Hi again,
Herewith, some snippets from various sources.
I appeal to you to send me items to distribute to our members for both the Cleft Stick and to be posted on the web site. It is your magazine and website, so ensure it gets the news that you would like to see in it.
Please let me have any changes to your physical address, phone no. or e-mail address to keep the database up to date.
Thanks to all of you who have made the effort. Please will any of you who know of members who do not get this “electric” Cleft~Stick, & have access to e-mail, pass their address along to me.
I have had several replies on the subject of the “Mars Spectacular” It may not be the event the article described in fact it may even be a hoax – OH well, we will know later this month!
Don Yunnie
7 Chalet Drive, Hilton, 3245, South Africa Local Tel & Fax (033) 343 1534 Int. Tel & Fax (+2733) 343 1534 cell 082 377 7562 E-mail dyunnie@xsinet.co.za.
AGM 2006 Namibia
ALL
PLEASE TAKE NOTE AND DISTRIBUTE THIS CHANGE OF AGM DATE AS WIDELY AS POSSIBLE.
NADEET CANNOT ACCOMODATE US DURING MARCH AS PLANNED.
THE NEW DATES WILL BE THE WEEK OF 20 TO 24 FEBRUARY. (Add the weekends at each side for travel).
DETAILS FOR DISCUSSION AT THE AC MEETING LATER THIS MONTH.
Regards
Tim
Africa Chairman, Game Rangers Association of Africa
International Ranger Federation Executive Committee - Africa representative
Telefax +27(0)33 2677171
Mobile +27(0)82 4634104
PO Box 78, Rosetta, KZN 3301, South Africa.
e mail: snowman@ewt.org.za
IUCN Member NG1567
Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism
Media Statement - For immediate release 19 July 2005,
Contact: Carol Moses 0828293917
SEIZURE OF FISHING VESSEL "SANDILE" FOR TARGETTING SNOEK
The Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism (DEAT) today seized the deep-sea trawler "Sandile", its gear, equipment, stores and cargo including the fish on board. The seizure was undertaken by Fisheries Compliance Officers of DEAT.
The Sandile, a 64,5 m deepsea trawler is owned by Ntlanzi Fishing Enterprises and is licensed to catch hake and horse mackerel on behalf of Bato Star Fishing Pty Ltd, Algoa Bay Sea Products and Fernpar Fishing Company.
The vessel will not be allowed to leave the harbour and will remain under arrest until proceedings against the owners of the Sandile and quota holders in whose name the quota is being fished, have been completed, or until payment of security for the release of the vessel has been secured.
The Department's investigation concerns the targeting of snoek as a by-catch when the vessel is licensed to catch hake and horse mackerel allocation for its rights holders. The department is concerned that steps have not been taken to prevent the harvesting of fish caught as a by-catch. The investigation is centered around allegations that the Sandile caught over 300 tons of snoek and only some 39 tons of hake during its last voyage.
Commenting on the arrest of the vessel Marthinus van Schalkwyk, Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, said: "Fish species like snoek are the bread and butter of our traditional line fishing communities. Our Department is particularly concerned that the actions of fishers whose permits are for other fish species should not threaten the livelihoods of these traditional line fishers, or the sustainability of the fish stocks. Some by-catch is unavoidable but this by-catch must never be intentionally targeted."
Snoek is an important species in the traditional Linefish sector. At this time of the year snoek is found further off-shore, where it spawns before it returns to the in-shore.
Commending the compliance and enforcement directorate the Minister said: "Our fisheries inspectors and compliance officials are too often seen by fishing communities as a source of frustration. Actions such as this one underscore the critical and professional role they play in protecting our valuable marine resources on behalf of all of these communities."
Issued by, Chief Director: JP Louw
Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, Cell: 082 569 3340 Tel: (012) 310 3842
Cape Region Meeting - 20 & 21 August
Please pass this along to anyone you know of in the region, ex members, lapsed members, current members & potential members – ta Don
Hi all,
For some time now there has been an attempt to revive the GRAA within the Western Cape, with little success. On moving to the Cape from KZN nearly two and a half years ago, I agreed to try and get the current and past members to become active again. With the move and new children on the scene I have had little time to devote to the GRAA. My posting at Uniondale also left me on the boundaries of the province, which made it difficult to co-ordinate activities.
