often the situation of a paying volun-teer is also exploited for further financialgain, with volunteers being told that thelion mothers are not able to care for theiroffspring and that once they are old enoughhand raised lions are returned to the wild.

A recent report by the National Councilof SPCAs suggests that many of these li-ons end up as targets for canned hunting.

The report states that the hunting of cap-tive bred lions is in fact at an all time high

and the South African Predator Breeders

Association (SAPBA) estimated in Januarythis year that about 1 050 lions were huntedin South Africa in 2008. Nearly all of theseanimals were raised in captivity. This is amore than 300% increase on the 322 lionsthe Department of Environmental Affairsand Tourism (DEAT) says were hunted in2006 and a 35% increase on their 2007 fig-ure of 700.

This raises the question: where do allthese lions come from? In South Africa, athriving canned hunting industry can inmost cases be linked to an equally thriving

industry based on cub petting and commer-cial captive breeding centres.The EWT encourages the public to take

an active role in putting an end to cannedhunting by asking the following questionsbefore taking an opportunity to play witha cub:

Where is the cubs mother? Why is the cub not being raised by its

mother? What happens to the facilitys cubs

when they grow up? If they are released into larger wildlife

areas, where are these and can the facilityprovide documentation to prove a viableand ethical release process?

If, and therefore once cubs have been re -leased, do they have the opportunity to liveout their natural lives, or are they hunted?

If they are sold to game reserves, is theirfuture secure or is this a cover for simplybeing hunted?

If they become part of a breeding pro -gramme, for what purpose?

What happens to the facilitys surplusanimals?

Some may argue that there is educational value in allowing people to handle wild ani-mals. However this kind of education pro-

vides the incorrect message that wild ani-mals exist for human entertainment, thatthey can be petted like domestic animals,and that they have value only in captivityand not in their natural habitats. Moreover,lion cubs are naturally boisterous and evena young lion is capable of inflicting damageon a human being. Visitors are expectedto sign indemnity forms that protect the fa-cility, but many people are hurt, sometimes

very badly, through these interactions. It isalso important to note that captive breed-

ing is not a conservation recommendationfor any carnivore species in South Africa.Carnivores in fact breed extremely well inthe right conditions and for almost all ourthreatened carnivore species, the conser-

vation priorities include reducing human-wildlife conflict, securing suitable habitat,reducing poaching and illegal offtake andmaintaining balanced, functioning eco-

systems. Without these in place, captivebreeding leads to an over-supply of non-releasable animals which often end up astrophies.

The Endangered Wildlife Trust is notagainst legal, ethical forms of sustainableuse and recognises the role that hunting plays in many conservation programmes.

We do not however support the intensivebreeding of wild animals for canned hunt-ing. It must be noted that other species arealso hunted under condtions where theyhave no chance of escape and thus are also

victims of canned hunting. While we urge the government to ad-

dress captive lion breeding situation inSouth Africa, and all canned hunting, wesimilarly urge members of the public torecognise their role in supporting or put-ting an end to both the cruel treatmentof lions in some captive facilities, and thepractise of canned lion hunting.

The EWT is working with many otherNGOs to develop an ethical, humane pro-posal which may avert the continuance of cruelty being meted down to Africas King

of the Beasts.


4/18

Author and democracy activist FrancesMoore Lapp says we already know how tosolve the pressing issues of our time, such asclimate change and world hunger.

But she says our own pre-conceived ideasabout how things should work our mentalmap of the world is actually preventing usfrom taking action.

In a speech at Ottawas Carleton Univer-sity as part of the 78th Congress of the Hu-manities and Social Sciences, Lapp calledfor a wholesale revamping of the way we

view government, the economy and democ-racy. If we manage to do it, she says, we cansave ourselves from our own demise.

Lapp, made famous in the 1970s by herbestselling vegetarian cookbook Diet for a

Small Planet, is an activist, author and co-founder with her daughter Anna Lapp of The Small Planet Institute. She says manypeople today are frightened by the potentialfor disaster, ecological and otherwise, andfearful that nothing can be done to preventit. Lapp says we can do something if wechallenge five assumptions about the waythe world works.

The first is that going green means pow-ering down, or reducing our consumptionof energy. Lapp says all we have to do isstop getting energy from fossil fuels and

start getting it from renewable sources likethe sun.Every day the sun supplies us with

15,000 times the amount of energy werenow using in fossil fuels, she says. If every-one had a solar panel or windmill on theirroof, we wouldnt be dependent on oil com-panies and as individuals wed feel morein control of our own destiny.

The second idea to dispense with, shesays, is that going green means an end toeconomic growth. What we have to do, shesays, is change our idea of what growth

is. Right now, she says, the Walton family owners of Wal-Mart controls as muchwealth as the bottom 40 per cent of theU.S. population. Is it growth if the wealthyfamilies just get wealthier?

Theres plenty of room for growth, shesays, if we learn to do things more efficient-

ly. For example, she says various estimatesshow that between 25 and 50 per cent of all food produced in the United States iswasted. And that every year, Americans

throw out some 300 pounds of packaging material.The third idea she wants to challenge

is the notion that humans are by naturegreedy, self-centred and materialistic.

Under certain conditions, she said, wecan be monsters. But there wouldnt be 6.8billion of us on the planet today if we didntalso have positive qualities such as empathy,cooperation and fairness. As a society, shesaid we should simply try to make sure ourrules try to bring out the best, not the worstin us.

The fourth idea she disputes is that wedislike rules. She says humans crave struc-ture, particularly rules that make sense to usas individuals and which foster a sense of inclusion. We will accept the right rules, shesays, citing as an example a German lawthat enables individual citizens to sell powerthey produce at home, through renewablesources such windmills or solar panels forexample, to utilities at a guaranteed price.People there have embraced the idea, shesays.

The final concept she wants to challenge

is the idea that our problems are so pressing theres no time for democracy, and only anauthoritarian regime can save us. She be-lieves the only hope for the planet is to trustin people and set rules that bring out thebest in us.

The mother of all issues is who makesthe decisions, she says, adding that if de-cisions are taken by people with the mostmoney, we all suffer.

Lapp says shes not against a marketeconomy just the idea that theres onlyone way to run the economy.

She also wants to challenge the idea, shesays, that change is impossible. Recent his-tory has shown that seemingly insolubleproblems have in fact been solved.

Its not possible to know whats pos-sible.

GoiNG GreeN d snt hav tm an sl w c n m c g wth

Newsclips

L ns ma ls spected p achers

Rangers rescued two suspected rhi-no poachers who were mauled by lions

in the Kruger National Park. The twomen were hospitalised and chargedwith trespassing and the possession of an unlicensed AK47 assault rifle andpistol. Emmanuel Ngobeni, 34, andMtlakavaka Matose, 35, of Masingeriin Mozambique appeared in Skukuzacircuit court on Wednesday, May 13,2009. Skukuza branch commanderInspector Willie Broodryk said rang-ers who were on patrol at the Nwanet-si concession near Satara camp onMarch 17 heard the two men calling

for help.They found the two suspects crawl-ing along the ground as they couldntwalk after being attacked by lions theprevious night, said Broodryk.

