Warthog Post April 2018

THE WARTHOG POST African Impact Conservation Projects - Greater Kruger Area, South Africa

Dumela Night, Lennar Schumacher, Volunteer Photographer, Netherlands

April 2018

April | 04 From the editors desk Last Month’s Top Shot Winner African Impact Foundation Report Volunteer Encounters Rangers Report Facebook Cover Shot Winner

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Community Focus

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Reflections And Focus

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Update And Focus

FROM THE

EDITORS DESK The transition from African summer to winter contains heavy rains and low temperatures. Day after day you can see the environment changing, grass growing, trees and bushes in saturated green colours.

An amazing time for photography but nevertheless sometimes a can be a challenge when working out in the field. Waterproof jackets and warm clothing get more and more popular as the days go by but it’s also refreshing to step out of the higher temperatures.

On the one hand it becomes increasingly unpredictable where and when we find animals because they don’t need to look for waterholes and dams anymore as they find puddles everywhere.

Ot the other hand the availability of water and food lets a lot of animal species flourish and creates an upswing in the cycle of life whereas other suffer under colder temperatures. It’s once again the magic of African nature unfolding an eternal attractiveness!

Marvin Mechelse Photography Assistant Germany

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TOP SHOT Of the month

Lennar Schumacher Volunteer Photographer Netherlands

VOLUNTEER ENCOUNTER ALEXIS DE PLANTER

Background

Research Volunteer from Belgium After traveling around the world to learn English, it was time for me to have a real experience into the African wild.

Just before, I was in Cape Town at another volunteer program. It was great, but more in the social aspect. So I needed a real experience, outside the big cities and the urban areas, to complete my experience in South Africa.

I arrived from Cape Town into Nelspruit airport, a warm Sunday morning. Welcomed by a staff member and the departing volunteers, the feeling came directly through.

Once at the lodge, I met all of the crew; staff, volunteers, local workers, all of them were very kind with us new members! Even though they all already knew each other, the volunteers were willing to get to know me a bit more and included me in their family. But after that, the work time came! I was a bit surprised when I knew the wake up time but after all, it's not as hard as you thought. Just remember why you are doing it and you find the strength to get out of your bed!

On the first day, all the explanation and orientation meetings happened. The use of videos to put you in a kind of simulation gives you a real perspective of what you'll have to execute when in the field.

Marvin Mechelse, Photography Assistant

The wildebeests, also called gnus, are a genus of antelopes. The family includes two species, both native to Africa: the black wildebeest and the blue wildebeest (shown above).

Fossil records suggest these species diverged about one million years ago, resulting in a northern and a southern species.

The blue wildebeest remained in its original range and changed very little.

VOLUNTEER ENCOUNTER And then comes the real experience as a volunteer, game drives, community work, I have to admit that I had never seen wild animals like that before, and that's really impressive! The fact that you have the possibility to discover new things about nature and the animals is obviously fabulous, but the real advantage of this project is that you learn so much about everything around you.

When I came here, I really wanted to see a Kudu, because it's my scout totem. And fortunately I've already seen them! But it's not the only animal you'll have the chance to see here. I cannot count on my fingers the number of animals I didn't know before coming here and it's only my second week on the project!

The thing I'll remember the most from my time here is the overnight camping experience. The opportunity to sleep right next to the wildlife is exceptional. What's better than sleeping in a tent between Hyena's screams, leopards and lions hunting, and herds of elephants or zebras eating the grass to know how these animals live?

African Impact offered me one of the best experiences of my life. I hate when people say that, because they say it for every trip or experience they have, but I can't find any other sentence to summarize how I feel about it.

What's for sure is that I'm going to continue to support this project after I leave because it's really worth it!

Background

Marvin Mechelse, Photography Assistant

The Brown-hooded kingfisher is common in the eastern half of southern Africa, mainly living in woodland habitats, as well as heavily wooded gardens and parks.

It has a broad and varied diet, eating a wide variety of animals, rarely eating fish.

Both sexes excavate the nest, which is a burrow, normally dug into the walls of gullies. It lays 2-5, rarely 6 eggs, which are incubated solely by the female, for about 14 days.

