AFRICA's BOWHUNTER - December 2015 by PressPad

Cover image: Jeanine van Kradenburg. See page 18.

CONTENTS 5 Kommentaar 7

From our readers

Hunting blue wildebeest

Cape buffalo hunt with a traditional bow

Hunting: My experience

Product showcase from Sniper Africa

Hunting with Dr Adrian de Villiers at Crocodile Safaris

From the worst to the best

Have your skin cheched!

My hunting knives

Bowtest: The Hoyt Nitrum Turbo

Videoing your bowhunt part 3: Editing

42 Erfenisdag-bulletjie 44

Readers' Trophies

The realities of buffalo hunting

Subscribe and win

For the kidz – test your knowledge

Product showcase: 2016 Mathews Halon and No Cam HTX

Bowhunting opportunities

The way I see it: Eat what you shoot and shoot what you eat

AFRICA’S BOWHUNTER

Africa’s Bowhunter [ABH] is an independent monthly publication for the archer, bow hunter, game farm owner and nature lover. Copyright on all articles and material published in ABH resides with the publisher. No part of ABH may be copied or reproduced without permission of the publisher. Opinions expressed in articles or advertisements do not necessarily reflect those of the editor, editorial committee or publishers. Submission of articles for publication is welcome, but although care is taken, the publisher can accept no responsibility for loss or damage to any material submitted. Africa’s Bowhunter Magazine cc [CK/] 96/32848/23 PO Box 31688 Waverley, 0135 South Africa Tel: 012 330 3464/1301 Fax: +27 86 615 7044 E-mail: editor@africasbowhunter.co.za Website: www.africasbowhunter.co.za Office address: 880A Crots Street, Rietfontein, Pretoria. PUBLISHER Rean Steenkamp E-mail: editor@africanarcher.com EDITOR Rean Steenkamp E-mail: editor@africasbowhunter.co.za HUNTING/ENVIRONMENTAL EDITOR Cleve Cheney Cell: 082 922 5547 E-mail: cleve@africasbowhunter.co.za COPY EDITOR Emmerentia Steyn DESIGN AND LAYOUT Rean Steenkamp E-mail: rean@africasbowhunter.co.za REPRODUCTION & PRINTING Paarl Media Midrand Telephone: 011 201 3460 DISTRIBUTION RNA Distribution Hazel Luüs Tel: 011 248 3639 SUBSCRIPTIONS Yolande Steenkamp E-mail: yolande@africasbowhunter.co.za ADVERTISEMENTS Yolande Steenkamp E-mail: yolande@africasbowhunter.co.za