He said the men are believed to havefired the two weapons to chase the lionsaway as there were spent cartridges onthe scene. There was no evidence thatthe lions were injured, however. Themen denied the weapons belonged tothem, so police have sent the weaponsfor forensic tests. The men are believed

to be rhino poachers, as rhino poach-ers are known to use AK-47s to kill theanimals. The two men were flown tohospital where they were treated fortwo weeks before being discharged.

African Eye

New name rnternat nal park

An international conservation park,sprawled across Botswana, South Af-rica and Zimbabwe, the Limpopo-

Shashe Transfrontier Conservation Area (TFCA) was renamed Mapun-gubwe National Park on June 19,2009. The Limpopo-Shashe TFCA was created in 2006 by an agreementbetween South Africa, Botswana andZimbabwe.

The Ministers said the decision tochange the name of the TFCA was tochoose a name that accurately reflectsthe uniqueness of the TFCA, adding that the name Greater MapungubweTFCA was preferred because all three

countries already have sites called Ma-pungubwe.


The Kr ger Park e-T mes s p bl shed reg larly t keep y dated n c nserva-t n, sc ence, s sta nable devel pment and t r sm ss es n and ar nd S thA r cas nat nal parks, trans r nt er parks and ther env r nmental h tsp ts.

READ THE REST of THE JuNE iSSuE AT WWW.KRuGERPARKTiMESoNLiNE.CoM


5/18

The clock is ticking for South Africasstretched water supply, and in another five

years demand will have caught up withsupply, according to a top official.

Jones Mnisi, acting chief operating of-ficer at Johannesburg Water, the publicutility overseeing supply in the countryseconomic hub, told a recent conference onwater security that the tipping point wheredemand outstripped supply may not be faraway.

South Africa is chronically water-

stressed. Although growth has slowed, anexpanding economy, a growing popula-tion, and increased evaporation caused byclimate change are conspiring to put addi-tional pressures on water resources.

Yet leading experts at the conferencesaid the situation could be addressed if thecountry curbed demand and improved wa-ter quality to facilitate reuse. A paper bythe World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)said South Africas water surplus had beendangerously low since at least 2000 - four

years after the country began buying bulk

water from the multi-dam Lesotho High-lands Water Project, built on the Senqu-nyane River in neighbouring Lesotho.

Although the next phase of the project,expected to be in place in 2019, could re-lieve some of the pressure on South Afri-cas water supply, it was likely to be too late,said Chris Herold, chairman of the waterdivision of the South African Institute of Civil Engineering (SAICE).

Q ant ty and q al ty

Experts said the quality and quantity of the water supply should be better man-aged, and called for more investment in in-frastructure. The national water resourcestrategy has assumed that water demandmanagement will happen, said Herold,On the implementation side, some of the local authorities have not come to theparty.

Anthony Turton, a former researcherat the Council for Scientific and IndustrialResearch, who now works as a water man-

agement consultant, predicted that South Africa would soon have to start reusing ef-

fluent, which would entail revamping in-frastructure, with waste treatment plants apriority.

Water treatment plants wouldhave to produce effluent cleanenough for reuse in the in-dustrial sector, for exam-ple switching to buying cheaper, recycled wa-ter for cooling plants,he said.

This may be

harder than itsounds. Turtonpointed outthat 12 waste-water treat-ment plants,none of which func-tion prop-erly, wered u m p -ing efflu-ent into

the Hart-beespoor tDam on theCrocodile River, 20km southwest of Johan-nesburg.

He and others have also begun to con-clude that if water could be stored in un-derground man-made aquifers, he said, itcould save a vast quantity of water fromevaporation annually.

When the democratic government cameto power in 1994, an estimated 14 millionpeople lacked access to a formal water sup-

ply, and about half the population had noformal sanitation, according to the Depart-ment of Water and Environment.

Water and sanitation remain contentiousissues, and government has assured South

Africans that it will commit more funds toimprove water infrastructure, deploy per-sonnel to local government to oversee op-erations, build capacity, and ensure properfinancial management.

A recent progress report card on the UNMillennium Development Goals said thecountry was on track for achieving access

to safe drinking water and sanitation by2015.

Water service provision is critical, and itis a sensitive issue, Turton said. We have

to give people everything that the struggle was about,

like dignity. If we dont, weregoing to have a lot of angry

people.SAICEs Heroldsaid government

should crack down on hun-dreds of farm-

ers who usedwater illegallyfrom the Vaal

River, 100kmsouth of Johan-

nesburg, whichsupplies the city.

The departmentof water affairshas establisheda unit, knownas the BlueScorpions, to

police illegalbulk water use. IRIN. All

rights reserved.

Cl ck t cks t wa ds wat sca c ty


DAM fACTS AND fiGuRES* Acc rd ng t the W rld C mm ss n

n Dams there are an est mated 48000 dams w rldw de ver 15 m h gh.Ab t hal these are n Ch na.* There are ab t 1 500 dams nderc nstr ct n w rldw de at present.

* it takes ab t r years t b ld nedam.* The h ghest dam n the w rld s theR g n Dam n Taj k stan wh ch s 335m h gh.* The Three G rges Dam, wh ch sbe ng b lt n Ch na, w ll be the larg-est c ncrete dam n the w rld. When

t s c mpleted n 2009, the dam w llstretch alm st tw k l metres acr ssthe Yangtze R ver and s ar 183 mabove the valley foor. The reservoir willbe 563 km l ng.

S rce: W rld W ldl e f nd


6/18

Newsclips

Three Kr gercamps r 2010

SANParks managing executivetourism and marketing, Glenn Phil-

lips According to Phillips, said theKruger National Park has dedicatedthree of its camps to the 2010 FIFA

World Cup - Skukuza, Berg en Daland Pretoriuskop.

New mobile tented products with-in above camps at Kruger NationalParks will also be utilized. This willadd an additional 420 beds to the in-

ventory contacted for 2010.The tents will be used as a con-

duit to address the legacy issue asthey will be used to provide addi-

tional inventory to parks in other lo-cations around the country that lack sufficient accommodation inventoryduring high season or specific eventssuch as the flower season in Na-maqua National Park.

The exciting part with 2010 is thatapproximately 15 000 people will beintroduced to the national parks. Wewant to use this event to optimizemarketing opportunities, while wecontinue to build our brand.

Phillips went on to mention the de-

tails of the contract with MATCH aprofessional services company select-ed by FIFA to provide ticketing, ac-commodation and event informationtechnology during the 2010 WorldCup event in South Africa.

If all goes according to plan, itmeans the value of inventory sold toMATCH per day is in the region of R1.4 million and this over the eventperiod will amount to an impressiveR 52.5 million based on two peopleper unit inclusive of dinner, bed and

breakfast and activity.Other contracted parks closer to

the World Cup matches are Addo El-ephant National Park, Garden RouteNational Park which incorporatesformerly Wilderness, Tsitsikammaand the Knysna Lake Area, Mar-akele, and Golden Gate HighlandsNational Parks.

