There aren’t many people who truly know how difficult it is to locate and sedate WILD Lions. The Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT), SANParks, the National Administration of Conservation Areas in Mozambique, the Mozambique Wildlife Alliance, and Peace Parks Foundation are monitoring the distribution and movement of Lion prides across the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Conservation Area (GLTFCA) using GPS satellite collars. By monitoring prides over time, we can identify priority areas where Lions are likely to be at certain times, informing anti-poaching teams where to go to protect the Lions under their care. But to collar them, we need to find and sedate them. Not so hard, right? We are the most intelligent species, after all…
We’ve tried everything – including hiding and hoping the Lions wouldn’t know we were there so we could study them.
Alas, we have spent countless hours setting up the “perfect” trap, but these clever cats show us time after time just how intelligent they are. We searched on foot, by air, and yes – found a spoor here and there – but barely catch sight of them. My colleagues and I decided to set some bait for them, call them in using prey distress calls on a loudspeaker, and see if they were willing to participate in a feast.
We heard a Lion calling back softly, letting us know they were in the area, and we decided to head back to camp, shut off all the lights, and get an early one, so we could find them at the bait first thing. We did this so they wouldn’t feel threatened by our presence and leave the area before the vet arrived the following day. Plus, they’re always a little lazy after a meal, and we had set out a nice buffet for them.
I was woken up at 2 am by a roar near the camp. I was more excited than scared that this magnificent beast was so close by, not to mention relieved that they were indeed heading towards the bait…or so we assumed, not silly enough to leave the “safety” of my tent to check.
Early the next morning, we rose full of hope and energy and with a spring in our steps, knowing the Lions were close. We had no idea how close. We grabbed some hot coffee before sunrise and, at first light, decided to take a walk to the bait to see what transpired during the night. We took several steps, and then what had happened during the night hit us like a freight train.
These lions came to visit US before going to the bait. One got to within 3 m of my little tent, with two others approaching from the other side. We didn’t hear their footsteps. We didn’t smell them. We had no idea they were so close! With my knees a little shaky, I was truly humbled. But, it was an experience I will treasure forever – coming so close to the species I have dedicated my life to conserving.
How long will it take us to collar one? Find out in the next instalment of this epic tale.
A campaign to raise awareness about wildlife on roads in the Overberg
Most people are familiar with the sad sight of dead animals on the side of the road, and many vehicle accidents in South Africa involve a collision with wildlife. Insurance claims suggest that approximately R82.5 million is paid each year in damages as a result of wildlife associated vehicle collisions. While actual collisions are the most obvious impact of roads on wildlife, other negative consequences include reduced air quality due to vehicle emissions, noise interference, and physical barriers to animal movement caused by the position of the road itself. Temporary road closures, wildlife crossings and bridges are means of improving safety for wildlife near roads, but the most common method is the use of roadside signs to warn motorists and mitigate wildlife-vehicle collisions. Signs installed in areas of high animal activity can help make drivers more aware of wildlife presence and ideally modify driving behaviour. With this in mind, the Cape Leopard Trust (CLT) and the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) have launched the ‘Spotted on the Road’ campaign to raise awareness about wildlife on roads in the Overberg. The campaign is part of the collaborative Tale of Two Leopards project (see links at the end of this document to read more), which focuses on two iconic species found in the Overberg region – the leopard and the Western Leopard Toad (WLT). Leopards and WLTs find themselves in an increasingly urbanised environment and must navigate through this transformed landscape, including crossing roads. The Endangered toads move en masse during their breeding season from July – September and when juveniles disperse in October. It is during these times that they are most vulnerable on roads. Leopards in the Cape have huge home ranges that are intersected by many roads, and leopards often cross roads in mountainous and natural areas, especially at night, putting them at risk of collisions with vehicles. The Tale of Two Leopards Spotted on the Road campaign worked with Cape Town-based artist Bryan Little to create reflective road signs of WLTs and leopards in an innovative move to alert motorists to slow down for these, and other animals on the roads, especially at night. The signs have been installed at five strategic locations in the Overberg, based on where WLT mortality by vehicles has been recorded previously and areas where camera traps have confirmed leopard movement. The locations vary between public and private land and tarred and dirt roads to maximise their reach. The signs were introduced to the public at an informal evening event held at Ou Meul Bakery and Café in Stanford on Saturday,16 July 2022. The Spotted on the Road evening featured an informative presentation, the unveiling of the signs, and an outdoor frogging experience at the Willem Appelsdam in Stanford. Contrary to the usual wet and windy weather that accompanies the Cape’s winters, the evening turned out to be calm, sunny and warm – perfect conditions for a nature walk to view the new reflective signs while listening out for different toad and frog calls around the dam. The CLT and the EWT sincerely thank the various landowners and the Overstrand Municipality who granted permission to host the new signs, as well Ou Meul Stanford for hosting the event, and Mountain Falls Spring Water for sponsoring its locally bottled water. The reflective road signs now join the interpretive Tale of Two Leopards information signboards to remind residents and travellers of the Overberg region’s amazing biodiversity. Please join us in our mission to protect it by making the roads of the Overberg safer for all wildlife!
