Chester Students Prepare for their African Adventure!

On 16th February 2011, myself and one of my tutors, Andy Lyon, met with this year’s prospective EDGE of AFRICA volunteers to answer any questions they may have and put their minds at ease about what to expect from their African adventure.

Andy started by introducing us both and speaking about the academic side of their trip and the sessions that the university are delivering in March to prepare them for their trip. During these sessions, the students will learn about how to behave within a new country and culture, and how to stay safe while they’re away, as well as getting information on the assessments they will be required to complete. Andy also spoke about what Knysna, and particularly areas such as The Heads and the marina, are like.

After this I was asked to tell the students about my experience with EDGE of AFRICA. I spoke about the structure of my placement (two days per week in the Knysna Tourism office, a day and a half per week on the Khayalethu eco-trail with the Rastafarians, and a two half-days per week in Judah Square edu-centre), our Cape Town orientation in the first week of our visit, and our return to Cape Town once our placements were over. I then gave the students the opportunity to ask me anything they felt they needed to know:

• How safe is Knysna? Can we take pictures openly and feel safe having our cameras out? Knysna is a relatively safe place. Remain as vigilant as you would if you were in this situation at home, and never forget that you are in a third-world country. Take pictures as you would normally but do not walk around with your camera in your hand or around your wrist. One of the most important things to remember is, don’t become complacent with the relative safety of Knysna town centre and assume that everywhere is the same, particularly if you are taking a trip to Cape Town.
  

  Cape Town
• How much money did you spend? It’s all relative to the kind of person you are. Our group went out at night quite a lot and at the time that we were there, there was no internet connection in the volunteer house, so we were also paying to use the internet cafe. I took around £700 and was sent an extra £150-200 by my parents while I was there.
• Was your presence well received in the township? Yes, the people who live in the township are so happy to have you there, and we didn’t experience any animosity at all from them.
• Was there a language barrier? The only language barrier we experienced was with some of the younger children. All the practitioners and teachers/workers etc in the township speak very good English. Every Friday afternoon, we had a Xhosa lesson with Joash, which was helpful in finding out certain words and phrases we could use around the children to keep them under control.
  

  Highest Bridge Bungee Jump in the World
• What was the weather like? Although the time of year is technically going into the African winter, their winter is nothing at all like our winter. The days are mainly warm enough to wear a t-shirt, but you should take ‘hoodies’ etc for in the evening.
• What footwear did you wear on placement? It all depends on your placement. In the preschools and on most other placements, flip flops are okay. However, if your placement involved outdoor work, such as Build Our School or the Khayalethu Eco-trail, trainers or boots would be more appropriate.
• Are there bank charges for drawing money out? There wasn’t with my bank, but I think some banks do have a small fee. An important thing to remember is to ring your bank and notify them that you intend on leaving the country and how long you’re going for, as some banks will block your account if there’s unexpected activity on your card.
  

  Plettenberg Bay Beach
• What was the general vibe you got of Knysna and of being in Africa? I personally thought that it started to feel like I lived there. The volunteer house is very homely, and Knysna itself is very welcoming. At first, working in the township is a culture shock, and nothing can really prepare you for that, but you soon fit in and start to feel like part of a team.
• What is there to do at night? The EDGE of AFRICA staff has a weekly programme of activities for in the evenings. You’ll have a braai once a week, which is like a BBQ and is more of a social event than a meal, and there’s also a quiz night, a games night, a DVD night, and a lecture night, all once a week. Knysna also has a decent variety of bars and clubs for at the weekend.
• Is there a difference between what you can wear in the town centre and what you can wear in the township? Yes, you must make sure you’re covered up when you go into the township, but you can pretty much dress how you would here in summer when you’re in the town centre.
• Other points to consider: Take an unlocked mobile phone with you to save you the time and money of buying one once you get there, as EDGE of AFRICA will provide you with a SIM card when you get there. Go on as many excursions as you can and make the most of your time there. Do as much of your assignment work as you possibly can before you go, so you have as much free time as possible when you’re there. Dress conservatively when going into the township and be respectful of the culture differences.

By Emma Hitchen - 2010 EDGE of AFRICA Volunteer and EDGE of AFRICA Rep based in the UK

Working with the Big 5 of Africa!

It’s already been 6 weeks, 6 amazing weeks that is and unfortunately that means I will be heading back to the Netherlands soon. I can honestly not believe that I am writing my last project summary before embarking on the long journey back home...

