African Wildlife & Environment Issue 83

& ENVIRONMENT

ISSUE 83 (2023)

DON'T MESS WITH A BLACK RHINO

The beautiful MOUNTAIN SANCTUARY PARK

THE AFRICAN PITTA

THE MAGAZINE OF THE WILDLIFE AND ENVIRONMENT SOCIETY OF SOUTH AFRICA

CONTENTS

The content below is hyperlinked to the article Just click and read

1 Editorial 2 Message from our CEO 3 Good Reads FWF Newsletter 9 Ford Wildlife Foundation Newsletter 4 (2023) Conservation 13 Is the uMzimkhulu Estuary like the Okavango Delta? 17 Citizen Science for Conservation and Science Wildlife Chronicles 19 Don't mess with a Black Rhino!! Fauna, Flora & Wildlife 22 Foraging Purslane from the veld 24 Acacia karoo Episode 2 Gardening for Biodiversity 31 Grewia is great for garden wildlife! Birding 39 The African Pitta Destinations 44 Mountain Sanctuary Park Eco Hero 55 Salomon Cornelius Johannes (‘Sollie’) Joubert Kids Corner 62 Recycling waste 64 Make a worm farm 65 Play Mancala 66 Puzzles 67 Colour in

Ford Newsletter

Don't mess with a Black Rhino

Gardening for biodiversity

68 Fun recycling ideas 69 Wildlife and waste

Subscriptions / General 77 WESSA membership 78 Leaving a legacy 79 Region, area office, branch & centre contacts 80 Publication details

A tribute to Sollie Joubert

Cover photograph: John Wesson The Sugar Bush, found in the Mountain Sanctuary Park is the most common Protea species in the mountains protea belt. Its large amount of nectar attracts birds, bees and butterflies and other insects

Copyright © African Wildlife & Environment. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by and means, electronic or mechanical without the prior written permission of the publisher. African Wildlife & Environment retains the right to make alterations to any material submitted. The publisher, while exercising due care, cannot be held responsible for any loss or damage to material submitted. The views expressed in this magazine do not necessarily reflect those of WESSA. Copyright on all content belongs to WESSA and the individual contributors.

GENERAL

In her CEO’s Letter Helena Atkinson refers to the recent publication of The State of Provincial Reserves in South Africa, Challenges and Recommendations (researched and produced by the EWT and seed -funded by WESSA). The current state of provincial protected areas in South Africa is of great concern, with pressing issues that are threatening their functionality, effectiveness, and viability. But our flagship protected area, the Kruger National Park, a potential international tourism gold mine, is also fraying at the edges. Friends who recently visited the iconic KNP spoke of tattered bedsheets and towels, and a general sense of decay and disinterest by the staff in the camps. A very scary publication dated January 2023 recently crossed my desk. written by Julian Rademeyer and titled Landscape of fear - Crime, corruption and murder in greater Kruger , this story will chill the bones of everyone who cares about nature conservation and the incredible biodiversity of our beautiful country. Here is the summary: “For more than a decade, Kruger National Park has faced a relentless onslaught of rhino poaching. But today its greatest threat is internal corruption, itself a symptom of a breakdown in trust, staff EDITORIAL “Now is the winter of our discontent” (William Shakespeare’s Richard III). This much-quoted opening line may well be quite appropriate to South Africa as we passed mid-winter of 2023 on 21 June. The country seems to be in disarray, with intermittent electricity supply from an increasingly dysfunctional Eskom. Water delivery and quality is deteriorating at municipal level, with the outbreak of cholera at Hammanskraal north of Pretoria being symptomatic of the incompetence and corruption of the politicians that are supposed to be the service providers to those who elected them. Even the seemingly non-political and well-intentioned national parks, nature reserves and protected areas are under siege by the rural poor and the criminal syndicates who are stripping the country of whatever assets they can make money out of, be it copper wire or rhino horn.

Dr John Ledger

cohesion and professionalism within the park. Recent staff arrests following lengthy financial investigations and a renewed commitment to combat corruption are bearing fruit but will require political support, clear law enforcement strategies to address organised crime around the park and a long-term investment.The park is severely affected by corrosive corruption and violent organised crime, particularly in Mpumalanga, where staff living in surrounding communities are vulnerable to deeply entrenched criminal syndicates.” These Mpumalanga criminal syndicates are also behind the destruction of Eskom and the resulting parlous state of electricity supply to South African citizens. They have infiltrated the coal supply chain, stealing the good quality coal and substituting it with poor grades, bulked up with bricks and stones, that damage the milling machines and the boilers at the power stations. They sabotage generation machinery so that their fellow criminals can get the contracts to repair the damage and supply spare parts at inflated prices.The story is repeated at every level of government in South Africa. And at the very heart of all this is the governing political party of South Africa. The Ministry of Forestry Fisheries and the Environment is responsible for protected areas and biodiversity conservation in South Africa. The buck stops right there on the desk of the Minster. Let's hope that she reads the two reports referred to here and takes appropriate action. The situation unfolding in our protected areas is placing us in breach of the international Convention on Biodiversity (CBD). South Africa deserves better than this.

