From the editors desk Last Month’s Top Shot Winner Facebook Cover Shot Winner Volunteer Encounters Ranger’s Report
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Community Focus
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Photography Reflections Photography Focus
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Research Update Research Focus
Busy season. It’s been the saying that’s lingered on people’s tongues for a while now as we’ve steadily approached the time of year when the floodgates seem to open and volunteers in their droves rush in. We’ve all been excited for this influx; new blood, new energy and more enthusiasm and passion! Without any doubt it’s going to be hard work for everyone. Long hours and lots of sweat, dedication and perseverance but with that extra effort comes the infinitely more important satisfaction that comes with having to simply put your head down and get to work. Before we know it, it’ll be over. Things will quieten down a bit and we won’t believe how much we, staff and volunteers alike, accomplished in such a short span of time. But, we’re here now. We’re all ready and itching to go; no one worth their salt ever passes down a challenge - especially when it involves everything you’re passionate about!
Subscribe by mailing: warthogpost@africanimpact.com to keep yourself updated with the latest news! Cover shot: Scars of Life – Samuel Cox, Second Photographer, England
In 2015, I came to South Africa for the first time. I spent two weeks falling more and more in love with this beautiful country and the wildlife that it offers. When it was time to go home I’m pretty sure I cried for the entire 16-hour flight. Back home, I am a Junior Environmental Science and Biology student at The University of North Carolina at Asheville. I am lucky enough to be able to study the amazing wildlife that Asheville holds but the past two years I was longing to come back to the place that holds my heart. So, I packed my bags and headed over! In the past month since arriving at Dumela Lodge, I have had some of the best experiences of my life. From teaching children to read English, to driving into our campsite in Klaserie and seeing a leopard and an elephant on two different occasions. But what I loved most about my time here was gaining appreciation for the little things. Don’t get me wrong…elephants will always be my favorite thing in the world, but it is such a great feeling when you can go out into the bush and instantly know what animal is calling just from listening to the sound they are making or getting excited when you see a beautiful Lilac Breasted Roller or a Ground Hornbill.
The lesser galago, also called a bush baby, is one of the smallest primates, about the size of a squirrel.
Its plaintive cries and cute appearance may account for the name "bush baby." They have large, round eyes for good night vision and bat-like, delicate ears that enable them to track insect prey in the dark.
Thanks to the amazing guides and staff here at African Impact I have gained more knowledge about conservation and wildlife than I ever imagined I would; and to be able to share this experience with people from all over the world (some of which have become friends for life) is unbelievable! African Impact sure lives up to its name. Before coming here, I didn’t believe that one person could make a change. I always felt that I was just scratching the surface. But as my time working with African Impact comes to an end, I look back and can truly see the difference that I have made; whether I was out in the field collecting data or in school teaching children about conservation. In the words of Desmond Tutu, “Do a little bit of good where you are; it’s those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world.”
Fireball Lilly A stunning plant in the Amaryllis Family, this plant is native to most of sub-Saharan Africa as well as the Arabian Peninsula. This blood red lily is also referred to as the bloodflower or blood lily due to it’s attractive orange-red flowers but also its more macabre use as a lethal poison.
The Greater Kruger region of South Africa experiences severe unemployment, with 15-24 year olds making up 70% of all those unemployed in Mpumalanga. The cycle of poor education, poverty and health issues create an environment in which communities struggle to escape.
Even if the youth in the area receive an education they are often without the skills to be able to get jobs and create a stable income. This further contributes to the unemployment in the area and an increase in poverty levels. Our goal is to equip young adults to theoretically and practically apply their skills to a career and identify and establish entrepreneurial opportunities. We will create a community garden to help local community members sustain themselves and their families and increase income generation. To help out, visit www.happyafricafoundation. org/ donate
At Greater Kruger we have now embarked upon an exciting new community project. This Youth Day, 16th June, we began our new youth empowerment programme, Sasekile Gardens. We have selected 6 candidates interested in the project from the local area of Greenvalley to join this venture. These individuals have graduated from high school but have yet to find employment and have come together with African Impact in setting up the Sasekile Garden project.
The aim of the Sasekile gardens is to equip these young people with the practical and theoretical skills necessary in farming and managing a small business. The project focuses around the gardens, where the gardeners grow vegetables to sustain themselves and their families. Then they will increase vegetable and seedling production to sell locally to generate income. Alongside this, the gardeners will have workshops on caring for the garden and learning business skills which will assist them in the future for their personal development and employment opportunities.