Spotted on the Road Call to Action – How Can You Help?
Drive slowly, especially at night
Be on the lookout for animals on the roads
Don’t swerve, but avoid collisions by reducing speed
Help a toad cross a road (in the same direction in which it is travelling)
Be a citizen scientist and submit information!
Contribute to leopard research by submitting photos of leopard sightings, signs like spoor or droppings, and threats to leopards to the CLT Western Cape leopard database: app.capeleopard.org.za
As we move deeper into winter, the Western Leopard Toad breeding season is in full swing. This is an amazing time in the Overberg to see and hear this Endangered toad. Please share your WLT sightings with the EWT: inaturalist.org/projects/leopard-toads-of-the-overberg
Climate change has manifested in erratic weather patterns and significantly prolonged drought seasons in Southcentral Uganda. The drought hit the Lwengo region in one of Uganda’s cattle corridors particularly hard. Farmers in Lwengo have suffered serious losses over the dry season; their crops dried up and withered over the harvest period. Maise, beans, peas, and other cash crops have also done poorly during the dry planting season. The water sources in most villages and part of the Kiyanja-Kaku wetland (a precious wetland conserved by the ICF/EWT projects) have dried up, and animals and households no longer have enough water to drink and use for domestic purposes. The dry season also affected irrigation projects, rendering irrigation impossible at the household level and reduced food security and the general well-being of the communities. The Kiyanja-Kaku wetland and its catchment also provide breeding and flocking habitat for the Endangered Grey Crowned Crane – one of Uganda’s iconic wetland species.
Unfortunately, cranes are eating more of the crops due to shortages in natural food sources, feeding on germinating seedlings and mature crops, eating all the corn, and leaving empty combs. The most affected crops in the area included maize, beans, and ground nuts. On top of the drought and deflating market prices, this has caused significant losses to the farmers, and they have resorted to poisoning cranes – 118 poisoned to date this season.
What are we doing to help communities weather the storm?
The ICF/EWT’s crane and wetlands conservation project supports some communities in establishing crane deterrent measures in various homesteads to address food insecurity caused by cranes and climate change. The measures range from the erection of human-mimicking scarecrows to the use of reflective materials, usually from non-recyclable waste products, around the crops. The measures have proven successful as there have since been no crane sightings in these areas, and crop damage has reduced to some extent.
Next steps
Since the project has established an integrated approach of deterrent measures, effectively preventing cranes from damaging crops, we need to upscale the deterrent measures and extend the approach to all affected villages. This way, we will keep crops and cranes safe. The project continues to engage farmers in establishing interventions that can also address the impacts of climate change on food security.
Wetlands are important ecosystems that supply essential ecological goods and services (EGS) for wildlife and people. They supply clean water and fertile soil for plants, filter water from upstream, regulate water flow to prevent flooding, store water to ease drought periods, and reduce the effects of climate change, improving ecological and social resilience. Protection and conservation of wetlands are essential to support communities through environmental disasters caused by climate change.