Dr John Ledger Consulting Editor john.ledger@wol.co.za 083 650 1768

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GENERAL

Climate change is changing our home in ways that will impact our lives fundamentally. Higher temperatures and more extreme weather events, too much water and too little water are becoming the norm, extremes which are having severe impacts on the environment, agriculture, and communities. Our carbon emissions keep going up, driven by the heavy reliance on coal for electricity generation and the continued reliance on extractive industries such as mining. Pollution, sewage and plastic in our rivers and seas, is also a major environmental concern in South Africa. Our high levels of air, water, and land pollution have adverse impacts on human health, wildlife, and ecosystems. What we breathe is killing us. Waste management, the stuff we have no use for, is also a significant challenge, with collapsing infrastructure the improper disposal of our waste contributes to the environmental degradation that is now very obvious. Biodiversity loss is also a significant environmental challenge in South Africa. As a consequence of urbanization, habitat destruction, unsustainable resource extraction, and climate change, several animal and plant species face extinction or decline within our lifetimes. To reverse this downward spiral, upon which our socio economic wellbeing rests, means protecting that which remains and rewilding everywhere we can. To address the environmental challenges of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution, at WESSA we have chosen to focus on three core leverage activities: educate, advocate and act. It’s our theory of change and how we intend to get all of society, especially ordinary citizens, to actively take part in solving these challenges. We need to reduce our carbon emissions, particularly how we produce and consume our energy. We have to continue promoting and encouraging our government to move towards renewable energy sources as our long-term energy strategy and optimising our operations to minimise our energy use. We need working and efficient waste management practices to minimize waste generation, to reduce the amount of waste sent to landfills, and encourage recycling and composting. Biodiversity conservation is fundamental in reducing species loss as we recognise the critical MESSAGE FROM OUR CEO As one of the world’s 17 megadiverse nations, South Africa ranks in the top three nations globally when it comes to marine and plant species unique to our corner of the planet. With this treasure trove of biodiversity and natural resources, however, the place we call home is facing several environmental challenges that threaten these resources, including climate change, pollution, overexploitation of resources, and loss of biodiversity. The state of the natural environment in South Africa, which is the bedrock upon which our human wellbeing relies, is of great concern and requires urgent attention from all of us.

importance of biodiversity in sustaining ecosystems and supporting our very existence. Protected areas specifically are an essential element of South Africa's natural heritage and conservation efforts, providing safe habitats for wildlife and ensuring the ongoing protection and preservation of the country's valuable biodiversity. Protected areas also offer countless opportunities for ecological research, tourism, recreation and increasingly so, economic opportunities for the people living adjacent to these areas. However, as the report (produced by EWT and seed funded by WESSA) shows, the current state of protected areas in South Africa is of great concern, with pressing issues that are threatening their functionality, effectiveness, and viability. One of the significant challenges facing protected areas in South Africa is inadequate funding, which limits their effectiveness and impacts their ability to achieve their conservation objectives. Most protected areas face budget constraints, resulting in insufficient resources for addressing various complex conservation challenges such as invasive species control, poaching, habitat restoration, and research. As a result, these protected areas are under-resourced, which limits the effectiveness of conservation activities in these areas. Another challenge facing protected areas in South Africa is aging infrastructure and the lack of proper

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GENERAL

maintenance. Buildings, roads, fencing and other infrastructure within the protected areas require ongoing maintenance and upgrades to remain functional and effective. However, due to budgetary limitations and/ or poor management practices, maintenance is often deferred, and infrastructure deteriorates, negatively impacting visitor experiences and the ecosystems themselves. Then there is the challenge of poaching, specifically by international criminal syndicates, which is a significant threat to wildlife populations and the conservation of protected areas. South Africa is home to a variety of iconic wildlife species such as elephants, rhinos, pangolins, and marine species such as abalone, which are under constant threat from poaching activities. Despite a wide range of anti-poaching measures, including the deployment of anti-poaching units, the number of poached animals continues to increase. Another issue facing protected areas in South Africa is the increasing pressure on land use. As consumer markets and the human populations they serve continue to grow, more land is needed for urban and agricultural development, leading to habitat loss and environmental degradation. Protected areas, and their buffer zones which often act as corridors for conservation efforts across broader landscapes, are increasingly under threat by human activities, leading to habitat fragmentation and degradation. A critical success factor in the success of any conservation endeavor is community engagement and beneficiation. We recognise the importance of engaging with local communities to support environmental conservation, promote environmental awareness, and enable sustainable livelihoods. All of this points to the need to rethink our conservation models. We need to work towards more inclusive models. Conservation has largely in the past been a top-down approach, driven by governments and non-governmental organisations, with not enough input or involvement from local communities. This model has often been criticised for being exclusionary, as it has failed to take into account in any meaningful way, the perspectives and interests of those living in and around a particular ecosystem. This leads to conflict, misconceptions, and strained relations. In theory, inclusive conservation models aim to work directly with local communities, engaging them as key stakeholders in conservation efforts but there is a lack of clear evidence of this being implemented successfully in South Africa at the scale that it has meaningful impact on the conservation success we need to see now. This is not a new argument and suggestion, but it needs to be truly implemented now. This model recognizes that local people have important insights and knowledge about their environment and natural resources and that their participation is essential for ensuring long term conservation success. Key to this approach is that inclusive conservation models require a holistic approach, recognizing that conservation efforts cannot be isolated from other social and economic issues. It is in the creation of resilient communities in and around