South African National Parks (SAN-Parks) will auction twenty white rhino fromthe Kruger National Park (KNP) as well aseland bulls from Mountain Zebra Nation-al Park at the annual Kirkwood Auction

on June 20. SANParks earned the highestprice for a singleadult white rhinobull which went forR640 000 at last

years auction.Proceeds of

the sale of SAN-Parks wildlife onthe game auc-tion are ploughedinto SANParksPark Development

Fund, a fund which is used to expand anddevelop the national park system.The Kirkwood Wildlife auction, which

raised R11 million in 2008, is now the sec-ond largest auction in the country. Biddersfrom far and wide will converge at the Kirk-wood Wildlife Festival grounds for the auc-tion.

Add b al

Twenty-two Addo buffalo will be up forsale at the auction. The buffalo will be sold

in four family groups consisting of a bulland several cows as well as six individualbreeding bulls and one individual subadultbull. The buffalo have already been cap-tured and are being held in the bomas at

Addo Elephant National Park for the test-ing necessary to confirm their disease-freestatus.

Addo buffalo are traditionally muchsought-after as breeding stock due to the

absence of diseases such as bovine tuber-culosis, corridor diseaseand foot-and-mouth dis-ease in the herd. AddoElephant National Park is home to the largestdisease-free buffalo herdin South Africa.

other game

Also on auction forthe first time will be

four family herds of the endangered Capemountain zebra. These family herds will becaptured in Mountain Zebra National Park which now boasts over 500 of the endan-gered zebra. They will be sold on catalogueat the auction.

Bushveld Game Capture will host a fam-ily herd of Burchells zebra as well as bles-bok family groups and breeding rams in

Addos bomas. Breeding groups of variousantelope as well as giraffe will also be soldon catalogue at the auction.

Bidders can view the wildlife on auction

before the sale at Addo Elephant NationalPark, RiverBend and Shamwari bomas. Forfurther information on the auction, contact

Jan Pienaar on 082 5721516 or John Aden-dorff on 082 9084160.

SANPa ks t auct n h n , buffal

Scientists are a step closer to making

environmentally-friendly magnetic refrig-erators and air conditioning systems a real-ity, thanks to new research published in theMay issue of Advanced Materials.

Magnetic refrigeration technology couldprovide a green alternative to traditionalenergy-guzzling gas-compression fridgesand air conditioners. They would require20-30% less energy to run than the bestsystems currently available, and would notrely on ozone-depleting chemicals or green-house gases. Refrigeration and air condi-tioning units make a major contribution

to the planets energy consumption - in theUSA in the summer months they accountfor approximately 50% of the countrys en-

ergy use.

A magnetic refrigeration system works byapplying a magnetic field to a magnetic ma-terial - some of the most promising being metallic alloys - causing it to heat up. Thisexcess heat is removed from the system bywater, cooling the material back down to itsoriginal temperature. When the magneticfield is removed the material cools downeven further, and it is this cooling propertythat researchers hope to harness for a wide

variety of cooling applications.Researchers are still looking for improved

materials that provide highly efficient cool-

ing at normal room temperatures, so thatthe technology can be rolled out from thelab to peoples homes and businesses.

r s a ch s cl s t thult mat g n f dg magn t



7/18

South Africas bustards are in trouble,with six of the countrys ten species listed inthe South African Red Data Book. Theyare threatened by a variety of factors, saysMark Anderson, executive director of Bird-

Life South Africa with some of the mostimportant threats being habitat destructionand power-line mortalities.

BirdLife South Africa is concerned aboutthe precarious conservation status of thecountrys bustards and korhaans. At a work-shop in Johannesburg in May, the status,threats and necessary conservation mea-sures relevant to these birds were discussedby the countrys bustard experts.

Populations of Ludwigs bustard andDenhams bustard are probably in declinedue to a single mortality factor, collisions

with the cables of power-lines. These birdsfly in groups during low light conditions anddue to their limited manoeuvrability are notable to avoid electricity cables in their flightpath, says Jon Smallie, manager of the En-dangered Wildlife Trusts (EWT) WildlifeEnergy Interaction Group (WEIG) and theEskom-EWT Strategic Partnership. Studiesby Anderson and the University of CapeTowns Dr Andrew Jenkins, have found thaton average across six patrolled sites, aboutone Ludwigs bustard collides per kilometreof power-line per year at these sites.

There are approximately 16,000 km of transmission (>132000volts) power-linescrisscrossing the Karoo indicating the po-tential severity of this problem. The Es-kom-EWT Partnerships Central IncidentRegister documents no less than 265 con-firmed Ludwigs bustard mortalities frompower-lines. In response, Eskom is currentlyfunding research into bustard collisionrates, movement patterns and visual acuity

all critical aspects if we are to mitigate thisthreat.

According to David Allan, ornithologist at

the Durban Natural Science Museum and aworld authority on the biology of bustards,The global population of Ludwigs bustard

has been estimated to only number between56,000 and 81,000 individuals. The thoughtthat we could be potentially losing them at arate of over 10,000 birds killed annually bythis factor alone is terrifying.

The blue korhaan, which mainly inhabitsgrasslands in the central and eastern regionsof South Africa, is severely threatened by

afforestation, crop farming, overgrasing,burning, urbanisation and mining. Analy-ses of information from the Coordinated

Avifaunal Roadcount Project (CAR) suggestthat this korhaan has declined in bothnumbers and range during recent years,stated Donella Young, the CAR coordina-tor at the University of Cape Towns Ani-mal Demography Unit. The blue korhaanis only found in South Africa and margin-ally in western Lesotho, so we have an im-portant obligation to protect this localisedspecies.

The white-bellied korhaan, another spe-cies that is restricted to the grasslands andopen thornveld, is listed as vulnerable in

the South African Red Data Book. It pre-fers tall, undisturbed grassland, and is thusthreatened by human population pressureand inappropriate farm management. Thewhite-bellied korhaan is also found in cen-tral, west and east Africa, but there is somedebate about whether the South Africanpopulation is a separate species (Barrows

korhaan). If genetically distinct, there iseven more pressure on South African con-servationists to attend to the numerousthreats which are impacting on this threat-ened species.

It was decided at the bustard workshop,which was made possible through funding from E. Oppenheimer and Son, that a bus-tard working group would be formed underthe auspices of BirdLife South Africa. Thegroup will have several aims, but will focus,at least initially, on disseminating informa-tion about bustards to the relevant authori-

ties and stakeholders, prioritizing researchneeds, and determining urgent conserva-tion interventions.

S uth Af cas busta ds th at n d

The Denhams B stard has aspectac lar d splay (ph t g-rapher: Mathew Pr phet).

The B stard/K rhaan W rksh p was attended by S th A r cas b stard experts (ph t grapher: Ge L ckw d).



8/18

Z mbabwe de-h rnsrh n s t c rbp ach ng

The Zimbabwe government haslaunched a massive exercise to de-horn rhinoceroses so that these ani-mals do not have any value for poach-ers, a media report said.

Environment and Natural Re-sources Management Minister Fran-cis Nhema said the de-horning exer-cise would remove the incentivesfor poaching.

Rhinos are reportedly poached forits horns that are used in traditionalChinese medicines. Some people be-

lieve the horn contains aphrodisiacproperties.He said the black rhinos are most

vulnerable to poaching. We are de-horning some of the rhinos so thatthere would not be any incentives forpoaching, the minister was quotedas having said by the Daily Mail.

