Innholdsfortegnelse for Issue 5 2015 i PRIVATE GAME | WILDLIFE RANCHING

On National Braai Day, 24 September 2015, vehicles rolled in at Sable Park for Piet Warren’s annual auction. On the way down the gravel road towards the huge marquee tent set up for the occasion, the magnificent sable on auction could be seen from the road, each in its own boma area. Game-viewing vehicles were available for driving through the bomas for those who required a closer look, with the sable posing as if they knew they were on show. This was surely a sign of a good day ahead – and soon it came to be true. With a small change in sequence, the first SA record was shattered with the sale for R27m of ‘Mopanie’, a pure Zambian bull fathered by the legendary ‘Piet’. The previous auction record…

Invoere uit Afrika na Suid-Afrika (SA) kon eers in 1982-83 goedkeuring deur dieregesondheid kry nadat Onderstepoort se bek-en-klou-sentrum die nodige bek-en-klou-toetse kon doen. Dit was en is nogsteeds die hoofrisiko van enige invoere uit Afrikalande. Daar is ander siektes ook wat van minder belang kan wees, soos runderpes, trypanosomiase (nagana) wat oordraagbaar deur tsetsevlieg is, asook tering, brucellose en theileriose. Daar is ook min kennis van watter uitwendige- en inwendige parasiete ’n gevaar mag wees. Laasgenoemde drie siektes kom wel in SA voor, daarom word toetse nie altyd vereis vir invoere nie. Vereistes voor invoere behels twee bloedtoetse, in ’n kwarantynfasiliteit in die land van oorsprong, asook 21 dae kwarantyn in die land van aankoms. ’n Verdere finale bloedtoets word dan ook vereis voordat die diere vrygelaat word. Vrylating vind…

The wildlife industry has seen phenomenal growth over the past 10 years. Wise investment would have realised exponential returns, which have in turn been reinvested in new animals, infrastructure upgrades and expansion. One such expansion is a marked growth in the investment in aircraft in the wildlife sector, specifically rotary-wing aircraft, an invaluable tool with many crucial uses. While many of these acquisitions have been purely for recreational or leisure purposes, there has also been a remarkable increase in the number of new carriers now providing passenger, game-capture and anti-poaching services. Also evident is the growing number of wildlife breeding and ranching concerns opting to forego the services traditionally supplied by specialised air-service operators and choosing to purchase their own aircraft for aerial surveillance, fence patrol, and even game capture.…

According to the Oxford dictionary, the definition of the word ‘classic’, in a descriptive context, is quite simply the following: ‘Judged over a period of time to be of the highest quality and outstanding of its kind.’ The buffalo bull, ‘Mystery’, sold for R40m in 2013. The kudu bull, ‘Hercules’, sold for R9.4m in September 2015. The Zambian sable bull, ‘Mopanie’, sold for R27m on Thursday 24 September 2015. These are remarkable achievements – and these are remarkable classic breeds with exceptional horn lengths. They were all bought because of their overall exceptional genetic bloodlines, which buyers aim to incorporate into their own herds. Many examples can be pointed out throughout various species when talking about game breeding. This is, in fact, the game rancher’s goal – breeding that one…

South Africa’s seasonal rainfall patterns pose interesting challenges for the country’s game ranchers. Water is the lifeblood of agriculture and game farming is no exception. Unfortunately, South Africa’s average annual rainfall is just 502mm, according to South African Weather Service (SAWS) – well below the global average of 860mm, with up to 60% of its land mass receiving under 500mm – and thus being classified as semi-arid. Some 20% of the country receives under 200mm per year. These lower rainfall regions have the highest co-efficient of variation – drought is an ever-present threat – and the figures are slightly misleading because annual rainfall distribution is skewed in such a way that there are more below-than above-average rainfall years. Variations are both large and, unpredictable. In certain seasons when rainfall is…

Many people visit game reserves simply to tick off the Big Five. But what about those creatures you have almost zero chance of seeing? I drew up a list of South Africa’s five most elusive mammals. Instead of the Big Five, I set off to find the Cape mountain leopard, aardvark, pangolin, (naturally occurring) white lion and riverine rabbit. The result of my adventures is a recently published book, The Impossible Five. 1. THE UNSPOTTED CAPE LEOPARD Scientist Quinton Martins began looking for these legendary cats in the Cederberg Mountains in 2003. His passion grew into a Masters, then doctoral, thesis. He poured all his time and money into the project. It was nine months before he glimpsed his first leopard and over a year before he captured and collared…

