October started with the introduction of the leopard. I was privileged to watch the introduction process. She was truly a beautiful cat, and to experience the texture of her coat, the size of her paws, etc. is uncommon.
The elephant have been making use of the entire reserve, with sightings varying on a daily basis - making it a challenge to find them each morning! Both the breeding herd and bulls have been sighted in the north, south, east and west ends of the reserve. They continued to drink mainly at Manzindlovu Pan. Sightings were once again excellent. The elephant have become so relaxed that I can even start my vehicle and move to get a better view without disturbing them. They have on occasion walked towards me in a relaxed manner. I sometimes remind them that they are close enough - if they are close enough for me one can imagine what it must be like for the volunteers!
Elephant crossing road near South East corner of Thanda
I have had good sightings of both the lioness and lion throughout the month. They are both in good condition and are habituated with people and vehicles.
The lioness crossing the road to Manzindlovu Pan
I have been involved in nyala capture with Zululand Game Capture and the Van Rooyen Broers, the lioness collaring and post mortem, and rhino introduction.
I have made very good progress on my data collection, with specific reference to the feeding data. I have made a point to wait with the animals in hope to monitor their feeding behaviour. Although I am still behind on my feeding sightings, I feel that this way will enable me to collect sufficient data by the end of my trial. I continue to collect dung samples.
Tim & Chris collecting elephant dung
Two volunteers, Chris Lloyd and Tim Granshaw arrived on the 2nd and 5th respectively. They have assisted me with my research project. Their experience at Thanda has included collaring the lioness, watching a post mortem on the lioness, rhino and nyala capture, and introduction of rhinos. They also assist me with tracking and monitoring the elephant, record and enter data into the computer and prepare the dung samples for storage and further analysis. They have been very interested in all aspects of conservation and game management and we have worked very well together. With their help I am almost up to date with my data entry.
I have updated the Staff time-off & overtime schedules for the Wildlife Department, updated the rainfall, and Chromolaena budget. I have updated the backup files from Map Maker, Word and Excel documents for Alan and myself. I have been working on my literature review. On the odd evening I assist with telephone duty at the office. I answer internal and external calls from 5-11pm. It allows me a chance to work on my reports, however, it is a long day as I start monitoring at 5:30. Sometimes concentrating on work for the last few hours sometimes proves very difficult!
The elephant have been making use of the entire reserve, with sightings varying on a daily basis - making it a challenge to find them each morning! Both the breeding herd and bulls have been sighted in the north, south, east and west ends of the reserve. They continued to drink mainly at Manzindlovu Pan. Sightings were once again excellent. The elephant have become so relaxed that I can even start my vehicle and move to get a better view without disturbing them. They have on occasion walked towards me in a relaxed manner. I sometimes remind them that they are close enough - if they are close enough for me one can imagine what it must be like for the volunteers!
Elephant crossing road near South East corner of Thanda
I have had good sightings of both the lioness and lion throughout the month. They are both in good condition and are habituated with people and vehicles.
The lioness crossing the road to Manzindlovu Pan
I have been involved in nyala capture with Zululand Game Capture and the Van Rooyen Broers, the lioness collaring and post mortem, and rhino introduction.
I have made very good progress on my data collection, with specific reference to the feeding data. I have made a point to wait with the animals in hope to monitor their feeding behaviour. Although I am still behind on my feeding sightings, I feel that this way will enable me to collect sufficient data by the end of my trial. I continue to collect dung samples.
Tim & Chris collecting elephant dung
Two volunteers, Chris Lloyd and Tim Granshaw arrived on the 2nd and 5th respectively. They have assisted me with my research project. Their experience at Thanda has included collaring the lioness, watching a post mortem on the lioness, rhino and nyala capture, and introduction of rhinos. They also assist me with tracking and monitoring the elephant, record and enter data into the computer and prepare the dung samples for storage and further analysis. They have been very interested in all aspects of conservation and game management and we have worked very well together. With their help I am almost up to date with my data entry.
I have updated the Staff time-off & overtime schedules for the Wildlife Department, updated the rainfall, and Chromolaena budget. I have updated the backup files from Map Maker, Word and Excel documents for Alan and myself. I have been working on my literature review. On the odd evening I assist with telephone duty at the office. I answer internal and external calls from 5-11pm. It allows me a chance to work on my reports, however, it is a long day as I start monitoring at 5:30. Sometimes concentrating on work for the last few hours sometimes proves very difficult!
Kirsten Canter