Nhema said the exercise is among the preventative measures in place af-ter reports that more than 80 black rhinos fell prey to poachers in the past12 months. The government has also

relocated some of the rhinos to en-sure protection.The de-horning process must be

repeated every few years as hornsgrow back, he said, while calling forharsher punishments against poach-ers.

The fines that are in place now arenot deterrent enough to stop peoplefrom poaching and there is a need toimpose heavy fines, he said.

The wildlife sanctuaries have en-tered into a strategic joint manage-

ment partnership with the police andthe army to combat poaching, theminister added.

Zimbabwe has an estimated 800black and white rhinoceroses.

Source: http://blog.taragana.com/n/zimbabwe-de-horns-rhinos-to-curb-poaching-68177/

Newsclips


South African vultures are facing ever-increasing threats. Of the nine vulture spe-cies that occur in South Africa, seven arelisted in the Eskom Red Data Book of Birdsof South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland.The main cause of the demise of this im-portant raptor group is a declining foodsource, although other issues such as loss of foraging areas, electrocution on electricitypylons, and inadvertent poisoning also havea strong influence on their numbers.

The Kruger to Canyons Birding Route, aBirdLife South Africa project, has recentlybeen involved in developing a number of infrastructure development projects in theLowveld including the establishment of a

vulture restaurant and hide on the GrietjiePrivate Nature Reserve, 20 km south of Phalaborwa. The reserve forms part of theGreater Kruger National Park.

The purpose of this new viewing hideis threefold. Its main purpose is to provideexceptional, close-up views of these mag-nificent birds, but more importantly it will

serve as an educational facility highlighting the plight of vulture populations in south-ern Africa which are in a drastic state of de-cline. As well as reaching birders, BirdLifeSouth Africa plans to bring school groupsto the hide to show them the importanceof vultures in the ecology of the Lowveld,as well as to dispel the myths surrounding the birds. Lastly the hide will also be usedby sister organisations, such as the Endan-

gered Wildlife Trust, who play a critical rolein monitoring vulture populations in theLowveld.

Carcasses are normally only put downat the weekends, ensuring that the birds donot become dependent on the additionalfood source. This vulture restaurant is oneof just a few that are located within the re-serve and hyaena and other carnivores fre-quent the carcasses.

Spotted Hyaenas are particularly useful in

breaking up the remaining bones from oldcarcasses, and vulture restaurants such asthis have been proven to increase the breed-ing success of vultures by providing bonefragments which substantially increases thecalcium content of their diet.

Mark Anderson, executive director of BirdLife South Africa, officially opened the

vulture restaurant on 20 March 2009. Sincethen all five locally occurring vulture specieshave become regular customers. The visitorbook also reveals that it is not uncommon tofind yourself surrounded by more than 150

vultures during feeding time.The vulture restaurant is easily accessible

and open to the public. Reservations can bemade through Ian Owtram [email protected] or 0832868281, or through the re-serve warden on 0788758722. A small feeof R30/person is charged which will go di-rectly back into maintenance and providing carcasses for the vultures.

N w vultu stau ant and h dn Phalab wa g n

The v lt re resta rant s eas ly access ble and pen t the p bl c. Reservat ns

can be made thr gh ian owtram [email protected] .za r 0832868281, r thr ghthe reserve warden n 0788758722.


9/18

The small town of Wakkerstroom is fa-mous for its endemic grassland and wetland

birds, and ecotourists come from far andwide to experience the areas well knownbirdwatching opportunities. Although thespecial birds mainly include smaller species,such as Rudds and Bothas lark and yellow-breasted pipit, one of Wakkerstrooms mainattractions is its cranes.

Three species of crane, grey crownedcrane, blue crane and wattled crane, occurin South Africa, and all are found at Wak-kerstroom.

Some of Wakkerstrooms birds migrate towarmer climes during the winter months,

but others remain. The grey crownedcranes is one species which remains in thisarea, sometimes in large numbers.

As an additional tourist attraction, Bird-Life South Africa now lures cranes to itswinter feeding site using life-size woodendecoys. Maize grain is put out regularly forthe cranes in front of BirdLife South Africas

crane hide at the Wakkerstroom wetland.Four wooden crane decoys have been

made from alien, invasive trees obtainedfrom local farmers. The decoys are very re-alistic and similar in size and colour to greycrowned cranes and, at first glance, theyfool most bird-watchers.

The decoys were made by the very tal-ented Muzi Makhubu, who is from theIndalo Carving Project. Muzi is a local en-trepreneur and his wood-carving businessis supported by BirdLife South Africa. Hiswooden art-work has become a sought-aftersouvenir by visitors to Wakkerstroom.

Muzi says that I never thought that carv-

ing could be linked to tourism and bird con-servation, but this example isevidence that it can.

Muzis workshop is at Bird-Life South Africas Wakkerst-room Centre and it is visitedby many birders and otherecotourists. For the commu-

nity of Wakkerstroom to benefit from birdtourism, it is important that they align their

activities to the needs of the birders saidHansco Banda, who is the Wakkerstroomproject site manager for BirdLife South Af-ricas Community Based Conservation Di-

vision.BirdLife South Africa is also engaged

in a farm-worker outreach programme, incollaboration with the Endangered Wild-life Trusts South African Crane Working Group, which educates farm workers andfarm schools about conservation issues, in-cluding bird conservation.

W d ca v ngs us d t att act c an s t b d-watch ng s t

M z Makh b carv nga Grey Cr wned Crane

r m an al en spec es

tree.

A Grey Cr wned Crane (r ght) nq s t vely d s-plays t the w den dec y at the eed ng s te

n r nt B rdL e S th A r cas Crane H de.




South African National Parks (SANParks)has called for proposals in respect of Pub-

lic Private Partnership projects for the pro-posed Malelane Hotel development close tothe Malelane gate in the Kruger NationalPark (KNP).

The proposed development is set to provide a new facility in the park that is differ-ent from the existing rest camps. The newdevelopment is within the approved KNPManagement Plan and the Commercializa-tion Strategy which has already deliveredseven concession lodges in the KNP.

SANParks is primarily focussed on bio-diversity conservation and is dependent on

government funding to perform the envi-ronmental public good.With government priorities being fo-

cussed on providing health services, edu-cation, municipal service-delivery, hous-ing and other pressing needs, conservationgrant funding is static and diminishing inreal terms. SANParks has, over the past few

years, supplemented the shortfall in funding through its successful ecotourism businesswithout deviating from its core mandate.

As such, SANParks needs to continuallykeep abreast with the top tourist destina-

tions by improving its product and appeal-ing to a wider range of visitors in the 21stCentury.

The inbound tourism market and theemerging middle class have repeatedly de-manded a product that provides a full ser-

vice in addition to thesafari experiencewithout Disney-fi-cation of the park,according to a SAN-Parks press state-ment.

The KNP cur-rently offers self-catering facilitiesthroughout the park which are hugelypopular but fallsshort in meeting the expectations of the current genera-tion who want a fullservice safari experi-ence that includesmodern conference

and support facili-ties.

