SOUTH AFRICA: Six Animals Killed By Electrocution In Kruger National Park

Six large animals have died at South Africa's biggest national park after storms toppled a power cable.

A rhino, a giraffe, two lions and two hyenas were electrocuted when the power line came down in Kruger National Park.

The giraffe and rhino died first, and the lions and hyenas were killed by the live wire while trying to eat the carcasses.

Rangers came across the disturbing scene while taking engineers to the site to restore electricity.

Isaac Phaahla, a spokesman for South Africa National Parks (SANParks), said the animals died last Friday in the Skukuza section of the park.

Kruger National Park rangers discovered the animals while accompanying electricians

The animals were electrocuted after heavy rains and strong winds brought down a power line, he said.

At almost 20,000 sq km (7,700 sq miles), the Kruger National Park is the country's largest wildlife reserve.

On Tuesday, a spokesman told reporters the park had reports of four other dead animals in January so far. Two of them have been confirmed as poached, and two of them are under investigation, he said.

Meanwhile, South African lions chewed a poacher, leaving just his head

A suspected big cat poacher was eaten by lions near the Kruger National Park in South Africa, police say.

The animals left little behind, but some body parts were found at a game park near Hoedspruit.

It seems the victim was poaching in the game park when he was attacked and killed by lions, Limpopo police spokesman Moatshe Ngoepe said.

They ate his body, nearly all of it, and just left his head and some remains.

Police have not yet established the victim's identity. A loaded hunting rifle and ammunition were found next to the body.

Lion poaching has been on the rise in Limpopo province in recent years.

The big cats' body parts are sometimes used in traditional medicine, both within Africa and beyond.

Wildlife charity the Born Free Foundation says lion bones and other body parts are increasingly sought-after in South East Asia, where they are sometimes used as a substitute for tiger bones.

In January 2017, three male lions were found poisoned in Limpopo with their paws and heads cut off.

Also, Lions killed in South Africa after escaping Kruger reserve

Three lions which had escaped from a world famous game reserve in South Africa have been killed.

A farmer living near Kruger National Park (KNP) shot dead one of the males when he found all three eating one of his cows, a parks spokeswoman said.

He wounded another and a third ran away.

A search party of rangers decided to put down the wounded lion and the one which had escaped the farmer, Ms Raftopoulos said.

South African National Parks says the unharmed lion was killed because tasting cattle meat would change its behaviour.

There were also concerns that having already escaped once, the lion would keep trying to leave the park.

The decision is made by vets and rangers with years and years of experience, Ms Raftopoulos said.

Initial reports indicated that four lions had escaped on Sunday, but parks officials have since said that evidence suggests only three escaped.

KNP is one of the biggest game reserves in Africa, covering an area of 7,523 sq miles (19,485 sq km).

It is not yet clear how the lions escaped from the park, which is largely fenced off.

Officials say they were probably driven out by population pressures.

The latest escape comes after five lions broke out of the same park in May. Four of them were caught but the fifth is still unaccounted for.


Tourism Observer

TANZANIA: Wonders Of Serengeti

Serengeti Migration
The Serengeti is not one of the 7 natural wonders of Africa, but it is home to the migration which was officially declared as one of the Seven Natural Wonders of Africa on February 11, 2013 in Arusha, Tanzania. The migration is a shared wonder between the countries of Tanzania and Kenya. The majority of the migration is experienced on the Tanzanian side.

Serengeti
The name Serengeti comes from the Swahili word meaning “endless plains.” For some this conjures up an image of nothing but grass lands, however the it is so much more. These endless plains stretch over 12,000 squares miles (30,000 sq km) and feature a variety of habitats that include the expected grasslands along with kopjes, swamps, riverine forests, woodlands and hills.

The various habitats are what provide an opportunity for the Serengeti to be home to around 70 larger mammals and over 500 species of birds. The abundant and varying wildlife is what attracts visitors to this wonder of nature from Africa.