COMMUNITY FOCUS Sarah FISHER Q&A with: Lodric How old are you, what is your family background?

My name is Lodric and I'm 35 years old. I live with my wife and 4 children.

What’s been your profession so far?

I studied construction and when contracts are available, I build houses.

Why do you want to join Farmers of the Future?

I want to be involved in Farmers of the Future because I'm the only source of income for the family and I would like to be able to cover more than the basic expenses. I really like gardening which is why I produce beetroots, tomatoes and spinach for my family.

Community & RESEARCH COMBO Volunteer from USA Hello! My name is Sarah Fisher. I’m from a very small state in the northeastern part of the United States, Vermont. I’m a fourth-year undergraduate student doubling majoring in psychology and neuroscience, on a premed track. I came to African Impact in South Africa for 4 weeks as a “combo” volunteer, working on the research team and the community project.

My immediate first impression when I arrived at Dumela lodge was how diverse the entire group working here was. On my arrival date, there was only one other person from the United States. I was stoked about this, as it would allow for me to learn about many different cultures and meet people from all over the world. Living with five other girls also gave me the opportunity to better acquaint myself with them specifically, which I enjoyed.

Unfortunately, due to school holiday, I was only able to go volunteer with the kids once, but man was it an incredible afternoon. As we pulled into the school gate all the children were happily smiling and waving at as. They looked eager and excited. When the first boy, Perfect, started to read to me, I was really taken a back.

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: africanimpactfoundation.org/ donate

COMMUNITY FOCUS He was so naïve and vulnerable. He was so smart and brave. As we finished the book and walked back to the library, he made a point to say thank you. He was so grateful.

After reading with each kid we were able to play an active spelling game with them. They had what seemed like unlimited energy. They were overjoyed with the simple concept of a pipe cleaner as a wrist band and even more excited the pipe cleaners were colored. Watching them run around and being involved in the game with them brought me back to being a kid again. Feeling so carefree and innocent. I loved this feeling. I loved watching them feel this feeling.

The biggest thing I’ll take away from the community work, specifically working with the children at the school, is this – love the simplicities of life. From pipe cleaner wrist bands, to skipping with each other, to team comradery, the kids enjoyed the little things, I envied this immensely about them. They quickly reminded me that the little things in life, can be the best things about life.

African Impact, thanks for inspiring me, captivating me and seamlessly helping me refind the joy and simple wonders of life.

Samuel Cox, Photography Coordinator

African Impact Foundation Help us Protect the African Leopard !

As winter arrives in South Africa, we head toward our busy season. The weather steadies to a comfortable average of 30 degrees with blue skies and no rain for the next 5 to 6 months to come. Volunteer numbers at Dumela Lodge grow from an average of 15 to a staggering 45! Over this busy time we embrace the opportunity to make a substantial increase to our impact across all of our projects. We hope that you will be joining us, if not, get in touch with Nicole, our amazing destination manager, and book your space on the game viewer!

For years a great focus of ours has been the African leopard.

Despite being in one of the worlds’ most famous and revered

Samuel Cox, Photography Coordinator

wildlife and conservation areas there is little known about the populations and distributions of this illusive apex predator (top of the food chain). We have made it out mission to work with this species to ensure they are better understood and thus protected. Working in conjunction with various data and research partners we collaboratively look to map out each individual leopard in our study areas, and work out their home territories. This means a lot of camera traps need to be setup and monitored in the bush, we need to be out in the field monitoring these illusive animals. They are nocturnal and there really is nothing like that excitement of being out on a game viewer at night, deep in the African bush watching a leopard move ever so silently through its habitat, out on the hunt for a midnight snack!

African Impact Foundation That being said there is a great deal of equipment required to carry out these studies on an ongoing basis. Thus we have launched our latest ‘mini-fundraiser’ that looks to help us prepare for busy season.

What we require is spotlights and GPS units to help us find, track and monitor individuals. With all of the extra willing hands we can get a great deal of work completed, what we require if a few items to help us get there. We ask that you please take a look at the link below and if you are able make a donation. You can share this link with your peers, friends, family or anyone you know that may be interested in supporting this impactful and very worth-while cause.