What made you want to work in Africa? I’ve always loved South Africa from a young age and couldn’t imagine working anywhere else.
What do you like most about your job? Meeting lots of new people and teaching all the marvels of the bush.
What makes you smile here? The family atmosphere here at the lodge and everyone else's love for the bush!
On Youth Day, volunteers headed into the community to ‘break the ground’ with gardeners. We spent the morning clearing the ground for the garden and gardeners very much enjoyed meeting and interacting with volunteers. A highlight so far for the gardeners, has been learning from the volunteers; in particular finding out more about frogs, worms and spiders that we have discovered while clearing the garden. The guides and volunteers have been helping the gardeners to identify them and give some interesting facts which has helped the gardeners to overcome a little of their fear! Since our first session, we have cleared almost all the land and have managed to start creating garden beds in order to get planting underway as soon as possible. This week photography volunteers joined us at the gardens to help in make a last few garden beds, put on some compost and very importantly take some portrait images of the gardeners. These images will help us to raise awareness of the garden project beneficiaries within African Impact and beyond. The amazing hard work of volunteers and gardeners alike have helped us in getting to this point in the project and we are almost ready to plant! This new project is a very exciting addition for the Greater Kruger community projects and the garden beneficiaries themselves. Stay tuned for updates as Sasekile Gardens develops! Photo credit: Tim Feherty, Photography Manager
The beautiful thing about being in Africa and embarking on game drives is the unexpected. You never know what you’re going to see each drive, or when you turn the next corner. You’re forever on the edge of your seat and sometimes this doesn’t just come in the form of wildlife, but the weather.
Shooting The Stars Star shooting, or Astrophotography, is a game of patience and precision. You want to let as much light in as quickly as possible to freeze the stars. If you leave the shutter open too ? long then you risk capturing small star trails. The best advice is to ground your galaxy. Use trees, rivers or structures in the foreground to give more weight and awe to the stars towering above.
In the past months it was rain and now as Winter grasps itself tightly around South Africa, the bitter cold in the mornings and evenings has been something to contend with all in itself. We bundle ourselves up with extra layers of clothes and blankets and head out as we normally would as, at the end of the day, it’s going to take more than a bit of chill to keep us from work! But with the cold comes the benefits. Once cloudy skies are now open and clear; perfect for star gazing and astrophotography. Each evening dwarfs every onlooker as thousands upon thousands of stars slowly emerge in the pitch black. The lack of rain means waterholes are more reliable with animal activity and the dense foliage and high grass have become easier to peek and photograph through. We’ve also had the blessing of mist, which might sound odd to some, but for photographers it’s a great gift to be able to capture animals in a new or slightly different atmosphere. Everything seems more haunting, desolate and vulnerable. The sun, once blinding, stays a darkened orb as it slowly rises higher and higher, never gaining any brightness. I’ve always maintained that you must take advantage of every situation you’re in and every change that appears; especially with photography!
Communal Spider Web These spiders are unique in that there are only 25 social species out of a possible 45,000 described spiders on the planet.
Looking up into the endless-seeming night sky it is very easy to be awestruck by the sheer beauty of what we call the universe. The uncountable and brightly twinkling little dots that spread all across and way past our horizon do manage to fascinate close to everybody in one way or another. Suddenly we realize how small and vulnerable we are; that we all, just like the tiniest puzzle piece, are part of something much bigger, so big that it is yet impossible to fully understand. Since I was a little child, the stars and astronomy in general were able to fascinate me like nothing else. I grew up to running outside every night, where my dad would sit with his telescope and start showing me different star signs and constellations. Never could I get enough of the stories he used to tell regarding them. Growing older, I still look up every night with the exact same admiration and amazement. But up until now, the night sky had only ever been this beautiful subject to look at and never in my dreams did I think of actually being able to capture it’s magnificence. Not that I never tried of course; I made multiple attempts but utterly failed each time, not fully knowing how it was supposed to work or what I had to do to make it work. When hearing that astrophotography was included in the program I was so excited that I counted the days up until our first try.
