Greetings to all our Friends of Hwange supporters The long-awaited summer rains in Hwange National Park have been extremely patchy his year. The north west areas around Sinamatella and Robins have had good recent rainfall, but the Main Camp, central and southern parts of the Park have not had nearly enough. Thankfully, despite the shortage, the timing of what rain has fallen has enabled the vegetation to recover from heavy elephant pressure, so for now the park is lush and green. The movement of elephant back south at the end of the dry season has also allowed the solar pumps in the north to work their magic and fill up the pans.
After consultation with the Parks Authorities and Ecologists it has been agreed that the northern part of the Park has enough pumped pans. Drilling more boreholes to provide additional water points would serve to attract more elephant to areas that are already under heavy pressure. Therefore,Parks Authorities have requested we establish some permanent water towards the southern areas of the park in an effort to spread the animals around. Additionally, these pans will provide a welcome drink forelephants and buffalo passing through on their migratory route from Botswana to the northern areas of Hwange National Park at a timewhen water in the natural pans is limited.
Beaver, Basha and Mitswiri have been selected as the pans to target for installation of solar pumps. These pans are remote, so logistics of transport will be tricky, and costs will be high. Any financial support would be much appreciated.
Preservation of Habitat
Apart from providing water for the animals and birds we have decided to increase our involvement in the overall ecology and habitat of Hwange and surrounding areas. Following several disastrous poisoning incidents in recent years, with populations plummeting towards extinction, the safety ofvultures is of major concern. Vultures as a family are one of the most endangered species on the African continent and yet one cannot imagine Africa’s skies without these iconic avian wonders. They are nature’s clean-up crew and in their absence proliferation of diseases like anthrax, rabies, tuberculosis and botulism are the order of the day. Vultures clean the landscapes like no other – nature’s most successful and important scavengers.
We work closely with staff of Birdlife Zimbabwe who are doing their best to ensure that naturale cosystems, including precious wetlands, survive throughout the country. Join us and become a “Champion of Nature” to support this vital work. Any amount is appreciated – it all goes to a good cause.
Last but by no means least, grateful thanks for your support over the last few years as it really did make the difference between life and death for the wildlife.