The proposed hotel will be a full-service facility that will be constructed on the

periphery of the park at the Malelane GatePrecinct.Dr David Mabunda, chief executive of

SANParks said that this was in line withthe peripheral development policy whichallow for development on the periphery of the park rather than within the park wherethere will be a greater ecological impact.

The geographical location of the facilitywill make it accessible for 24 hours and elim-inate the undesirable risk associated withlate arrivals driving to the nearest camp.

The 200 bed facility is not going to be a

high-rise building in the mould of the gen-eral perception of a hotel with the bellsand whistles of a city hotel but a develop-ment in line with the hall-mark SANParksenvironmental ambience that will compli-ment its surroundings. It will provide fullmeals, laundry services as well as regulartours through the park. There will be no de-marcated traversing area for the hotel as isthe case with the luxury lodges.

This hotel, which is what we are call-ing it for want of a better word, will have amuch smaller footprint in the park as com-

pared to the existing camps that have be-tween 300 and 600 beds, said Dr Mabun-da.

He also emphasised that guest to the hotelwill not be driving in the park as guests of the camps do, they will be offered a park-

and-ride service very simi-

lar to that of private gamelodges. So in-stead of hav-ing a typicalN1 Highwaytraffic conges-tion with atleast two oc-cupants driv-ing throughthe park, wewill have these

cars neatlytucked awayand fill up ex-isting park game drive vehicles which arerunning at 50% occupancy to enhance thegame-viewing experience in the most ap-propriate style and help towards reducing the menace of traffic on the parks roads,he explained.

The proposed facility will not be built onpristine land, because the area identified forthe development is an old road constructioncamp and a quarry , but SANParks, has

specified in its call for proposals that the re-quired EIAs must be conducted.We had to design the concept and pro-

vide specifications first before weighing itspossible impacts on the ecology.

All applicable environmental scrutiny willbe applied indepen-

dently and we areconfident that allEIAs will reflect itsecological feasibil-ity.

Its impact will

definitely be far lessthan the sprawling towns of Skukuzaand Satara.

Who knows thismight be the be-ginning of a newera the camps inthe core of the park moving to the pe-riphery by 2059?concluded Dr.Mabunda.

200-b d luxu y h t l p p s d fK ug Nat nal Pa k

?What d yth nk ab t th spr p sal. E-ma l y r v ew tkr gerparkt mes

@vect rbb.c .za



N w 4x4 ec -T a ls op n at Ka Nat nal Pa k

Two new 4x4 eco-trails have opened at

the Karoo National Park near Beaufort West.The new trails provide an opportunity for

visitors to experience a new area of the al-most 90 000-hectare Karoo National Park.Routes are open only to visitors with 4x4

vehicles.The Nuweveld Trail follows a 90-kilo-

metre route into the western section of thePark, starting off the relatively new Potlek-kertjie Loop which was opened in October2008. Approximately 50 kilometres of thistrail is a Grade one 4x4 trail with some

steep, rocky sections and sandy dry rivercrossings.The first section of the Nuweveld Trail

travels through riverine thicket before head-ing onto the plains and then climbing ontothe foothills of the Nuweveld Mountains.The route then heads onto the lower plainsin the Sandrivier area, before linking upagain with the Potlekkertjie Loop via the

Afsaal Trail. About 20 kilometres from the start of the

trail, visitors will find the Embizweni Cot-tage which provides an ideal place for an

overnight stay in a remote and tranquil lo-cation.

Embizweni Cottage has spectacular views

of the Nuweveld Mountains to the east andthe area is frequented by large herds of eland, gemsbok and individual black rhino.Cape mountain zebra, red hartebeest andkudu can also be seen as well as Verrauxseagle and kori and Ludwigs bustard.

The cottage provides fully-equipped ac-commodation for six people with a gas-powered stove, fridge and geysers as wellas solar-powered lights. A fireplace in theliving room provides a cosy atmosphere inwinter.

The shorter Afsaal Trail is a 13-kilometre

route which provides a challenging drive inwet conditions. The trail, commencing off the Potlekkertjie Loop, travels south andthen east before linking up with the Potlek-kertjie Loop again.

Visitors can enjoy both the Nuweveldand Afsaal Routes free of charge. A stayin Embizweni Cottage is very affordablewith rates starting from R600-00 for fourpeople.

For more information, please telephoneKaroo National Park on 023 4152828 orEmail [email protected]



Honorary rangers (HR), Johan and Col-leen Kotze, restored 55 heritage sites in theKruger National Park to their glimmering best.

Under the auspices of the HR Higveld

Region, the Kotzes started the project onSeptember 4 last year. First on the agendawere 31 plaques in the southern regioncamps Crocodile Bridge, Lower Sabie,Pretoriuskop and Berg-en-Dal.

On February 3, 2009, the Kotze teaminspected and cleaned 12 sites in Skukuza,Satara and Olifants camps.

On May 19, 2008 they began the north-ern leg of their project, which included

eight sites from Letaba to Pafuri.A full report was submitted to ThanyaniMadzhuta of the heritage division in theKruger National Park, says Johan.

The exercise revealed that a number of

plaques are missing or have deterioratedover the years. Sanparks will put a programin place under the leadership of Thanyanias to how these plaques will be replaced.

The HR Higveld Region is chaired by

Willie de Beer, Hoffie Sutherland ViceChairman, Dennis Botha Treasurer and Anja Botha Secretary.

H tag s t s n K ug st d

BEfoRE AfTER

Bruce Brydon passed away onthe 16 May 2009 due to malaria.

Bruce was born in Johannes-burg, RSA and was awarded aBachelor of Science degree fromthe University of the Witwa-tersrand, followed by Honours in

Wildlife Management at PretoriaUniversity. In

1971 he started his career in theKruger National Park as a gradu-ate assistant biologist.

He progressed through theranks as a Section Ranger, DistrictRanger, Park Warden of Karoo

NationalPark (1977-80) and Regional

Ranger to become Chief Rangerin 1983 (in the meantime he man-aged to successfully complete hisMasters in Wildlife Managementin 1976). He became Head of Conservation

Support Services and held vari-ous positions until his retirement in2001. Since then until his untimelydeath, he and his wife Helena havebeen living in Knysna.

He is the author of the bestseller

book A Game Ranger Remem-bers (2005). It is a collection of

stories about the life of a bushveldconservationist as it is lived at theground level by that elite band of men and woman who guard theKruger National Park at the costof much sweat and tears and, notinfrequently, quite a bit of blood.

They have two children Annie,now married to Glen and Robert and a grandson, Bryden.

It is with great sorrow that weheard the news of the passing awayof Bruce. He will be remembered

with fondness and respect by hisformer colleagues and friends inConservation and in the GRAA of which he was a Professional Mem-ber (209). On behalf of the Afri-can Committee of the GRAA andthe membership of the GRAA wewould like to extend our deepestcondolences to the family during this very difficult time.

Source: Game Rangers Asso-ciation of Africa (Cleft Stick, May2009)

ob t ary: BRuCE RoBERT BRYDEN

Mokala was announced the winner in the Parks

and Nature Reserves category of the 2008 Welcome Awards at an awards ceremony held at South Africaspremier tourism showcase, INDABA in Durban inMay.

The park is situated approximately 80 kilometerssouth-southwest of Kimberley, and west of the N12freeway to Cape Town.