Not only do they work together to build the nest, maintain it and clean it, they also capture prey and feed together. The community comprises of adult & young, males and females, yet the vast majority are females tending to their offspring among other tasks. Females may venture out on their own to form new colonies nearby.
As its name would imply, the dwarf mongoose is the smallest of the African mongooses. It is stocky, with a fairly short, pointed muzzle and a long, fluffy tail. It is usually speckled brown or reddish in color. They live in groups of 12 to 15 individuals, covering a range of approximately 75 acres that overlaps with the ranges of other groups. A range usually contains 20 or more termite mounds, which are used as den sites, lookout posts, and sources of food. Groups seem to be constantly on the move through their range, seldom using a den site for more than a few days at a time.
I cannot explain how grateful I am to Sam and Tim to explain it all so well to us and to help us with every little question and insecurity, no matter how small. They did not merely tell us some exact settings which we were to try out all alone but rather gave us rough guidelines and suggestions on how we might get the most desirable results, not leaving our side for the entire time in case of another question or other complications. We learnt way more than simply taking a picture of the stars and we received many helpful tips like the one of „framing a shot“ when it comes to astrophotography, which basically means creating some kind of horizon by using trees or a lake in the lower third of the picture instead of only aiming directly at the stars so to tell more of the story.
In general, I could not be happier with my own results and can barely even believe that it was me who took these shots. Now that I know how the basics work I am more than confident to try it out at home and anywhere else I go. I know however, that these specific shots will always have a special place in my heart and that I will always regard them as extraordinarily exceptional since only very few places, if even any, can compare to a clear South African winter night-sky in the depth of the bush.
The
Oxpeckers, whilst seemingly having a good relationship with animals due to them being natural tick removers‌ are actually considered a parasite. Quite unbelievably they also drink blood and will keep open wounds from closing. They also have no qualms about pecking into eyes for possible grubs, so understandably their hosts can very quickly grow tired of their presence.
My dream of traveling to Africa first began when I was sitting in the living room of my friend’s house, looking at the marvelous pictures he had taken during a family vacation and it was only until I was planning my gap year and found the African Impact Wildlife Photography and Conservation project that I realized my 14 year-old dream of being able to travel to Africa and take photographs could be turned into a reality. I signed up for the course in December and all of a sudden it was May and I was arriving at Dumela Lodge for the first time, meeting all of the warm and welcoming staff and the volunteers I would be working with for the coming weeks. Traveling to South Africa, my main two expectations were to see all of the stunning animals and to learn about the technique and art of photography, and I most certainly have not been disappointed during my 4 weeks with African Impact.
During our first week induction course with Tim and Sam, we learned loads about camera settings and different techniques that we would need for these four weeks out in the bush. The Big and Little Five, and all animals in between, are incredible and stunning creatures; however, their unpredictability can make them difficult photography subjects. Therefore, during our first week, Tim and Sam patiently took us through our different camera settings (aperture, ISO, shutter speed…all that fun stuff), movement techniques, macro photography, and other tips and tricks to prepare us for the weeks of game driving and photographic conservation work.
As I have seen and learned so much during these past 4 weeks, I’ve been continuously impressed with the seemingly endless pool of knowledge shared between the staff members here. I’ve been even more impressed by the sense of curiosity that is expressed and encouraged here at the lodge. Unlike many people who don’t like questions that they cannot answer, the guides here actually get excited for the rare questions that they don’t have answers to because it means that they get to learn something new. The shared knowledge, curiosity, and passion for wildlife conservation work is what I’ve found to be the fuel that charges the deeply connected and supportive community here. I’ve come to realize that the sense of community at Dumela Lodge was a part of the entire experience that I didn’t expect to appreciate so much (mainly due to the fact that my expectations were overshadowed by the idea of wildlife and awesome photographs), but now after 4 weeks I see that it is one of the main foundations of this experience that has made me and the other volunteers love our time here so much.