Samuel Cox, Photography Coordinator

There is always a great deal of work to do and we stand tall with each of you, proud that we make that difference. We work tirelessly every day, side by side and there really is no greater force than that of those working together on a common cause.

To book your front row seat contact Nicole: Nicole@africanimpact.com Samuel Cox, Photography Coordinator

Check out and share the fundraiser: uk.virginmoneygiving.com/LeopardConservation Check out Facebook for our latest updates: facebook.com/southafricaconservationprojects

Stuart Isham Fairbairns Business Manager Scotland

Photography Reflections Guiding photography It’s easy to forget that you’re always learning in life, especially in the environment we live and work in here at Dumela lodge. Whether it’s about wildlife, ecosystems, local languages or data collection, there’s a constant fountain of knowledge that’s streaming that anyone would be a fool not to take advantage of. The greatest thing that we’re able to do here, in my opinion, is not just to educate and inform new volunteers every month but also help the staff grow and develop as professional and passionate individuals.

As such, it’s been an important task to me to ensure that photography tuition has been available to those that want it, and to include it into the development of our trainee guides. After all, the guiding industry is rapidly developing and photography knowledge has very naturally been incorporated into this growth. It’s essential then our guides learn with us so that they’re better prepared and qualified to take the next step into their careers once they leave our doors.

Samuel Cox, Photography Coordinator

Of course, the trick is a balancing act. Their first priority is to guide; learn and navigate reserves and infuse our volunteers with excitement and passion through their own knowledge and experiences with nature.

However, if a guide knows the ins-and-outs of photography, how light works and affects our imagery, composition techniques and the differences between aperture and ISO, then the better position they’re going to be in to guide for photographers or any future camera-holding guest. It’s a win-win scenario for everyone and it’s been fantastic this year to see all the guides get on board with this new opportunity for learning.

Katie Adams, Field Guide

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Photography Reflections

Marvin Mechelse, Photography Assistant

Astro Photography The clear African sky offers perfect conditions to work on your skills of astro photography.

In order to get a perfect picture mind these tips regarding composition: Avoid artificial lights sources as well as the ? full moon. Both are very bright compared to your actual subject and will let your stars disappear.

Find a basis in the foreground, like the horizon, a city skyline, trees or a hut to make your composition more interesting.

Katie Adams, Field Guide

Katie Adams, Field Guide

Some may not have had any interest or knowledge in photography beforehand, but they all recognise its importance and so have really stepped up to the plate to take on as much as they can in a way that I didn’t initially expect or even hope for.

Through specifically designed presentations, tuition in the field and editing exercises, our guides have a significant advantage now than they did before. After all, the relationship we have with our guides here at Dumela is special and they deliver so much that it’s impossible not to want to give back and hopefully make an impact on the advancement in their future.

Samuel Cox Photography Coordinator England

PHOTOGRAPHY FOCUS

Backgrounds

Bried collins Photography Volunteer from Ireland Composition is the placement or arrangement of visual elements in a work of art. In photography this is achieved by placing physical objects to form a scene or moving to capture the best angle. There are several guidelines to follow to help improve your composition.

The rule of thirds: The frame should be divided into nine sections by horizontal and vertical lines, the main subject should be placed on one of the intersecting lines. Make sure your subject has room to look into the frame and space in the direction of their movement.

Create Depth: Having fore, middle and background creates depth to your image as well as drawing the eye through the image. Adding water to the foreground can lighten your shot as well as adding an extra element of reflection.

Frame within a Frame: Frames have various uses when it comes to composition. Frames can be man-made, for example, bridges, arches or fences or naturally occurring frames, like tree branches or river banks. They can even be human/animal parts such as antelope antlers or hands around a face.

Cutting off limbs: Keep an eye on the edges of your frame to make sure that the person/animal you are photographing doesn’t have any limbs cut off

Bried Collins, Volunteer Photographer

Max Knoop, Volunteer Photographer

Marvin Mechelse, Photography Assistant

Levaillant's cuckoo is a brood parasite.

