News Archives - 2007

Rain, glorious rain!
October 2007

The last week of September saw the start of a rainy season that kicked of with a bang. Over the past 10 years Welgevonden has had only one rain in September - but this year the last week of September saw 60mm rain on average across the reserve. Since then we have also had our share of the rainy conditions that were present over the central and northern parts of the country. Regular soft rain means effective rain, and most of the water was absorbed in the soil with little run off.

As a result there has not been a major increase in the flow of the streams, but most streams’ water levels increased. Rhino dam, which was almost completely dry, received a huge boost and it is now probably 50-60% full. The bush has been transformed over the last 3 weeks, and is greening up quickly. The plains areas are now beautifully green. However, the regular rainfall has also prevented us from burning all the areas we intended to burn this season. However, some areas in the south of the reserve were burned, and after the rain they should be green soon.

Some areas of the reserve have had well over 200mm thus far this rainy season and we hope that this continues for the rest of the season.

Rhino calf
October 2007

A couple of months ago we reported on the rhino cow that was seriously injured by a bull, and then later on how well she recovered. Well, there is a further chapter in this story. She gave birth to a healthy young rhino calf. When we first treated her we were worried that she wouldn’t be able to give birth because the vagina had to be stitched up. Blood tests at that time also revealed that she was pregnant. However, the arrival of the youngster negated all our fears.

The young calf is doing great! They had their first run in with the lions with 3 lionesses trying to catch the calf about 3 weeks after birth. However, the mother and her previous daughter, that is still with her, managed to fend them off successfully. We are confident that the youngster is going to grow up to become a healthy young bull.

Welgevonden welcomes Bercla Repairs
October 2007

The WLOA has outsourced the operation of the workshop on the reserve to an established workshop service provider out of Modimolle (Nylstroom), namely BERCLA REPAIRS.

BERCLA took over the workshop operations as from the 1st of September 2007, and we are confident this arrangement will lead to improved service delivery to our members. BERCLA have taken over all the existing workshop staff except for Henkie, who will be starting his own bush thinning business. They will, however, be providing a mechanic and workshop manager, and we would like to take this opportunity to encourage all members and lodge staff to visit the workshop to meet the new workshop manager, Thys Meyer, and André van der Westhuizen, and to make use of the workshop services.

BERCLA will be providing all the services previously offered by the workshop with the added benefit of extensive support from their operation in Modimolle.  BERCLA is offering its Welgevonden customers credit terms for workshop services up to 30 days, but may require an advance deposit or payment for repairs or improvements that require expensive parts and/or extensive labour.

We also anticipate undertaking improvements to the workshop facilities in due course to enable BERCLA to render a more professional service, and in short, we are extremely excited about the improved workshop services and facilities that will shortly be available to our members.  Importantly, the workshop is now also open to private vehicles

Male Lions Released
September 2007

The two male lions have been released from the boma and now roam free on the reserve. They moved to the northern and western parts of the reserve, where they are known to have killed 2 baboons and a zebra.

They stayed together for the first two weeks after their release, but have split up since the end of August. One of them are still in the west in the Manuel Gate area, while the other moved to the north close to the Main Gate, probably looking for the females that are often in the area. Hopefully the two will join up again soon.

Rhino Casualty
August 2007

A rhino cow had to be treated after being badly injured by what is presumed to be a rhino bull. Her vagina was ripped open by a horn from below her legs all the way to the top, a really nasty injury. She was darted, and with closer inspection the real extent of the injury was seen. The wound was cleaned, all the dead flesh was cut away and the wound was sewed up.

She was given a strong dose of anti-biotics to prevent infection. A couple of days after treating her the wound looked much better, but she will probably have to get another treatment to clean the wound and to get another dose of anti-biotics. It is unsure whether she will be able to calve again, but it is too early to tell. Hopefully she will heal completely.

New Male Lions
July 2007

Two new young male lions were introduced to Welgevonden from the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park. They will be kept in the boma on Welgevonden for a few weeks to allow them to settle down and to get to know each other as they originally came from different groups in the Kgalagadi. However, they are settling down well and should be released from the boma soon.

The two males are originally from the Twee-Rivieren/Mata-Mata region in Kgalagadi. They are 2½-3 years old and would have been expelled from their prides not so long ago, making them good candidates for translocation. They were captured by the National Park staff in Kgalagadi and held in a boma for about two weeks. Apparently there was a bit of hostility between them in the beginning, but by the time they were captured in the boma they had started to accept each other.

We caught them in the boma at Kgalagadi early on the morning of 13 June. After radio collars were fitted, microchips implanted and the necessary tranquilizers given they were loaded, each in his own crate, ready for the long road to their new home. We left the Kalahari at 11 am and arrived back at Welgevonden at 2 am the following morning after a 13 hour journey! The tranquilizers did the job and the two boys traveled well, sleeping most of the way.

