elephant tracks in the corridor

The Chobe enclave has been well-known and documented as an area of considerable elephant movement and human-elephant conflict. The villages in the enclave sprawl across the easiest access points to water and flood plain grasslands from the pristine mixed-mopane woodlands of the Chobe Forest Reserve, in which elephants congregate in high numbers. With this in mind, one can easily assess why there would be competition for land use between people and elephants in that region. However, elephants are resilient and either adjust their movements or simply tolerate having to share space. This might be tolerable for the elephants, but for people in the villages, it can be frightful. (read abut EWB’s elephant and people projects: www.elephantswithoutborders.org/living_with_elephants.php

Presently, a large tarred road is under construction stretching approx. 60 kilometers from Chobe National Park’s Ngoma gate to the village of Kachikau. With this new huge development, the elephants have “adjusted” their movements just slightly beyond the villages to access water and nutrient rich grasses. Throughout the night, they come down the corridor, only to return to the forests in the early morn. This small corridor is only 1 kilometer wide, and perhaps 10 kilometers long.  (Want to read more about our projects and progress see: www.elephantswithoutborders.org/downloads.php)

vegetation takes slack from consistent use by elephants

It was easy to demarcate the corridor by the remains of trees and vegetation destroyed in the wake of consistent elephant use.

We talked to some of the local people who settled beyond the villages, who had first hand knowledge of the elephants’ movement patterns. Following a herd boys’ lead, we planted ourselves on the fringe of the corridor, just after sunset. With the loss of the sun came a hint of moonlight, so we sat in silence waiting. At first, we thought perhaps we had missed the elephants coming through, we were too late. But patience paid off and we suddenly heard the sound of rustling. Then, we could hear the soft shuffling sounds of elephant steps.

soft shadows is all we could see in the dust

Squinting, I was scanning the darkness to catch a glimpse of dark shadows, when Mike exclaimed “look behind us!” Twenty meters from the back of our Landy, I could see a parade of dark, hurried shadows running to the water… a breeding herd, more than 50 strong splashed into the cool water. “Ssshhh!’ Parallel to our side, large ears protruded from the shrub only 5 meters away. The large matriarch smelled us and hesitated, shifting from one foot to the next, then with a shake of her massive head, she quickly moved around the vehicle, leading another 30 elephants behind her. Dust filled our nostrils, ears and eyes, but we kept them wide-open, anxiously looking through the haze for more. We realized we weren’t on the edge of the corridor, we were right in the middle of it! A herd crossed beyond the hood of the car, and then another came from the side. They kept coming, and coming. Occasionally a feisty young one would hesitate and hover over us, trunk up sniffing, before moving on. Hundreds of elephants passed around our vehicle on their evening routine to fresh water and food. We carried a large searchlight, however, we thought best to not disturb them. I imagined that these particular elephants already had to run a gamut around people and harassment. They chose their route and timing carefully. So instead, as the dust settled, we relied on our ears and listened intently to the slurping, splashing and finally the sound of massive water movement. The elephants moved on… and yes, to greener pastures until the wake of the sun.

Support Elephants Without Borders endeavors, by logging on to: www.elephantswithoutborders.org/donate.php

Shadows of elephants surrounded our vehicle

Chobe river bank clean up, a success!

On Thursday, Aug 5th, Elephants Without Borders joined forces with the Department of Wildlife and National Parks (DWNP) to walk the shores of the Chobe River within Chobe National Park to pick up garbage and debris that had been deposited from the now receding flood waters. Upstream, the river runs along many villages through the countries of Angola and Namibia. With the wet season rains, the river quickly rises several meters, widening, and in its current, taking whatever is in its path with it. Some years it is devastating. When it finally subsides and recedes during the dry season, debris is left along the Chobe shores. Taking pride in Botswana and our national parks, we decided to ensure that the banks were clean and no harm would come to wildlife due to the deposited debris.
The idea to conduct this activity came to me when in the park, along the river, I watched a young elephant pick up an old beer bottle and was carrying and tossing it around in his trunk.

May look cute, but not so funny

It brought back memories of a few elephants that had died when they consumed too many plastics. Not long ago, the Kasane garbage dump was unfenced and was known to be a common place to view wildlife such as elephants, hyenas, baboons, etc. foraging through heaps of raw, burning trash: plastics, bottles, old food, household items, etc. Commonly seen was a group of bull elephants rummaging through the rubbish, tossing full plastic bags about, as if it were the earth’s soils that they cover themselves with. It must’ve been hot within the burning heaps and I wondered what kind of damage they were accruing on their feet and in their digestive tracts.