AFRICA’S BOWHUNTER NOVEMBER 2015

COMMENT

Jou boog – die perfekte vrou

y het haar gesoek tot sy presies in jou hand gepas het. Sy het aan al jou vereistes voldoen. Dit was aanvanklik duur om haar joune te maak, maar sy is nie veeleisend om te onderhou nie. Sy weet jy is lief vir die veld. Sy wil saam met jou daar wees. Sy is tjoepstil as jy ‘n bok bekruip en sy is saam met jou geduldig in die skuiling terwyl jy wag. Sy gaan nie ‘n keel opsit as jy die sneller trek nie en sy gaan ook nie jou gat skop as jy skiet nie. Sy weet jy wil met haar spog by die manne. Jy hou van haar kurwes en sy weet hoe afhanklik sy van jou krag is om haar te laat funksioneer. Sonder jou is sy net ‘n mooi instrument, maar met jou bereik sy haar volle potensiaal. Sy is nie jaloers nie. Sy weet jy hou van gewere en visstokke en sy laat jou toe om tyd met hulle te spandeer, want sy weet haar natuurlike aantrekkingskrag is voldoende om jou getrou te hou. Sy weet ook jy het nie regtig ‘n visstok of ‘n skietstok nodig as sy by jou is nie, maar sy wag geduldig vir jou tot jy weer tyd aan haar spandeer. Sy weet hoe jou een hand haar liggies kan vasvat, hoe jou ander hand haar ten volle kan laat uit strek, hoe jy jou wang teen haar snaar druk en jou oog hier by hare sit. Sy weet hoe jy jou asem liggies uitblaas en konsentreer om te ontspan. Dan hou sy saam met jou asem op tot die pyl die teiken tref. Al klop die manne jou op die skouer vir die goeie skoot weet sy dat jy nie op jou eie ‘n pyl so kan gooi nie, maar sy sal nie jou donder steel nie. Daarom is dit vir jou ook maklik om haar lief te hê, te versorg en mooi op te pas. Jy weet hoe kosbaar sy vir jou is. Jy weet julle is ‘n perfekte simbiose – sonder mekaar is julle gewoon, maar saam is julle ‘n prentjie wat ander beny. Julle verteenwoordig avontuur, vryheid en waagmoed, die een vul die ander perfek aan. Sy bring ‘n balans in jou lewe wat moeilik is om te beskryf! Daar is ook net een tydskrif wat haar ten volle besing en dit is die Africa’s Bowhunter. Ander jagtydskrifte praat oor haar maar ken haar nie so goed soos jy nie. Hulle verstaan nie haar potensiaal nie en skat haar nie na waarde nie. Hulle skryf maar oor haar want hulle is bang hulle mis die aksie. Die afgelope 15 jaar bedien ons die boogmark in Suider Afrika en ons gaan dit aanhou doen, want die boog is in ons bloed! Boogskutters se vrouens het ook die afgelope paar jaar agtergekom “If you can’t beat them, join them” en die gogga het ons lelik gebyt. Vroue skiet boog dat die biesies bewe - kyk nou maar vir Jeanine van Kradenburg, ons voorblad nooi. Sy is nie net ‘n kampioen teikenskut nie, sy skryf ook op bladsy 18 hoe sy haar eerste jag ervaar het. Die mooi-van-lelikgeit blou wildebees is ‘n gesogte teiken onder boogjagters omdat hy so vollop en bekostigbaar is vir die hoeveelheid vleis wat ‘n mens kry. Cleve Cheney bespreek in fyn besonderhede hoe ‘n mense dié vlakte dier kan plattrek. Om ‘n buffel met ‘n boog te skiet maak die dapperste onder ons nederig. Op bladsy 14 skryf Marius de Beer hoe sy kliënt 'n “dagga boy” met ‘n langboog gejag het. Desember is nie jagseisoen nie, maar koopkoors loop hoog en met die nuwe opwindende 2016 boë van Mathews en Sniper se produkte soos verder beskryf in hierdie uitgawe, kan jou begroting ‘n lelike knou kry - lees maar versigtig en op eie risiko verder... Om vir ‘n man ‘n kersgeskenk te soek is altyd ‘n probleem, want ‘n mens kan dit of nie bekostig nie, of hulle besit dit reeds. Maar soos Rean altyd sê: “‘n Man kan nooit genoeg messe hê nie!” Loer gerus na die artikel “My hunting knives”. Dit sal ‘n goeie aanduiding kan gee vir daardie ontwykende kersgeskenk-idee. Ons grootse geskenk egter is die vooruitsig om vir ewig te kan lewe omdat Jesus aarde toe gekom het. Ons herdenk hierdie maand Sy geboorte en Sy lewe op aarde, maar die prys wat Hy moes betaal was baie duur en te groot vir ons om te kan bekostig. Gelukkig vir ons het Hy die dood oorwin en dit vir ons moontlik gemaak om hemel toe te gaan en vir ewig te lewe as ons in Hom glo. “As jy dink aan alles wat God in sy groot barmhartigheid vir jou gedoen het, gee dan jouself aan Hom as ’n lewende en Heilige offer. Dit is dié soort offer waarvan Hy hou, en wat jou diens aan God werklik sinvol maak. Moenie jou leefstyl aanpas by die gedragspatrone van hierdie wêreld nie, maar... Laat God jou omvorm deurdat Hy jou denkpatrone vernuwe. Dan sal jy goed kan onderskei wat Hý wil hê dat jy moet doen, naamlik dit wat werklik... goed en aanvaarbaar en volmaak is” (Romeine 12:1-2 NLV). 'n Baie geseënde Kerfees vir jou van die Bowhunter Clan

Yolande Steenkamp

NOVEMBER 2015 AFRICA’S BOWHUNTER

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From our readers

The opinions expressed in this column are not necessarily those of Africa’s Bowhunter. Send your letters to editor@africasbowhunter.co.za, Twitter @bowhuntermagsa or PO Box 31688, Waverley, 0135, South Africa.