After returning ‘home’ at the GRGL, back from a great weekend over in Knysna, I found out the elephants had decided to be naughty and break all the fences around the milkwood tree! ‘While the cat’s away, the mice will play’, I guess. Selati even managed to lift a gate up off its rail so we had to place it back, which took a lot of manpower, but luckily Hein, Patrick and Ettienne managed to do it. Not only had the ellies wrecked all the fences, they had also managed to mess up the voltage on the wires, so Hein and I placed a new energizer just outside the boma, so that everything was back in order.

This week it was time to work on the cheetah skeleton again. I had already assembled it and put it all in the right place (well except for the tiniest of tiny bones maybe) but we still needed to actually construct it. That is why local Ludwig Oosthuizen, a real pro when it comes to building skeletons, came to help me! Behind the rugged appearance of this man lies a crazy amount of knowledge on skeletons and an ambition to start a little museum of his own. Hence, he wanted us to come visit him and his skeletons, to see his ‘life works’. That is why Hein and I took Tammy, volunteer on the Predator Sanctuary project, to see Ludwig and his collection when she came to visit the Big 5 Wildlife Project on Wednesday! It was at a rather deserted farm in an area with no cell phone reception whatsoever and we know this because Tammy kept checking, ha-ha! But I must really say that his collection of skeletons was very impressive, he had literally everything ranging from tiny little birds and bats to entire elands and whales! When Hein thought it time to return to our duties at the lodge we left Ludwig and his bones. On the way back we almost drove into a herd of cows that were blocking the road in front of us, which wouldn’t have mattered because we weren’t supposed to be on that road in the first place, because... Hein got lost! We seriously had to turn around like three times before he found the right road and got us back to the GRGL!

When we finally did get back to the project we had to have a quick lunch before accompanying the wildlife vet on his mission. There was another buffalo with a red eye so we had called the wildlife vet in for a consult. Before darting we tried to lure the buffaloes with pellets to get them to move to a better spot for darting, so that they wouldn’t run into the thicket or water. Then the vet darted the male buffalo with the red eye and they all ran off. When we got to them we saw the male was down but not quite under so we had to restrain him as the vet topped his drugs off to get him to settle down. This buffalo was diagnosed with the same condition as the previous one - conjunctivitis and as such got the same bolus injection of antibiotics just under the sclera of the eye, together with multiple injections of antibiotics that I got to inject! It was very awesome to inject medicine into such a large & powerful animal!

Tammy also got to help us with fixing the wires around the milkwood tree in the elephant camp, this time trying out a new system! We needed a new system because Selati has a very clever way of breaking the wires, he uses his tusks to lift them until they snap, because he knows he won’t shock through them! So this time we collected rocks to use as weights on the end of the electric wires, so that when Selati tries to wreck them, he will simply lift the rocks and the wire will give way in stead of breaking and then when he lets go they will fall back into place... At least that’s the idea so here’s hoping that it’s going to work!

Then after feeding the cheetahs Hein invited me and Tammy to the lodge to have a beer with him and Patrick and obviously we didn’t say no to that! We had a nice chat about our busy day and then it was time for me to drive Tammy to the top gate and say goodbye!

On Thursday Hein and I tried helping the cheetahs Bobby and Victor out in the reserve with stalking and hunting prey! They were out in the open field where the springbok can usually be found and they were looking for food. So Hein positioned the car in the line of view between the cheetahs and the springbok so that they could cover some ground without the springbok noticing. As we did that, Bobby approached the car and was really using us as cover, which was pretty cool, it’s amazing how smart these animals are. Unfortunately, when Victor wanted to join up with his brother the springbok were onto them and the hunt was off... Which is when the cheetahs started focusing on Hein and me, circling the car! Quite scary ha-ha, but we managed to get rid of them!

Then it was time for another excited weekend filled with fun activities! So on the Saturday Hein and Kim dropped me off at Jukani where Roger was waiting for me to bring me back to Knysna for my second visit to the volunteer house. On our way there we had to pick up Sherry (USA/SA) from George airport, who was about to start her project! Then at the volunteer house we met up with Chun (UK), Jonas (Belgium), Katy (UK), Philip (USA) and it was very nice to see all of them again. We had an awesome time in Plettenberg bay where Roger had arranged for us to have a surfing lesson, very tiring, but very cool and I think in the end we all managed to stand up! That night we all went to bed pretty early because the sea had completely tired us out... Even so it was a short night because we had to wake up at 6:30 (!!) for our excursion to Mosselbaai! That is where we met up with Alex (Germany) and went shark cage diving, I will not elaborate on that, just ask Roger how I liked it ha-ha... Let’s just say the others had a great time! We also paid a visit to the Predator Sanctuary Project at Jukani, which was cool because we got to see Tammy again and were just in time for the feeding tour which is really nice to see. Then Roger took us to a backpackers in Mosselbaai which was quite cool because it was an old train turned into a hostel, so we spent the night there after a good dinner at Dros!