Wetland health and ecological goods and service quality assessments are valuable in determining the ecological state of wetlands to inform conservation management actions. The Endangered Wildlife Trust’s (EWT) Threatened Amphibian Programme (TAP) aims to show the link between amphibian diversity (i.e. healthy amphibian populations) and wetland habitat health. In other words, if wetlands are in a poor ecological state, amphibian diversity decreases and vice versa. Indirectly, better species and ecological health also support healthy human populations. To this end, we started long-term monitoring protocols in 2016 to determine habitat health and identify amphibian species diversity at four project sites in eThekwini Municipality, KwaZulu-Natal, where the threatened Pickersgill’s Reed Frog (Hyperolius pickersgilli) occurs.
These sites included Adams Mission, Mt Moreland’s Froggy Pond, Widenham, and Isipingo. Wetland health scores, EGS scores, and amphibian diversity from each site were compared to determine whether amphibian species richness increases or decreases under different habitat conditions.
Figure 1: Diagram illustrating the correlation between amphibian species diversity and wetland health.
The data showed a significant positive relationship between the amphibian species diversity and Wetland Health assessment scores between the four sites (P-Value 0.04077) (Social Statistics, 2022), as illustrated in Figure 1.
Species composition for each site showed that some species were found across all sites (Figure 2). These included Hyperolius tuberlinguis, Hyperolius marmoratus, Leptopelis natalensis (Figure 3), and Hyperolius pickersgilli was also present at all four sites, but Hyperolius pickersgilli was one of the site selection criteria and as such, expected to be present at all the sites.
Figure 2: Species present according to the number of sites, i.e. Hyperolius tuberilenguis occurs in all four sites while Natalobatractus bonebergi, only occurs in one site.
The study’s results indicate a statistically significant positive relationship between these two variables, demonstrating that amphibian species diversity will decrease as wetland health decreases and vice versa. Reinforcing the value of amphibian species diversity in indicating wetland health. Amphibians may be an effective monitoring tool for managing wetlands within the eThekwini Municipality. Furthermore, the study demonstrates that improving habitat health through restoration or rehabilitation could positively impact amphibian species diversity.
Integrated Farming the missing piece for communal farmers
Samson Phakathi, the EWT’s African Crane Conservation Programme Senior Community Project Officer, Samsonp@ewt.org.za
Integrated farming promotes the responsible use of natural resources and farming practices that use fewer external resources, making farming more sustainable. The concept is particularly well suited to communal land where land degradation and the resultant soil erosion and spread of encroaching plant species tend to be quite prevalent. Moreover, it is becoming evident that there is often an imbalance between livestock ratios and the availability of food and water for the animals in these landscapes. The Integrated Farm Planning (IFP) training thus came at a time when most of the community farmers desperately needed assistance to improve their management practices.
Through the National Lotteries Commission (NLC) funding, the Endangered Wildlife Trust engaged with 35 emerging farmers from the Cedarville area in the Eastern Cape. Our goal was to assist them with implementing integrated farm planning (IFP) by hosting a training day in the field that we published an article on in May 2022.
Through the National Lotteries Commission (NLC) funding, the Endangered Wildlife Trust hosted 35 emerging farmers from the Cedarville area to to discuss integrated farm planning (IFP)
The emerging farmers were carefully selected from areas within hotspots of the distribution of the three threatened crane species. These areas contain wetlands and grasslands required for the Endangered Grey Crowned Cranes, Critically Endangered Wattled Cranes, and Near Threatened Blue Cranes. Unfortunately, these habitats are highly threatened by poor rangeland management. The IFP training was designed to upskill emerging farmers to identify management-related challenges in areas where they graze their livestock. The farmers then formulate practical solutions, incorporating local knowledge and capacity to address issues. The IFP training was eye-opening to emerging farmers, who now appreciate that rangeland management is key to the sustainability of communal lands in terms of grazing, water conservation, and community livelihoods. The training emphasized the importance of species diversity in grazing lands and the need to conserve species through improved grazing management.