I have recently been transferred to De Hoop Nature Reserve as the Conservation Manager. This is advantageous in that the reserve is centrally placed and is easily accessible for most of the province. The added advantage is that Rhett Hiseman - a long standing and staunch supporter of the GRAA - works within the same business cluster. We have decided to work together in trying to get the GRAA active again within the province. Both Rhett and I have also been working successfully on our Directors to gain support for the GRAA from CapeNatures perspective.
We have managed to gain permission to use some of the accommodation at Potberg, on the entrance to the eastern sector of De Hoop for the weekend of the 20 & 21 August, when we would like as many current, past and potential GRAA members to join us to revive the GRAA. There are a limited number of beds available within the "Klippies" house, but those willing to pitch a tent can also do so next to the house. The aim of the get together is to elect a committee and discuss the best manner to take the western Cape GRAA forward. Rhett and I would also like to see that a number of projects are suggested, so that we can begin to achieve results in as short a time as possible. After the inaugural meeting a trip through the eastern sector of the reserve is arranged to look at some of the problems that the reserve is facing and also to show the special areas of the reserve.
It is suggested that people arrive on the Friday evening and we start at 09h00 on Saturday with the meeting. This must be concluded by 13h00, so that we can use Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning to get out into the field. Naturally Friday and Saturday evening will be left open to enjoy bring and braai's and give a chance to rekindle old friendships.
Please make an effort to attend this weekend and please contact anyone who is not on this list and who you know will be interested to attend. Please send confirmation of your attendance to Rhett Hiseman at rhiseman@telkomsa.net. Unfortunately the emails at De Hoop do not always work.
Many thanks,
Peter Chadwick
Conservation Manager & Regional Chair GRAA Western Cape
De Hoop Nature Reserve, CapeNature, 082 496 3443
Malawi updatefrom David Bradfield
Just a quick hello and goodbye from Liwonde to let you know we are leaving Liwonde National Park in a couple of hours.
All quite sad that the Frankfurt Zoological Society has come to an end, but hopefully we have arranged for International Fund for Animal Welfare to step in and put an Expat on the ground to facilitate fence project and law enforcement. Good news for Liwonde I think you would agree.
We will be on dnabradfield@yahoo.co.uk
We are off to Cambodia for Fauna and Flora International for a 12-18 month contract. David will be in the Cardamom Mountains as protection advisor - all quite exciting! The original contact actually came from the GRAA newsletter so many thanks for keeping on sending out the newsletters.
We will keep in touch.
Good luck with everything.
Cheers
David Bradfield.
EMOA
Dear Tim and Don
As you are aware the elephant 'culling' debate is again en vogue. Last week an animal rights group organised an indaba at WITS. EMOA feels it is about time we, as recognised elephant organisation, become more proactive. To this end we have prepared an article which we are sending to various magazines in the hope that it will be published somewhere.
We thought you might be able to place it in your publications "Game Ranger" or "Cleft Stick" which is widely read.
I will also send you our logo with separate mail.
Thanks and kind regards
Marion
Dr Marion Garaï
Chairperson
EMOA
P O Box 98, Vaalwater, 0530
T/F 014 755 4455, 082 9793800
mgarai@esnet.co.za, www.emoa.org.za
It is a large document (6 pages) There are some very interesting topics for managers to consider. If anyone wants it I will forward it to them or contact Marion at the above address.- ed.
Nedbank/ Green Trust promotional articles
Hi Don
Would you be able to use any of the Nedbank/ Green Trust promotional articles in the Cleft Stick periodically? Nedbank are putting a R2000 advertorial and green affinity pamphlet into the next GR.
One of the most difficult tasks for any conservation organisation is to balance the needs of local communities with the need for conservation. A critical factor for the success of any conservation project hinges on involving communities in sustainable utilisation of our natural resources.