Then on the Monday we were all quite lazy so we missed breakfast and ordered our own before packing our bags and leaving for the Garden Route Game Lodge aka the Big 5 Wildlife project! When we arrived at the reserve we found out Hein and the guys were very busy working on a broken water pump, which was quite a laborious task and they couldn’t use us for it. So unfortunately we had no other choice but to go and relax by the pool! After a couple laidback hours, Hein collected us and took us back to the house where he started the fire and we had an awesome braai!

The next day Alex, Katy and Chun joined me on the project and we showed them the reserve. We had coffee with the rhino’s which was really nice and just as we were about to leave them to see the rest of the Big 5 we noticed a flat tire, so we got to spend some more time with them! When the wheel was fixed we showed them what a day at the project is like and as such we did fence checks, cheetah tracking, feeding of the crocs, cheetahs and buffaloes and Hein also taught us a lot about different plant species and which ones are edible and which aren’t. He told us all the medicinal purposes of the aloe ferox plant and said the juice taste very bitter, so he dared us to taste a tiny little drop. Obviously we all wanted to try, but I didn’t listen to Hein’s warning and as such my ‘tiny little drop’ was actually quite large so it was really disgustingly bitter! Luckily, we had some leftover rusks that could take the awful taste away. The guys were actually supposed to leave and head back to their own projects but because they liked the reserve and the project so much they decided to stay another night. So we went into Albertinia and Hein showed us some good student wines we had to taste. That night Hein made us potjiekos by the fire and it was really very good, I think we actually finished all of it. We had a very cool night as we enjoyed our student wines underneath the stars!

The next morning we did a special game drive for Alex, Chun and Katy, which I think they really enjoyed - as did I, even after 6 weeks it never gets boring! Then the four of us went for lunch at the lodge and had the most awesome springbok shanks ever. When we were done, the guys went to chill by the swimming pool and I helped Hein fix the roads and build an enclosure for a rock monitor that friends of his had donated to the reserve the day before. After that it was time to say goodbye to Alex, Chun and Katy as they left and headed back to Knysna...

Then it was really there...my last day on the project! Still can’t believe it and really don’t want to leave this amazing place and these awesome people. I’m honestly leaving my heart behind! There were a lot of odd jobs this day and I got to help on all of them. For instance, Hein had to make a pizza shovel for the restaurant, we had to weld steps onto a game drive car that had broken off and of course there were the usual tasks such as fence checks, rhino patrols etc. I also got to cut the meat for the cheetahs all on my own, which was pretty cool because I had to take the skin off and divide the horses leg into pieces by myself and then dust it with the predator nutrient stuff. After which we obviously fed the cheetahs...for the last time. Then we found out there was a fault in the electric fence in the lion enclosure and Patrick was going to fix it. So I got to embark on this adventure as it was quite tricky because the lions were pretty close to where the fault in the fence was. Then we almost got stuck with the car when we tried to get to the fence as close as possible which was quite funny, but not as funny as when I tried to fix the wires. In all the 6 weeks I had spent on the reserve I had never ever been shocked (well except for the time where I touched the wire on purpose after a couple brandy & cokes) but of course I had to do it on my very last day! As I tried to wiggle the metal into place to stabilize the electric wire to the fence my thumb got stuck and as I struggled to get it out I got the shock of my life. I think Patrick almost died of laughter! It was hilarious, 8000 volts on my arm!

Then we went into Albertinia for the last time where I did some last minute souvenir shopping and got some drinks for my going-away-braai. And before I knew it, it was time for dinner and so the fire was lit and Hein, Kim, Malan, Roger and I gathered round for my very last South African braai... I’ll be back!

Last but not least I want to thank everyone again for making this experience the best of my life! From day one you have gone out of your way to ensure a good stay and a great project so thank you all very much! You are all so very kind and caring and I had the best of times, thanks again guys!

Love to all

Elise van der Heijden

My EDGE OF AFRICA Experience

My EDGE OF AFRICA Experience

By Eavanna Maloney

It has taken me at least three months since returning home to be able to write this blog.

It was too difficult for me to put in to words how I felt about my experience of South Africa. Coming home was one of the hardest things I have had to do……….