Emerging famers from Cedarville on an Integrated Farm Planning trip visit to learn from the Black Diamond Community in the Ukhahlamba Mountain Range
After successfully organizing and facilitating the well-attended IFP and sustainable grazing management training, the EWT arranged for a community exchange visit for the Cedarville emerging farmers to the Black Diamond Community situated in the Ukhahlamba mountain range. The Black Diamond community is quite progressive regarding practical rangeland management initiatives. The exchange visit was thus key as it allowed the Cedarville emerging farmers to interact with the Black Diamond community and draw lessons on what can be duplicated, adopted, or adapted to the Cedarville context.
The exchange visit ran from 18–19 April 2022, with over 70 people attending. The Cedarville and Black Diamond communities’ engagements and discussions were quite constructive. What stood out was the ability of the Cedarville emerging farmers to interpret the Black Diamond grazing camps using the IFP training concept, showing that the messaging resonated with the emerging farmers. More emphasis was also placed on encouraging the Cedarville emerging farmers to look at their available local capacity and resources as they improve their rangeland management. This is important, especially if self-sustaining communities with local knowledge and capacity can encourage others to address these issues. The exchange visit was also attended by key stakeholders, including a government department, another NGO, the ward councillor, and a local King.
From the project initiation phase, where robust engagements about the community’s vision for their land and how IFP can complement their activities, to the actual training session and the community exchange visit, we observed the communities taking the lead in identifying local issues, formulating intervention measures, mobilizing resources and capacity, and implementing solutions. The IFP training seemed to be the missing piece, providing the solutions for farmers to succeed, especially in highly strained communal lands in the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal. This paradigm shift to grazing management in communities can only benefit species diversity, livestock, and, more importantly, the stability of soils, vegetation, and the resultant positive spin-offs in the form of community livelihoods.
This training was made possible with funds from the National Lotteries Commission. The NLC relies on funds from the proceeds of the National Lottery. The Lotteries Act and regulations guide the way in which NLC funding may be allocated. The NLC wants the grants to make a difference in the lives of all South Africans, especially those more vulnerable, and to improve the sustainability of the beneficiary organizations. Available funds are distributed to registered and qualifying non-profit organizations in the fields of charities; arts, culture, and national heritage; and sport and recreation. By placing its emphasis on areas of greatest need and potential, the NLC contributes to South Africa’s development.
Cameron Cormac, PhD Candidate with the EWT’s Wildlife and Transport Programme, ctcormac@gmail.com
I am Cameron Cormac, a PhD candidate in my second year of study at the University of KwaZulu-Natal – on my way to a career in conservation. I work with the EWT’s Wildlife and Transport Programme and Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife, researching the effects of linear infrastructure on vertebrates in Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park and northern Zululand.
A typical day for me depends on which of the two study sites I am stationed at when I’m not back in Pietermaritzburg doing data analysis, lab work, or writing up my thesis chapters. When in Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park, I focus on the R618, which bisects the park. My day begins an hour and a half before sunrise in the research camp near Hilltop resort, typically in pitch darkness surrounded by nothing but the sound of nocturnal insects and a light breeze blowing through the trees. A banana and a low-sugar or sugar-free energy drink help me wake up and give me some quick sustenance before I head out for an hour’s drive at 40 km/h through empty park roads. I pass through the gates of Nqumneni ranger camp before taking air and road surface temperature readings at one of three control points.
My morning survey starts after taking the temperatures at the control point on the Hlabisa side of the survey area. I spend two hours driving at 40 km/h looking for carcasses of animals killed along the 18 km survey area. A typical session sees me both trying to find carcasses for my data collection and not wanting to find too many dead animals. I usually find between three and seven carcasses. However, there are times when I don’t find any carcasses and others when there are more than 20. But every day, we are greeted by the fantastic sunrises of Zululand’s Lebombo mountains and often encounter elephants strolling down the road.
Morning sessions end with another hour’s drive back to base camp or a two-hour drive to Hluhluwe town while passing through South Africa’s oldest protected area. We’ll get several sightings of some of South Africa’s iconic animals if we’re lucky.
The rest of my days are spent doing data entry, reading linear infrastructure articles, handling project admin, preparing for nocturnal sessions, and preparing food. Meals usually consist of a light breakfast, yoghurt bowls or eggs and avocado on toast, some form of sandwich at midday and a hearty meal for dinner.