Use quality products! I want to remind you all why I use top-quality products and why you should too. Have a look at this arrow and broadhead – they have both been buried in the mud for five years. I shot a goose in a pan and the arrow ended up buried in the thick clay-like turf, where it stayed buried for five years. Our water is very alkaline and the arrow and broadhead were unrecognisably caked in dried mud. We only found it because the mud had huge cracks in it and the arrow was too straight to be a stick. I tried washing it in Sunlight Liquid, but it was still caked in a layer of calcium that I had to remove with a wire brush on a grinding wheel. The calcium came off, but so did the FMJ anodising, and the arrow is left with some pitting as well (below, left). The blue anodising on the Spitfire Maxx came off too. Because I use brass inserts the broadhead came out easily. The arrow was tested and seemed safe to use again and dead straight. The broadhead was refurbished with new vanes and blades (below, right). The arrow is now ready to be used again and I’ll make sure I hunt with it with my next shot! That is why I use FMJs and Spitfires. Dr Adrian de Villiers

nie. As jy in September se Bowhunter die volgende brief lees: “Not happy with some game farms”, sê die skrywer dat die plaaseienaars ook nie gelukkig is oor sekere jagters wat op hulle plase jag nie. Hy is korrek, en dit sny dus na twee kante toe – wat nou gemaak? As jy ’n bespreking by ons gedoen het, doen ons regtig alles in ons vermoë om jou as kliënt eerste te stel. Ek is in die bevoorregte posisie dat my swaer ’n wildsplaas besit en ek bestee heelwat tyd op die plaas, veral gedurende die jagseisoen. Die punte wat ek genoem het, is wat ek die afgelope twee tot drie jaar daar waargeneem het. Dennis Henderson You have to work around service delivery... Thanks to you all at Africa’s Bowhunter for an awesome magazine, which I look forward to reading cover to cover each month. Unfortunately, due to the poor postal service I did not receive numerous issues so I will not be renewing my subscription and will rather purchase my magazine off the shelf. Guess we just have to get used to or work around poor service delivery! You can still count on my continued support as archery will always be something I enjoy and appreciate. Kind regards and best wishes Garreth van Bart

(Thank you for your continued support. The postal service is far from perfect, but lately there are no more strikes and by far, most of our subscribers are receiving their magazines. Remember our electronic magazine as an option. – editor) Hou aan om mooi spore te trap... Hallo Yolande Baie dankie vir die herinnering om die Bowhunter se inskrywing te hernu. Na al die baie jare as intekenaar het ek nou die ouderdom beryk waar ek moet afskaal. Dankie vir julle PUIK tydskrif en dit was vir my altyd 'n hoogte punt om die Bowhunter te lees. Vir my was die Bowhunter telkemaal 'n Handboek waarna ek kon verwys tydens opleiding en oor Diere Gedrag. Hou so aan om mooi spore te trap en 'n verskil te maak. Groete Manie Le Roux

T ABH

(Manie, baie dankie vir die brief en ondersteuning deur die jare. Ons wens jou baie voorspoed toe. – Redakteur)

Antwoord op Koot se brief Ek verwys na Koot Joubert se skrywe na aanleiding van die stellings wat ek gemaak het. Koot is korrek oor ’n skoot deur die maag na die lewensorgane toe, maar laat my die vraag anders bewoord: As jy ’n skuinsweg skoot met ’n boog moet skiet, sal ’n vaste lem nie dalk beter werk as ’n meganiese punt nie – indien jy gebruik maak van ’n ligte skag en lae ponde? Ten opsigte van my tweede brief. Nee, ek doen dit nie self DESEMBER 2015 AFRICA’S BOWHUNTER

Hunting

By Cleve Cheney

blue wildebeest

lue wildebeest, which are often seen in association with zebra, are famous for their migrations in the Serengeti, where hundreds of thousands of these animals will darken the African plains on their annual trek to greener pastures. “Gnu!” – the nasal vocalization of the blue wildebeest –gives rise to its onomatopoeic name given to it by the Bushmen. Blue wildebeest are rather strange-looking creatures that are prone to comical behaviour at times. They are tough animals regarding their will to survive. However, they do not appear to rank very highly in the intelligence department, and this is often the cause of their demise.