I joined EDGE of AFRICA in March 2011 expecting to spend five weeks on their HIV/AIDS Awareness project, and left October! I spent five weeks on the most amazing project where I met the most wonderful people, including the inspirational Dr. Laurel Giddy at the HARRT Clinic and Annalene who runs the mobile clinic at That’s it. I met some fabulous people at EDGE of AFRICA…….. Dayne, Roger, Jo, Joash and Kholi. I met inspirational volunteers from all over the world. I was also lucky to be there for the infamous Chester crowd who gave me numerous laughs and giggles. Mel and Sioban I haven’t forgotten you and you know I love you!! It is difficult to describe how an experience like this can make u feel it truly filled me with love and joy. I was as high as a kite on life and love.

I worked as a Medical Volunteer coordinator from April I looked after volunteers from all across the globe and placed them on various medical projects which included HIV and AIDS Awareness, the Medical Community Project and Hospital Based Internships. I had the opportunity to meet fabulous volunteers. I stayed in the volunteer house which was always a hive of activity and laughter.

Through EDGE of AFRICA I had the opportunity to experience the true beauty and spirit of South Africa and indeed its people. I saw how somebody struggling to survive could be filled with such undying love, joy, generosity and positivity, I also had wonderful opportunities to see the beauty of South Africa on the EDGE conservation projects which included the elephant sanctuary, I had the chance to get up close and personal with some very large elephants, thank you Josaphine!! I was also lucky to go to ADDO Elephant Park and the magnificent Cango Caves at Oudtshoorn.

It really was an amazing experience working with EDGE of AFRICA and I would happily recommend them to anybody wishing to open their heart and broaden their mind. Thank you to EDGE of AFRICA for giving me the opportunity to work with you.

EDGE of AFRICA Beach Festival sizzles

EDGE of AFRICA Beach Festival sizzles

‘Where is your organiser?’ asked the gent on the scooter. He had buzzed down the road into the Buffalo Bay parking lot as we were loading the last of the equipment onto the trailer. Directed to event manager Amanda Dixon and Roger Wynne-Dyke of EDGE of AFRICA Beach Festival, he exploded ‘Congratulations on a slick and smooth event with every attention to the tiniest detail!’ and buzzed off before Roger and the rest of the crew could respond or even ask his name. It was the cherry on the top of a wonderful day, a magnificent end to another successful summer Beach Festival of sports, music and sand sculptures.

After postponing the 16th December start of Beach Fest due to pouring rain and heavy winds, Saturday 18^th dawned to be a spectacular sunrise and, once the thick eerie mist lifted, the sunniest, hottest and windless day the Garden Route had seen in weeks. The team couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful day!

By 8am a great vibe was in the air as the local kids soccer teams arrived in taxi’s at Brenton on Sea and headed down to the mist shrouded beach. After a brief introduction of the proceedings the teams set off down the beach for the 5km walk to Buffalo Bay. Their first challenge was to collect as much washed up litter en route which was to be used in a ‘creative design’ competition highlighting the danger of coastal litter on marine life. This was more of an experience than the organisers had planned; for some of the team members this was the first time they had ever experienced the beach and for most this was to be one of the longest nature walks that they had ever done in their lives- hopefully an inspiration for a lifetime of nature walks.

After collecting a staggering amount of high tide litter, all budding artists’ talents shone through challenging the judges to select a winner. It was the Cross Roads team that captured the spirit of the competition depicting a dolphin ‘littered’ with plastic trash.

The first Sand Sculpture Challenge of the day was enthusiastically entered into by a number of families on the beach who chose from the categories Animal, Fantasy, Comic or Classic castle. The judges had a hard time judging winners of the first 15 impressive sculptures but the overall winner went to a giant hippo ‘wading’ in beach sand.

By 10am, the beach was packed and the full sporting program of the festival was underway. Kids of all ages mixed and joined to form teams to compete in Touch rugby, beach soccer and volley ball. Rugby fans were treated to some fantastic displays of deceptive feints, accurate passes and bursts of speed whilst both formal and informal soccer teams delighted in the beautiful game enjoying the liberty of literally bouncing off the walls inside the giant inflatable beach pitch. The enclosure changes the dynamic of the game as there are no out of play passes and astute players could capitalise on the rebounds. And there was no shortage of talent both in the girls and boys teams with one player’s rendition of Pele’s cartwheel kick! The impact of the 2010 World Cup on the youngsters of the country was evident, especially between the matches with everyone delighting in the thrill of simply kicking a ball at goal.