When spotting a possible danger, elephants stop rumbling and express aggression by twirling their trunk, flapping their ears and by throwing dust in the air. However, they also use dust and dirt as a natural sunblock to protect their skin and as pest control – to scare off insects and keep them at bay
As someone with an immense interest in animals and philosophy, I often find myself pondering the relationship between humans and animals. For instance, in the case of zoos, is it ethically justifiable to sacrifice an animal’s freedom for education and awareness? On the other hand, what should the moral status of pets be, and how should we coexist with them under the same roof? Here in South Africa, as I go on daily research game drives, a similar question arises: what model of human-animal interaction should we adopt with the wildlife in these reserves? In the past four weeks, our guides have enlightened me greatly about this matter through their professionalism and dedication. With African Impact, our priorities are clear: the comfort and wellbeing of the animals always comes first, and we try to minimize the impact of our presence in the bush to the best of our ability. Of the many factors that must be taken into consideration, distance is an important one, as getting too close to the animals may cause them significant stress. This is why our guides always observe the animals’ reaction to our vehicle while approaching with care, and why we would rather take a detour than risk startling the giraffes standing in the middle of the road we had intended to go down.
Focus On The Smaller Details Photographing the same animal over and over again can lead to a loss of inspiration. To counter this, focus in on smaller details such as the horn of a rhino, the texture of an elephants trunk or the matted hair of a lion’s mane. Smaller creatures on bigger animals are also great opportunities such as oxpeckers and flies buzzing around and landing on giraffes and buffalos. Try exploring patterns, textures and the way light causes highlights and shadows on the body.
Up until now, I have spent my entire life in a city where people care a lot about what they own and little about what we share — the Earth and all the life within — and I constantly find myself surrounded by misconceptions about animal behavior. Most recently, upon sharing photos of our amazing lion and leopard sightings, I have had multiple people ask, “they are so near you; aren’t you worried that they might suddenly attack?” It can be quite disheartening as one tries to fathom the extent of such misunderstandings among the general public, the detrimental consequences of these oversimplified and mistaken associations on conservation endeavors, and the amount of time and effort needed to make a difference through education and exposure. Yet on the bright side, such occurrences present us with the opportunity for dialogue, and it is often in moments like these when I get to share with my friends and family what I have learned here. Such an act may be quite insignificant on its own, but this is how change begins: one person, one small step at a time, until we reach the ideal place we long to see. Giraffes fight by beating each other with their heads and necks. This is called “necking."
Male giraffes whip their necks around, using their heavy skulls like clubs. Male giraffes fight with their necks because it's the most powerful and maneuverable weapon they have. Bulls fight to establish dominance or to win the right to mate with the females (cows) in a particular area.
“We are not animals; we are not the same.” This was a message I received from a loved one, and it was what inspired me to write this article — because we are animals, because we are more similar than different. There is no “us” and “them”; we share this planet of ours, and we need each other. At the end of the day, it is all about mutual respect and love, towards nature and towards life; to have the humility to see that human beings are not superior to the smallest of creatures, and to have a heart big enough to care. I must end with a quote that the research team has shared with us when we first arrived, a quote that holds so much truth, “In the end, we will conserve only what we love; we will love only what we understand and we will understand only what we are taught.” Our time here with African Impact may be limited, but by sharing what we have learned with those around us and hopefully inspiring them to contemplate our relationship with wildlife as well as the importance (and urgency) of conservation, we can make a profound and limitless impact.
This past month the research team has had a dedicated group of volunteers who have worked extremely hard on everything from data collection in the field, to physical conservation, to behind the scenes project work. From all of the “datacation,� as we like to call it here, we have been able to push our projects forward and work towards making an even greater impact on conserving the magnificent wildlife we have here in Greater Kruger.
Camera traps are one of the best research tools available to study both nocturnal and elusive animals, like our leopards. Sadly this past month we lost one of new cameras to poachers who stole it during their nightly escapades. This was a disheartening day for the research team as this eliminated one location from our survey area. In order to have a complete leopard survey it is vital that we have camera traps in different areas to gain an overall picture of leopard densities and movements. To ensure that our valuable camera traps are protected we have added locks and chains to them in hopes to never lose another camera to poachers. If you would like to help us with our mission to learn more about these elusive cats please check out the column on the side for more information on our camera trap project.
To properly understand population densities and distributions of leopards we must conduct camera trap surveys, record spoor and signs of predator presence.
Ultimately, this focused research is vital to the development of sustainable conservation solutions that will protect the future of this iconic apex predator. Sign up for regular giving or a one – off donation below to help support the protection and better understanding of leopards in Southern Africa. https://www.globalgiving.org /projects/leopard-research/
Egyptian Geese The Egyptian goose (Alopochen aegyptiaca) is a member of the duck, goose, and swan family Anatidae. It is native to Africa south of the Sahara and the Nile Valley. Egyptian geese were considered sacred by the Ancient Egyptians, and appeared in much of their artwork.