Let’s take a closer look at one of Africa’s marvellous creatures. DESCRIPTION The blue wildebeest is an unmistakable animal: large, heavily built and of rather clumsy appearance. Bulls stand about 1,5 m tall at the shoulder and weigh about 250 kg (350–600 lb); cows are slightly smaller. The wildebeest has large forequarters and slender hindquarters, making it appear somewhat disproportionate. The limbs are thin. The head is large with a broad, flattened, bristly muzzle and face covered by a large median tuft of thick, black hairs. There is a beard of black hairs under the throat and neck and a long black mane on the shoulders and upper parts of the neck. The colour is a dull slaty grey, with dark vertical banding on the foreparts, giving it a “brindled” appearance – hence the name “brindled gnu” .

The tail is hairy, black and long, reaching almost to the ground. The horns, present in both sexes and not unlike those of the Cape buffalo in general shape, start from a low, rather narrow boss or palm, curve downward and then upward, forward and inward. Cows are similar to the bulls in appearance, but are smaller with thinner horns (Figure 1). The shape of the horns is useful for estimating age. The horns are straight up to eight months after birth (Figure 2). Thereafter they begin to curve outwards. The bare horn plates only develop on the forehead after two years. In younger animals these plates are covered with long, rust-coloured hairs. Young wildebeest are a rufous fawn colour, with a darker face and a stripe along the head, neck and back. BIOLOGY Behaviour and habits Wildebeest are very gregarious with herds sometimes numbering in the thousands. Social units consist of territorial bulls (during the rut), unstable bachelor herds that have hardly any social structure, and breeding herds made up of both sexes and all age groups. Territorial bulls advertise their status and presence in a number of ways: They will often stand on an open, elevated patch of ground. They will approach a competitor or a potential breeding herd with a head-high “rocking horse” gait. They will frequently defecate and urinate on ºopen, elevated patches. They will emit their characteristic “gnu” call to draw atten-

AFRICA’S BOWHUNTER DECEMBER 2015

tion to themselves. They will scent-mark by rubbing pre-orbital glands on the ground or on low vegetation. They will paw the ground and deposit interdigital gland secretions. These secretions have quite a strong “tarry” odour which can also be detected by humans. Bulls sometimes adorn their foreheads and horns with mud and broken vegetation. They will sometimes become involved in serious territorial disputes. The fights can be very physical with contestants kneeling, locking horns and head-butting but seldom resulting in death or serious injury. Wildebeest often walk and run in single file. They snort and stamp their feet to signal alarm and will often approach closer to investigate a disturbance. Home ranges are dependent on available food and water. They follow favourable conditions, which sometimes results in massive migrations. Like many plains animals they disperse during the rainy season and aggregate during the dry season around available water and suitable grazing. They tend to graze in a scattered formation and are active at all hours except during the middle of hot days, when they will seek out shade. It is not unusual to see them lying down on their sides when resting. During the rut, territorial bulls herd females by circling them with head down and tail swishing, or by chasing them with body held low and tail streaming while grunting and snorting. Courtship and territorial defence leave a breeding bull little time for feeding and there is a turnover of breeders as exhausted bulls are replaced by fresher animals. Wildebeest have a good sense of smell but eyesight is fairly poor. They are one of the less vigilant species. They often associate with zebra and other species that utilize similar habitat. Black and blue wildebeest populations should not be mixed as interbreeding may occur. Blue wildebeest do not generally attempt to jump over or crawl under game fences, but will cross livestock fences when put under pressure.

