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Living out here in the wilds, one strives to have as little
human impact on the flora and fauna as possible. In a perfect world
this would be easy, but in reality, the mere creation of fenced Game
Reserves, no matter how large, do have an affect on the ecosystem. However,
having said that we have to realize that these fenced safe havens with
supplied water points, controlled fire regimes, organized game counts
and culling are there for the benefit of these systems as a whole.
That is the bigger picture, but what about day to day encounters with
injured or orphaned animals and when is it all right for humans to interfere?
On principal we do not assist an animal that has been injured in a natural
way but will assist when an animal has been harmed at the hand of man,
e.g. in the case of a snared animal.
We have come across various species on animals that have fallen prey
to the dread of poachers' snares. The type of poaching we experience
here is in the form of subsistence poaching. This means that snares
are set to catch small antelope for meat. Unfortunately, larger animals
and most often scavenging predators end up with their necks in the noose,
so to speak. After the field guides or trackers have reported an incident,
the first course of action that we take is to phone through to the State
Veterinarian at Skukuza in the Kruger National Park. They will then
assess the specific situation and usually come here as soon as possible.
We have experienced cases of Lions and Wild Dogs caught in snares, mostly
around the neck and once a Wild Dog had one around its waist. The vets
start by sedating the animal with a dart gun, then approach carefully
and remove the wire. Next comes the cleaning of the wound, which differs
from case to case depending on how long the snare has been there before
detection. Finally the animal gets a dose of anti biotic to stop potential
infection and then an antidote is given to wake the animal up. The procedure
is done as quickly as possible to avoid complications that can arise.
Two years ago our local Wild Dog pack had denned outside the reserve
boundary, where there is a higher percentage of snares for small antelope
that live amongst the rural communities. One a particular drive, two
of our vehicles with Lex Hes and Steve Baillie behind the respective
wheels, came across the alpha male dog that was entangled in a snare.
With the struggle that ensued, he fell unconscious. There was no time
to gets the vets in, so Lex and Steve jumped off their vehicles and
cut the dog free. The dog revived and continued in his pack leadership
position. Another incident with the same pack, the alpha female was
reported with a snare around her neck. We called through to the Kruger
vets, but they were out on another call and could not help us. Due to
Wild Dogs being so endangered, we placed a call to Dr Muller, a private
vet in Hoedspruit, 100km from here. He raced here as fast as possible
and managed to save the dog's life.
Some animals are not so lucky. About a year ago our guides found a hyena
at a kill. She was severely wounded by a snare that went through her
mouth and around the back of her head behind her ears. She must have
had the wire for a while, as it had cut through her cheeks. Again calling
the vets, they had told us that the wound sounded far too bad to treat,
and the best option was to end it quickly. We had to shoot her.
Then we had a scenario where nature had lead to scenario where we needed
advice from the experts. An elephant had lain down to die (click
here for this story). Although there was no sign of a human inflicted
wound, we could sympathise with the pain of this animal. After ending
his life and inspecting the body, we saw the massive extent of the injury
probably due to a fight with another bull elephant.
Years ago we came across two white Rhino bulls that had had a territorial
battle. One of the bulls had a gaping wound through the ribs. Upon phoning
the vets, they advised us to let nature take its course. We were surprised
at this advice, thinking that Rhinos may have a slightly higher priority
than other game. As the weeks passed we were astounded at the speed
at which this Rhino recovered. He may have lost his dominance in that
area in that fight, but he moved south and became the dominant Rhino
of his own new territory.
The saddest event that we have witnessed was on New Year's Day 2002,
when we came across a dead black maned lion. We were shocked and whilst
inspecting the body found what had happened to him. He had a snare deeply
embedded in his neck, hidden under his full mane. A very sad scene indeed.
Where does one go from here? The Sabi Sand Wildtuin has set up an anti-poaching
unit that patrols the perimeter Game Reserve fences looking for signs
of unsolicited entry or animals that have broken out. They perform the
necessary repairs and then scan the area for snares, often along dry
drainage lines where the dense vegetation hide the evil traps. Most
of the time they remove the wires before any harm is done. The students
from Eco-Training (www.ecotraining.co.za)
also help out at the private reserves. One of their course modules covers
poaching, and we use these willing hands to survey areas and remove
snares if they are found.
Perhaps the most valuable option is to uplift the economies in surrounding
rural areas. Employment opportunity is the most obvious way to go, but
there are only so many jobs to go round. Djuma focuses on education
from a pre primary level upwards and encourages communities to start
getting involved with tourism in various forms. We have come a long
way and have started noticing the impact on communities when they realize
the fruitful effects and benefits that tourism has brought to their
lives.
Pippa Moolman
Please note that the opinions and policies expressed in
this article pertain to Djuma Game Reserve and may differ from other
Private Game Reserves and National Parks.
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