The male Egyptian goose attracts its mate with an elaborate, noisy courtship display that includes honking, neck stretching and feather displays
Over the last month the Ellie team has worked tirelessly on updating and creating Id kits for our Elephant Database. Id’ing elephants is always challenging when in the field so it is vital to capture photos of ear notches and tusks of each distinguishable individual so the team can work on id’ing them when we return from the field. 19 ID kits have been created and updated over the past few months which has greatly enhanced our ability to identify these giants of the bush.
We’ve also recently had the return of CBL12 (Mbali)! Leopard mothers typically begin to be less tolerant of their young after about a year of age, so when FBL1 began sending her 2 cubs away in February of this year we were very worried as to what would happen to this shy cub we called Mbali. It seemed she had moved into a different territory and hadn’t been seen for 4 months… until the research team caught a glimpse of her stalking a herd of impala in late June! A week later we captured a stunning photo of her passing by our camera traps and confirmed that she was indeed still in the area. The team was elated to know that the cub we watched grow up is still not only surviving but thriving. We hope that she remains in the territory so we can continue to monitor her development and movements in the years to come.
The
A “bush walk” is a wonderful thing and can be a great educational experience. A bush walk usually focuses on the smaller aspects of the bush and the natural world, giving newcomers a taste of the intricacies of the African bush. It’s a chance to treat the senses to different sights, sounds, smells and even tastes that one would easily overlook when on a game drive. In my mind there are 2 types of “bush walk” – the traditional bush walk like the one I have just described and then the “ultimate bush walk” or TRAIL. A trail differs from a bush walk in many ways, but the most important difference is a prolonged exposure to our natural world, facilitating a much deeper and more meaningful understanding of the interconnectedness of Africa’s biotic organisms in their biotic and non biotic environments. A “trail” led by an experienced (and qualified) guide in the case of dangerous game areas will last days opposed to hours with the traditional bush walk. This means spending the night (or nights) in the wilderness, usually with nothing more than a tent and sometimes no tent at all…. It’s an experience that helps us to connect with our primitive selves and reminds us of our roots. It’s an experience that not only teaches us about Mother Nature and her wanders, but also about ourselves. Over the years we’ve become more and more disconnected with the natural world and a trail gives us a wonderful opportunity to reconnect.
I always say to my guests when heading out on a trail: being on a game drive is like watching a good movie or documentary – it’s fun and entertaining and even educational, but walking in the bush is like you all of a sudden become an actor in that movie or documentary… you are no longer watching but participating. For those days that you are out on trail you become as much a part of the The environment and every other organism that lives in it. You fall in to the food chain and all of the natural processes that take place. Every single action or decision you make will have a lasting effect on the environment, its inhabitants and your own safety. This teaches one to be aware and conscious of our ecological foot print. For example: on multi-day trails conducted in the Kruger National Park we operate on a “take only photographs and leave only footprints” policy. meaning that during a 4 day trail you “take out what you bring in” – it’s only once you have to carry 4 days worth of trash in your back pack, with your food, water and bed, do you realise how much (unnecessary) rubbish we generate on a daily basis… one of the many valuable lessons I have learned whilst out on trail. When on trail it is always exciting to encounter “dangerous game” (Lion, Leopard, Rhino, Elephant, Buffalo and Hippo) although this doesn’t always happen – if it does it is a great and very humbling experience to see any of these giants on foot. You really learn to appreciate their size and power! However this is not the be all and end all of a trail. As previously mentioned one does not always come across these animals and so we must also appreciate everything else. Appreciate the opportunity to participate; to reflect, to respect and to learn. A trail can be a deeply satisfying journey that will force a new found respect and love for Africa’s wilderness as well as a powerful “self teacher”. Once you have experienced Africa on trail everything changes, you will find yourself wanting more and more. Your primitive self will slowly begin to awaken and you will notice how much more in tune you become with the natural world – noticing things that you would previously have overlooked or even finding interest in things you never knew of or feared…. And most importantly you will learn how much we as humans have that we don’t need; how wasteful we are. You will undoubtedly become more conscious of the impact that we have on our natural world and as a result change your ways and live in harmony with Mother Nature and all of its beings.
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