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Some of Nhongo Safaris Fleet of Open Safari Vehicles

The photo shows some of our fleet of Open Safari Vehicles used while on safari in the Kruger National and Hwange National Parks. These ve...

Friday 20 September 2013

Department of Environmental Affairs, SANParks and Stakeholders To Host Rhino Street Parade

Department of Environmental Affairs, SANParks and Stakeholders to host rhino street parade to mark World Rhino Day

The Minister of Water and Environmental Affairs, Mrs Edna Molewa, will lead a Rhino Day Parade to mark World Rhino Day in Pretoria on 21 September 2013. World Rhino Day is observed annually on 22 September.

The Street Parade, aimed at showing support from the youth of South Africa to the scourge of rhino poaching, involves a march by an estimated 1 500 children and adults from Church Square to the National Zoological Gardens in Pretoria. The event is also aimed at raising awareness around the serious issue of rhino poaching.

A formal programme will take place at the National Zoological Gardens. During the event, school children will sign a pledge to show support for the work being done by government in the war against rhino poaching.


The 2013 Rhino Day event is being hosted by the Department of Environmental Affairs, SANParks, the National Zoological Gardens of SA, the City of Tshwane, SA National Biodiversity Institute, Unite Against Poaching and the Walter Sisulu Environmental Centre, Mamelodi.

The details of the event are as follows:

Date: Saturday, 21 September 2013

Venue: Street Parade: Start at Church Square, Pretoria CBD

Time: 09:30

RSVP:

Raymond Ramaru
 Tel: 012 310 3990
 Email:
rramaru@environment.gov.za

Eleanor Momberg
 Tel: 012 395 1884
 Cell: 083 400 5741
 Email:
emomberg@environment.gov.za

Issued by:
 Department of Environmental Affairs

Crime Scene Investigation: Rhino Division

 
It took Noddy Tshabalala only one minute to find the bullet. Treading softly among the scattered remains of a recently killed rhino, she swept a metal detector over the largest part of the carcass. The detector whined.

"There," said Kobus de Wet, head of the Kruger National Park's crime investigations unit. The machine was silent. "Back a bit."

Tshabalala moved the detector a hair's breadth. A long beep. De Wet knelt and dug gently into the soil with his gloved hands.

"There," he said, and held up a bullet.

It was a .357 calibre round, fired roughly two weeks ago, probably by a practised shot using a high-quality hunting rifle.

The crime scene was a tiny clearing in the thick bush, about 80km southeast of Skukuza camp.

Like any crime scene, the area was cordoned off until De Wet and Tshabalala had completed their first thorough sweep of the ground.

While his assistant continued sweeping the clearing for other clues, De Wet turned his attention to the carcass. There was little left. In the time between the shooting and the discovery of the carcass by rangers, hyenas and vultures had fought over the remains, tossing them about the clearing.

De Wet pointed to gouges on the animal's upper jaw where the poachers had hacked off its horns.

"Axe," he said.

The Kruger National Park is losing about two rhinos a day to poachers.

The stakes are high: according to a recent report on the Bloomberg business news website, rhino horn trades for as much as $65000/kg (about R650000/kg), making it more costly than gold, on the black markets in Asia. It is used as a cure for fevers and as a hangover remedy in Vietnam.

The potential earnings have attracted the attention of organised crime. The poaching is largely controlled by syndicates based in Mozambique.

"If you take out the syndicates, then you really solve the poaching problem," said retired army major-general Johan Jooste, who is head of the Kruger Park's anti-poaching operation.

The two investigators have worked hundreds of crime scenes but the job never gets any easier.

They recently found an injured female rhino near Satara camp.

"They had cut her tendons," said De Wet, "so she was sitting [on her haunches] for about a week."

She was the 397th rhino poached in Kruger this year.

There was no more evidence to find. The bullet was bagged and sealed. Perhaps it will turn up as a match. De Wet shrugged. Perhaps.

By:
 Times LIVE

Thursday 19 September 2013

On Safari With Dean From 16 September 2013

16 September 2013

Dean picked up two guests at the Emerald guest house as well as another two guests at OR Tambo International Airport after which we made our way to Nelspruit.

After changing over to our open safari vehicle we made our way to the Numbi. Gate. After checking in, it was off to the camp of Pretoriuskop for a lunch stop.

After a good lunch we made our way down Napi road, getting good sightings of impala, kudu, zebra and wildebeest.

We turned onto the H3 and made our way down to Quagga Pan and back again to Napi Road. Things were quiet on the drive back with some good sightings of elephant and kudu.

We then made our way to Inkambeni Tented Camp where guests enjoyed a great dinner,
before retiring to bed.

17 September 2013

Today we left camp at 06h00 and made our way down the Numbi gate tar getting good sightings of kudu, impala and stenbuck.