The female lays her eggs in the nest of another species of bird, most frequently the southern pied babbler, the barecheeked babbler, the Hartlaub's babbler or the rarer arrow-marked babbler.

Both the male and female cuckoo will fly around acrobatically to distract the host birds. The male continues the distraction while the female lays the egg.

Animal of the Month: Smith’s Bush Squirrel

PHOTOGRAPHY FOCUS Make the most of lead in lines: Our eyes are unconsciously drawn to lines in an image. You can put various focus points along the line or you can put one main focus point at the end of the line. Similarly, you can use shapes, for example, by placing a focal point at each point of a triangle.

Fill the frame / Crop: If your image is in danger of losing impact because of busy or distracting background, then crop it tight around your main point of focus.

Marvin Mechelse, Photography Assistant

Smith's bush squirrels are always alert, and when alarmed, run away with great speed, making for the nearest tree where they lie motionless, flattened against a branch.

A conspicuous feature of their behaviour when under threat is 'mobbing': all the members of the colony make harsh clicking sounds while they flick their tails, building up momentum and gradually getting louder.

Look for symmetry/pattern: Incorporating patterns into your photographs is always a good way to creating a pleasing composition.

Patterns suggest symmetry and are visually attractive. Textures can also be very pleasing on the eye.

Max Knoop, Volunteer Photographer

This is not an exhaustive list and it would be impossible to have all of these guidelines on your mind every time you go out with your camera. A good exercise to begin with would be to think of one or two each time you go out to shoot then after a while you will find that they become ingrained and you are using them instinctively.

Happy photographing!

Bried Collins, Volunteer Photographer

VOLUNTEER ENCOUNTER Nicole LEGER

The

Photography Volunteer from Canada

Marvin Mechelse, Photography Assistant

Keep On Moving!

Spotting animals in thick is a challenge and getting a great shot can seem impossible.

When you look through the viewfinder and point at a small subject like a bird or squirrel you frequently won’t be able to see whether a twig or blades of grass cross parts of the animal. That can lead to wrong autofocus results or, composition wise, unusable pictures.

So even if you don’t see obstacles, move a bit up and down, right and left when you take various shots. It might be enough to get the one perfect picture.

Being a volunteer photographer for African Impact has been one of the biggest challenges of my life. I’ve always battled issues with my self-confidence and wasn’t sure if I’d be able to handle the many responsibilities that would be a part of the project. Add to that the fact that I’d be living a completely different way of life than what I’m used to, and I knew that I had set the challenge bar very high.

Upon my arrival at Dumela Lodge I faced some unexpected challenges. A lens that I had bought for the trip was not working properly and I spent the first week unable to take any good photographs. Fortunately, I was able to get a new lens at a photo store in Hoedspruit, a nearby town.

The first trip we went on was a game drive to Buffalo Land. It seemed like there were a million things to think about. I needed to figure out what ISO, aperture and shutter speed to use, and how to deal with everchanging lighting conditions.

Nicole Leger, Volunteer Photographer

Unfortunately, elephants and zebras were not willing to stay in one place and pose for me, no matter how much I wished they would. When I got back to the lodge I felt completely overwhelmed.

None of my images had turned out well and I was feeling very discouraged.

VOLUNTEER ENCOUNTER As I near the conclusion of my stay with African Impact, I’m starting to see improvements in my photography. Slowly but surely, and with the amazing instruction we’ve received from Sam and Marvin, it’s becoming easier to shoot with aperturepriority, I’m starting to get a better understanding of photo composition, and even when my photos are not always as good as I’d like them to be, I’ve learned to put the camera away for a bit and just appreciate the breathtaking scenery and the amazing experiences I’ve been privileged to have.

Backgrounds

Marvin Mechelse, Photography Assistant

Nicole Leger, Volunteer Photographer

I’m also very grateful for the support I’ve received from everyone here during my stay. Each one of the volunteers I’ve met has inspired me to want to become a better photographer. They are not only extremely talented but always willing to share their knowledge with me. Then of course there is the staff at African Impact. They have done everything in their power to make our stay here extraordinary and it’s because of their constant support that my time here in South Africa has been an experience I will never forget.