our protected areas that we really can see a stronger conservation model. There are real opportunities for protected areas to support the development of small enterprises in the communities surrounding them to provide services needed in the protected areas. WESSA and the Tsitsikamma National Park are planning to offer New Venture Creation training for identified community members in 2023 and this could be rolled out to other Parks and protected areas as well. The goals of such a model should include local communities taking the lead in implementing conservation activities, such as sustainable harvesting of resources, wildlife monitoring, and protecting fragile ecosystems. By recognising the importance of engaging local communities in conservation efforts, we will move towards conservation that is more effective, equitable, and sustainable in the long term. There is a lack of public awareness and participation in conservation efforts, and this is a significant challenge facing protected areas in South Africa. Many South Africans have little understanding and consequently regard for the conservation of wildlife and natural resources, and this translates to a lack of support and investment in the country's protected areas. Despite the challenges facing protected areas in South Africa, there have been some positive developments. The proliferation of technology and social media platforms has created a platform for more effective conservation advocacy and education aimed at creating awareness about the importance of protected areas. It is imperative that we make the most of this opportunity to communicate with civil society. Protected areas in South Africa offer numerous ecological and social benefits, protecting the country's biodiversity and natural resources. However, the challenges facing their effectiveness are significant, and swift action is necessary to address issues such as poaching, inadequate funding, infrastructure decay, and resource pressures. Collaboration between conservation agencies, the government, non-government organisations, the private sector, and communities is vital to the urgent action required to address the conservation crises we are facing. A whole-of-society approach is needed to mitigate our human impact on our planet.

Tamanna Patel, Oliver Cowan, Ian Little, Yolan Friedmann, Andy Blackmore. 2023. The State of Provincial Reserves in South Africa, Challenges and Recommendations. https://ewt.org.za/resources/cpsu-programme/

Helena Atkinson CEO | WESSA

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GOOD READS

Book reviews by Dr John Ledger GOOD READS

‘non-motorised’, involved fossil-fuelled motorised backup support, and a team of helpers who set up camps, fixed punctures and generally made the trip possible. The uncharitable notion of ‘virtue signalling’ briefly crosses the mind… The essays vividly paint the

The Human Dilemma McCallum, Ian and Ian Michler (2022). Living in Two Worlds: Addressing Humanity’s Greatest Challenge. Quickfox Publishing, Cape Town, South Africa. Soft cover, 15 x 23 cm, 328 pages, colour photos in a section, 1 map, 2 diagrams. ISBN 978-0-63970 -629-0. RRP: R352. Ian McCallum is a medical doctor, psychiatrist, wilderness guide, writer, poet and former Springbok rugby player. Ian Michler is a former stockbroker, field guide, writer and photographer. He is renowned

uncomfortable picture of the two worlds we live in. On the one hand is pristine nature, with its unspoilt beauty and biodiversity, as extolled by the wilderness gurus, the dreamers and the poets. On the other is the seemingly unstoppable destructive force of the burgeoning human population, despoiling the planet with its need and its greed, putting human survival and prosperity as the priority above all else. I found this book disappointing in several ways. A lot of humans are acutely aware of the threats our species pose to the natural

world, and great efforts are made to address these through national and international efforts. But the solutions to the ‘greatest challenge’ are overwhelmingly elusive, and difficult to implement. On page 96 the authors rate ‘climate change’ as the greatest threat to the planet (which it is probably not), yet they offer no alternatives to the growing consumption of fossil fuels by China and India as they seek to uplift their people from grinding poverty. By all accounts, they are doing this rather successfully. And wealthy countries with educated citizens tend to look after their biodiversity and wilderness areas quite well… As we know from our own recent experience in South Africa, people need energy to exist and are desperate to access reliable electricity; at the end of the day this ‘need’ will trump environmental issues – sadly but realistically. Note the current proliferation of ‘wind farms’ in South Africa, that kill many bats and birds.This obviously predictable outcome is simply swept under the carpet by the renewable energy developers,

for his involvement in making the film Blood Lions , that exposed the shocking practice of breeding lions to shoot in small enclosures. The two Ians met while working for Wilderness Safaris in Botswana’s Okavango Delta and they are co founders of a safari business called Invent Africa. Both authors have celebrity status in some quarters The first 63 pages and the colour photos describe their four-month, 5,000 km journey on foot, bicycle and kayak through six countries, from the Atlantic Ocean in Namibia to the Indian Ocean in Mozambique. The rest of the book comprises ten essays that deal with ‘humanity’s greatest challenge’. Their ‘great trek’ was originally planned to follow the ancient migratory routes of elephants. The description of this journey is rather brief, and will presumably be dealt with in more detail in a film that was being made by an accompanying team of professional filmmakers. The Ians’ expedition, while portrayed as being

