Cheetahs in Rietvlei Nature Reserve

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Re: CHEETAH IN RIETVLEI NATURE RESERVE

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0*\


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Re: CHEETAH IN RIETVLEI NATURE RESERVE

Post by Mel »

lol

0/0


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Re: CHEETAH IN RIETVLEI NATURE RESERVE

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The New Cheetah of Rietvlei

By Riaan Marais

Four Cheetah sub-adults lost their mother in a hunting accident on Welgevonden Game Reserve when they were just ten months old. In an interesting turn of events a fifth sub-adult joined the mother and her four cubs before she was killed.
This sub-adult killed the younger male in the boma before they could be moved to RNR. Collars were fitted to 2 of the 4 animals when they were darted and crated for the move to Rietvlei NR. The S A Hunters and Game Conservation Association (Pretoria East) paid for the collar of the one female that will stay at RNR.
They kept them in a small camp for a short time to get them used to the new surroundings and the electric fences. The cheetah were released from the boma at Rietvlei NR into the reserve on the 1st of December 2015. They will be teaching themselves how to hunt over a period of five months (December 2015 to April 2016).
To ensure that they are learning to hunt successfully these Cheetah are going to have to be very closely monitored. There are three VERY precious females in the group and one male. After the re-wilding all will be recaptured and removed except the one female that will stay behind on Rietvlei NR with our resident male.
The two remaining female Cheetah will be caught and returned to Welgevonden Game Reserve on completion of rehabilitation process. The male Cheetah will be relocated to Maintain Zebra National Park by the EWT.
During the first week our collared female cheetah suffered some serious wounds that had to be tended to. An attempt to locate the Cheetah on the 8th of December with the Vet was not successful. On the 11th RNR staff managed to inoculate two Cheetah and immobilise the injured female.
Dr Peter Caldwell from OLD CHAPEL VETERINARY CLINIC (https://www.facebook.com/pages/Old-Chap ... 3534135738) removed her for immediate surgery and treatment. Unfortunately, he had to amputate one of her toes on the front leg quite high up because of the seriousness of the injury. Closing the wound on the back leg was also a challenge.
It is suspected that she tried to catch a Black Wildebeest and was injured by him. She will spend about 10 days at the clinic and then come back to the boma at Rietvlei NR.
The other 3 Cheetah are doing well and have been eating. The male caught a Blesbok ram on the 16th followed by the two females and they are learning how to hunt and what they can manage as prey species.
The male Cheetah will be relocated to Maintain Zebra National Park by the EWT.


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Re: CHEETAH IN RIETVLEI NATURE RESERVE

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Cheetah vs black wildebeest! Wonder when last that happened in SA? :shock:


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Re: CHEETAH IN RIETVLEI NATURE RESERVE

Post by nan »

poor Cheetah :-(
Hope she will be able to catch again some small Antelopes \O


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Re: CHEETAH IN RIETVLEI NATURE RESERVE

Post by Mel »

:-( for the female


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Re: CHEETAH IN RIETVLEI NATURE RESERVE

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Cheetah mom finally reveals her cubs


Elise Tempelhoff, Netwerk24 | Netwerk24

11:44 24/01/2017

Pretoria - It was the great reveal. After months of being hidden by their mother, three cheetah cubs made their appearance at the Rietvlei Nature Reserve this week.

The three are the first cheetahs born in the reserve, Netwerk24 reported.

Regular visitors and staff had known that Kiara, the cubs' mother, had given birth in November last year and some of the lucky ones among them had seen her once or twice. But then the family "disappeared".

Magda Naude of the South African Hunters and Game Conservation Association (SAHGCA) said Kiara had hidden her cubs very well somewhere on the 4 000ha reserve. Recently, they suddenly appeared, giving Madeleen van Schalkwyk, a volunteer at Rietvlei, the opportunity to take a picture of them.

Cheetahs were introduced to the reserve in 2014.

The Pretoria East branch of the SAHGCA had given R44 000 to the reserve towards buying a male, Sanbona.

In November 2015 Kiara and another 3 orphaned cheetahs joined Sanbona with the assistance of the Endangered Wildlife Trust. They were taken to Rietvlei after their mother died while hunting in the Welgevonden Game Reserve in Limpopo.

The four young cheetahs were initially held in a boma and were only released in January last year. All four adjusted well and three of them were taken to other reserves.

Hunting accident

Kiara stayed in the reserve and it was hoped that she and Sanbona would mate.

However, tragedy struck and Kiara was seriously injured while apparently trying to catch a wildebeest.

She was so badly injured that two of the toes on her front leg had to be amputated. A vet looked after her for a while before she was taken back to the boma. Staff were initially concerned that she would not be able to hunt on her own again. However, after a few months, she was given a clean bill of health and released into the wild again.

Exactly 12 months after arriving at the reserve, she surprised everyone with her three cubs.

Staff say she looks after them extremely well.

Dieter Labuschagne, the conservation co-ordinator of the SAHGCA's Pretoria East branch, says the success story of the cheetahs is proof that the general public can contribute to conservation.

"As hunters we are committed to safeguarding natural habitats."

When Kiara's cubs are 18 months old they will be moved to other reserves because Rietvlei is allowed just one cheetah breeding pair.

Fast facts:
* Cheetahs have lost 76% of their historical habitat in Africa
* South Africa has the third largest cheetah population, but 91% of their habitat has been destroyed in the country.
* It is thought that there are between 600 and 1 000 cheetahs left in South Africa.
* According to the World Conservation Union cheetahs are vulnerable, but they might be classified as endangered soon.


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Re: CHEETAH IN RIETVLEI NATURE RESERVE

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^Q^ ^Q^ ^Q^

Well done, the hunters! X#X


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Re: CHEETAH IN RIETVLEI NATURE RESERVE

Post by Mel »

A bit like a fairy tale :-) But I don't like that ending... the fact that the cubs will have to move somewhere else when grown up :O^
But, yes, I do understand that Rietvlei is too small to host more than that one male and one female...


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Re: CHEETAH IN RIETVLEI NATURE RESERVE

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