Status Update By Sandy McDonald Fireside chat at Sabie Game Park. I have spent the better part of July and August in camp at Sabie Game Park and I am continuously amazed at this uncut diamond of wildlife refuge that is 100% proudly funded by private investment and sustainable trophy hunting. The game numbers are astounding and totally relaxed due to the strict and ethical hunting practices that are the order of the day. It is very evident that the intelligent and sustainable utilisation of a natural resource that benefits the surrounding communities is by a very long margin the finest form of conservation. Sabie Game Park is proof of this. After many years of wrangling with the various Government departments the 20% (of Govt. licence fees generated) community fee that is part of the protocol by Government to benefit communities has been unlocked and ready to be distributed. The South African Wildlife College under the experienced hand of Rogers Lubilo will conduct a two day workshop with our community leaders culminating in a third day of ceremonies and handing over the funds. We are happy to welcome Dr Joe Shaw (Biodiversity Manager Rhino Sustainability) of the World Wildlife Fund to Sabie Game Park during this time. Dr Shaw has visited us in the past and we applaud her effort in trying to get funding for various projects in Mozambique to assist in the rhino war. She is the only NGO to ever visit Sabie Game Park and see for herself what is happening in the coal face of the rhino wars, the rest simply point over the border and whisper in hushed tones about the bad Mozambicans and splurge untruths on media pages not having the foggiest idea about the effort that Sabie Game Park puts into to protecting this iconic species. The festivities and workshops start on the 8th and end on the 12th of September. Our general manager Ferdie Terblanche has worked tirelessly on this task and he is a great part the success of the program. The darker side of this news is that we lost our first rhino to poachers this month. A big bull was shot and his horns removed 1.5 km north of the Nkowana River. We assume that this bull was bumped into by poachers returning from Kruger National Park as our anti poaching unit is highly efficient at present and coupled with the committed and experienced pilot of our Bantam anti poaching aircraft (ZU FVT) Rob Timke, they are a formidable force. Word is out that one does not enter our reserve without encountering severe resistance, follow ups and arrests are the order of the day. Rob brings a lot of not only flying experience but general wildlife experience to the team. Presently we have 5 rhino on the reserve and with the excellent conditions in terms of high quality grazing and water we expect them to flourish. Keeping them alive is the very difficult and continues challenge that is not only extremely costly but also dangerous. Perhaps one day the rest of the world will wake up and realize what we are doing for Rhino Conservation and come flocking to help us, but at present this is all privately funded by Sabie Game Park and its shareholders in particular Oyvind Christensen who should be knighted for his massive contribution to Rhino Conservation. I will keep you all posted on the festivities and we will soon have a comprehensive and continuously updated facebook page and media releases on the rhino situation on the reserve. This all handled by Carina Timke who has put her time and experience in the media world into this new facet of the reserve and the war against Rhino poaching. African greetings. Sandy and the Sabie Game Park Team.
Posted on: Mon, 01 Sep 2014 00:49:34 +0000
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