Juvenile Southern African python (Python natalensis) found crossing dirt road near Nqumeni ranger camp
My days end with a nocturnal session, typically after dinner, depending on the time of sunset, which is a rinse and repeat of the morning survey. The only difference is that nocturnal sessions provide exquisite visuals of the setting sun. Nocturnal surveys also usually give us a few very welcome, very much alive herpetofauna (amphibians and reptiles) trying to cross the road. I am a herpetologist, so this gives me great joy. These records fall into another of my data chapters aimed at identifying reptile species likely to cross my survey roads successfully. My favourite kind of bedtime story!
I sincerely thank my sponsor, the Ford Wildlife Foundation, who supplies the vehicle I use to conduct my surveys. Without their generous donation, this project would not be possible.
Chickpea and Lentil Curry Chickpea and Lentil Curry Recipe
This month’s Earthly Eating recipe is a quick, easy, eco-friendly, and healthy vegetarian curry from Dr Jeanne Tarrant, our Threatened Amphibian Programme Manager
Preparation time: 15 minutes or less
Serves: 2-3
Ingredients
1 onion, finely chopped
2 large cloves crushed garlic
1 tablespoon oil
1 teaspoon chilli powder or salt to taste
½ teaspoon salt and black pepper, to taste
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon hot paprika
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon ground coriander
2 x 439 g cans chickpeas, rinsed thoroughly under cold water and drained
2 x 440 g cans tomato pieces
¼ cup red lentils (optional – spinach also makes a nice addition)
1 teaspoon garam masala
Method
Heat oil in a medium pan
Add onion and garlic and sauté until onion is transparent, stirring constantly
Add chilli powder, salt, turmeric, paprika, cumin and coriander and cook for 2-3 minutes
Add chickpeas, undrained tomatoes, and lentils (optional), and stir until combined
Simmer, covered, over low heat for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally
The world’s road networks are highly disturbed and fragmented areas that negatively affect many animals. Wildlife-vehicle collisions are one of the more visible effects of road, estimated to be the second-largest cause of human-related deaths in animals. One of the by-products of the Covid-19 pandemic was much lower levels of human activity related to lockdowns enforced in many countries to reduce the spread of the disease. This decrease in human activity has been named the “anthropause”, which was at its peak in April 2020. With the anthropause came a large decrease in vehicle traffic. The impact of the anthropause, particularly of decreased traffic, on species, was examined in a recent publication co-authored by EWT scientists*. With worldwide travel restrictions in full effect from April 2020, vehicle use dropped by over 50% in many countries. During this same period, scientists found a significant drop in wildlife-vehicle collisions, with as much as a 48% reduction recorded in some countries. The absence of traffic also likely brought about behavioural changes in wildlife and could have had various other ecological effects not yet documented. Some possible changes include animals being able to move more freely between fragmented landscape patches, increases in survival and population sizes, and less spreading of invasive species along roads (see figure below, from Perkins et al. 2022, which illustrates some of the possible impacts of a reduction in traffic).
Traffic noise was another aspect reviewed in this study. Researchers found that animals were less fearful with reduced traffic noise over the lockdown period. Furthermore, they noted that there were localised changes in animal distributions. For example, large animals were spotted moving through urban areas. The lowered volume of traffic noise also resulted in some birds changing their tune. For example, urban birds have been observed to alter the frequency of their song as they no longer had to compete with traffic noise. While lockdowns provided temporary relief, allowing wildlife to thrive again, human activity is recovering to pre-pandemic levels. This brief pause has allowed us to gain new insights into the impact of traffic on wildlife. The return of traffic highlights the need to have proper surveillance measures in place to help document, explain, and reduce the effects of roads on wildlife and critically evaluate the impacts of this widespread human activity on wildlife. *Perkins, S. E., Shilling, F., & Collinson, W. (2022). Anthropause opportunities: Experimental perturbation of road traffic and the potential effects on wildlife. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, 192.**The EWT has a road watch app for you to record any roadkill sightings, helping us to identify hotspot areas and the species most at risk. Search for Road Watch on the Google Play Store to download the app!