This focus has helped The Green Trust to promote shared responsibility for conservation efforts in the following two projects:
The Green Trust is supported by the ongoing donations made to them from the Nedbank Green Affinity. These donations are made possible through the everyday banking of Nedbank Green Affinity clients. You can also help support The Green Trust's conservation projects for critically endangered species, by opening a Nedbank Green Affinity credit card, savings or cheque account today at no extra cost 9 except R9 for every cheque book ordered).
For more information visit, www.nedbankgreen.co.za, your nearest Nedbank branch or call 0860 102 415.
Can anyone help?
Please can you assist?
I am looking for a ranger (old school friend) by the name of David Worrall.
Do you have any listing or contact details for me, alternatively direct me to the right person for this query
Please send respond mail to planesafety@absamail.co.za
Thank you so much
Michelle Bennetts
084 615 5772
CRY OUR BELOVED COUNTRY
It has been six months since my last report and as I have had numerous requests for more news as to what is happening in Zimbabwe here is a very brief report. I really do not want to become an alarmist but I still believe it is important for people living outside this country to really know what is going on here. We seem to live from day to day and nothing appears to be getting any better. We are never sure what is going to happen next and how we are going to be affected by the next move.
Our field research programme has two major problems:
THE FUEL SITUATION IS A REAL NIGHTMARE. I have often been told “cheer up things could get worse. So I cheered up and sure enough things got worse”. Three weeks ago we got water in the diesel fuel in our Mazda pick-up and then the real problem started. We have no idea how the water got into the fuel but it cost us a great deal to rectify the problem. Both fuel tanks had to be removed, drained and cleaned, the fuel injector system redone and the fuel pump removed and serviced. It took two full weeks to get the work done and in the end it cost us Z$15,000,000 (US$2,500 at the official bank rate). This gives some idea of how expensive it is here in Zimbabwe and how one has to battle to undertake any field work.
If I was not wanting to do field work and go into the ‘bush’ it would not be too bad but as all my work is in the field and that is where I should be. Some fuel is available on the ‘black market’ and can be obtained at about $17,000 a litre. (This translates into US$2,8 a litre or US$14 a gallon). A couple of days ago I saw a report in one of our newspapers that some people were paying as much as Z$70,000 a litre for petrol (i.e. US$11.00 a litre or US$55 a gallon). Can you believe it!!
Support from companies and businesses in Zimbabwe is absolutely nil as most are battling to survive themselves and therefore have nothing left to give away. But I continually ask:- how long must we wait for the world to wake up to the real nature of what is happening in Zimbabwe and the plight of those of us who have to battle just to get a few litres of fuel.
However let me assure everyone that there is no way that I am going to give up or allow the system to beat me. The worse things get the more determined I am to continue and under no circumstances will I ever give up. I will not allow the conditions in this country to wear me down and no matter what happens I will continue with our Carnivore studies on leopards, cheetah and Brown hyaena.
However, at the end of the day we have the ‘bush’ into which some of us are lucky enough to flee when the atmosphere in this political jungle becomes just too oppressive or the problem of getting fuel for a vehicle clouds our horizon. After a week in the Hwange National Park or a few days in the Matopos we come back refreshed and with a renewed determination to see that we will eventually win this war and see out beloved country given a fresh start.
Other organizations have different problems. Here is an extract from a recent SPCA (Harare) newsletter
Obviously animals are once again caught up in the mayhem following government’s ‘Operation Murambatsvina’ (Shona for “clean out the filth”) and Operation Restore Order and SPCA centres are ‘baby-sitting’ a variety of different animals as their owners try to relocate and rebuild their lives but many are now living on the streets or in the ruins that remain. Another sad but inevitable result, exacerbated by the dire state of the economy, is the surrendering of many animals to SPCA centres and Inspectors.
Ostriches were found to be dying of starvation on a farm in Marondera which had also been taken over. Simon consulted with the previous owner and permission has been obtained for him to feed the birds.
Most of you will have learned that former MP, Roy Bennet whose farm featured regularly in our previous reports, has been released. Unfortunately, another farmer, Phillip Mennie, was attacked in Chipinge on Sunday and received serious head injuries. He was dragged from his vehicle by six men when he stopped at the farm gate and was head-butted, punched, beaten and kicked. The farmer who suffers from glaucoma was unable to see after a sever blow to the back of the head. Two other farmers who tried to rescue him were also head-butted and beaten with sticks. He has been hospitalized in Harare and his condition is reported as being stable.