Belgian volleyballer Jonas Belaen refereed the volleyball and was highly impressed by the skills shown by the local teams of Knysna. Witnessing some power serves, long dives and short quick bursts of speed to return balls, it was local team Shamwari that took first place.

Rasta band Judah Square turned the atmosphere tropical when they arrived and played their chilled set whilst looking over the calm azure blue waters of Buff Bay. This, together with the arrival of a giant motor yacht made one feel you were lazing somewhere off the Carribean islands!

Although winds weren’t quite right for them, paragliding outfit Windmaster paragliders had their ‘trike’ there to demonstrate to all who were interested exactly how the little beast worked.

Many beachgoers commented on just how much fun and what a great day they’d had and promised they’d be back again next year. So if you missed out on the 2010 summer Beach Festival of sports, music and sand sculptures, be sure to mark off December 16^th 2011 and we’ll see you next time round!

My 4th week on the Big 5 Wildlife Project

My 4th week on the Big 5 Wildlife Project

By Elise van der Heijden

Wow, a month has passed since I first arrived here on the project. It’s just amazing how fast time moves here. I guess it’s true what they say - time flies when you’re having fun!

This week started off with me paying a visit to another EDGE of AFRICA project - the Predator Sanctuary Project! Kim and Malan drove me up to project where Daleen (sanctuary employee) and Tammy (fellow EDGE of AFRICA volunteer) were awaiting my arrival. They showed me around for a bit at first, explaining what and where everything is and what the aim of the sanctuary is etc. Then Tammy took me into the enclosure of Phoenix, the 5 month old caracal and introduced me to him. He was very cute, playing with his little teddy bears, but don’t be fooled by his pretty face because his nails are already very sharp and dangerous (just check Tammy’s arms for proof)! After that we got to build a shelter for the tigers in the sanctuary, using wooden poles and nails and we had to take down a fence in the cheetah’s enclosure to provide them with more space. I also got to meet the cheetahs, as they were in the enclosure when we were taking the fence down and they licked my hand, which was a really cool experience! Last, but definitely not least, I got to join the ‘regular’ tour and feeding tour around the sanctuary, which was very informative and interesting. Thanks Predator Sanctuary!

Another exciting day was when I finally (!) got to meet Roger (EDGE of AFRICA Co-Director), who came to drop off famous French journalist, Thibault Jean-Jean, at the reserve. Thibault is currently working on a book on volunteers and their projects, so he was visiting all the EDGE of AFRICA projects and interviewing the volunteers. We took him out in the reserve and did all the things that constitute a typical day for a volunteer on the project - fence checks, cheetah feedings, checking up on the rhino’s and other animals etc - basically took him on a game drive with benefits! After Hein and I showed him the reserve, we went to sit down at the lodge, which is where he interviewed me for his book (and took way to many pictures of me haha)!

This week has been all about feeding the big cats at the reserve. On Tuesday, Patrick and I went to collect a dead donkey at the neighbouring farm, which had only died that morning. We took it back to the butchery at the reserve and removed all the legs, which are cheetah food for the following days. The rest of the carcass was meant for the lions and as such we took it into the lion enclosure. The idea was to quickly drop it off by driving in reverse and then breaking so that the carcass would fall off the car... But somehow the brakes were not as strong as they needed to be so in the end I had to pull the handbrake simultaneously with Patrick braking which was pretty funny, and we managed to get it off in the end!

The two free roaming cheetahs out on the reserve managed to get hold of a proper dinner as well, when they made their first springbok kill on the Tuesday. It was amazing to see them eating their first springbok out in the reserve again and they consumed it so quickly that they looked like they were pregnant! But that’s not all, because early Friday morning they managed to take down another springbok... Guess what springbok, Bobby and Victor are back on track!

Another big project we had going this week was the front gate. We had to make a new proper front gate out of two old gates and some scrap metal pieces. So we were in need of a plan! And as they say in South Africa “n boer maak 'n plan” – directly translated to mean ‘a farmer makes a plan’. In other words South Africans can be very resourceful! We decided to use one of the gates completely, a couple of metal poles and the middle part of the other gate. Hein and Piet taught me how to grind and weld on the spot and that’s how we got started on the project! It took us two days to put all the pieces together and we then moved it up to the front gate and put it in place, after which we painted it black. It actually looks very neat and professional!

Another thing that kept us busy during the week, was fixing all the fences at the elephant camp - thank you for that Selati (naughty reserve elephant)! He kept breaking all the wires around the milkwood tree, the wires around the boma to try and get in, and just fences in general. It was like he was doing it on purpose to keep us busy! We will be trying out a new system on the wires around the milkwood tree next week though to keep him from breaking them all the time, so here’s hoping that that’s going to work!