2 Bulls in the old Kasane garbage dump, adorned w plastic

Taken from the Mmegi Oct 30, 2008: “The dumping site has had serious ramifications on the environment and the wildlife of Chobe. Elephants, hyenas, baboons and birds flock to the dumping site to feed. This year, three elephants have died after eating plastics from the dump site. The principal wildlife warden in Kasane,

Mother Baboon w babe in burning trash

Thunya Sedodoma said that last year, plastics were found in the belly of a dead elephant. She added they have not managed to establish what killed a number of elephants because the carcases were too decomposed by the time they were found. Sedodoma asserted that this year, they have recorded over 70 deaths of wildlife, all related to feeding at the dumping site. She said it is common to see plastics in elephants’ faeces and this means many of the beasts feast at the dumping site. The plastics are causing the elephants to defecate abnormally.”
She was right. It was not uncommon to see plastics scattered within the elephant dung within the park. However, with great relief, the Kasane garbage dump is now a monitored landfill complete with compactors to bury the rubbish. It is cleaned up, fenced and electrified to keep the wildlife out. And it seems to be working well. However it is not to say that all the garbage can be contained, as wind, water and careless people still spread it about. It just takes a little initiative and time to help cleaning it up.

dung and plastic, a detrimental combination

When I approached Dr.Gaseitsewe Masunga, the Chobe District Wildlife Coordinator about conducting the walk as a team, he was enthusiastic and organized to have several DWNP staff join us. We started at the old Entrance gate, spread out across the flood plains, and walked as far as we could in one day, to the Ihaha campsite.

fishing nets are a real wildlife hazard

We collected 2 full truck loads of bottles, cans, plastic bags, glass, knotted fishing nets, shoes, boards with nails, broken mekoros, etc.  The afternoon it became hot and the extent was tiring, but still it was fun. Enjoyable to watch was the expression and curiosity of the onviewing wildlife as we passed. The giraffe were especially curious, but the hippos didn’t give us the time of day!
It was a successful and satisfying endeavor, and seemed that everyone enjoyed doing it. Together it was almost effortless! We want to sincerely Thank the DWNP staff for joining EWB and we look forward to future activities together. To read more about EWB activities, check out our News page at http://www.elephantswithoutborders.org/news.php or become our friend on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Elephants-Without-Borders/220139555561

Support EWB at http://www.elephantswithoutborders.org/donate.php

EWB and DWNP clean-up crew... Go Team!

Kelly & Pete fitting a satellite collar

Soldier boy donning his new collar

The other is a much larger, older bull, named Soldier boy that was spotted enjoying palm nuts on the fringes of large dry patches within the delta. Just this week, he crossed a major flooded channel to move east. These 2 bulls will provide us with information which will be added to our satellite telemetry database, improving our understanding of the spatial ecology, and habitat use of elephants on the western periphery of their range. This collaring exercise was made possible with the generous financial support received from Mr. Harry Ferguson and Mr. Rob Barrie. We extend our thanks to Dr. Cyril Taolo and Department of Wildlife and National Parks personnel, the Department of Civil Aviation, Mike Holding, Larry Patterson, Peter Perlstein and John Sobey and the staff of African Horse Back Safaris for hosting us at their camp. On a personal note, I also wanted to thank everyone at AHS for allowing me to join them on a horseback ride in the delta! It was so invigorating when the horses cantered, leaping high and fast through the waters. I held tight, and was completely soaked from head to toe, but couldn’t help but keep a huge smile on my face. An experience I highly recommend. African Horseback Safaris http://www.africanhorseback.com/

Following the collaring exercise, EWB spent the day flying in a Cessna to track and visually check on the elephants collared as part of the same range expansion study. Luckily we had an idea where we might find them due to their last satellite locations, but it is always surprising to see the type of environment and who the elephants may be roaming with. Initially it was difficult to pinpoint the first elephant we were tracking, Naledi, as he was in the harsh, dry extent of the Makgadikgadi, where many bulls were roaming. We narrowed in on a large herd of 18 bulls that seemed to give off a strong signal, however we could not find the collar. We circled and circled insisting that he must be among them. However, on a turn, Mike spotted 3 other elephants just a small distance away and sure enough, we found our bull. Pulling higher into the air, we headed south in hopes to get a visual on Xhumaga. At one point, we were astounded by a sight below: nearly 30 bull elephants were rousting for a turn at a trough in an artificial waterhole. The pumped pan was nothing more than a small mud puddle. Many definitive paths led to it, indicating its high daily usage and importance to the bulls. We know these artificial water points were set into place and started pumping just last year, but the vegetation surrounding the pan was almost completely destroyed already. What astounded us most was the proximity of the now flowing Boteti River to this pan. Approx 100 meters away, a 2.2 meter high, electrified fence separated the bulls from reaching the river’s fresh, clean water. The fence was put into place to avoid conflict from wildlife into the villages.