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the ministry responsible for looking after our biodiversity, and certain NGOs who put on their green blinkers when it suits their rhetoric. Ian Michler is adamantly opposed to hunting, yet when properly managed, it can be a valuable tool to ensure the sustainability of biodiversity and human livelihoods. The authors travelled through conservancies in Namibia where the inhabitants embrace hunting as part of their diverse rural economy, yet the Ians apparently did not speak to any locals to get their views on this particular topic! The chapter on conservation success stories is quite uplifting, but some of the details provided are inadequate and light on facts. The success achieved in Cheetah and Wild Dog conservation is based on the scientific principles of metapopulation management of otherwise unviable small groups. This has been done by collaboration between diverse people, hard work in the field, and not by reading poetry. The planet we inhabit does not consist of just two worlds. Our real world is often ugly, grey and

his father was a high school teacher. Dad was appointed as information officer for the National Parks Board, and the family moved to the Kruger National Park when Willie was eight. Here he was in his element in the midst of abundant wild creatures. But for good fortune, his young life could have ended in the crocodile-infested pools of the Sand River, where a certain Dr Nel took his two sons and Willie swimming after work.This ceased abruptly when a horrified Labuschagne Senior learned about it! Willie’s natural progression was to study Zoology at the University of Pretoria. When he was 21 he landed a ‘holiday job’ on the bleak diamond mining operations on the coast of Namibia (then South West Africa) and when he was 23 he got another ‘holiday job’ in the Etosha National Park where he worked with the legendary ecologist Ken Tinley and Hymie Ebedes, the veterinarian doing pioneering research on anthrax. During his Honours year he got yet another ‘holiday job’ (how lucky can you get?) building the Otter Trail in the Tsitsikamma Coastal

mottled, not just black and white. The human challenge is a ‘wicked problem’ that requires many more answers than may be found in this book. A Wild and Wonderful Tale Labuschagne,Willie (2022). The Soul of a Lion. Reflections on a Life Lived Bryanston, South Africa. Soft cover, 15 x 23 cm, 258 pp, colour photos in a section, B&W photos in text. ISBN 978-1 99895 -853-5. RRP: R338. Willie was born on a farm near the rural town of Volksrust on the then Natal/ Transvaal boundary where With Animals. Tracey McDonald Publishers,

National Park under the watchful eyes of Dr Robbie Robinson. What wonderful experiences for a young fellow still a university undergraduate! After completing their Wildlife Management Honours degrees, Willie, Jeremy David and Anthony Hall-Martin did an epic trip in Jeremy’s clapped-out old Willys Jeep to Gorongosa National Park In Mozambique. Willie describes in graphic detail how the three of them went out into the bush with the great Mozambican conservationist, Jose Tello, who had to put an injured bull elephant out of its misery, while Ken Tinley backed him up with a second rifle. The elephant dropped dead one metre from Jose –

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“one of my most hair-raising experiences” writes Willie. He conducted research on Cheetahs in the Kruger Park and in the Kgalagadi National Park for his Masters degree and then changed direction in 1971 and accepted an appointment as

with the world. He writes of his love for his father, his mentor , and of his friendship with the Zulu King, Goodwill Zwelithini kaBhekuzulu. This is a wonderful read, a captivating historical record of the adventurous life of a young zoologist in southern Africa. Highly recommended!

Zoologist with the Johannesburg Zoo. Four years later, at the relatively young age of 31, he became Curator (later renamed Director) of the institution. Here the Labuschagne family hosted a number of orphaned animals that became favourites until they grew into potentially dangerous carnivores. Some of Willie’s stories from the Joburg Zoo are very amusing, and a number of historical events happened during his watch. With the changing politics and societal relationships in South Africa, he had to deal with some die hard old racists on the zoo staff, and he banned the use of

Discover Nature Now Series Young, Joan ( 2023). Mammals of Kruger. Discover Nature Now Series. Struik Nature, an imprint of Penguin Random House South Africa (Pty) Ltd, Cape Town. Soft cover, 13 x 17 cm, 176 pp, 1 map, illustrated with colour photographs. ISBN 978-1-7758- 4819 -6. RRP: R230. This is a new, compact, no -frills series of ‘Nature Now’ guides to the biodiversity of the Kruger National Park. The author has lived and worked in the African bush for 37 years and has spent nearly two decades as a tour guide and environmental

derogatory epithets for people of colour (which did not deter some intransigent employees!). The zoo pioneered night tours, and celebrated the births of a baby African elephant and a white lion. Willie had to play politics with members of the City Council, and developed relationships with the Johannesburg public in various activities and fund raising efforts, such as the Polar Bear Trust. And here the current story ends, but it will hopefully be taken up in further publications, for we know that Willie went on to head up the South African National Zoo in Pretoria, and was honoured to be elected as the President of the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums. After retiring from the National Zoo he spent time in the United Arab Emirates, developing a department of nature conservation. This book is hard to put down, as one shares the escapades of an energetic and fascinating man, who writes in a refreshing and candid style. He comes across as a thoughtful and caring person, a mensch who is not afraid to share his emotions

educator in the KNP. There are no scientific or alternative language names, no mammal distribution maps and just the bare essentials for the tourist visiting the park for the first time. This formula works very well and introduces some 80 species of the mammals that may be encountered here. ‘Successful Safaris’ and ‘Game viewing Tips’ offer good advice, and locations where the visitor might spot certain mammals are suggested. There is a glossary at the end, picture credits and an index. Did you know that leopards are more dangerous than lions, elephants use their trunks as snorkels while under water, giraffes give birth while standing up and no two zebras have the same stripe pattern? Wild dogs, cheetahs and leopards likewise have colour patterns that are unique to individual animals. The photos are superb and the text is terse but packed with relevant facts, without unnecessary verbiage. The images are not restricted to one photo per species, but multiple