After a busy week on the reserve there was some time for relaxing on the weekend! On Friday afternoon Tammy and I took the BazBus all the way to Knysna, where Roger collected us from the Knysna pick up point and took us to the volunteer house. He then took us out to a bar at the waterfront for drinks. A little while later we drove downtown and that’s where we met up with the other volunteers - Alex (Germany), Carla (Netherlands), Chun (UK), Katy (UK) and Philip (USA). We spent some time at the Swing Café (local live band venue) and then returned home to chill by the fire.

On the Saturday Joash (another EDGE of AFRICA staff member) took all of us on an excursion to Oudtshoorn in the Karoo! We went to an arts & crafts market, the Cango Caves and an ostrich farm. The caves were absolutely stunning and it was very interesting to learn about the different kinds of formations that grow there. The best part of the excursion was definitely the ostrich farm - we got to feed and ride the ostriches! That was totally awesome!

That night all of us went into town again and had a great time hopping from bar to bar as they closed down one by one.

Then on the Sunday morning (way too early), Roger took me and Tammy to the Knysna heads for breakfast, which was really very nice! So, all in all a great week and a wonderful weekend up in Knysna!

Until next time…

Elise van der Heijden (from Holland in case you didn’t guess)

EDGE of AFRICA Volunteer

Big 5 Wildlife & Conservation Project

November 2010

Is an introduction of elephants to the Knysna Forest feasible? By Jo Kotze, EDGE of AFRICA

Introduction

The few remaining elephants that continue to survive in the Knysna forest are the World’s most southerly elephants, and represent just a small fraction of the estimated 10,000 elephants that resided in the Cape region prior to European settlement in 1650 (Hall-Martin 1992). The decline of the Knysna elephants has occurred over many years and their decline has been attributed largely to hunting practices.

By 1876 an estimated 400-500 elephants remained in this area and these elephants were under heavy pressure from hunters (Phillips 1925). By 1908 only 20 individuals remained and these elephants were declared Royal Game (Kinloch 1968). In 1970 the population stood at 11 individuals and the continued decline was attributed to illegal hunting (Carter 1970). However, it has also been suggested that inadequate forest forage resulting in poor reproductive success caused a population crash in the 70s (Vermeulen 2000).

Knysna elephants & Forest habitat

Seydack et al. (2000) suggest that the decline of the Knysna elephants is attributable to the low nutrient/carbon ratios in the diet available to them, having been confined to a predominantly forest environment due to residential and agricultural development in the area. The low nutrient/carbon ratios are thought to result in low metabolic turnover rates and thus reproductive rates that are too low to offset mortalities (Seydack et al. 2000).

Prior to the increase in residential and agricultural development, seven to eight decades ago, both source and sink populations of elephants existed within the Southern Cape (Seydack et al. 2000).

In terms of habitat patches, source patches can be defined as “productive sites that generate a seasonal supply of migrants to other patch locations” and sink patches can be defined as “unproductive sites that only receive migrants” (Hanski & Gaggiotti 2004).

In the case of the Knysna elephants, the source population occupied more open vegetation types, whereas the sink populations resided primarily in the forest and were sustained by immigration from source populations (Seydack et al. 2000). Based upon this model, Seydack et al. (2000) suggest that the Knysna elephants represent a remnant sink population.

The Wildlife and Environment Society of South Africa (WESSA) have a similar view on the Knysna elephants. However whereas Seydack et al. (2000) suggest that the Knysna elephants are a remnant sink population that cannot persist due to the demise of the source populations; WESSA suggest that the Knysna elephants have been forced into the forest due to human encroachment.

WESSA state that “In general, the indigenous forest, fynbos and exotic plantation areas to which the elephants are limited by human activity are nutritionally poor. Nutritionally superior areas, from which the elephants are presently excluded, exist between Mosselbay and George. It is thus most likely that the Knysna elephants are a relict population forced into unsuitable habitats by human encroachment. If this is the case, then the reintroduction of more elephants will only postpone the extinction of this subpopulation.” The statement also adds that “If, however, reintroduced elephants do manage to increase in numbers it is most likely that their impact on the largest and best-conserved indigenous evergreen forest in southern Africa could be substantial, and culling would need to be instituted” (WESSA Policy Statement 2001).