Aerial: Eles at pan, fence, river

The river had not been flowing this far south at the time the fence was erected and when it was constructed a few points were alloted for the wildlife to access the river.  However, the wildlife’s access points are far and few between. What seems obvious to us now,  is that perhaps it is time for the management plan in this region and the fence alignments, both should be reconsidered. (To download articles, publications and elephant movement maps from EWB: http://www.elephantswithoutborders.org/downloads.php) We kept going south and finally found our bull at the southern most point of the fence line, trapped from moving any further south or west towards the water. We plugged on and we received another signal to the west. The signal kept getting stronger and stronger, but no elephants were in sight. As we drew closer to the waters of Lake Ngami, we spotted a breeding herd and a few bulls scattered amongst a forest of Russet bush willow trees. IN a few short moments, he was easily spotted. Perplexing, we had received a VHF signal from Kwebe 70 kilometers away! Normally, the signal strength is by “line of sight” and even from a small plane is usually 40-50km, at best. Satisfied for the day’s event, but running low on fuel, we headed back to land in Maun. (To support EWB’s projects and activities: http://www.elephantswithoutborders.org/donate.php)

Okavango Delta collared bulls' 2 weeks movements

Okavango Panhandle management areas

The Okavango panhandle is a unique area, comprised of 4 wildlife management areas (NG10, 11, 12, 13) enclosed by veterinary fences on the north, east and south and the Okavango river and delta running west. Along the waterfront, the area is dominated by villages with a total population of 17,000 people, agricultural fields, and cattle grazing. Further away from the river is an arid landscape with patches of Mopane, Teak, Acacia and Mongongo woodlands and scattered strips of fossil river beds with natural rain-fed pans. It is a system where wildlife, in particular elephants, and people struggle to live within a confined area.

The purpose of the survey is to answer pertinent questions as to the area’s population of elephants, their growth rate, their limited movements, an insight to human-elephant conflict in the region, and to potentially be able to put forward various management options to relieve elephant compression and their conflict with people. This particular survey is a follow-up, comparative to the first carried out in 2008. We conducted both surveys in collaboration with Anna Songhurst, a Phd candidate, who is looking at human elephant conflict within the region. (see our Collaborations: http://www.elephantswithoutborders.org/collaborations.php)
On Tuesday, the 29th, our team set off to station ourselves at Bumhill camp in the center of Namibia’s Caprivi Strip for the week. The camp is ideally located above the survey area and has a field airstrip just 5km away. With precision timing, Mike Holding, our survey pilot, buzzed us just as we were pulling into camp and we spent the afternoon preparing the plane.
Every morning, as the sun began to rise, our small team of 4, took to the air cramped in a small Cessna plane for 5 hours, flying long transects, only 300 feet above the ground at a speed of 120km/hr, staring intently out the windows in search of elephants and other wildlife. As an observer, calling out the number and species, one only has seconds before the observation quickly passes by. There is only one quick chance for the call-out and if it weren’t for the confidence of having digital photo back-ups taken, sometimes it seemed impossible to be precise!

A herd of 50 elephants, difficult to count in a few seconds!

In addition to counting elephants, we documented other species of wildlife, cattle to demonstrate the reaches of their ranges and human related dominance and the locations of elephant bones and carcasses.
An interesting, influencing factor which determined the locations of elephant herds and other wildlife is the sheer amount of water that is available this season. The pans to the north are still holding water, but more influential is the extreme flood of the Okavango. Villages and fields are flooded, displacing homesteads while the southern reaches of the Northern Buffalo Fence and road to Gudigwa and the Selinda Reserve are completely under water.