The Welcome Awards were founded four years agowith the express intention of improving service levelsin the tourism sector. The judging process includes pre-arranged visits and interviews by the Welcome Awardsproject team, as well as mystery visits by trained in-dividuals posing as customers. Winners are chosen

based on the value they add to customer expectations;on their commitment to excellence in serving custom-ers; and on exceeding visitor expectations. and it isclear that Mokala has outdone itself in ensuring thatour customer experience value for their hard earnedcash - we really pride ourself with this achievement,says SANParks, general manager media, events andetakeholder relations, Reynold Thakhuli.

Mokala is the Setswana name for Camel Thorn,named after the trees that occur in the dry woodlandand arid sandy areas of the desert regions of Southern

Africa. The Camel Thorn is a great resource to boththe wildlife and humans who inhabit these areas, with

the gum and bark of the trees often used by the localtribes to treat coughs, colds and nosebleeds.

M kala walk away w thW lc m awa d



Th nflu nc f f n m pan and dbushw ll w t s n G na zh uThe influence of fire on mopane and red

bushwillow trees in Gonarezhou A paper on the Influence of fire frequen-

cy on Colophospermum mopaneand Combretumapiculatumwoodland structure and compo-sition in northern Gonarezhou NationalPark, Zimbabwe appears in the latest issueof the SANParks journal, Koedoe.

in sh rt We investigated the long-term effects of fire frequency on Colophospermum mopaneandCombretum apiculatumwoodland structureand composition in northern GonarezhouNational Park (GNP), Zimbabwe. Fire fre-quency was categorised as high (every 12

years), medium (every 34 years) and low(every 56 years). The following variables

were measured or recorded: plant height,species name, canopy depth and diameter,basal circumference, number of stems perplant, plant status (dead or alive) and num-

ber of woody plants in a plot.

There was a positive correlation (r = 0.55,P = 0.0007) between annual area burnt (to-tal from January to December) and annualrainfall (average over two rain stations perrain year, July to June) between 1972 and2005.

A total of 64 woody species were record-ed from C.mopaneand C. apiculatum wood-lands. Mean plant height increased from

4.5 to 8.2 meters in C. mopanewoodland andfrom 4.5 to 5.1 meters in C.apiculatumwood-land in areas subjected to high and low firefrequencies. In C. mopane woodland, lowfire frequency was characterised by a sig-nificantly low density of woody plants (P< 0.001), however, with a significantly highmean basal area (P < 0.001). Fire frequencyhad no significant effect on species diversity(P > 0.05).

Our results suggest that C. mopaneand C.apiculatumwoodlands are in a state of struc-tural transformation. Fire frequency effects,

however, appear to be woodland specific.

Fire management strategies in GNPshould take into consideration annual rain-fall and the different vegetation types.

Conservation implication: This study provides valuable information on fire frequen-cy effects on woody vegetation in northernGNP, which can be used in fire managementprogrammes for the park. The positive rela-

tionship between annual rainfall and annualarea burnt emphasises the need for wildlifemanagers to consider annual rainfall in firemanagement.

We hope that you will visit us soon atwww.koedoe.co.za and be enlightened bythe articles we will be publishing through-out 2009, says title operations coordinator,Liezel Grunewald.

For more information on this article visithttp://www.koedoe.co.za/index.php/koe-doe/index

Avid birders should hurry to maketheir bookings for the Sasol Addo Bird-ing Weekend which will be held in AddoElephant National Park from 23 to 25October 2009.

The weekend of birding will offer awonderful opportunity to experience thediverse biomes of Addo Elephant Na-

tional Park and the chance to spot over400 bird species.

Organised by the Addo HonoraryRangers, birding activities will feature achoice of excursions which include tripsto the marine area of the Park aroundSt. Croix Island and the arid Karoo areaaround the large expanse of DarlingtonDam.

Birders will join groups birding in sev-en different areas of Addo Elephant Na-tional Park. A 4x4 excursion will explorethe Nyathi area of the park while another

group will visit the Sundays River estuary

and adjacent coastline with its good ternand wader sightings. The group visiting the marine area around St. Croix Islandby boat will view the African penguin col-ony on the island as well as pelagic birdssuch as skuas, petrels and shearwaters.

Birders based in the parks main gamearea can count on thicket species such as

the southern tchagra as well as Denhamsbustard and blue crane in the grasslandpatches. Fitter participants can explorethe forests and fynbos of the Zuurberg Mountains on foot to sight birds from Afri-can crowned eagles to longtailed wagtails.Those based in the Parks Woody Capearea near Alexandria will explore the in-digenous coastal forests which are hometo trumpeter hornbill. Birders visited theParks northern-most Darlington area willlook for birds such as the Namaqua war-bler on the arid land and spoonbills and

lesser flamingo on the vast lake.

Prizes will be presented at an evening braai function and there is an optionalafternoon training session on birding andidentification. A variety of accommoda-tion units, as well as camping facilities willbe made available in the Addo ElephantNational Park.

Sasol has provided sponsorship for

logistics and prizes while Glendowerwhisky has also sponsored some prizes.Funds raised by the Honorary Rangersbirding weekend will go towards funding conservation support work, research andupgrade of facilities for the benefit of all

visitors to the Park.Bookings for the birding weekend close

on 31 July 2009. For more information,contact Deon and Mileen De Vos on [email protected] or Tel: 041 966 1297or 082 775 4998.

B k ngs p n f Add B d ng W k nd



Singita Game Reserves announced anumber of key managerial appointments.

Jason Trollip has taken over from TonyRomer-Lee as general manager of Sin-gita Sabi Sand, comprising Singita Ebony

and Boulders lodges, and Castleton Camp.Romer-Lee has taken up the position of re-sort manager with One&Only Cape Townafter three years with Singita in the SabiSand.

Trollip joined Singita in 2003 and hasfor the past six years held the position of general manager Singita Kruger NationalPark, situated on Singitas private conces-sion that comprises Singita Lebombo andSweni lodges. With a genuine passion forconservation, Mpumalanga born Trolliphas played an important role in the estab-

lishment of the Singita concession, and hasdisplayed a unique understanding of the re-quirements of guests and staff alike.

Singita welcomed Caroline Burke whotook over as general manager of SingitaLebombo and Sweni lodges. Burke is well-known in the travel and safari industry forher professionalism and customer care ex-cellence, bringing with her extensive expe-

rience, that includes 12 years in key man-agement positions with CC Africa (nowre-branded &Beyond).

Singita is also proud to announce that af-ter just over three years with Singita Game

Reserves, Moses Nkuna has been promotedto lodge manager at Singita Sweni lodgein the Kruger National Park. Nkuna hasproved himself here as a competent andcaring host, and also brings with him expe-rience gained at the Coach House Hotel inTzaneen, Grande Roche Hotel in Paarl, aswell as The Queens Hotel in Leeds, Eng-land.

In Tanzania, Singita Grumeti Reserveshas appointed Mandy Cloete as lodge man-ager Singita Sasakwa. Having taken timeoff to complete her MBA degree, Cloete re-

turns to Singita where she previously servedas lodge manager Singita Sweni. Hence shenot only has a complete understanding of the Singita ethos and its guest profile, butalso brings with her experience gained atother exclusive private game reserves, aswell as enthusiasm for East Africa and theofferings of Singita Grumeti Reserves andthe Serengeti.