The Kenyan and Tanzanian governments have leveraged national parks, conservation areas, and game reserves to establish official protection over 80% of the endless plains affectionately known as the Serengeti. The national park in Tanzania goes by the same name, whereas the national park in Kenya is known as the Masai Mara.

Serengeti Wildlife
The migration is the hallmark of the Serengeti featuring over 1.2 million wildebeests, over 800,000 zebras, and hundreds of thousands of gazelles, impalas, and other wildlife. The heart of the migration is the wildebeest and the zebra.

The Serengeti is also home to 6 of the Big Seven, which include the lion, leopard, elephant, rhino, hippo and the crocodile. The only one of the Big Seven missing is the mountain gorilla. Some of the other wildlife calling the endless plains home include: cheetah, hyena, giraffe, eland, Thomson gazelle, impala, baboon, and the warthog. There are also hundreds of species of birds making this the complete Safari experience.

The migration is what attracts many people. One of the highlights occurs during the months of January and February when the wildebeests are giving birth. This is a short and concise window where all of the wildebeests give birth within a 2 to 3 week period. A second highlight occurs sometime during the months of September or October. This is another concise 2 to 3 week period where the wildebeests and zebras cross the Mara River into Kenya.

Crossing the Mara River is exciting for an couple of reasons. First, it is an amazing sight to see 1 million wildebeests crossing the river in a given moment. However this is also a challenging crossing as crocodiles wait to feast on these animals as they enter the water. Witnessing a crocodile capture and kill one of the wildebeest is an exciting encounter with nature.

MOZAMBIQUE: Mozambique’s Zambezi Delta Extended To Cover 3,000 Square Kilometres

Mozambique has significantly extended the Zambezi Delta, its second Wetland of International Importance. Now covering over 3,000 km2, the Delta is a unique wetland and one of the most diverse and productive river delta systems in the world. It is characterized by a broad flat alluvial plain with vast mosaics of tropical grassland, palm, thicket, woodland, deep water swamp, and some of the most extensive mangrove communities on the East African coast.

A recognized global biodiversity conservation hotspot, the Delta is home to a significant population of large mammals including the African buffalo, elephant, hippopotamus, lion and leopard, and a large concentration of waterbird species including white-backed and pink-backed pelicans, herons, flamingos, egrets, African fish eagles, storks, Caspian terns, wattled cranes and endangered grey crowned cranes. Bottlenose and humpback dolphins and a variety of marine and freshwater fish and shellfish species have also been recorded in the Site.

In addition to the rich biodiversity values, the Site provides a wealth of ecosystem services which are vital to food security and socio-economic development in Mozambique. It also provides hydrological functions including coastal protection, flood control and carbon sequestration. The major threat to the Zambezi Delta is the construction of dams for hydroelectric power.

WWF International Freshwater Programme and WWF-Mozambique have provided support to the updating of the Zambezi Delta.

BOTSWANA: Northern Tuli Game Reserve

Spectacular landscapes, rich and varied wildlife, and a host of historical, cultural and natural history attractions define this unique and very striking corner of northeastern Botswana.

Straddling the Shashe, Motloutse and Limpopo Rivers, which serve as natural boundaries with Zimbabwe and South Africa, the Northern Tuli Game Reserve (NTGR) comprises 71,000 hectares of remarkably diverse habitat, including mophane bushland, riverine woodland, and marshland, punctuated by towering sandstone cliffs, basalt formations and unusually shaped kopjes – making for truly breathtaking scenery.

One of the largest privately owned game reserves in Southern Africa and incorporating three major private concessions (Tuli Safari Lodge, Nitani Private Game Reserve, and Mashatu Game Reserve), the NTGR is home to 48 species of mammals and over 350 species of birds, with an estimated 20 000 animals residing in the reserve.

Most naturally occurring wildlife species are present, including elephant, kudu, zebra, impala, duiker, wildebeest, waterbuck, steenbok, and warthog. Large herds of eland – often not seen elsewhere in Botswana – are present, and these are indeed an awesome sight. All major predators, including lion, leopard, cheetah and hyena, are present, and the birdlife is prolific.