Roads and homesteads are flooded

We observed that most wildlife species were found away from human settlements. Virtually no other wildlife species were in close proximity to people, other than a few individual wetland species (hippo, crocodile and lechwe) which were within the floodplains, close to, but inaccessible to people. The pattern was quite similar for elephants, but with some very interesting differences. Elephants were found in concentrations, both breeding herds and bulls near the pans, within some of the woodlands, and in the floodplains furthest away from the villages. There were only a few individual bulls occasionally scattered throughout the concessions. However, the largest concentrations we noted were actually just on the edge of farmer’s fields. Our initial assessment is that the elephants are moving towards the fresh, clean waters of the river, only to be blocked by farmer’s fields and homesteads. They are moving in large numbers possibly for safety. We had several observations every day of elephant bones and elephant carcasses in close proximity to, or within, farmer’s fields. This is not the only place we have seen elephants numbering in the hundreds to thousands close to villages and farms and previously, the scenarios were similar. It is logical to think that “oh, they must be crop-raiding” however, there are no crops at this time of year, only large, empty fields with thicket fences around them.

A large concentration of elephants in close proxiimity to fields

Even from the air, with no crops growing, what does seem obvious though is that human elephant conflict is a disastrous reality that both elephants and people must contend with in the panhandle wildlife management areas.  (Read what we are doing about HEC: http://www.elephantswithoutborders.org/living_with_elephants.php)
We hope the information we acquired from these surveys will be key in helping management decisions in the region. We have yet to look at the photos to verify observation callouts of larger numbers, and to analyze the information well before producing the reports and making any recommendations. However, it certainly was an informative and interesting survey.
We want to Thank the Botswana Government for giving us permission to conduct the surveys, our supporters and donors, the San Diego Zoo and Mr. Brett Warren, our support staff of Doo, Themba and Sheke and especially our pilot, Mike Holding for his spot-on flying, keeping us safe and his continuous support to our endeavors.

If you would like to support Elephants Without Borders, it’s easy! Log on to: http://www.elephantswithoutborders.org/donate.php

larger Bulls are rare along the Chobe

We had decided to focus on large bulls, as they are becoming a rarity seen in the Chobe waterfront area. Young bulls and breeding herds are plentiful, but we would like to learn more about the random, larger bulls that occasionally come here.

We spent several days driving the park, searching from the sandy roads to locate a possible subject. It is fairly cold with temperatures ranging between 4ºC (39ºF) in the morns to 24ºC (75ºF) mid-day, and winds blowing upwards of 25km/hour throughout the day. Neither condition is conducive to elephants liking or need to utilize the river frequently. On some days, elephant numbers were limited and the large bulls were nowhere to be seen.

However, we were happy to see large numbers of many other species. The impala are at the end of their rutting season. Their displays, grunts and courting behaviors are quite entertaining. Buffalo have returned and the herds are spread throughout the waterfront drives. With buffalo, follow the lions and one particular pride lay satisfied over their evening’s meal.

Sable herds are more and more common

The zebra are completing their yearly round seasonal journeys and are beginning to appear at the Ngoma side of the park, waiting for the floodwater to subside to reveal kilometers of grazing pastures. Kudu are plentiful, as well as, surprisingly large herds of sable are now a regular sight. To everyone’s surprise  giraffe seem to have had a sudden population “explosion” and “journeys” of giraffe with many young, were everywhere feeding on woolly-caper bushes. (to view more EWB photos, see: http://www.elephantswithoutborders.org/photo_gallery.php)
One afternoon, I stumbled across an elephant breeding herd 60 strong, accompanied by a bachelor herd of 12 and two beautiful, substantially large bulls. As luck has it, this sighting was on a spotting drive by myself and was not prepared to collar without the team assembled. The next day, we circled the same area relentlessly but they did not reappear.

Mike explains the collar, while Sammy demonstrates

However, one morning we came across a healthy, lone, size-able bull. It was decided that he would be one of our newest elephant ambassadors. The collaring exercise went very smoothly. The immobilization drugs took effect quite quickly. We moved in, attached the collar, took his measurements and attained blood samples. When the antidote was given, he stood up and immediately wandered off through the shrub, donning his new tracking collar. His name is Bemwo, named by our sponsors from the Swiss BMW Dealership Association, approximately 30 yrs of age, stands just over 3meters high at the shoulder and he bares modest, yet symmetrical tusks.
We are particularly excited about Bemwa’s collar. It is a new type of satellite collar created by Africa Wildlife Tracking in Pretoria, South Africa.

Larry administering the anti-dote to Bemwa

The battery life is supposed to last much longer than the previous models we’ve used, allowing us to download data location points every half hour throughout a five year span before having to retrieve the unit. (EWB colleagues: http://www.elephantswithoutborders.org/colleagues.php)
EWB would like to Thank all the BMW representatives that journeyed to Botswana. It was a pleasure meeting you and hope you enjoyed your trip here. We sincerely appreciate your support and are eager to share Bemwo’s journeys with you!