Staff chang s at p pula K ug c nc ss n

Jas n Tr ll p

Umlani Bushcamp in the Timbavati Pri- vate Nature Reserve in South Africa waspresented with The Wilderness Foundationssought after Green Leaf at an awards cer-emony at the Indaba International TravelTrade Show in Durban.

Marco Schiess, owner of Umlani Bush-camp says Ian Player has been an inspi-ration to me all my life, my associationwith the Wilderness Leadership School

has formed the principles by which we runUmlani. It is a great honour for me to becertified by the Wilderness Foundation asthe Green Leaf standard is everything thatUmlani stands for.

With global warming and climatechange a reality. The tourism industry hasthe responsibility in protecting the integrityof our environment and has the opportu-nity to educate their guests. The WildernessFoundations Awards encourages tourismrole players to reduce the effects of con-sumption on our environment and improve

upon environmental management andawareness in an eco friendly manner, adds

Schiess.The Wilderness Foundation, founded in

1972 by Dr. Ian Player and Magqubu Ntom-bela, is a conservation organisation thatencourages, plans and manages wild landsand wilderness areas, uplifts the knowledgeand lives of historically disadvantaged citi-zens, and stimulates an environmental ethosamong current and future leaders.

Umlani is also a member Fair Trade in

Tourism South Africa. Everything we dois influenced by our commitment to respon-sible tourism. This means that we take greatcare to treat people and the environmentwith respect by actively minimising the neg-ative impact on our surroundings and makea positive contribution whenever possiblestates Schiess

Umlani Bushcamp based in the heart of world famous Timbavati, which is now partof an open system with the Kruger NationalPark, is becoming well known as a specialistin providing visitors with a close to nature

wilderness adventure in a responsible way.

env nm ntalc nsc usn ss c gn s d

Tree dent cat nn the L wveld

Eugene Moll will facilitate a five day(six nights) tree identification course atThe Southern African Wildlife Col-lege (SAWC), taking place from Sun-day evening 30th August to Saturdaymorning 5th September 2009. Thecourse will also focus on some of theplant ecological issues facing the KNPand Timbavati area in particular.

The cost of this course is R5,500.00per person inclusive of food and ac-commodation at the SAWC, transport

for fieldwork and armed guard, andtwo night drives.

The SAWC is some 10km west of theOrpen Gate to the KNP on the north-ern side of the tarred road and some70km from Hoedspruit. The SAWC is2km off the tarred road and the 30hacampus has an electric perimeter fence.

A minimum of 10 and a maximum of 20 people are required to make thiscourse possible.

Should you be interested in joining the group please contact Alice Moll

on [email protected] for further de-tails.



Th 2009 SANPa ks Amat u

Ph t g aph c C mp t t n w nn s

Dan el Myb rg - Can y eel that

SANParks announced the winners of the2009 SANParks Amateur PhotogrpahicCompetition in 12 categories.

The photographs were submitted accord-ing to the type of camera used, that of thethe DSLR and Compact and categorisedinto sections of landscapes, portrait, ani-mals and insects, human activity, plants andblack and white.

The w nners are:

DSLR Portrait: Jaycee Rousseau - Grubs Up! Animals & Insects: Daniel Myburg -

Can you feel that? Black & White: Mario Moreno - Zebra

Family in Plains Camp Human Activity: Karlwim Heese - Re -

turning home with the sunset Plants: Valerie Blanca - KTP

Landscapes: Katja Soehngen - Kalaharicloud

CompaCt Portrait: Nico Steenberg - Pied king -

fisher Animals & Insects: Ken Mackay - Sec -

retary Bird Black & White: Trevor Lagerwall - El -

ephant Human Activity: Marijke Arends-Meir -

ing - Hyena versus Yellow Ribbon

Plants: Corli Meiring - Yellow flowers Landscapes: Muhammad Mia - Sabie

River SunriseDuring the course of the

2009 Amateur PhotographicCompetition, 1 046 submis-sions have been received, com-pared to last years 420 submis-sions:

DSLR SubmissionsLandscapes - 95; Portrait -

185; Animals and Insects - 173;Human Activity 57; Plants

51; Black and White - 84.Compact SubmissionsLandscapes 69; Portrait-

86; Animals and Insects 100;Human Activities - 54 ; Plants

41; Black and White - 42For more information log on

to www.sanparks.org

Valer e Blanca - Kgalagad Trans r nt er Park

Ken Mackay -Secretary B rd



In the Sunday Independent of May 17,2009, David Mabunda, chief executive of-ficer of SANParks (South African National

Parks) commented in hunting in South Af-rica,The business of conservation is one that

lends itself to a number of contestations ev-ery now and then as everyone sees their im-portant role in protecting or owning mothernature.

As a business and a science it is still very young, in most countries no older than a 100 years or so. Because of this relative newnessof this area you find that there are any num-ber of stakeholders who have diverse anddiffering views on how business should be

conducted by conservation authorities inorder to ensure continued income.The recently revived debate on hunt-

ing on the borders of the Kruger NationalPark, our national and international icon, isone that is also squarely based in this publicdiscourse of who has the environments bestinterests at heart. Unfortunately nobodyever wins this debate because it often de-generates into emotional and unconstruc-tive speculations.

Hunting in South Africa is a sport thatis legal and regulated by law. The legisla-

tion that regulates the establishment andmanagement of protected areas makes spe-cific provisions for sustainable resource use,which includes hunting.

The National Environmental Manage-ment Act: Protected Areas Amendment Act31 of 2004, clause 50 (1) allows the manage-ment authority of a national park to enterinto a written agreement with a communityresident inside or adjacent to the park to al-low members of the community to use in asustainable manner the biological resourcesin the park.

This is aimed at promoting sustainableutilisation of protected areas for the benefitof people, in a manner that would preservethe ecological character of such areas. TheNEMA: Biodiversity Act 10 of 2004 alsomakes provision for the use of biological re-sources in a sustainable manner.

Hunting is also recognised by the IUCN(World Conservation Union) as a sustain-able form of use of natural resources whichis able to generate a high level of income.

It is practised in many parts of the worldaround national parks which act as the

source for natural resources, much in thesame way that sustainable fishing aroundmarine protected areas can occur in perpe-

tuity if those areas areproperly protected andfishing is controlled

professionally and sci-entifically.South African Na-

tional Parks (SANParks)is not opposed to hunt-ing in buffer areas aslong as it is done trans-parently and accord-ing to the managementplans and protocolsthat have been agreedto between the adjoin-ing land owners and

SANParks.It is important tonote that there is amarked difference be-tween protected areasand game reserves - most of which are pri-

vately owned - as well as between differenttypes of protected areas.

Simply put, a protected area is a recogn-ised geographical area that will be protectedby whatever means for its ecological, historicor cultural value over a long period of timeand may also include a tourism element.

Within the suite of protected areas thereare various levels of protection accordedto a range of parks, varying from nationalparks, to provincial reserves and right at thebottom protected environments. Game re-serves are specifically designed for tourismand as such, may include activities such ashunting of the wildlife kept in the areas.

