Commitment
to Conservation
Enkosini
was formed as a conservancy with the aim of establishing a large reserve
for the benefit of African wildlife. Two large tracts of land were
purchased and joined together so that Enkosini currently encompasses
over 10,000 acres along the Mpumalanga escarpment with a mix of
middleveld and lowveld terrain. The objective is to preserve natural
habitat while reintroducing indigenous wildlife onto land they once
naturally roamed.
Poaching
has become a serious problem at Enkosini in recent months as patrols are
finding increasing numbers of wildlife caught in snares and gin traps. It is clear that
the time has come to secure the entire sanctuary. Nearly 40 kilometres
of electrified fencing will be required to properly protect the
free-roaming wildlife at Enkosini. Completing this task will support the
planned reintroduction of large herds of indigenous game into the
sanctuary and our goal to re-establish all the original flora and fauna
to the area.
Sanctuary
& Rehabilitation
Restoring
wildlife to their natural environment where they can survive the
elements and effectively re-enter their own social hierarchy is a key
objective at Enkosini. A wildlife sanctuary is a "place of refuge
where injured, abused, neglected, homeless, abandoned and displaced
animals will be provided with responsible care for their lifetime or,
when possible, rehabilitated and returned to the wild." Enkosini
provides sanctuary and protection for a myriad of African wildlife, many
of which would be destroyed if adequate habitat and facilities for their
rehabilitation were not available. Enkosini works to improve the quality
of life for these animals by:
•Accepting
lifetime responsibility for its wildlife. This may include
rehabilitation and release in an appropriate habitat or transfer to
another sanctuary that is better suited to their needs.
•Prohibiting
the use of its wildlife in commercial activities. Animals will not be
hunted. Animals will not be hired out for entertainment purposes.
Animals will not be captive-bred for any purpose including sale or
trade. Public access to Enkosini's wildlife will occur only under
conditions of non-intrusiveness and respect for the animal's
privacy.
•Educating
the public about the conservation issues affecting wildlife today,
encouraging more respectful relations between humans and other animals,
and advocating for regulatory and policy changes that will better
protect wildlife.
Animals
that can be restored to their natural environment will be given special
care to prevent human imprinting. Our on-site veterinary clinic is
expected to be completed by December 2004 and will provide proper facilities
(including a sick bay and a treatment area) and equipment
for handling sick and critically injured animals and preventing the
spread of disease. To date, Enkosini's project directors have rescued a
variety of wildlife including lion, serval, caracal, jackal, suricate,
small-spotted genet, lesser bushbaby, tortoise, black eagle and various
antelope species, and successfully released many of these animals back
into the wild.
Habitat
Protection
Enkosini
lies in one of the last large areas of pristine wilderness in the
Mpumalanga region on the dividing line between two different types of
habitat, the highvelt and the lowvelt. Given its "escarpment"
location, Enkosini is home to many different species of indigenous
plants, insects, and wildlife that are only found in this area of South
Africa. Leopard, brown hyena, jackal, mongoose, caracal, serval, genet,
civet, vervet monkey, baboon, bushbaby, bushpig, warthog, various
antelope species, including kudu, mountain reedbuck, duiker and red
hartebeest, and 250 species of birdlife are all indigenous to Enkosini.
Enkosini will continue to acquire natural habitat to expand the
sanctuary and preserve the wildlife, plants, insects and other
components essential to the eco-system. Rehabilitating the land and
achieving a properly balanced eco-system are critically important goals
at Enkosini. A land survey, including soil, vegetation and wildlife
carrying capacity analysis, is currently being conducted.
As
most of the land in the Lydenburg area is already developed as mines or
cattle/agricultural farms, the local community strongly supports setting
aside this land as a conservation area. Currently Enkosini has the
ability to expand to up to 50,000 acres of undeveloped, wild lands
(given sufficient funding over time). Our long-term plan is to acquire
these adjoining properties, so that Enkosini's predators and other
wildlife will be able to move more freely within their natural habitat.
Educational
Outreach
Lions and other predators are under
constant threat from indiscriminate development and the fragmentation
and degradation of habitat. Disease is rife, gene pools are weakening,
distribution ranges are shrinking, prides are dwindling. In order to
conserve the last wild areas and ensure the survival of many species in
the wild, we must teach people to respect and appreciate predators. We
must convey the message that predators are crucial to the balance of
entire eco-systems.
As
such, educational outreach is a critically important part of our
project. We want Enkosini to serve not only as a lifelong home for
displaced wildlife, but also as a stage for environmental education,
instilling a healthy and positive perspective towards South Africa's
wild animals and rekindling people's love of the land. We work locally
and internationally conducting conservation education programs through
sanctuary visitations, media and school talks. We also work with
surrounding farming communities to develop ways to reduce predator
conflict, educating local villagers and farmers on alternative predator
management. Enkosini promotes the use of non-lethal controls and
relocation of problem animals, and the financial benefits that can be
derived by pursuing conservation and eco-tourism.