1994 introduction of elephants

In 1994 an attempt was made to supplement the Knysna elephant population by introducing 3 young female elephants from Kruger NP. The hope was that these introduced elephants would join up with what was believed to be the only remaining elephant, an elderly matriarch in the forest. However, one of the elephants died on release and the other two elephants preferred to spend the majority of their time in the more open fynbos habitat. In 1999 conservation officials decided to move the introduced elephants instead to Shamwari Game Reserve (Seydack et al. 2000, Milewki 2002).

Conclusion

Both the suggestions of Seydack et al. (2000) and those of The Wildlife and Environment Society of South Africa (WESSA Policy Statement 2001) imply that to re-introduce elephants into the forest itself may not be feasible due to the nutritionally poor habitat resulting in low reproductive rates.

The 1994 re-introduction attempt also indicates that even if elephants were to be introduced into the forest, they wouldn’t necessarily be inclined to stay there.

However, there is one concept that could be a feasible way of re-introducing a sustainable population of elephants not to the Knysna Forest, but to the Garden Route area in general; and that is the proposal of an Eden to Addo corridor.

Eden to Addo Corridor

In simple terms a conservation corridor is a strip of land joining two protected areas. Conservationists have come to realise that simply creating isolated protected areas is not sufficient to protect the complex processes required for proper ecological functioning. A conservation corridor allows for freedom of physical movement and freedom to exchange genetic material; both of which are vital for the survival of organisms.

The dream is to create such a corridor which would start in Plettenberg Bay and radiate out until the Eden municipality is linked to Addo National Park. The corridor would comprise a zig-zagged stretch of land that unites private landowners, conservation authorities and the state. This corridor would connect the existing three mega-reserves of the area – Garden Route Mega Reserve, Baviaanskloof Mega Reserve and Addo Elephant National Park.

Most excitingly, in theory this conservation corridor could re-establish ancient elephant migration paths across the Cape....

(Eden to Addo Corridor Initiative)

References

Carter, B. (1970) ‘Knysna Elephant Survey: February 1969 – January 1970.’ Report to the Wild Life Protection and Conservation Society of South Africa, Eastern Province Branch, Port Elizabeth, South Africa.

Eden to Addo Corridor Initiative (2007). Available at:http://www.edentoaddo.co.za/about.html. Accessed: 15 November 2010.

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2 weeks on the Big 5 Wildlife Project, South Africa

Two weeks on the Big 5 Wildlife Project

By Alma Wallin Hedén & Hanna Träff (From Sweden) and Elise van der Heijden (From Netherlands)!

Ever since the first day on our project we have been feeding the elephants, Kidibone and Selati. It was a little bit scary at first, but it only took that first day and it had grown on us. Now we love it when they chase the vehicle to get their trunks on the pellets one before the other. Cleaning the elephant boma was also a part of our duty, but even this dirty work didn’t put us off, especially with Corne, who was always great fun to work with! Meeting the elephants in the evenings, before they go into the boma, you really get to know their personalities when they show off their tricks for treats!

Recently, the farmers surrounding the reserve have had trouble with a caracal that has been killing their lambs and sheep. It seems that this caracal is no longer killing just for food, but it is simply killing for the sake of killing. We had to go out at night on a bucky and drive around the property to search for it. It was really exciting even though we didn’t find it. Because standing in an African night, in total darkness and hearing the lions roar is a memory that will last forever!

The other daily routine, a bit more frightening, is providing the cheetahs with dinner. At first they look like cute little kittens, but as soon as they smell the meat they turn into the wild predators they are and always will be! Cutting the meat was also a part of this routine and having Elise on our side was a big contribution to the team when it came to that. Hein tried to convince us that you could be safe inside the cheetah’s enclosure as long as you show that you have authority and confidence. By taking us inside Inyanga’s enclosure with nothing more than a branch and a couple pieces of chicken he proved his theory right. What a thrill!

One day Hein and Corne took us up to the mountains in a valley, to teach us how to handle rifles. We got to shoot at targets from 30 metres and 100 metres with a 0.22 and a 0.308 Calibre, respectively. The whole thing was exhilarating but Hein’s compliments on our shooting made it even better! After the introduction to rifles we had to bring our skills into practice, when it was time to feed the snakes that are starting to feel hungry now that the temperature is rising. Unfortunately, summer time isn’t good news for every animal on the reserve, this time several small birds were unlucky... It felt bad, but sometimes it’s the law of nature!

Snakes weren’t the only reptiles whose appetites were awakened by warmer times, now also the crocodiles were ready for some food! Luckily, a local farmer could provide us with some chickens so we went to pick them up.