Because of the high status of protectionaccorded to national parks, extractive formsof resource-use, such as hunting and min-ing, are not permitted within the boundar-ies of the national park.

B er z nes

In this context it should be understoodthen that land on the buffer zones of na-tional parks, though legally contracted to orentered into formal agreement for the drop-ping of fences, is not national park land.

The hunting occurring on the bordersof Kruger National Park is actually tak-ing place in the buffer zones - private landwhich is largely managed by the provinces,communities or private individuals.

Because hunting is regulated in SA oneneeds to have a specific hunting permit inorder to practice such. Applications for

hunting permits are evaluated and issuedby the respective provinces.

SANParks does not have the mandate orthe jurisdiction to regulate hunting in anyarea, be it private land or provincial man-aged land. The former Minister of Environ-mental Affairs and Tourism, Marthinus vanSchalkwyk, started a process which sought

to further regulate the hunting of wildlife. At present the current draft Norms andStandards for Hunting Nationally havebeen developed, which would put a stopto undesirable forms of hunting such ascanned hunting.

Although hunting is not one of the activi-ties on offer to visitors to national parks (andwe do not envisage that it will become oneany time in the future) we support the gamefarming and hunting industry as a form of land use that is sympathetic to biodiversityconservation.

The fact that land-holders in buffer zonesto national parks may derive income fromsustainable hunting, is one of a range of in-centives for them to keep the land in a statethat is compatible with the maintenance of wildlife.

C ntract al nat nal parks

In the case of contractual national parks,we accept that our contractual partners mayderive income from sustainable use of wild-

life, including hunting, if they so wish.

continues on page 17

Hunt ng can h lp p t ct w ldl f nS uth Af ca


17/18

Hunt ng can h lp p t ct w ldl f nS uth Af ca

continued from page 16

It is important to further note that of

South Africas 122 million ha, only 7.5 mil-lion ha consists of state protected areas with17 million ha of protected land in privatehands.

In its bid to increase land under protec-tion from the current six percent to 10 per-cent by 2012, the government may rely a loton the contributions of the private sector.

One must realise that the private sector re-lies a lot on the optimal, though sustainable,use of the land under its management.

In a number of these private establish-ments trophy hunting brings in a substantial

amount of revenue which is put back intomanaging the area to make the industry self-sustainable. Some revenue is also allocatedtowards community outreach programmes.

For example, the Professional Hunters Association of South Africa (Phasa) hasestablished a Wildlife Conservation Fundthat, according to them, seeks to sustain thehunting industry and to assist with the regu-

lation of professional hunting.The funds are also used to finance ac-

credited research projects, and most private

game reserves supporting hunting are com-mitted to establishing proper wildlife man-agement techniques in order to maintainthe areas ecological balance and thereforeto sustain their own industry at the sametime.

As to the wild claims that the animals be-ing hunted in these buffer areas are thosebelonging to national parks, wildlife is de-clared res nullius (nobodys property) and assuch, one cannot speculate on this matter.

Animals are territorial by nature and arenot prone to wander unless under extreme

circumstances. The likelihood of these be-ing national parks animals is minimal. Mostof the animals in the private reserves werepart of these reserves before the fences wereremoved. The only effect of removing thefences was to create more land for the ani-mals.

With all of this in mind, it should benoted, however, that all hunting within the

boundaries of national parks where fenc-es have been dropped is done only underagreed conditions.

Hunting off-takes usually come to lessthan one percent of annual population re-production. This is not nearly enough tocreate a vacuum that would draw gamefrom the national parks.

Due to the extensive boundary of theKruger National Park and the myriad of streams of all sizes that it has to cross, it is

virtually impossible to keep all animals inthe park all the time.

As long as the sanctity of national parksis maintained according to the laws of thecountry, SANParks cannot dictate or con-

trol the activities of its neighbours. Although unpalatable to some, it is pru-dent to note that regulated trophy hunting isthe one avenue through which wildlife cancreate substantial revenue for the sustain-able management of some small protectedareas and environments as well as the uplift-ment of adjacent communities.

Sund y Inde enden


The Blue Crane has found an unlikelyhaven on farmlands in the Western Cape,but climate change threatens to put an endto this. The Endangered Wildlife Trust(EWT) is keeping a close eye on the situa-tion so that it can act timeously to avoid amajor loss.

The mosaic of wheat farms and pasturesin the agricultural areas of the WesternCape has given Blue Cranes an opportunityto live in an area where they werent found

before, says EWT crane conservationistKerryn Morrison. While were not surehow they got there, the unnatural grasslandsetting in this man-made environment hasbecome home to 60% of South Africas to-tal Blue Crane population.

Climate change is expected to affect thewestern parts of the country most severely,and the current land use practices are like-ly to change to something more viable forthe changed climate and its impacts on theeconomic drivers. This will affect the BlueCranes, which dont seem to be comfortable

in the indigenous Fynbos habitat that sur-rounds the agricultural areas.

The EWTs crane conservationists havebeen monitoring cranes across South Africasince the 1980s and have the only compre-hensive database on cranes in the country.

While the Blue Crane population is cur-rently stable, predictive models show thattoo many adult losses could cause the popu-lation to crash. Blue Cranes are long-livedand slow-breeding, says Morrison. Thechicks also stay with the parents for at leasteight months, and a Blue Crane pair will

rarely have more than one chick in a year.This means that losing one adult crane hasa severe impact on the breeding success of the population.

Numbering around 25 000 individuals,the Blue Crane (Anthropoides paradiseus)is anear endemic to South Africa. It is foundmainly in the Western Cape and Karoo,with lower numbers spread across thegrasslands of the country. Between the late1970s and 1990s, Blue Cranes declined byup to 80% across much of their grasslandrange, resulting in their current Red Data

List Status of Vulnerable.

Cl mat Chang Th at ns

Blu C an St ngh ldM grat ry

S ar ng B rdsPr ject - Reg nalpr ject manager

BirdLife International requires a dy-namic, self-starting individual to man-age a cross-regional project that willmainstream biodiversity conserva-

tion, and especially the conservationneeds of migratory raptors, within ec-onomically important sectors across

the countries of the Middle East and

East Africa. Further information about the project can be found here.The position will be based within theBirdLife International Middle EastDivision of ce in Amman, Jordan. Ap -plications comprising a CV and coverletter should be sent to Taghreed Abu-

jwied ([email protected]) via email before 03 July 2009.For the Terms of Reference (TOR) for

the position click here http://www.birdlife.org/jobs/jobs/2009/soar -ing_birds_regional_manager.html or

write to Taghreed Abujwied via email.


18/18

K ug K az s Cla m t Sham

These ph t s transgress rs Park r les are p bl shed n an attempt t as-

s st n rest r ng bas c respect r thers and the Park. Entr es are sent by v s t rs,rangers and all pe ple c ncerned w t the wel are the Park and ts v s t rs.

Ph t s 1 ,2, and 3 were taken by R l B schr m Sw tzerland n May th s year.

Near Berg-en-Dal At Pret r sk p rest Camp

Near br dge ver Letaba R ver.

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2

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Documents

kruger park e-times 1