The Slender Net-winged Beetle resembles the firefly but the ridges and net-like pattern of veins on their wings place them in the Lycidae family.

Adults seen usually at sundown either resting on flowers and other vegetation or flying.

When threatened, adults open and lift their wings as a defensive warning.

They hunt for small invertebrates and perhaps even fungi in leaf litter or decaying wood on the forest floor.

RESEARCH FOCUS Loris BAUR Research Intern from Switzerland Hello! My name is Loris, I am German and Australian and live in Switzerland. I am making my impact at African Impact as an intern for three months. What made my decision to come here as an intern and not as a volunteer was that I have always wanted to do something scientific as my living later on and wanted to be a direct contributor and helper of the conservation of wildlife and endangered species. When I arrived here, I wasn’t quite sure what exactly I was going to be doing as an intern.

My first week was an introductory week, during which I was having the same duties as a volunteer, which means taking data on drive and entering this data in the computer or identifying animals during project work. At the end of the first week, I was told the ways I could help and what animals I could focus on during my internship here at the Dumela Lodge. I was given the suggestion to focus on the leopard project, which I really appreciated.

I was surprised of the fact that no-one has ever done what I was going to be doing and that I am the first person that is actually going to trace the territories of the leopards we have seen on drives.

We are taking data on leopards because it is not known precisely how many leopards are left in this area and in the whole of Africa. It is really enjoyable to know that I am making a contribution at this point by tracing the territories of the leopards and using the results to get a better understanding of the leopards we have seen or caught on camera traps and their behavior. I have started my research in one of the smaller reserves in our area.

Marvin Mechelse, Photography Assistant

Tint-Correction in Lightroom Think of a situation where your subject is mostly in shade areas but parts of the picture are in perfect light. Your camera will struggle to capture the colours compared to how our brain does it. That leads to blue and purple colours in your picture which will look unnatural.

Complementary or instead of desaturating blues and purple the tint correction slider in lightroom (near colour temperature) will help you change these purple effects to a more natural look.

RESEARCH FOCUS 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 good development of sustainable conservation solutions that will protect the future of this iconic apex predator.

At this point of my internship I have done a lot of things. I started by mapping all the leopards that we have spotted on this reserve, then entering the coordinates of the leopards we have caught on camera traps into Google Earth. I was able to trace the territory of each leopard. We now know that we have a dominant male and female with a huge territory here.

The female has the biggest area and the two male own different parts but both of them overlap with the female’s territory.

THE PROBLEM OF RHINO POACHING

I will be also confronted to make statistics of the camera traps, which will help us determine if we should find another location for our cameras and maybe capture more leopards.

After the research has been completed on this reserve, I will go into similar research but this time on a larger reserve that is part of the APNR.

Sign up for regular giving or a one – off donation below to help support the protection and better understanding of leopards in Southern Africa.

One thing to mention is that this mapping system is a long term study, as every time we are going to see a leopard, and after having identified the cat, his territory might have expanded and might give us more information about him and his surroundings.

globalgiving.org/projects/leopa rd-research/

I am looking forward to the following weeks and what surprises I will face during the rest of my stay here in beautiful and hot South Africa.

Backgrounds

RESEARCH UPDATE Prickly Pear – an Invasive Species

Marvin Mechelse, Photography Assistant

The vervet monkey, or simply vervet, is an Old World monkey of the family Cercopithecidae native to Africa.

They have been noted for having human-like characteristics, such as hypertension, anxiety, and social and dependent alcohol use.

Vervets live in social groups ranging from 10 to 70 individuals, with males changing groups at the time of sexual maturity.

Working for conservation is not all about the animals, it is also about their habitats. Indeed, habitat loss and fragmentation is the first cause of biodiversity loss. This is why all the volunteers - whether they are on research, community or photography projects - will participate in activities that will help enhance the animals’ environment. One of the ‘physical conservation’ tasks is the removal of different invasive plant species, such as prickly pear (Opuntia ficusindica). It is a succulent tree or tall shrub, can be up to 5 m tall, with a thick, woody trunk. The stems are divided into flattened, narrow, elliptical segments or green leaf pads (cladodes). The cladodes can be heavily spined to spineless and carry edible fruits.