If you would like to support our projects, please log on to http://www.elephantswithoutborders.org/donate.php… We, the elephants, wildlife, and local communities Thank you!

Zebra have returned to the Chobe riverfront

We want to take this opportunity to kindly Thank those donors and the San Diego Zoo for their relentless support and encouragement to our organization and projects. We  sincerely appreciate all the kind words of encouragement we have been receiving from everyone at this difficult time. This tragedy only encourages our efforts, as we work together to ensure the safety and survival of elephant herds in an Africa that someday will be free of senseless losses of such magnificent animals.  Thank you all, very much.

Kachikau with her calf

The following is Kachikau’s final story:

April 15, 2010

Kachikau was a large female elephant, approximately 30 years of age, and the matriarch of her family herd of 8. Her nature seemed to be one of a calm, reserved matriarch. Not once had we witnessed her show any signs of aggression or distress. She kept her calf close to her side and was an attentive mother, much to the pleasure of the young one, who seemed shy among the larger elephants.
On September 25, 2008, during the harsh dry season, Kachikau was fitted with a satellite collar. In her herd were two young calves, the first one aged about two years and the other only a few months old. The youngest looked extremely thin, and at the time our vet thought that she would not survive the remainder of the season. However, six months later, when the herd was spotted in Botswana along the Chobe River, we were relieved to learn that not only did the young calf survive, but that she belonged to Kachikau.
During the two years we followed Kachikau’s movements, she covered a 6,755-square-kilometer (2,608 square miles) area. The majority of her time was spent within the protection of the Chobe National Park, staying close to the river in the dry season but periodically crossing to feed on the grasses that occur on the floodplains. During the rains she roamed further, venturing into the forest reserves. The herd preferred the western side of the Park, which has the least amount of tourism traffic. However, when we observed her from our research vehicle, her family did not seem disturbed by our presence, sometimes walking within a few meters of us.

Kachikau with herd in Chobe

Occasionally, the herd would return to the forested area close to where we originally collared her. We believe these sporadic jaunts north were induced by the herd’s familiarity of the area and their desire for particular food sources. It was on one of these excursions that Kachikau was tragically killed.
The last time we saw Kachikau alive, she and her young calf looked healthy among several other elephant herds, forming a congregation of elephants nearly 300 strong. Only one week later, after tracking her in Chobe National Park, she crossed the river once again. We were surprised this time, only because the river was in full flood. Kachikau’s 2-year-old calf would have had to cross a 2-kilometer (1.2 miles) stretch of water with the support of the herd. Continuing on her track, Kachikau did not sway from a course that we had not observed before. To us, she had just returned to an area familiar to the herd. After 2 days, 17 kilometers (10.5 miles) from the river’s edge, Kachikau’s collar sent a GPS point from the same position. Upon discovering this, we immediately jumped in our vehicle and set out to learn why she was not moving. We were hoping that somehow the collar may have fallen off. We plotted a course on our GPS to ensure we could drive the vehicle in as close as possible to the data point. Within a few kilometers of the point, we decided there was too much surface water and had to hike the rest of the way in. Positioning ourselves to use the tracking antennae and placing the headset on, we looked up to see vultures fly from the ground into the sky. Our hearts sank, as we knew the inevitable: Kachikau was dead.
We examined the situation and all evidence as best we could. Her tusks were intact, so we believe it was not a poaching incident. We found no evidence of her herd or her young calf. We talked to the farmers that were closest to the location, and they reported that they were not having problems with elephants crop raiding, despite us noting they had no means of deterrence around their crops to stop any animals from doing so. There were no signs that Kachikau may have had any natural physical complications, either. Our initial assessment is that Kachikau had likely been shot when she crossed the river.

elephants swim the Chobe river

Unfortunately, this is not a rare occurrence. Villagers, farmers, and fisherman regularly shoot at elephants to either scare or intentionally harm them, in hopes to prevent elephants from entering fields, villages, or damaging property, such as fishing nets laid out across the river. The elephants are not necessarily actually doing the offense, but it is one method that people use to avoid potential conflict.
Kachikau’s death is tragic and sadly unnecessary. The issues surrounding the incident are extremely complex, but they threaten African elephants throughout the continent. We are currently working to address these concerns. Elephants Without Borders, with support from the San Diego Zoo, has started an ambitious new program to try to avoid these retaliatory killings and reduce human-elephant conflict. Our Elephant Conservation and Community Outreach Farming Project, the first project of its kind in southern Africa, ultimately aims at achieving a level of coexistence between elephants and people. (see: http://www.elephantswithoutborders.org/living_with_elephants.php)