If you Google wildlife rehabilitation, you find the following: “The goal of wildlife rehabilitation is to provide professional care to sick, injured and orphaned wild animals so ultimately they can return to their natural habitat… Wildlife rehabilitation is not an attempt to turn wild animals into pets.” There are many rehabilitation centres in South Africa that mostly do exceptional work in this field. There is, however, a very special centre in South Africa, Care for Wild Africa, based in Mpumalanga, which captures the attention and warms the heart because of its expertise in the rescue, rehabilitation and release of orphaned rhino babies. Many of them have been orphaned by the much-publicised rhino poaching in South Africa. Care for Wild Africa is a registered conservation centre and is totally devoted to…

Most of us know that invasive alien plant (IAP) species – those plants introduced into a local ecosystem from other parts of the world accidently or purposely – can become invasive and threaten both native plant populations and the stability of native ecosystems. Working for Water estimates that, of the 8 750 alien plants in South Africa, 161 are seriously invasive, with others having the potential to become invasive in the future. Approximately 10 million hectares (8%) of South Africa’s total land area have been invaded to some extent (roughly an area the size of KwaZulu-Natal). The threat is particularly severe in the fynbos biome in the Cape region, one of the biodiversity hotspots in the world. About 750 of the approximately 8 574 native fynbos species are threatened with…

Situated in the Upper Mpushini Conservancy, Intaba Ridge is a privately developed residential game estate on Pietermaritzburg’s doorstep. The estate has been developed by Sign Power Investments through Brendan Falkson and John Dovey, with the vision of creating something truly special. The development expertise of John and Brendan, who have been involved with the development of estates like Brettenwood Coastal Estate, Forest Village and Brettenwood Lakes, has enabled Intaba Ridge to establish a benchmark for private Residential Game Estates in KZN. “Intaba Ridge Private Game Estate, situated only 5km from Pietermaritzburg Oribi Airport, is becoming one of the KZN capital city’s most desirable residential locations,” says Barbara Becker, Pam Golding Properties area principal covering the Pietermaritzburg and KZN Midlands areas. “Apart from its convenient and accessible position, with top schools…

‘Knowledge is power’ is a famous and often repeated quote, and for good reason. In this age of rapidly developing information technology, specific knowledge is spreading swiftly and often unevenly, resulting in significant and sometimes rapid shifts in power. One need look no further than the recent political upheavals in the Middle East, the so-called Arab Spring, in which social-media communication played a vital role. Closer to home, improvements and shifts in knowledge have significant implications for the southern African wildlife industry, both positive and potentially threatening. In the last two months, Cecil the lion has represented a newsworthy flashpoint for the spread of knowledge about wildlife-management practices in southern Africa. I was in the USA at the time the Cecil story broke and was impressed by how almost every…

The potential of game meat as a local and export commodity It is widely promulgated that the next growth phase of the game ranching industry rests on the prospects of game meat, a segment of the industry that has to date largely been neglected. Besides, it can probably be argued that the growth in the consumption of game meat will be central in terms of ensuring that game ranching remains a viable agricultural land-use option in future – or at least for those individuals who derive their livelihood from ranching with game animals. This rightly raises questions with regard to the potential of game meat, not only as a means to stimulate growth, but also to provide a much-needed alternative consumptive market. One way of answering the question is to…

The South African Air Services Licensing Act is not compliant with the Convention on International Civil Aviation, which splits civil aviation into three broad categories: 1. Commercial aviation where, as far as aircraft are concerned, passengers or cargo are carried for reward and the aircraft must be registered to an AOC, and where pilots are concerned, if they fly for reward, they must hold commercial pilot licences. 2. Aerial work operations are where aircraft are used in some other business or occupation such as game capture, photography, surveys, and so on and as such there are no passengers or assets being transported specifically for reward. 3. Private aviation where the aircraft are flying for recreational, private transport or business travel. Our Air Services Licensing Act lumps aerial work together with…

The Constitution Act 108 of 1996 (‘the Constitution’) is the supreme law of the Republic of South Africa and specifies, among other aspects, how the three branches of government – the legislature (parliament, provincial legislatures and municipal councils), the executive authority, and the judicial authority – should conduct their business. Chapter 4 of the Constitution sets out the national legislative process and determines that parliament is the national legislature (law-making body) of the Republic. The two houses of parliament, the national assembly and the national council of provinces (NCOP), both play a role in this process. Parliament, as the national legislature, has legislative authority (the power to make laws) in the national sphere of government. Consequently, parliament has the power to pass new laws, to amend existing laws, and to…