ers preferring short green grass but up to 13% of their diet may consist of browse. They will seldom graze on grass longer than 10 to 15 cm. Their flat muzzles enable them to crop grass close to the substrate surface. They are partial to Themeda triandra, Panicum and Digitaria grass species, but will switch to Cynodon dactylon when the aforementioned species become scarce. An adult consumes, on average, 3,7 kg of dry plant material each day. Blue wildebeest are very partial to moving into burnt areas when the first green flush of new growth appears, especially after rain. Wildebeest require about nine litres of water per day and drink during the day. They will drink every day when water is available, but may go up to five days without drinking. Reproduction In the breeding season a territorial bull herds females into his territory by circling them with his head held low and tail thrashing or by chasing them with his body held low and tail streaming behind. While herding females he bawls and grunts. The bull courts females by stretching his head and neck forward and by rearing onto his hind legs. Cows may mate with a succession of territorial bulls within a short period. The peak of the rut occurs in April, with most calves arriving between November and December. Cows in heat are restless and will move from bull to bull. The gestation period is 250 days and calves weigh about 20 to 23 kg at birth. Cows will usually move away from the herd to give birth. Calves become ambulatory and can move off with the cow within five to ten minutes after birth. Young calves are lighter in colour and are very boisterous and playful. Calves are weaned at about eight months. They will, however, begin nib-

Preferred habitat Blue wildebeest are partial to savannah woodland where there is a ready supply of water. They are also known to utilize open grassland, grass flood plains, open woodland and open shrub savannah. Figure 3 shows typical blue wildebeest habitat. Food and water requirements Wildebeest have more rigid water requirements than other species that frequent the same areas (e.g. gemsbok, springbok, red hartebeest) and need to drink every day. They are selective graz-

figure 1: Horn differences between cows and bulls.

Figure 2: Wildebeest age groups. . DESEMBER 2015 AFRICA’S BOWHUNTER

bling on grass from 10 to 14 days old. Predation and disease They are preyed on by lion, hyena and wild dog. Young wildebeest may also be taken by cheetah. Many blue wildebeest carry bovine malignant catarrhal fever (snotsiekte), a deadly viral disease affecting cattle and some other ruminants. Blue wildebeest infected with the virus do not produce clinical signs of the disease. Blue wildebeest may also be susceptible to foot-and-mouth disease and anthrax (Figure 4). COST TO HUNT Adult male, representative: $900 – $1 100 (R9 000 – R11 000) The cost to hunt cows will be less, but will be more for trophyclass animals. The cost to hunt colour variants is prohibitive. Golden wildebeest: $49 500 (more than R500 000!!!) HUNTING BLUE WILDEBEEST Wildebeest sign Tracks The tracks of wildebeest show the typical cloven-hoof shape (see Figure 5). Hooves have low and well developed dewclaws which will show up in soft substrate. During the rut the territorial bulls can leave knee and pawing marks on the ground when depositing preorbital gland secretions. Tracks are about 100 mm in length and 88 mm wide.

Figure 3: Blue wildebeest in typical habitat

Scats/droppings The individual pellets are about 14 to 20�� mm long and are sometimes clumped when the animal has been feeding on green grass (Figure 6). Whereas territorial bulls may frequently defecate at favourite spots the rest of the animals deposit scat randomly. The scat has a typically bovine odour. Rubs Wildebeest will sometimes rub against trees and dislodge pieces of bark or leave traces of their hair behind. Resting areas Herds will choose shady spots to shelter in during the heat of the day. Impressions of their bodies can sometimes be seen on suitable substrate. The position they chose to lie in relative to shade and sun position can sometimes give an indication as to the age of sign (Figure7). Vocalization Wildebeest are quite vocal animals. The voice is a loud, explosive snort and a low, moaning grunt which can be heard from quite far. Sand baths Wildebeest enjoy sand bathing. The sandy areas in which they roll frequently show tracks in the soil.

Figure 4: Wildebeest are prone to certain diseases and are preyed upon chiefly by lion, hyena and wild dogs

Territorial patches These areas, frequented by a territorial bull, are usually devoid of vegetation and are scattered with their droppings. One will often

AFRICA’S BOWHUNTER DECEMBER 2015