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shots are provided where the interest of the visitor may be expected to be greater. For example, there are fine images of lions spread over six pages, while elephants likewise get six spreads. The little rodents and bats get scant mention, for they are not easily seen or identified by the average visitor to the KNP. The work of a number of photographers is used in this fine little book. On page 29 there is a stunning action shot of four Spotted Hyaenas in hot pursuit of a panic-stricken lion. The bottom picture on page 31 depicts a Spotted Hyaena in a snout-to-beak standoff with a large vulture… Oops, this is a Rüppell’s Griffon that does not frequent the KNP, and the image was probably taken in East Africa. Editors and proofreaders need to be sharp on details like this, in case the book is reviewed in African Wildlife & Environment !

names, distribution maps or other frills, and the reader will most often flick through the pages to hopefully find a photograph that resembles the critter at hand that requires identification. At the end of the book there is a glossary, picture credits and an index. Keeping the book simple has a few drawbacks. I have always called members of the fly family Bombylidae ‘bee flies’. In this book the top picture on page 81 is a bombylid fly on a flower, here called a ‘needle-nose fly’, while the so-called ‘bee flies’ illustrated on page 82 do not have the long proboscis typical of the Bombylidae. If this is a bit confusing to a retired old entomologist, it must be equally so for some tourist from Ireland. And imagine the bewilderment of a visitor from Germany looking at the impressive photos on page 45 of a ‘king cricket’ (family Stenopalmatidae) identified only as ‘Parktown Prawns’. “What is this town and can you eat this prawn?”, he or she will probably be asking themselves or their fellow travellers. Apart from a few gripes like this, the little book does a good job overall in introducing visitors to the KNP to the many interesting smaller inhabitant of the Park.

Young, Joan ( 2023). Insects and other critters of Kruger. Discover Nature Now Series. Struik Nature, an imprint of Penguin Random House South Africa (Pty) Ltd, Cape Town. Soft cover, 13 x 17 cm, 176 pp, illustrated with colour photographs. ISBN 978-1-7758- 4821 -9. RRP: R230.

Van Wyk Braam, and Piet van Wyk ( 2023). Trees of Kruger. Discover Nature Now Series. Struik Nature, an imprint of Penguin Random House South Africa (Pty) Ltd, Cape Town. Soft cover, 13 x 17 cm, 200 pp, illustrated with colour photographs and maps. ISBN 978 1-7758- 4172 -2. RRP: R230.

This ‘Nature Now’ offering introduces some of the bugs, spiders, scorpions and other ‘creepy crawlies’ found in the Kruger National Park, dealing with 30 groups and some 200 commonly encountered species. The sheer number and variety of insects makes this a daunting task, but the author has done a good job of putting together a very useful guide to the many ‘critters’ that visitors may spot from their vehicles on game drives, or in the rest camps of the KNP. Many insects and other invertebrates are tiny, so this guide deals mainly with the larger and more conspicuous examples As with the mammal book, there are no scientific

Braam is Emeritus Professor of Botany at the University of Pretoria, while the late Piet worked in the Kruger National Park for most of his life. Both have authored many authoritative books on trees, and no better authors could be imagined to put together this fine issue of the ‘Nature Now’

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series. Unlike the two previous guides reviewed above, this one includes the scientific name of each of the 80 common trees introduced to visitors to the KNP. The striking cover shows a magnificent Marula tree, dwarfing the elephants that have been enjoying its welcome shade. There is much controversy about the number of elephants currently in the KNP and their impact on the trees, but that debate is not for first-time or casual visitors to the Park for whom this concise guide has been written. Each tree is allocated a double page spread, with a photo of the whole tree taking up the left hand page, with flowers, leaves, fruits and other distinctive features opposite, together with a description and notes on where the species may be found. Tree distribution in the KNP is very much dictated by the substrate in which they grow, in turn dependent on the underlying geology. Pages 8 to 25 are devoted to explaining these

relationships, with detailed maps of the various landscapes. Piet was an excellent photographer and many of the images used in the book are a tribute to his skill. Other photographers are credited on page 178, and there is also a glossary, a bibliography and an index. Braam generously acknowledges the assistance of various individuals who helped in the production of the book on page 197. Trees are a predominant and pervasive component of the biodiversity of the KNP, and this excellent little book is an ideal way to introduce their beauty and distinguishing features to visitors who would like to learn more about them.