PRACTICAL APPROACHES TO WHAT TO DO IN TIMES OF DROUGHT OR LACK OF NATURAL FORAGE Drought has affected large parts of southern Africa in the past year (and, in some areas, the past two to three years). Periods of drought are characterised by far below normal average rainfall. This water shortage has a direct effect on the nutritional quality and quantity of available forage. High-quality forage supplies animals with the necessary energy, protein and other essential nutrients to maintain their health status. Initially, drought affects the quality of the forage: the plant’s main aim is to survive into the future, so some plants dry out, storing nutrients in their roots, tubers, bulbs and seed. Others simply throw seed and die. A prolonged drought forces animals to consume the available forage.…

The poisoning of wildlife is a scourge that occurs throughout the world, to the extent that even the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) has a Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species (CMS) and, under this Convention, a Minimising Poisoning Working Group focuses entirely on wildlife poisoning prevention. At the CMS Conference of Parties (CMS CoP11) held in November 2014, the parties adopted the Guidelines to Prevent the Risk of Poisoning of Migratory Birds. By adoption, signatories to the convention are obliged to address key areas in the guidelines: • Migratory species feeding on rodents and insects exposed to pesticides (particularly second-generation anticoagulant rodenticides, and carbamate and organophosphate insecticides); • species affected by poisonous baits used to control predators and protect wildlife estates; • species feeding on domestic livestock carcasses…

Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) is a highly contagious viral disease affecting mammals and has great potential for causing severe economic loss. It affects cloven-hoofed animals. FMD is the first disease for which the OIE established an official list of free countries and zones. The science-based standards, guidelines and recommendations issued by the OIE are designated as the international reference. The OIE, through its experts and world network of Reference Laboratories and Collaborating Centres, provides policy advice, strategy design and technical assistance for the control and eradication of FMD. Source: http://www.oie.int About two months ago, while talking about the WRSA game meat project and potential exports to the European Union (EU), it became clear to me that despite the OIE (international body for animal health) at the end of 2014…

DO YOU WANT A TASTY AND HEALTHY ALTERNATIVE TO LAMB, CHICKEN, BEEF OR PORK? Game is wild, natural and free range, and if you are looking for food low in fat and cholesterol, game meat is a delicious and healthy alternative to many other red meats. Eating game meat has real health benefits. Game meat is high in protein, low in saturated fatty acids and contains higher levels of iron than any other red meat. Game meat not only has a high nutritional value, but the meat is also free of added substances. NUTRITIONAL ANALYSIS OF RAW MEAT SAMPLES So now that you know how healthy game meat is, there are several recipes available for game meat dishes where you can use ordinary ingredients to create an extraordinary dish. We’ve…

Transformation in the game industry has been a hot topic of debate, with detractors saying that progress has been altogether too slow. “Transformation is critical to the sustained success of the game breeding industry,” Cyril Ramaphosa has said, speaking on behalf of Stud Game Breeders (SGB), a company willing to put its money where its mouth is. SGB raised a significant amount of R700 000 on 5 September 2015 which will be used towards educational bursaries for students. Previous bursaries covered tuition and accommodation for students studying game ranch management or nature conservation at Tshwane University of Technology (TUT). SGB contributed R840 000 for use by 14 students in 2015 and an amount of R280 000 was allocated for study purposes for seven deserving students in 2014. The money is…

Cecil was radio collared in 2008 by the Wildlife Conservation Research Unit at Oxford University. In the violent life of lions, Cecil was injured and his brother killed trying to take over a pride, and the pride male was euthanased because of serious injuries. In 2009, Cecil formed a pride of 22 lions but, in 2013, Cecil was ousted by two young male lions. He then formed a small new pride with six lionesses, in a territory straddling the border of Hwange National Park. Walter Palmer, a dentist from Minnesota, paid Theo Bronkhorst (a safari outfitter) $50 000 to hunt a lion on a property newly acquired by Honest Ndlovu. Cecil was baited out of the park, injured with a bow on or about 1 July 2015, and dispatched with…

Investing in game has typically followed a few tried-and-tested models in South Africa. Not everyone dreams of owning a farm and game outright, however – it can be labour intensive and it may take many years before one sees a return on investment. Even buying an animal and letting it walk on someone else’s farm, sharing ownership of any offspring, may not satisfy everyone. This is where Chris du Plooy, CEO of RFS Administrators, a company that specialises in pension fund administration for 80 000 members, comes in. Chris has identified a gap in the market for those people who want to invest in our incredibly lucrative industry without taking on the risk that comes with owning an animal. “We are launching a private equity fund that will be open…