We turned onto Napi road travelling in the direction of Skukuza. It was not long before we had good sightings of giraffe, elephant and three good sightings of buffalo of which one sighting was just outside Inkambeni Tented Camp.

It was not long before a message came in on the radio of a lioness down the H3 together with her two cubs who had pulled down a large warthog.

We started making our way in that direction. As we made our way down Napi Road, we got good sightings of more impala, kudu, wildebeest, zebra and giraffe.

We got to the lion sighting, but the lioness together with her cubs were lying a bit back from the kill. It became apparent that there was quite a bit of hyena activity in the area and we were lucky to experience some great interaction between the two species.

We carried on towards Skukuza also getting a good sighting of a female leopard at Deleport bridge.

We made our way onto Skukuza were guests were given a break before carrying on with more game viewing.

We made our way back to Inkambeni Tented Camp for lunch, and a break from the heat before leaving again in the late afternoon for another game drive.

The afternoon session was going down to Shithave dam, getting good sightings of hippo, waterbuck, kudu and baboon before returning to the camp, getting in just before 18h00.

After a good dinner, guests left for a good night’s rest.

18 September 2013

Quite a day was experienced by all today,

We left camp at 06H00 and made our way down the camp road, getting good sightings of buffalo, and elephant.

We made our way down the Numbi gate tar and got more elephant. We made a turn at Shithave dam getting a great sighting of lion lying on the dam wall.

After a call on the radio, it was off to Napi Boulders were another sighting of mating lions was enjoyed. After watching the lions mating and making loads of comments that people should try this sometime, we made our way on towards Skukuza.

About three kilometers from Napi Boulders loop we ran into more elphant.

Also great sightings of impala, kudu, wildebeest and zebra were experienced. About three kilometers before Transport Dam, we got a call of a leopard sighting about one kilometer before the dam turn off, so it was off on action stations to get there.

It was only about four minutes before we arrived on the sighting and managed to get some great photos, before pulling out of the sighting in order to give some other open safari vehicles a chance to get some good photos.

We made our way onwards to Skukuza, when we came upon a great sighting of rhino that was feeding in the open area.

We made our way on and got more great sightings of elephant, baboon, stenbuck, impala and common duiker.

After a stop off at the camp of Skukuza, we made our way up the Tshokwane tar, getting more great sightings of elephant and buffalo at Mutlamuvi Dam.

We made our way over the high water bridge and down Elloff Street getting more good sightings of elephant, Ground Hornbills, buffalo and hippo.

We then made our way back to the camp of Skukuza for lunch as the temperatures were reaching 36'C,

We left Skukuza at about one thirty and made our way back down Napi Road as guests needed to have a rest, before going out on the Sunset safari, but as fate would have it, sightings were good on the road and this took president of the situation.

We got more lions at Klipspringer Kopies, as well as more elephant on Napi Road and a lovely sighting of a hyena pup of about three weeks old lying outside of the culvert next to the road.

More elephant and rhino were enjoyed on the way back.

We got back to camp at about three thirty, giving guests at least an hour’s rest, before they left on their afternoon / evening safari.

19 September 2013

Today we say goodbye to all guests as their safari comes to an end and they return back to Johannesburg.

Next Safari starts on Saturday 21 September with mark so keep watching!!!!

"High Value" Alleged Rhino Poacher Held Near The Kruger National Park

Police have arrested an alleged rhino poacher in a village near the Kruger National Park, South African National Parks said on Wednesday.

The arrest of the "high value individual" followed extensive investigation by a special police unit. The man was detained on Tuesday in Cork Trust village, SANParks spokesperson Ike Phaahla said.

"The arrested individual... is suspected to be part of an active group of poachers operating in the Kruger National Park and surrounding reserves," Phaahla said in a statement.

Police recovered what was thought to be rhino body parts, a SANParks field ranger's uniform, hunting equipment, guns and ammunition.

In a separate incident, three alleged poachers were arrested after a shoot-out with rangers in the Malelane section of the park.

One of alleged poachers was shot and wounded. Police recovered weapons and various hunting equipment.

By:
 South African Press Association

Wednesday 18 September 2013

High Value Rhino Poacher Arrested 17 September

On Tuesday, 17th September 2013, In a joint anti-poaching operation carried out external to the Kruger National Park.

Kruger National Park rangers supported by members of Pathfinder Risk Management, South African Police Service Forensics arrested a high value rhino poaching suspect.

During the arrest, a .308 hunting rifle, two 9mm pistols, a variety of ammunition, hunting equipment and suspected rhino body parts were recovered. Investigations are underway.

Issued by:
 South African National Parks

Rhino Poachers Arrested In The Kruger National Park

Poachers Update: Field Rangers made contact with 3 suspected armed poachers today. During the incident, 1 of the suspects was wounded and the other 2 were arrested. A 375 rifle, ammo and other hunting equipment were recovered.

