As you visit Southern African Wildlife College online, you’ll probably notice that things look a little different. We’ve been busy over the last few months reconceptualising our digital presence with exciting results. First of all, we have a new-look website, which we’re currently testing. Our official launch will be a celebration of a platform that’s […]
2018 will no doubt require much the same input as 2017, with the College’s area of aerial operation encompassing the entire Greater Kruger Environmental Foundation (GKEPF) area, which includes both state ownded and private reserves as well as the Central Kingfisherspruit region of the Kruger National Park. A breakdown of flying hours and statistics for […]
On 24 April the Southern African Wildlife College (SAWC) and the University of Mpumalanga (UMP) signed a memorandum of understanding to formalize their collaboration as leading institutions in conservation education, training and skills development in southern Africa. The MoU allows students from the UMP to be immersed in understanding and solving real conservation issues thanks […]
The SAWC has embarked on a new rhino tagging initiative in its study focus area using the newest technology, a VHF ear tag. Previously with its rhino capture operations, the emphasis was on rhino notching, which has worked well to date, but of late there have been some concerns raised about notching operations being duplicated […]
No new statistics or updates on rhino poaching have been released by the Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) since the publication of the last newsletter, but based on 2017 data, losses are still unsustainable… South Africa is home to 80% of the world’s 29 000 rhinos. From 2007 to 2014 the country experienced an exponential rise […]
The Lowveld has been blessed with welcome rains in most of the central regions over the past two months. Although the rainfall coverage seemed to encompass most of our operational areas, the rains were sporadic and varied with some areas receiving substantially more than others. The picture of the landscape from above is very different […]
The Southern African Wildlife College’s Protected Area Integrity Unit, under the department’s African Field Ranger Training Services (AFRTS), had a successful start to 2018 with the kickoff of new and diverse training interventions, like the training for maritime rangers. “We have developed a brand-new course for maritime training and provided a successful training intervention in […]
The Southern African Wildlife College’s Protected Area Integrity Unit and African Field Ranger Training Services (AFRTS) recently presented a Trainer/Instructor course in Assam, India, with the support of United for Wildlife and WWF-India. After a selection phase and five weeks of training, Assam now has 11 instructors equipped to introduce their forest staff to a […]
Sadly, Kruger elephant poaching is becoming a grim reality, not only within Kruger but all over South Africa. A total of 67 elephants were killed for their ivory in the Kruger Park in 2017, while one was lost to poachers in KwaZulu Natal (KZN). If one looks at the trend, Kruger losses are significantly worse: […]
Current climate predictions issued by the South African Weather Service for the period February to June 2018 indicate that the El Niño system is expected to remain in a weak La Niña phase through to early Autumn. This suggests above-normal rainfall is to be expected later in the summer rainfall season, which can extend towards […]