Again, we sincerely appreciate all of you that have shown us your encouragement and support, but please do not let it stop here. Our new project is in its infantry stage and there is much more that we can do.  If you would like to support this program, please log on to our web site at http://www.elephantswithoutborders.org/donate.php

You can read about the projects’ progress in the latest edition of  “Beyond Borders: Research and Conservation with Elephants Without Borders: Progress Report, April 2010″ which can be downloaded at http://www.elephantswithoutborders.org/downloads.php

Project progress will also be posted on this blog site and our Facebook page.  To receive EWB periodic newsletters, you can sign up at http://elephantswithoutborders.org/phplist/?p=subscribe

Dr. Chase and team ready to begin!

The main purposes of the site will be to assess methods and low-cost techniques that work best to reduce elephant crop raiding, train villagers in deterrence methods and productive conservation farming methods, and to motivate community involvement in human-elephant conflict (HEC) resolution and adopt wildlife conservation practices.  (see EWB ’s People & Elephants web page) The site is in a perfect location for this purpose, as it is within a half hour’s drive of “high-conflict” villages and yet far enough into the bush to be utilized by large concentrations of game. The team encountered elephants, giraffe, eland, impala, buffalo, ostrich, and a vast amount of zebra. Following their prey, the predators were close behind. Lions, leopards and hyenas called through the night, leaving little rest for the weary.

The first thing that had to happen was to set up a modest base camp to accommodate the team. A small area was cleared, tents put up, and a kitchen area designated. Our camp cook, Lucky-man Frank, was chuffed when we upgraded his “kitchen” with a letaka enclosure and a gas-powered freezer!

Lydia and Esther prepare letaka for Frank's kitchen

Which is clearly needed, considering the continual heat.  Most days, they begin work at first light, having a short break mid-morn, but take a very long lunch avoiding work in the extreme heat of the day, then out again until sunset. With basic needs met, the next step was to delineate the property boundaries by marking GPS points, clearing thin property cut-lines. The area’s natural layout made it easy to decide where the fields would be ploughed and that the permanent camp would be erected on a forested ridgeline overlooking the site’s natural pans. The team spent weeks removing large stumps from designated areas. A tractor was hired from the communities and plowed several plots, some of which traditional crops of corn and sorghum were planted immediately.

Doo and Patrick chain a stump to the truck to pull it out

Despite it being the rainy season, with seeds in the soil, it was necessary to bring water to the property. Digging a bore-hole is a huge endeavor, has quite an unpredictable outcome, but an extremely necessary expense.

Shoni planting glorious corn

I didn’t know what to expect and was completely surprised at the amount of trucks and equipment needed to dig a well! Six large trucks arrived, carrying the drill, pipes, water, fuel, generators, and some! (Who supports EWB? to see, click here)
Of course, to begin we had to decide where to drill the hole. Most people say successful drilling is pure luck, but water dousing, “water witching,” is an old craft which many still believe in. There is no scientific explanation to a “Y-shaped” twig bending strongly in a certain direction as a reaction to the presence of water, however it does seem to happen. I was given a quick lesson and felt it for myself. Branches from the first shrubs that bear leaves and fruit in the Spring, such as the brandy or mulberry bush, should be the tool used because of their flexibility. Most branches snap under the pressure of the exercise! However, there are natural clues to look for while tracing underground water, too. First, we looked at the wildlife paths.

Buffalo thorn are a clue to underground water

Strangely enough elephants seem to make continual paths over lines which are higher on the water table. Shifts in the ground, close to ridge-lines, water is moving. In places like ravines, water is stagnant. Large trees, especially Buffalo thorn, growing in straight lines are another clue. After considerations, our drilling point was finally chosen and the trucks maneuvered into position.

The bit, which is less than a foot wide, hit the ground vibrating. Sandy soil came spewing up, as the drill went down. It was interesting to watch layer after layer of the various sand and soils that lay below. Every 5 meters, a new pipe had to be added at the top to continue deeper. We had assumed we’d find water quickly, but were wrong. At about 15 meters, the sand was moist, and as it continued, the soil became wet. But we still had not hit flowing water. At approximately 18 meters, thick chunks of bluish-white clay began to spew out from the narrow hole. This made the drilling team concerned because clay is so fine that it does not allow for the water to flow, so we had to drill deeper.