With the reptiles becoming all active again in summer, one of them, the Cape Cobra, even managed to escape its enclosure, but it didn’t get far and quickly got caught. After we discovered our talent in interior decorating and design the snake could be returned into its brand new enclosure!

Other important tasks in a game reserve to keep the animals and the guests happy, is general maintenance. Our duties in that area have been conservation work with planting trees. To make this gardening a little more exciting we got to plant them in the lion enclosure, so one of us had to keep an eye on the lions throughout the planting. Furthermore, there were a lot of roads that were flooded and muddy so they were a risk for the game drivers to get stuck in. In order to prevent that, we had to fill them up with rocks collected on the reserve. Also, with the cheetah release coming up, we needed to put up signs on fences all around the property about both the risk of dangerous animals and the voltage.

Something else we have really enjoyed doing in any and all weather conditions, was feeding Lucerne and pellets to the giraffes, buffaloes and rhinos. It was amazing to be so close to these animals and just watching them eat and behave naturally.

Last, but definitely not least, we would like to mention how welcoming and caring Kim and Hein have been to us since day one! They have been so dedicated to making sure that we would be able to make the absolute best out of our stay in South Africa. We couldn’t have wished for better hosts, there is no way to thank you enough! Surely, we will not only miss the work and all the animals but also very much the people, the hospitality and of course all the wonderful ‘braais’ (South African bar-b-que)!

For more details on EDGE of AFRICA wildlife & conservation projects visit: http://www.EDGEofAFRICA.com/

Living & experiencing locally is not only a cheap way to travel but a far more beneficial one…

Living & experiencing locally is not only a cheap way to travel but a far more beneficial one…

When one thinks of traveling, usually the first thing that comes to mind is hotels, resorts and maybe a bit of camping or backpacking. Throw in some beaches, culture, sports and local food in and that is, for the majority of us, what a holiday entails.

How about…

…living, eating and working with locals? Does that sound at all interesting? The concept was born several years ago in the form of volunteer projects for the youth and gap year travelers and has now exploding into a great way to travel for all ages. In short it means your holiday expenses go towards local initiatives and you get to learn and live with ‘real’ people whilst on holiday. For some this could be 2 weeks and for other 2 months and even more.

Well, that’s the short of it, but now let us looks at what’s happening in the small town of Knysna, South Africa and how local movements are benefiting to community and the tourists:

• Wildlife & conservation projects run and supported by locals but still aimed at tourists. These projects raise awareness while still being beneficial to local conservation and tourist admirers. http://www.edgeofafrica.com/volunteer/project/everything-elephant/
• Community development projects supporting local initiatives and creating sustainable solutions and not just short term rewards. http://www.edgeofafrica.com/volunteer/project/inspiring-edge-/

Two local success stories:

• Knysna’s Recycling Swop Shop – donate unwanted items and they will go towards a project aimed at teaching life skills and creating conservation awareness. http://edgeofafrica.com/news/events/
• Big 5 Wildlife project – a course designed for locals and tourists to not only experience Africa’s famous big 5 but learn survival techniques, animal handling, reserve management and so much more. http://edgeofafrica.com/volunteer/project/big-5-wildlife-project/

To find out more about how to get involved while traveling in the beautiful part of the Garden Route, South Africa visit www.EDGEofAFRICA.com

The Heart of an International Volunteer Organization Lies in it’s Local Volunteers

The Heart of an International Volunteer Organization Lies in it’s Local Volunteers

Where would EDGE of AFRICA be without the help of our local volunteering staff? The answer… still stuck on square one!

South Africa is blessed with one of the most diverse and picturesque countries in the world. For this reason South Africans love traveling their own country more than international traveling. And so to do the million of tourists that flock to our shores and mountains, bush and desert each year.

What makes South Africa so special and why is it worth volunteering for?

Well for starters it’s hard to find a South African that doesn’t care immensely about there country and heritage be it natural or cultural. Warm people - warm climate, big heart – big smiles all round!

EDGE of AFRICA relies on team work with members based world wide however the core team includes local conservation specialists, community workers, home based carers and project coordinators. Close relationships with specialists in every project field are carefully nurtured, and constant updates with the local councils, medical professionals, researchers and community members ensure the support of reliable, sustainable projects. Every volunteer joining a project contributes to a team of people that truly cares about the integrity of the projects and their end goals.

We value the ties kept by volunteers long after they return home. Their donations, personal updates, ideas and mere support by keeping in touch prove the value of our projects and add to the lives of everyone getting involved.

We have a saying in South Africa – it is sometimes to hard to say goodbye, so we would rather just say “until next time…”