Questionable Buffalo and Hippo culling in Kruger

[Richprins]

Thanks!

They will see it...

[harrys]

Kruger National Park kills 350 hippos, buffalos amid drought
2016-09-14 12:03

Johannesburg - Rangers in South Africa's biggest wildlife park are killing about 350 hippos and buffalos in an attempt to relieve the impact of the region's most severe drought in more than three decades.

The numbers of hippos and buffalos in Kruger National Park, about 7 500 and 47 000 respectively, are at their highest level ever, according to the national parks service. Officials plan to distribute meat from the killed animals to poor communities on the park's perimeter.

The drought has left millions of people across several countries in need of food aid.

Hippos and buffalos consume large amounts of vegetation, and many animals are expected to die anyway because of the drought, said Ike Phaahla, a parks service spokesperson. A drought in the early 1990s reduced Kruger park's buffalo population by more than half to about 14 000, but the population rebounded.

Pushed to act

Rangers are targeting hippos in "small natural pools where they have concentrated in unnatural high densities, defecate in the water, making it unusable to other animals," Phaahla wrote in an email to The Associated Press.

Parks officials have described drought as a natural way of regulating wildlife populations. Earlier this year, they said they didn't plan any major intervention to try to save wild species in Kruger park, but the drought's impact intensified.

Hippos are in particular trouble because they can't feed as widely as other animals, returning to water by day after grazing by night.

South Africa's parks service stopped killing elephants to reduce overpopulation in 1994, partly because of public opposition.

Around 1900, hunting had cleared out elephants in the area that became Kruger park. Today, there are an estimated 20 000 elephants there. Poachers killed 36 elephants this year in the park, raising concerns that the Africa-wide slaughter of elephants for their ivory is finally affecting South Africa.

Poachers have already killed large numbers of rhinos in the park, which borders Zimbabwe and Mozambique and is almost the size of Israel.

Generations ago, an estimated 15 000 people lived in the area that was officially proclaimed as Kruger park in 1926. Some communities were removed from the wildlife reserve under white minority rule at that time.

"These people were pure hunter-gatherers and we greatly underestimate their role in shaping this ecosystem," Phaahla said. "We have removed this important driver from the Kruger ecosystem and we are researching ways to simulate the return of their role again and the removals or off-takes (of some animals) aim to do just that."

[Richprins]

Parks officials have described drought as a natural way of regulating wildlife populations. Earlier this year, they said they didn't plan any major intervention to try to save wild species in Kruger park, but the drought's impact intensified.

[Richprins]

https://www.facebook.com/login/?next=ht ... 5951456%2F



KRUGER NATIONAL PARK MANAGEMENT DROUGHT OFF TAKES

The large herbivore biomass is currently the highest ever in Kruger’s history; plus minus 20,000 elephant, 47,000 buffalo, and 7,500 hippos, which results in significant changes in habitat caused by these high numbers. Buffalo and hippo are drought sensitive species and previous droughts in Kruger National Park have shown population declines of up to 50%. The buffalo population is at higher densities than previous droughts, therefore it is expected that the population will incur huge losses during the current drought. If the numbers that remained after the previous droughts in the 1990’s for buffalo and hippo are considered (14,000 and 2,000 respectively) significant mortalities are anticipated. Hippos and buffaloes are the largest grazers with the highest biomass and impact on habitats. The purist way of allowing natural attrition to take its course is not always ecologically the best especially if populations are unnaturally high due to man-made influences.

Removals will be focused on alleviating pressure on sensitive areas in the Park, e.g. removing hippo from small natural pools where they have concentrated in unnatural high densities, defecate in the water, making it unusable to other animals. These hippos generally originated from man-made dams that dried up and now populate small natural pools in large numbers.

Culling, cropping, harvesting, ecological removals, sustainable resource use are all terms that have been used. If the term culling in your book means controlling the size of these populations, that is not what SANParks is doing. The numbers are also not cast in concrete purely as it is not possible to determine how the situation will unfold as the drought further develops. However, the numbers are kept very low (between 0,5 and 1% of the respective populations).

Logistically it will not be possible to do higher numbers now and ecologically it will not be suitable to do unsustainably high numbers in future. In view of the huge populations of these large herbivores and the mortalities we have already observed amongst buffalo and hippo this year, as well as the anticipated mortalities later in the year, these numbers to be removed are not significant at the population level.

The current drought is being noted for its unprecedented impact on human well-being with an estimated 22 million persons in Southern Africa in need of some assistance. SANParks cannot remain oblivious to this issue. Kruger National Park is therefore planning to use the opportunity to sustainably harvest in the region of 350 animals during this drought in order to test different models for meat distribution to disadvantaged, low income communities on the border of the Park. The Kruger National Park will be targeting quintile primary schools, part of the National School Feeding scheme and will use these drought related removals as an ad hoc opportunity to share benefits with communities.

In light of Foot and Mouth Disease veterinary regulations, the Park will be testing the feasibility and suitability of cloven hoofed animals products permitted to leave the Park, which include: break-dry biltong (BRB) and well-cooked meat (WCM). A secondary objective of the removals will be assessing genetic selection for fitness during droughts and the interactions between disease and drought.

This is not a “sneaky reintroduction of culling by SANParks” as put by some in their opinion. Kruger National Park is managed according to an approved management plan that makes provision for both biodiversity management and sustainable resource use. Part of the process of drafting this plan was an intensive public consultation process. It is practically not possible to consult the public on each and every management action implemented. A new round of revisions of the Kruger National Park Management Plan has started and will come in full swing in the year 2017. The Public is encouraged to register and take part in this process.
Regards
Lesley Nyawo

[Richprins]

Will dissect again later, but at least they have clicked it is potentially deadly and illegal to dish out buffalo meat willy-nilly...

It seems this is made up as it goes along, to be honest.

[RobertT]

This also talks about future utilization / harvesting even after drought. This is not stopping at drought. It will now be the Kruger National Farm.

[Lisbeth]

[Richprins]

Anyway, they are reading here, and media too!

[Twigga]

I can just hold my breath...and pray for much needed rain

Otherwise...no more Kruger

[stefan9]

shame on you Sanparks. Unacceptable decision...