THE WONDERS OF DESERT LIFE: A COMPELLING, IN-DEPTH READ THE LIVING DESERTS OF SOUTHERN AFRICA Barry Lovegrove

A DEFINITIVE NEW EDITION OF A CLASSIC AVAILABLE AT LEADING BOOKSTORES NATIONWIDE & ONLINE

Join the Struik Nature Club for online talks and events, special offers, prizes and upcoming natural history publications: www.struiknatureclub.co.za

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FWF NEWSLETTER 4 (2023)

FORD WILDLIFE FOUNDATION Newsletter 4 (2023)

The conservation and preservation of the environment has become a major worldwide issue, dramatically changing the attitudes of consumers and the way large corporations do business. Against this background the Ford Wildlife Foundation (FWF) was announced in September 2014, funded by the Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa and supported by its nationwide network of Ford Dealers. The FWF supports environmental education, research and conservation projects in mainly Southern Africa. The Ford Ranger is used to enable the projects to go further and make a real impact in the communities in which they operate. For further information on the FWF, please email wildlife@ford.com.

Sea Search Research and Conservation 9. Leopard Research Project - Cape Leopard Trust 10. Cheetah Metapopulation Project - Endangered Wildlife Trust 11. Black Rhino Range Expansion Project - World Wildlife Fund (WWF-SA) 12. Coral Reef Programme - Oceanographic Research Institute 13. SA Cranes,Wetlands and Communities Project - Endangered Wildlife Trust 14. Threatened species projects, Landscape Conservation Programme – BirdLife SA 15. Ecology and conservation of vultures in southern Africa and impacts of changing land use - UKZN School of Life Sciences 16. Wildlife & Transport Project - Endangered Wildlife Trust 17. Behaviour and ecology of hippos and their ecological role in aquatic and terrestrial systems - UKZN School of Life Sciences 18. International Schools Programme - WESSA – Gauteng 19. Seabird Rehabilitation Support Project - SANCCOB – PE 20. Tourism Blue Flag - WESSA 21. Spatial Planning and Data Project – BirdLife SA 22. Somkhanda Wildlife ACT Emergency Response - Wildlife ACT Fund Trust 23. The People in Conservation Programme – people thriving alongside wildlife - Endangered Wildlife Trust 24. Drylands Conservation Programme - Endangered Wildlife Trust 25. Tourism Green Coast - WESSA 26. Cape Critical Rivers programme – Freshwater Research Centre 27. Mozambique Wildlife Alliance - Wildlife Veterinary and Human Wildlife Conflict mitigation interventions in Mozambique 28. Freshwater Eel Research – University of Mpumalanga 29. Whitebacked Vulture Project – Vulpro SHORT-TERM LOAN VEHICLE Southern Mozambique Sea Turtle Research Project (Supported annually for six weeks with a loan Ford Ranger) - Pierre Lombard

LIST OF PROJECTS - NOVEMBER 2021 1. Threatened Amphibian Programme - Endangered Wildlife Trust 2. Capacity Development of LWS Community Outreach Programmes in Limpopo Province - Lapalala Wilderness School 3. Mabula Ground Hornbill Project - MGHP 4. Critically Endangered Renosterveld Conservation Easement Programme - Overberg Renosterveld Conservation Trust 5. Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds - SANCCOB 6. Carnivore Conservation Programme - Endangered Wildlife Trust 7. Establishment of a National Grassland Park in the Eastern Cape - World Wildlife Fund (WWF - SA) 8. Sea Search Research and Conservation Project -

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F W F N EW ESSLSEAT TLE RA D4 E(R2S0H2 I3P)

University of Mpumalanga Receives Support for Freshwater Eel Research

The FWF is supporting the protection of threatened freshwater and marine environments and their important fishes by providing a Ford Ranger Double Cab 4x4 to the Rivers of Life Programme (RLP) at the University of Mpumalanga (UMP). This vehicle will be used for one of the programme’s new projects that focuses on the ecology of western Indian Ocean Anguillid freshwater eels and their contribution to sustainable fisheries and livelihoods along the east coast of Africa. “Southern Africa’s freshwater eels are remarkable migrating fish species, swimming more than 10 000km from the Indian Ocean into our east-flowing rivers,” says Professor Gordon O’Brien, director of the RLP. “While we boast the greatest diversity of freshwater eels globally, all our eels are threatened by habitat loss due to barrier formation, pollution, alien species and over-exploitation.” Preliminary data indicates that as much as 60% of freshwater eel habitat has been removed in southern Africa, and as much as 40% across the whole African east coast distribution area. “We still have viable populations that can support a recovery plan, and we have an opportunity to contribute to the sustainable, formal use, conservation and management of these eels in the region, but we need action,” O’Brien says. This is a collaborative research project supported by the Western Indian Ocean Marine Science Association, involving scientists from South Africa, Mozambique and Kenya to conserve the region’s most valuable and threatened eels.