Monday 16 September 2013

Rhino Projects And Fundraising Required To Register With Department of Environmental Affairs

Non-Profit Organisations, Non-Governmental Organisations and individuals involved in Rhino Projects and Fundraising required to register with Department of Environmental Affairs

The Department of Environmental Affairs is inviting all Non-Profit Organisations (NPOs), Non-Government Organisations (NGOs), businesses and individuals involved in fighting rhino poaching to register with the Department by 30 September 2013.

The initiative is one of numerous steps being taken to rid the sector of illegitimate and ill-intended operations and ensure greater legitimacy of organisations and individuals involved in projects aimed at addressing the scourge of rhino poaching in South Africa.

In light of the serious concern by government and members of the public about the increase in rhino poaching, a common goal is being shared by the South African government, private rhino owners, non-profit organisations, non-governmental organisations, stakeholders and the public at large – to reduce the illegal killing of rhino and secure and grow rhino populations.

As a result, a number of private individuals and organisations have decided to get involved in the fight against rhino poaching. This has included raising public awareness; the collection of funds to fight the scourge of poaching within national, provincial and private game reserves in South Africa; and the development and implementation of projects relating to rhino conservation and safety and security.

Under the present system, NGOs and NPOs are required to register with government through the Department of Social Development. The failure of organisations or individuals to submit annual audited reports results in the de-registration of such bodies from the Social Development database, but some continue operating despite deregistration. The Department and rhino industry stakeholders have also expressed concern about the increase in illegitimate operations.

The registration of NPOs, NGOs, organisations and/or individuals involved in rhino anti-poaching projects with the Department of Environmental Affairs will improve monitoring of compliance with the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC) and ensure that their financial records are up-to-date.

The total number of rhinos poached in South Africa since January 2013 has increased to 635, while number of people arrested for rhino poaching-related offences has climbed to 194.

The Kruger National Park continues to bear the brunt of rhino poaching in South Africa with 396 rhinos killed for their horns so far this year. Of the total number of rhinos poached, 64 rhinos have been killed in Limpopo, 63 in KwaZulu-Natal, 62 in North West and 43 in Mpumalanga.

The establishment of the national database, and for a credible national financing mechanism for rhino anti-poaching, were agreed to by government and rhino stakeholders during a public engagement on 12 July 2013. During the stakeholder engagement, the Department of Environmental Affairs was informed by more than 20 NGOs and NPOs about the work that they do to fight the scourge of rhino poaching. Numerous industry role players raised concerns about the legitimacy of organisations involved in fighting rhino poaching, and some of the projects initiated, particularly fundraising.
The aim of the registration process is to:

- rid the industry of illegitimate operations and ensure that funding for rhino interventions are channelled to the relevant, identified projects;

- establish a register of rhino projects, including but not limited to fundraising, anti-poaching, safety and security, support and conservation initiatives;

- identify gaps that exist between the work of government, NGOs, NPOs and individuals;

- identify priority areas that requires additional assistance;

- identify opportunities to collaborate, cooperate or consolidate projects / initiatives or parts thereof;

- confirm the registration of rhino-related NPOs with the Department of Social Development and obtain information relating to the registration and reporting requirements; and

- develop criteria to assist in determining whether NPOs, NGOs or individuals involved in rhino related activities are contributing towards the fight against rhino poaching and the conservation of the species.


In an effort to coordinate the financing of anti-poaching initiatives, the Department is planning to establish a National Rhino Fund in consultation with the National Treasury. The Fund will address all interventions directed to rhino poaching.

The establishment of the National Rhino Fund, and the compilation of a database of all NGOs, NPOs and any other organizations and/ or individuals who raise funds to save the rhino are among the recommendations being implemented following the adoption of the Rhino Issue Management report by Cabinet earlier this year.

The Department is also reviewing the National Strategy for the Safety and Security of Rhinoceros Populations in South Africa (NSSSRPSA), adopted in 2010, to ensure it addresses all new concerns and efforts to ensure rhino poaching is dealt with in a coordinated and effective manner.

The National Rhino Fund will result in the consolidation of all funding requirements and ensure that funding is distributed successfully to state- and privately-owned rhino anti-poaching initiatives, including conservation, safety and security, skills development and research.

The increase in government funding to save the rhino demonstrates the Department’s commitment to the National Rhino Fund to which business, international funders, local NGOs and individuals will be able to contribute.


The autonomous nature of the National Rhino Fund will ensure that identified legitimate funding requirements will be immediately met, and not be caught up in red tape.

All NPOs, NGOs, organisations and individuals involved in raising awareness or funding to address rhino poaching are requested to email the name of the organisation, contact details and details relating to the project / initiative / intervention to Ms Olga Kumalo through e-mail:
okumalo@environment.gov.za

South Africans are encouraged to report incidents of poaching and tip-offs to the anonymous tip-off lines 0800 205 005, 08600 10111 or Crime-Line on 32211.

Issued by:
 Department of Environmental Affairs