The world has many challenges facing it right now, and life is not easy for almost anyone anywhere. No matter how diverse the problems are, they are all characterised by a single factor: a deepening and widening lack of ethical, honest leadership. From the Ukraine – Russian war; to corruption and the collapse of South African SOEs; the lack of service delivery; human-induced climate change; the poor management of the COVID pandemic, and the shocking decisions in the USA to reduce a woman’s right to govern her own body whilst at the same time reducing the limits on carrying handguns in public in New York, leading to “a significant increase in handgun license applications” (Observer, 6/27/22)…. The list is endless. One can hardly think of a political or institutional leader with the faith and trust of their people right now as communities increasingly lose hope that their futures are safeguarded by those they elected to protect them.
How did we find ourselves in a global crisis of the decline in the legitimacy and credibility of leadership almost everywhere? In nature, leadership is earned, after hard and often damaging battles are won, where one’s right to lead is earned by a show of strength, tactical brilliance, commitment and courage. All of which only has meaning because it demonstrates one’s ability to protect, safeguard and ensure future life in the herd/pack /flock you will lead. And leadership is temporary. For once you fail, once you are weak, once you cannot defend, protect, feed, lead or secure the future of your followers, you are out. You do not retain your position through a rigged election or well-funded campaigns, and you cannot continue in a position of power if the future of your followers and the survival of your species is at risk by your actions. Selfishness is not rewarded, and personal gain is punished in a world where leadership is a great responsibility awarded to only the finest and for only that time in which they can prove their worth to the larger group. Every single day.
So how does the most intelligent species of them all find itself in a position where our leaders may well be our downfall and the biggest risk to the future of humanity? Of all the distinctions between humans and the rest of the creatures on this planet, this is the one that puzzles me the most. It is as if we have lost our ability to understand the most basic of all things required from our leaders and to choose them based on millennia-old criteria that really only focus on the survival of the species as the prevailing goal of all leadership.
In nature, leadership is determined entirely by the willingness of followers to be led by that individual. And what makes other animals fall into line and follow their leader? They will follow a leader they can trust to keep them safe, fed and protected; a leader that has their back at all times, a leader that acts with the best interest of the whole; and can demonstrate on a daily basis their ability to sustain the future of their species. This may require tactics like nurturing relationships, creating alignments, choosing allies, fending off enemies, following ancient traditions and demonstrating power through elaborate rituals or combats. And winning the position of leadership will most often then mean less sleep, more courage, a willingness to fight and often. Facing risk, enduring injuries, and often being quite alone.
It seems to me that human beings are doing it quite wrong when it comes to the most fundamental survival tactics of all times: that of choosing our leaders. And the proof lies in where we find ourselves as a species, with all our hardships and difficulties, all of which are entirely manmade. How did the most developed, intelligent species on earth get this one survival tactic so wrong? It is time to revert back to the hardwired expectations of leadership that are engrained in our DNA and to choose a new generation of leaders to demonstrate the kind of behaviours that will sustain our species. At the end of the day we really are just that: another species on this planet. And one which seems to have lost the instinct for survival that is so strong in the wildlife that surrounds us. It’s time to look around and learn.
Hi, I am Delta, a six-month-old brown and white Border collie. My parents work with sheep on a farm in the Eastern Cape, so I have good working genes. I recently moved to the Nama-Karoo to train as a scent detection dog with the EWT’s Drylands Conservation Programme. I hope my nose and enthusiasm will help the EWT with their conservation research projects. My first job is to find Riverine Rabbit scat, so I have started my training on the scent. However, I am still a little bit young to start working full-time, so my human (Esther Matthew) has made it her goal to expose me to as many things as possible. These include places, people and other animals! She recently took me to the EWT head office in Johannesburg. What a great experience! After around 12 hours in the car (not my favourite part), I got to play with some of the other EWT working dogs, which was fantastic. My new buddy, Mufassa, is also a Conservation Canine Cadet in training! I also got to meet loads of new people, saw my first rabbits and chickens, and see all the new sights and smell all the different smells. It was also interesting to live in a different house for a week. I’m already looking forward to my next adventure…