To give you a bit of history, the prickly pear is of Mexican origin and was introduced to the Cape over 300 years ago. An hybrid spineless and high fruit quality was introduced by settlers to arid and semi-arid parts of the sub-continent. The plants gradually reverted to their spiny forms over a period of approximately 150 years through cross-pollination.

Prickly pears are present throughout the country, but invade mainly dry and rocky places in the savannah, thicket and Karoo with more than two million hectares being invaded during the early part of the 20th century, severely affecting agriculture.

REASEARCH UPDATE Not surprisingly, challenges came along with the prickly pear. The crosspollination contributed to the plant’s invasive properties as the spiny form is protected from herbivores thus gaining a competitive advantage. Prickly pears compete with and replace indigenous species, which has often resulted in dense, impenetrable thickets. Dense infestations reduce the grazing potential of the land and restrict access by domestic and wild animals. The spiny cladodes can cause injuries to animals and during the fruiting season, the minute spines (glochids) on the fruits can be highly irritating and can result in animals being unable to feed. Dense infestations can cause drastic devaluation of agricultural and conservation land.

Luckily, the dedication of the volunteers in the removal of this invasive species on our property paid off. First, the property was divided in 3 sections, each covered by one team of volunteers and staff. Every single prickly pear found was measured and GPS coordinates were taken. The painful spines protected them from animals and allow them to spread at great pace. However, the spines did not protect them from the will of the volunteers to suppress them.

Our property is therefore now prickly pear free!

Thank you all and well done!

Marine Servonnat Research Manager France

RANGERS REPORT The earliest flying Creature on earth: Dragonfly The

Marvin Mechelse , Photography Assistant

The earliest flying creature found belonged to Order Protodonata which were closely related to Order Odonata to which the modern dragonfly belongs. Believe it or not, dragonflies were on earth 100 million years before dinosaurs when there was only 1 continent.

They barely have changed their appearance for this 320 million years as they are such a successful life form. Only one thing they have changed is the size. The earliest dragonflies were much larger than modern dragonflies with wingspan around 75 cm.

Dragonflies are perfect sky hunters. They fly at a speed of 50km/h by flapping their wings 30 times per second. They can move each 4 wings separately, which allows them to have exquisite control over their flight so that they can catch prey, fight for territories and mate in the air.

RANGERS REPORT The

You often find them near water as their hemimetabolic life cycle requires fresh water.

Adult dragonflies normally lay eggs inside the water on the plant material by putting their abdomen under the water. Nymphs stay in water and feed on prey such as fish and tadpoles by shooting their powerful lower jaw forward.

Nymphs breath through their anus using gills inside their rectum. They inhale by pulling water into their anus where gas exchange occurs and exhale by squeezing the water back out, which also works as jet propulsion helping them move forward. Breathing through their anus might not sound hygienic but they have their own biodegradable garbage bags which is called peritrophic membranes. Basically, they have a thin membrane that wraps around their defecation not to pollute its surroundings.

Markus Walter, Volunteer Photographer

Dragonflies thrive in a variety of habitats and they can be found in almost every single continent except Antarctica. Although they usually spend winter as a form of eggs and nymphs since adults will die out from the first winter frost, there is 2 species of Odonata which can survive winter as an adult. Those winter damselflies practice winter hibernation called cryopreservation. They will freeze during winter as a form of adult but will wake up again in spring. It is made possible by the glycol in blood which lowers the fluid freezing point.

Marvin Mechelse, Photography Assistant

These magnificent and mysterious dragonflies are now under the pressure of habitat loss due to damming of the rivers, pollution and the introduction of alien species. Dragonflies are steadily declining in Africa and more research and consideration are required to conserve these unique and fascinating species.

Jordi Woerts, Volunteer Photographer

Yuka Ota Field Guide Japan

THE WARTHOG POST African Impact Conservation Projects - Greater Kruger Area, South Africa

cover shot winner facebook.com/AfricanImpactSAConservation

Lennar Schumacher Photography volunteer from the netherlands

April | 04

April 2018

Just uploaded to our stock site Check out our newest submissions for this month on: africanimpactphotography.com