O’Brien says “This valued support from the FWF will enable our teams to reach remote areas”. With a capable 4x4 vehicle that we can rely on from FWF, it allows us to leverage additional funding to benefit the project as a whole.” For more information on the RLP visit: https://riversoflife.co.za/

Prof Gordon O'Brien with Westvaal Numbi Ford Dealer Trevor Chibaya

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F W F N EW ESSLSEAT TLE RA D4 E(R2S0H2 I3P)

Ford Wildlife Foundation Provides Mobility for VulPro

The FWF will be playing a vital role in supporting the protection of the African Whitebacked vulture from extinction by supporting VulPro – a vulture conservation, rescue, rehabilitation and research organisation that was launched in 2007. FWF is assisting this project by providing a South African-built Ford Ranger Double Cab 4x4 to the organisation for a period of two years.This will give VulPro the much needed mobility to implement its multidisciplinary approach of African vulture breeding surveys and ongoing rehabilitation of these endangered species, enabling the team to reach remote locations with confidence. “African vultures are a vital part of the ecosystem, yet they are threatened with extinction and their conservation is of extreme importance,” says

A wild Cape Vulture spreads its its mighty wings at the Vulpro vulture restaurant

“Each year we rescue approximately 100 vultures from across South Africa, releasing approximately half of them back into the wild,” All birds that survive but are non-releasable are introduced into VulPro’s successful captive breeding programme where viable fledglings are released back into the wild to boost wild

VulPro’s Kerri Wolter. “We use a multidisciplinary approach to conserving these species, with the emphasis on rescuing injured and compromised birds and transporting them back to our world-class rehabilitation facility.

populations. “Our work takes us all over South Africa to remote locations and hard to reach places.” Along with its rescue and rehabilitation efforts, VulPro started a breeding and tracking research project in 2015, which was further strengthened by PhD candidate and VulPro staff member, Caroline Hannweg’s current research project that began in 2022. “My research project is focused on African White-backed Vulture movement and breeding across Southern Africa.” For more information on Vulpro visit: www.vulpro.com

Kerri Wolter with the keys to the Vulpro Ford Ranger

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IS THE UMZIMKHULU ESTUARY LIKE THE OKAVANGO DELTA?

In a previous article, published in African Wildlife and Environment , I mentioned that the uMzimkhulu is similar in ecological terms to the Okavango The uMzimkhulu is one of the last of our free-flowing rivers in South Africa where a natural flood pulse interacts with the tidal pulse to sustain one of the last fully functional estuarine ecosystems on the Indian Ocean coastline of South Africa.

Dr Anthony Turton

In the case of the Okavango, there are two main rivers – Cuito and Kavango – each with a slightly different flood pulse, but both combining to create

Delta, simply by virtue of the biodiversity both sustain from the unique flood pulse in each system. This begs the question as to how these two rivers might be different. To answer this question, the reader first needs to understand what a natural flood pulse is, to grasp what the impact would be from an altered flood pulse. We can think of a flood pulse as the ‘natural heartbeat’ of a river. The flow in any river is never constant. Instead, it pulses as a direct result of rainfall events in the headwater catchments of the river basin.The peak of the pulse determines the extent of flooding, so it’s highly relevant to wetlands and nutrient distribution, while the ebb of the pulse determines the survival of species trapped in pools during the low flow periods. It’s the difference between these

The Okavango Delta showing tectonic faults

the annual flooding of the Delta. If that flooding is big, then the resultant flow eventually enters the Boteti River that flows into the Makgadikgadi Salt Pans. The Delta is formed by tectonic activity, with two major fault lines defining both the proximal and distil end of the system. It is possible that the faulting might be the southern extremity of the Great Rift Valley of Africa, but some geologists debate this. To make matters even more complex, the crust between these two fault lines is tilting over long time scales, which is a factor that drives the distribution of water and silt into the various distributaries that each terminate along the Kunyere and Thamalakane fault lines. However, the same fault that has captured

two extremes that determine how the downstream ecosystems function. It therefore also determines what the species distribution is over time. This flood pulse is attenuated by dams built on any river, so the impact is disproportionally large because it's amplified over so many different factors like habitat, refugia for key species, and the ultimate diversity of the biomass within each sub-system. Given that both the Okavango and the uMzimkhulu have no dams built on them, they both have a fully functioning natural flood pulse. That flood pulse is complex, because it links the headwaters with the receiving ecosystem, each of which typically has a unique set of characteristic features.

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species that includes whales, sardines, billfish, turtles and gamefish that sustain a vibrant ecotourism industry of international significance if properly developed. The estuary provides an important sanctuary for marine turtles, who stop over during long distance migration to drop parasites that are intolerant of the fresh water. It is also a nursery for a Zambezi Shark population, as well as the Clawless Otter. The bird life is prolific and endemic species of fish include the Ox-eyed Tarpon. The distribution of the freshwater plume is dependent on the timing of the flood pulse and the prevailing wind. It is thus a highly dynamic process, with shorter time scales than those of the Okavango where tectonic activities are a key driver. In the Okavango Delta, change in the distribution of the flood pulse is measured in decades, or even centuries, while in the uMzimkhulu, change in the distribution of silt and nutrients can occur within hours. For example, observed changes to the Okavango Delta over the past century suggest that the preferential flow that used to exit on the western side, has shifted gradually towards the eastern side. This is ascribed to a combination of tectonic activities and the deposition of silt when flooding occurs. Both the silt and the water have mass, and it is thought that this is at least one of the forces driving the tectonic activities now being observed. The important aspect in the context of this