The NTGR is adjacent to a larger area of eastern Botswana called the Tuli Block. This is a ten kilometre wide strip of land running approximately Northern Tuli Game Reserve 180 kilometres south to Martin’s Drift that holds a string of commercial agricultural and game farms, several of which also offer tourist facilities.

Travellers keen for a more active safari experience will delight in all there is on offer. You can hike the reserve, bike the reserve, horse-ride the reserve, and even hot air balloon the reserve! At Mashatu Game Reserve, guests can accompany elephant or predator researchers, to gain first-hand insights into the behaviour, feeding habits, territories, demography, and social structure of these animals, as well as critical wildlife conservation issues. A similar experience awaits guests at Nitani – as they come to understand the complexities of a long-term hyena research project.

Molema Bush Camp, a community based tourism project managed and operated by Tuli Safari Lodge, is an ideal way to take part in a tourism concept that is rapidly gaining momentum in Africa. Local communities become active partners in tourism projects, from which they can more readily see clear-cut financial and social benefits.

Molema is a joint venture between three local villages: Motlhabaneng, Lentswe le Moriti and Mathathane and two tour operators: Tuli Safari Lodge and Talana Farms.

Archaeological sites provide an important historical perspective to the region. Iron Age sites demonstrate the formidable skills in pottery, mining, and smelting of the Zhizo, Leopard’s Kopje and Mapungubwe peoples, who practised agriculture and animal husbandry in the area.

Artifacts from the Mapungubwe Kingdom (1220-1290AD), a precursor to the Great Zimbabwe civilisation, reveal the sophistication of the technology and society of its people, and their extensive trade networks.

The NTGR will form the heart of the proposed Shashe/Limpopo Trans- Frontier Conservation Area (TFCA), its signatories – Botswana, Zimbabwe and South Africa – agreeing to cooperate to conserve and manage shared natural resources. Rich in biodiversity, the proposed TFCA will cover approximately 4,872 square kilometres and will be one of the largest wildlife conservation areas in Southern Africa.

Mapungubwe Hill

Mapungubwe was a prosperous Iron Age metropolis situated on the banks of the Limpopo River that thrived nearly a thousand years ago. It was ruled by a king of the Leopard Kopje people, and its extensive trade networks reached as far as Egypt, India and China.

The kingdom’s capital was situated at the 300 metre long Mapungubwe Hill, which today is only accessible through two very steep and narrow paths that twist their way to the top.

The civilisation of Mapungubwe was highly developed; its unique arts were of a superior craftsmanship and quality. One of the most famous pieces unearthed by archaeologists is a superbly crafted golden rhino. Other pieces include beautiful pottery and jewellery.

Mophane woodlands, riverine forests and sandstone formations create a breathtaking backdrop for Mapungubwe Hill. The area is rich in wildlife, including white rhino, elephant, giraffe, gemsbok, eland, lion, leopard and hyenas, as well as over 400 species of birds.

Motlhabaneng
Local village tours often become a highlight of a trip to Tuli. A delightful morning’s outing to the quaint village of Motlhabaneng consists of a visit to the kgotla for a chat with the village chief or headman, a visit to the local primary school where children don traditional clothing and dance, and a visit to a basket-maker’s home where guests interact with villagers, learn something of their traditional way of life and watch hand-woven baskets in the making.

Ancient rock paintings, almost certainly done by Southern Africa’s original inhabitants, the San, can also be seen at the outskirts of Motlhabaneng. The paintings depict people, animals, hunting scenes and mythological creatures, part of the San’s complex cosmology and belief system.

Solomon’s Wall

This rather amazing natural phenomenon, situated in the Tuli Block, is a 30 metre high basalt dyke that once formed a steep-sided natural dam wall across the Motloutse River.

A full ten metres wide, this ancient dyke once held back a great lake, with waterfalls spilling over the dyke. Evidence of this great lake are the numerous semi-precious stones (e.g. quartz and agate) found along the Motloutse riverbed.

Tall fever trees line the natural beach, making for a shady picnic site. Solomon’s Wall can only be reached with a four-wheel drive vehicle.