thick clay came from 20 meters below

Finally, just over 25 meters, a great release in the thickness rose, and all of a sudden, we had water! The drillers checked the flow and advised us that we should dig just slightly deeper to yield a better outcome. We drilled another 5 meters before hitting hard rock again and the decision to halt was made. The water was tested again for flow and salinity and we were relieved to hear that we had “good” water now available for the crops and camp.
The camp and fields still need a lot of work, as we are still in the initial stages and need to secure more funding, but slowly it is coming together. It has been helpful that the rains decided to cooperate, too. We talked to many researchers and various organizations to incorporate their knowledge, past experiences and skills towards the site’s endeavors and potentially work together to resolve the issues we are trying to address. We are particularly excited about these potentials and are appreciative of all the input and support we have received. We will keep news and progress posted…

Please help support EWB’s endeavors by Donating now! How? just click here! Thank you!

Alex was eager and among the first to taste the water

Prof. Rudi Van Aarde, Dr. Iain Douglas-Hamilton, Dr. Mike Chase having discussion over a cup of tea

These are some of the highlights of the conference:
The first day topics pertained to disease common to elephants both in captivity and in the wild. A strong emphasis was placed on Elephant Endotheliotropic Herpesviruses (EEHVs), a family of herpesvirus that bring an onset of hemorrhagic disease causing sudden death. Interestingly, there are several strains of these herpesviruses, which are found in both Asian and African elephants, but each species does not share all of the various strains. It is most commonly found in young elephants in captivity, but studies have shown herpesvirus-like particles latently harbored in high numbers of healthy elephants in the wild. It is believed that the survival rate of elephants with this naturally occurring disease depends on their development of protective anti-bodies. We will learn more about these diseases, as more research is conducted. Leading the studies are researchers from John Hopkins University, the Smithsonian National Zoological Park and the National Zoo in Washington D.C.
Afternoon, the delegates were transferred to the National Zoological Gardens in Pretoria for a tour and dinner. It was a perfect way for everyone to relax and mingle, despite the heavy rains received. A lovely buffet was held at the zoo’s restaurant, the Water Hole, which overlooks a large enclosure occupied by gemsbok and impala, grazing around a large watering hole. Gary Albyn recited his enchanting poem, “Manzovo, Place of the Elephants”, for the evening’s entertainment.
Day two, the morning presentations addressed reproduction studies on both male and female elephants. The topics included: semen analysis; feasibility of sex-sorting sperm; sperm motility (quality); immunocontrol of aggressive behavior in bulls; physiology of elephant ovaries; and immunocontraception. These studies pertain to relevant strategies designed to control growth of elephant populations in smaller, fenced parks and to support fertility and reproduction of captive elephants.
I personally was looking forward to the afternoon’s topic, which was on new technologies in elephant conservation. A strong emphasis was placed on understanding and mitigating human-elephant conflict (HEC.) Leading the subject was a group of researchers and conservationists from Sri Lanka, who presented an automated elephant recognition system, predictive modeling of regional susceptibility of elephants, an electric fence intrusion alert system, and a Google mechanism for networking called “elephant portal.”  In the evening, we grouped onto buses and were given a tour of the local township, watched a demonstration by a traditional healer, tried the local brew called “Shake Shake” and had dinner and dancing at a local Shebeen.

Ravi Corea, President of Sri Lanka Wildlife Conservation Society

The third day’s sessions’ concentrated on the subject termed “Living with Elephants,” focusing on elephant conservation, community conservancies, ecological utilization, management monitoring, HEC, outreach and educational programs. The opening presentation was given by well-respected Dr. Iain Douglas-Hamilton, addressing landscape assessment of risk to elephants by the Monitoring the Illegal Killing of Elephants (MIKE) program, demonstrating that increasingly elephants are now concentrating in low risk areas, however unfortunately it also shows that for the last 7 years, illegal killing for ivory has been escalating. Successful conservation programs working with local communities and conservancies were presented by Juliet King in Kenya, Michael Keigwin in Uganda, Harold Schwammer, Ravi Corea and Chandeep Corea in Sri Lanka and Alexandra Zimmerman in India. An interesting and unique presentation was given by a civil engineer, Ajay Pal Singh, who has been given the task to create an elephant corridor across a road and rail line in the Himalayan foothills of India. Veterinary care topics were covered in the latter half of the afternoon including evaluations of body conditions, successful treatment of burns, and musth management.
On the last day, management of elephants in human care was presented. Mohamed Muynudeen talked on the symbiosis between wild and captive elephants, “then and now”, and showed a clip from the 1940’s of how captive elephants were trained and used to capture wild elephants. The video brought tears to many of the viewers’ eyes, myself included. An interesting topic was presented by Sean Hensman, on how they have been working with their elephants to train them to detect various things by elephants’ acute sense of smell, including to track thieves and poachers, and detect cancer and landmines. Harold Schwammer presented The Global Elephant Management Program whose primary goal is to improve management, welfare, and protect existing populations of elephants in human care. Deborah Olson gave the last presentation, discussing the International Elephant Foundation’s role in elephant conservation.
The symposium came to a close, but I am glad that we took the opportunity to participate and especially for all the new colleagues I had the chance to meet. The information and expertise shared and the initiatives and partnerships that may develop from it stand to only better the circumstances in which we share with elephants. To learn more about Elephants Without Borders activities, log on to www.elephantswithoutborders.org