A current major challenge is a crippling fuel shortage which has grounded many SPCA vehicles and is bringing remaining industry to a halt and will no doubt worsen the current food shortage. Many shelves are bare and mealie-meal (national staple), bread, sugar, oil and of course pet food are all in short supply. Our usual suppliers of vet meds and drugs report that they are unable to import even essential drugs such as euthanaise, vaccines, anesthetics and dewormer as they cannot secure forex from the government.
With ongoing kind support from those who continue to stand by us at this very challenging time, we will keep going and do everything in our power to continue to safeguard the extremely vulnerable animals of Zimbabwe.
I will end off with an extract from a report by the ZNSPCA Regional Inspector for Matabeleland, Glynis, on the situation following Operation Murambatsvina:
“We heard from the public that Killarney and Ngozi squatter camps in Bulawayo had been destroyed and we proceeded to load our truck with the necessary equipment - cages, meat and ropes, etc. On arrival in the area we were saddened by the sight of the people sitting amongst the ruins of their homes, holding their pets. Initially, on approaching the people, there was resistance because they did not trust us and didn't want to give us the only belongings they had left that had any worth. After much persuasion and discussion they realised that we were there to help and we documented all the animals and their respective owners
. In two days our team of four collected 155 chickens, 7 cats, 18 dogs, 2 rabbits, 26 guinea pigs and 3 ducks. By the afternoon of the fist day the word had spread and people were running to meet us and set up designated points for pick ups. The squatters became so trusting, handing us there pets not knowing if they will ever see them again. We were all deeply affected by the sight of the owners hugging their dogs and cats and begging us to look after them. One old man brought me his black hen "madam - take care of Peggy for me, please" he said. I assured him that Peggy would be well looked after. The Bulawayo SPCA kennels are now full and we are struggling to feed all the animals. We do not know when the people will reclaim their pets. We can only carry on taking care of them and carry on rescues in other areas”.
I promise my next newsletter will be full of good news about what we are still doing in the field. And how our radio-collared leopards, cheetah and Brown hyaena are doing. Cheers for now and I look forward to hearing from you.
V. J. WILSON
Research Director
Carnivore Research Institute
July 2005.
Tailpiece-
New English - thanks to Martin Engelbrecht
The European Commission has just announced an agreement whereby English will be the official language of the European Union rather than German, which was the other possibility.
As part of the negotiations, the British Government conceded that English spelling had some room for improvement and has accepted a 5- year phase-in plan that would become known as "Euro-English".
In the first year, "s" will replace the soft "c". Sertainly, this will make the sivil servants jump with joy.
The hard "c" will be dropped in favour of "k". This should klear up konfusion, and keyboards kan have one less letter.
There will be growing publik enthusiasm in the sekond year when the troublesome "ph" will be replaced with "f". This will make words like fotograf 20% shorter.
In the 3rd year, publik akseptanse of the new spelling kan be expected to reach the stage where more komplikated changes are possible.
Governments will enkourage the removal of double letters which have always ben a deterent to akurate speling.
Also, al wil agre that the horibl mes of the silent "e" in the language is disgrasful and it should go away.
By the 4th yer people wil be reseptiv to steps such as replasing "th" with "z" and "w" with "v". During ze fifz yer, ze unesesary "o" kan be dropd from vords containing "ou" and after ziz fifz yer, ve vil hav a reil sensibl riten styl.
Zer vil be no mor trubl or difikultis and evrivun vil find it ezi tu understand ech oza. Ze drem of a united urop vil finali kum tru.
Und efter ze fifz yer, ve vil al be speking German like zey vunted in ze forst plas.
Matter of Fact
This is an electronic newsletter of the Game Rangers' Association of Africa. The opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the Association, nor of the Editor. This is intended to be an exchange of news snips, ideas and communication between members. Newsletter content may be copied and re-distributed without authorisation. Correspondence should be addressed to the Editor at dyunnie@xsinet.co.za