To
facilitate and improve our existing education program, we recently
started construction of a new Environmental Education Centre which is
expected to be completed by December 2004. The new Education Centre will
guide visitors through an exploration of the history, range, biology,
characteristics, conservation status and issues associated with various
African predators. Graphics will illustrate the history of various
predators to current time and emphasize their diminishing range and
numbers. Predator biology will be highlighted in an extensive series of
descriptive panels, while exhibits will show how the cheetah is adapted
for a high-speed sprint, the leopard for climbing trees, and the lion
for hunting large prey. The visitor will be taken through the life cycle
of the predators from birth to adulthood and the difficulties involved
in their struggle for survival. The wildlife in the sanctuary and
animals that, for various reasons, cannot be released back into the wild
play a positive role as well. Often they are the most effective means
for conveying positive conservation philosophies to the public.
Employment
and Eco-Economic Development
Enkosini
has rapidly become a valued contributor to the South African economy
through overseas capital infusions, eco-tourism and job creation. Not
only does Enkosini attract a steady stream of additional visitors to the
Mpumalanga province, enhancing opportunities for revenues among local
for-profit businesses, but Enkosini also employs an increasing number of
local community members in construction and maintenance, security and
anti-poaching, animal care, and eco-tourism roles.
Successful
long-term management of Enkosini depends on the cooperation and support
of the local people. Employing locals and
attracting eco-tourism forges a positive relationship between
conservation and the community. Enkosini employees receive training in
ecology and sanctuary management in order to prepare them for future
roles as rangers. Additionally, Enkosini is developing partnerships with
local communities whereby eco-tourists can experience a taste of the
local culture through "home-stays" coordinated by Enkosini.
Advocacy
Enkosini
staunchly opposes "canned" hunting of predators and supports
legislation to establish a moratorium on these hunts. We have
spearheaded numerous media campaigns and started a grassroots effort to
raise general awareness about the canned hunting industry in South
Africa and the plight of the African lion.
We
are also involved in a protracted legal battle against the Mpumalanga
Parks Board, a quasi-governmental body that usurps power over most
aspects of flora and wildlife management, at times in direct
contravention of South Africa's new constitution. The Boston Globe
recently described the High Court case as follows: "The Enkosini
affair has become one of the most important environmental battles in
South Africa since the end of apartheid nearly a decade ago - a battle,
animal-welfare activists argue, to wrest conservation from the
exclusionary policies of the old order that favored exploitation, shut
out animal-rights groups, and still predominate. The outcome may help
fundamentally to redefine wildlife management in the country."
Visit News for further
information on our High Court case.
Research
Private
nature reserves play an increasingly important and necessary role in the
management and conservation of South Africa's wildlife. However, private
wildlife managers are faced with the problem of isolated and fragmented
wildlife populations, as fences prevent the natural dispersal and
migrations of many species. Unless monitored and managed effectively,
this can have dire consequences for both the genetics and social
structure of the fenced wildlife. This can also disrupt the balance
between predator and prey populations and, in the case of large
herbivores, irreversibly damage sensitive vegetation areas.
Over
the next 5 years, Enkosini will research the impact of fencing on
relocated/resident predators and other game within the sanctuary.
Certain animals will be radio collared, allowing Enkosini to track daily
movements and gain insight into territory size, social interaction,
feeding habits and their impact on the reserve as a whole.
The
return of our lions will also allow us to continue researching the
effects of contraceptive implants on lion pride dynamics. We initially
believed that social conflict, given the high ratio of males to females,
would force the Enkosini pride to separate as the four young males
reached adulthood. However, the lionesses' contraceptive implants
(inserted to prevent captive breeding) seem to have altered normal pride
dynamics. Dr. Henk Bertshinger of the University of Pretoria's Wildlife
Veterinary Unit believes that careful monitoring of our lions could help
researchers to develop a stronger understanding of the female
reproduction system, particularly how changes to that system (in the
form of contraceptives) influence the social behavior of the cats.
To contact our South African office, write to:
Enkosini
Wildlife Sanctuary/The Lion Foundation
P.O.
Box 1197, Lydenburg 1120, South Africa
Cell:
+27.82.265.5955, Tel/Fax: +27.13.231.7473
E-mail:
enkosini@yahoo.com
To contact our US office, write to:
Enkosini
Wildlife Sanctuary/The Lion Foundation
506
Overlake Drive East, Medina, WA 98039, USA
Tel:
+1.206.604.2664, Fax: +1.425.453.0493
E-mail:
enkosini@yahoo.com
Send mail to
CompanyWebmaster with
questions or comments about this web site.
Copyright © 2001
CompanyLongName