Panel of experts from around the world, discussing elephant conservation

Thousands of elephants relishing the fresh grasses in Chobe

Chobe has quite the reputation for elephant numbers along the waterfront drive, however the reputation was built due to the days of the dry season when water is limited elsewhere, but certainly not during the rainy, wet season, when some days one is hard-pressed to find any elephants at all. So, I certainly did not expect to see such a spectacle.  I sat for many hours under the shade of a tree, watching as the elephants grazed on the fresh grass shoots and gleefully playing in the mud.  What kept me captivated for a while, was 10 fairly large elephant bulls in the distance, slowly vying for the affection of one female in estrous. Her family herd was riled and were making a ruckus, circling her as if to protect her from the bulls. She finally grew tired of the whole event and led her herd off into the distance and then finally off the floodplains and into the hidden safety of the thick  shrubs. (Later as I was leaving, I caught a glimpse of the bull that had won her approval, with her!)

Giraffe bulls... sharing is better than fighting

I decided it was time to move on myself. I didn’t need to drive very far into the park because the abundance of wildlife was all within an hour’s distance from the Sedudu entrance gate.  The park is lush and full of vitality, glistening from the combination of rain’s dew and the sun’s rays peeking from building, bellowing clouds.   The wildlife seemed satisfied and content as they carried on with their daily routines of browsing, grooming and nursing their young.  And I was completely happy just sitting and watching them. To view more EWB photos, see our Gallery!

Baboons sifting the grounds for only the finest

I watched baboon troops sift through the ground vegetation, choosing only the finest of weeds, flowers and roots to eat;  Giraffe wandered about half-lazily attempting neck rallies to claim dominance only to stop and share the woolly-caper bushes;  Warthog families on their knees snorting at the ground and rolling in pools of mud; Impala nurseries, 50 or more strong, guarded by a few adults under the shade of thick bushes;  monitor lizards on the hunt for eggs; and Kudu bulls strolling slowly through the knobbley-combretum, resting with a full view of the riverfront below.

Monitor lizard on the hunt

Kudu bull finding relief with a scratch of his back

But, the highlight of the day was when I had to scramble to make the 7pm gate closing time and came across a pack of 15 wild dogs on the road! They didn’t seem to have a care in the world that myself and 3 other vehicles were there. They were casually laying in the road, while the older pups were teasing and licking the adults to get up. When they did start to move, they crossed paths with an elephant herd. The elephants became completely irritated…  trumpeting, threatening the dogs, while making a protective circle around their young. Another elephant herd came crashing through the trees, to aid them in their distress, completely ignoring me in their path. It was quite a spectacle! Unfortunately, I could not attain any decent photos, as it was getting dark and I was trying to maneuver to get out of the way of it all! However, I left the park elated and realized any stress that may have been held within me over the hubbub of the Holidays had all been washed away by the excitement and enthusiasm!

To stay informed, sign up for EWB’s newsletters!

Start your New Year off with an appreciated donation to Elephants Without Borders… Donate here! Cheers!

Elephants are key seed dispersers, creating new habitat

This is a rather significant and interesting movement! The Makgadikgadi salt pans are riddled with “palm islands,” which is historically believed that elephants had dispersed the palm trees’ seeds within the pans when the Makgadikgadi once resembled an oasis, not unlike how the Okavango Delta is today. Naledi has provided us with undisputed evidence of its truth and is the first elephant recorded to make this relation between the two sites. Also, early evidence suggests to us, that the timing of this movement might not have anything to do with resource availability but rather he may be in search of a mate!? Or could there be another reason? Only time will tell… we will keep you posted!

Below is a simplified map to demonstrate some of the elephant movements, we have been seeing lately!

To be informed of the latest news, receive our newsletters! (click here)

To Download the latest articles, publications and maps (click here)

EWB elephants move Dec'09