Dear friends,
The second trimester usually marks the
transition from the wet to the dry season. It has hardly been a favorite of
mine, as April tends to be too wet and waterlogged, while in May and June the
dead grass takes over and the bush fires start, making field work uncomfortable
and not very productive. It is never a good time of the year to observe the
animals as our mobility is reduced and they have plenty of cover. If this
wasn’t enough, the abundant rains of the ending rainy season delayed the normal
sequence of events at least one month.
Even throughout June, we struggled to
drive across the floodplain that defines the western boundary of Cangandala NP.
And not surprisingly, we had very few sable observations to report. The most we
could do, was approaching a few times the young herd, now proudly supervised
permanently by magnificent Mercury (the first born of our “new” Cangandala).
Attempts to approach the larger herd, comprising old females and hybrids, were
not very successful because of the elusive nature of hybrids, dense cover and
made worse by the conspicuous absence of ol’ Duarte. In spite our efforts we
could not track his radio signal anywhere. Considering the fight reported on
the fence in the end of March, we do fear that we may not see the old bull
again… A pity, as he had made a miraculous recovery after last year’s
challenge, but he was getting too old anyway.
On the other hand Ivan, as the trap cameras
confirmed, looks as strong as ever and unscratched. What worries us, is that
Mercury will be next in the succession line under Ivan’s radar, and sooner or
later might be challenged for battle… and we cannot afford to lose young
Mercury!
The biggest surprise in the sanctuary was
finding a pair of reedbuck. Over the past two decades reedbuck were almost
wiped out in Cangandala (although in Luando they are still common today), and
the last sighting had been in 2009 in a floodplain further south. We certainly
didn’t expect any reedbuck to had been caught inside the fence perimeter, where
the habitat is not the most attractive for this species. Reedbuck in the region
generally prefers more extensive open areas associated with drainage lines.
However a careful look at the photo record, gave us some hints on how they had
ended up here. Being an adult female and a very young male, suggests they are
mother and son. A likely scenario would be the female moving into the woodland
to give birth, precisely when the fence was being expanded and as result she
ended up imprisoned inside the sanctuary with her calf. Even if the habitat is
not their most preferred, they will be safe inside the camp, and now bear the
responsibility to repopulate the area!
In Luando reserve, rains had also been
generous, but the most worrying factor were insisting reports of poaching,
brought to us by the shepherds. Poaching does seem to be closely linked with
several diamond operations established along the Kwanza river, as they create
an increasing demand for bushmeat, and this remains unchallenged. And of
course, well armed poachers, not only are a permanent threat to the animals,
but they put the lives of our shepherds in danger. Some steps are being taken
to tackle this crisis, and I’m hopeful it may produce results soon.
Next trimester we expect to make a new aerial
survey and place up to 20 collars on sable in Cangandala and Luando.