Ever wanted to get into the game-breeding business but don’t want to make the initial investment in land and infrastructure? A new concept makes it possible to do exactly this – investment company DJ Farmer is developing a number of properties with the express purpose of setting up breeding camps and hiring them out, on a five-year lease, to those wanting to gain a foothold in the lucrative breeding market. According to Frederé de Jager, founder of the property development companies DJ Syndico, DJ Offshore and DJ Farmer, he came up with the concept when he himself wanted to get into game breeding. “Game breeding is my passion and I have heard a lot of people talking at braais and saying, ‘I wish I could also get into the business.’…

PERMIT SYSTEM FOR LISTED THREATENED OR PROTECTED SPECIES (TOPS) The natural environment is one of South Africa’s greatest assets and we are fortunate in having some of Africa’s most beautiful natural landscapes with an extraordinary diversity of indigenous culture. Permits are required for conducting various activities within our natural biodiversity and protected areas, including permits for social functions (where reservation of specific areas is required), remote area camping, commercial filming and photography, the keeping of exotic pets, fishing competitions, the collecting of flora and fauna, and undertaking other commercial activity. The permit system helps the authorities to monitor, protect and preserve our biodiversity, parks, reserves and marine areas for future generations. It is the obligation, duty and task of the men and women of our environmental affairs, our environmental enforcement…

DOES ONE NEED TO KNOW IT ALL BEFORE DOING SOMETHING? A blistering squall forces white patches of breaking waves onto a rocky beach. I feel the small bites of tiny hailstones against my face. It is cold. It is windy. My gumboots slosh through a puddle slowly gathering as the pouring sleet of a southern storm beats down on Marion Island. My day has just started. A small back-pack with food, condensed milk, an extra jersey and emergency survival kit, all essential components when conducting seal surveys, comforts me as I begin approaching the first beach. It is packed with elephant seals. It is 15 October. I need to know how many elephant seals use beaches at Marion Island on 15 October. Biologists say that is the official birthday of…

Om suksesvolle wildboere van die San van die Kgalagadi te maak is vir hom ’n lewenstaak, maar vir Prof. Piet du Plessis is dit ook ’n passie om die nuwe geslag wildboere en WRSA se leiers van die toekoms touwys te maak. Op sy wildsplaas, Ghoenaskraal, anderkant Modimolle en op die pad na Vaalwater, het Prof. Piet ’n volledig toegeruste vleisverwerkingsaanleg gebou waar hy gereeld vir groepe natuur- en wildbewaringstudente kursusse aanbied. Van die oomblik dat hulle die bokke en vlakvarke daar in die veld afslag totdat die wors, sosaties, cabanossi’s en salami’s uiteindelik anderkant uitgaan – netjies verpak en geprys – word die studente die fyner kunsies van vleisverwerking geleer. Hy was juis besig met ’n kursus vir die eerstejaartjies in natuurbewaring aan die Tshwane Universiteit vir Tegnologie (TUT)…

There are limited official training opportunities available for learning to master the art of preparing game meat dishes. Kwandwe Private Game Reserve, based in the Eastern Cape, offers a unique experience to learn how to expertly barbeque different types of game meat, such as impala, kudu, ostrich, warthog and gemsbok, and how to prepare traditional accompaniments such as potbread, mielie bread, farm butter and krummel pap, then campfire cooking at Kwande provides an exciting opportunity to learn about preparing and cooking authentic South African braais with local dishes. You will get sole use of their safari villa, Melton Manor. • Learn from their executive culinary team and take the recipes you learn, with details of preparation and cooking times, home with you. • Get a hands-on lesson on how to…

Everyone has their favourite dinner-party stories about scary experiences while living in the bush but Lucy Kemp’s may well top most others. The daughter of ornithologists Alan and Meg, who spent most of their careers studying hornbill biology in the Kruger National Park, as well as in other parts of the world, she’s quite used to life in the bush. “As children, my brother and I were ‘dragged’ to Kruger National Park every summer school holiday, which happened to coincide with the ground-hornbill breeding season. It meant being up at 3am every morning to locate the groups when they were doing their predawn chorus. The rest of day was spent following groups or checking nests. If a chick was harvested, it meant catching grasshoppers all day around camp to keep…