the Kwando River, and diverted the flow away from the Makgadikgadi depression, into the Zambezi River, has also created a hydraulic linkage between the two river basins in the form of the Selinda Spillway. The flood pulse through the Chobe-Linyanti is therefore highly complex, because it is driven by events in the upper Zambezi and Kavango systems.The biodiversity of the Delta and Chobe-Linyanti wetland systems are both extraordinarily rich because of this complex hydrology. In the case of the uMzimkhulu, the terrestrial portion of the basin is somewhat smaller than the Okavango, but is also fed by two different rivers. The uMzimkhulwana, or ‘Little uMzimkhulu’ is a distinctive sub-basin that feeds into the mainstem of the uMzimkhulu upstream of the Helens Rock Rapids, where a large weir is being planned. This will alter the hydrology and sediment transport of the estuary in a fundamental way. The natural flood pulse drives estuarine processes up to Helens Rock, which is the upper limit of tidal activity. Stated differently, a reach of river, almost ten kilometres long, is an ecologically functional estuary of a scale that is unrivalled in KZN. The flood pulse is characterised by the discharge of a silt laden plume, into the Indian Ocean, adjacent to several ecologically diverse Marine Protected Areas that includes the Protea Banks, Trafalgar and the more distant Aliwal Shoal. The biomass production in this area is massive, with a diversity of

article is that while the Okavango is a dynamic system, changes to the silt plume, and therefore nutrient loads, are generally slow and are driven by tectonic forces. This factor is exacerbated by the low nutrient status of the Okavango, which is described as ‘hyper oligotrophic’. This means that nutrient distribution by the flood pulse is derived more from the release of nutrients bound in the peat alongside the waterways during fires, rather than from the headwaters of the river basin. More importantly, it means that the water is crystal clear, enabling predators to hunt by visual

Umzimkhulu Estuary high flood with North Easterly wind

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Umzimkhulu Estuary moderate flood with onshore wind

Depending on the prevailing wind in relation to the timing and intensity of the flood pulse, the sediment plume from the uMzimkhulu behaves in a manner that is fundamentally different from that of the Okavango. For example, a moderate onshore wind drives the sediment and nutrient plume out to sea, away from the immediate vicinity of the estuary. This can change dramatically in a relatively short space of time, if the wind should change direction. When the north easterly wind shifts slightly to a more onshore trajectory, it typically drives an inshore wedge northwards along the coast, visible at least 10 km distant to the estuary, while simultaneously driving the major portion of the plume along the coastline to the south. A slight change in the direction, and/or intensity of that prevailing north easterly wind, suddenly drives the plume in its entirety, away from the southern inshore region, out to deep water. These changes are rapid and unpredictable, with major implications for food web dynamics across a wide range of habitat, from close inshore benthic processes to deeper water beyond the surf zone. More importantly however, these

acquisition of prey rather than feel or smell.This is in direct contrast to the uMzimkhulu. The uMzimkhulu is a highly variable system when viewed strictly in terms of the interaction between just four variables – flood pulse, tidal pulse, nutrient load and wind direction / intensity. In direct contrast to the Okavango, the uMzimkhulu is relatively nutrient rich with a high silt load.This is derived from agricultural runoff upstream, as well as the discharge of sewage into the river at various points along its journey to the ocean.Technically we can consider the uMzimkhulu to be mesotrophic, given the elevated nutrient loads. The good news is that the system has not yet crossed the threshold into a eutrophic status, so widespread algal blooms are not yet a feature of the river. The silt plume is a major driving factor in all aquatic ecosystems downstream of the estuary. This means that the impact of the flood pulse in the uMzimkhulu River has a stochastic dimension to it. The term ‘stochastic’ refers to a random dimension that makes prediction more challenging and less reliable than in the case of the Okavango.

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internationally significant range of biodiversity in areas of measurable habitat loss and ecological degradation. The Okavango is bound

by tectonic activity, that is actively capturing rivers and diverting flows in a unique manner, ending in an inland sea that has now desiccated to the point where it is a massive sodic depression known as the Makgadikgadi. The uMzimkhulu is faster to react, because of the interaction between wind and water, as well as the chemistry and physics associated with the relative density of saline and freshwater. It is the quickness of this change, coupled with the size of the sediment and nutrient plume, that amplifies the impact of any alteration to streamflow something far bigger than merely the loss of estuarine functionality.

Umzimkhulu Estuary high flood with North Easterly cross shore wind

plumes impact on different Marine Protected Areas in different ways at different times. While it is difficult to compare a predominantly terrestrial ecosystem with an oceanic one, we can learn from the Okavango and uMzimkhulu Rivers that complex relationships arise from the interaction between just four variables – flood pulse, tidal pulse, nutrient load and wind direction/ intensity. This enables us to conclude that while each of these two river basins is unique, both sustain an

Prof Anthony Turton Centre for Environmental Management

University of the Free State tony@anthonyturton.com

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