They were released into the boma at sunrise the following morning. Since being in the boma they have relaxed towards vehicles, obviously not being used to many vehicles in the vast expanses of the Kalahari.

It was decided to introduce more males into the reserve for several reasons:

• It is important to introduce new genes into small isolated lion populations as on Welgevonden to avoid inbreeding depression before it can become a problem.
   
• Also, with the introduction of more males it is hoped that it will stabilize the pride dynamics on the reserve. In small populations it is often found that males stay in control of prides for long periods, and because of the low turnover of pride males the survival rate for cubs is unnaturally high.
   
• By increasing the number of males on the reserve it is hoped that the turnover of pride males will increase, which should result in a more natural population control where males will kill more cubs, and where less interference from management is necessary to control the population.
   
• The increase in males on the reserve should cause the pride males to patrol their territories more extensively, which should result in an increase in sightings of lion males.

However, as they are still young it should be a while before they start to challenge the old resident males for the prides. In the meantime we hope that they will adapt well to the reserve, and grow up to be future pride males.

Indaba 2007
June 2007

The 2007 Indaba Tourism show in Durban was the largest since its inception and saw record numbers of exhibitors. As in past years several of the commercial lodges on Welgevonden were represented, however 2007 was the first year that the Reserve had a stand at the show. Although several of the lodges are household names in the industry, the name “Welgevonden” has, to date, not been that well known. There is no reason why this should be.

For this reason three delegates from the management team on Welgevonden represented the Reserve with the aim to promote Welgevonden as a destination and to enhance the Reserve’s name in the industry. Welgevonden can offer a product which is second to none, if not better, than any of the well known reserves in the industry. The scenery on the reserve won’t easily be surpassed, add to that excellent game viewing, a true safari experience and top quality, but still good value-for-money lodges. Becoming a well known reserve won’t only boost tourism to the commercial lodges, but will also increase the value of all the properties on the reserve.

The response to the Welgevonden stand at Indaba was excellent. A large number of tour operators visited the stand and have shown keen interest in the reserve, not only from a tourism point of view, but also in our management practices. Being present at Indaba gave us an opportunity to inform people about some our ground-breaking projects, like the elephant contraception and vasectomies and our habitat management strategies. It gave us an opportunity to explain how we plan to marry the often clashing objectives of tourism and conservation with innovative management principles and ideas, and how to achieve a win-win situation for both tourism and conservation.

Reflecting back we definitely achieved what was aimed for when we first started deliberating about having a stand at Indaba, and in many instances far surpassing expectations. Experiencing the response at Indaba also gave management a boost by seeing what else is out there, realizing what the industry expects, and motivating us to continue with our efforts to make Welgevonden the top private reserve in the country.

Birding Day
April 2007

More importantly, 6 new species were added to the bird list. They are the Western red footed falcon, Harlequin quail, African morning dove, Whitebacked mousebird, Wiretailed swallow and Blackchested prinia. The day was completed with a bring-and-braai event at the large fig tree at Pienaar’s crossing. The spirit of all the teams was excellent, and everybody had a good time. But most importantly, in between the fun some very important data was collected. The data will be submitted to the Birds in Reserves Project (BIRP) by the University of Cape Town. This day was used as a trial run to test the interest and concept of such an event. The feedback that was received was excellent, and as a result another birding day will be held in November. The prize money won by the LOA Management team was put back in the kitty and will roll over to increase the prize for the next event.

Buffalo Back on Welgevonden
April 2007

They are also much more predator “proof”, it is more difficult for a group of 3 or 4 lions to pull down a full grown buffalo bull than it is to bring down a cow. Bulls are also less expensive than cows, and one can buy two bulls for the price of one cow. Furthermore, the buffalo have to be re-tested every 6 months to test for corridor disease, and again the bulls are hardier which make them more ideal for capture. For the time being no more buffalo will be brought into the reserve until there is surety that they don’t pick up corridor disease again. A decision on more introductions, and maybe the introduction of cows, will be made at that time.

They were kept in the boma until the results of the blood samples were sent back three weeks later. All tested negative. They were captured in the boma on Shambala on the 13th of March, put in a boma on Welgevonden for a couple of days to settle down, before the gate was opened on the 15th. However, it took them 3 more days to exit the boma, and only after they were attracted out of the gate with food. Late afternoon on the 18 th they eventually left the boma and took occupancy of their new home on Welgevonden. We wish them all the best in their new home. Keep an eye open for them around Fig Tree plains or in the Taaibos valley!

Lion Cubs
March 2007

One of the Southern lionesses is the proud mother of two new lion cubs. They are now about 8-9 weeks old, but only showed themselves a week or two ago. However, they are seldom seen as their mother is also a skittish animal, and she makes sure that they are hidden well.

They should start moving around with her soon, and will then hopefully been seen more regularly.

Hippo Release
March 2007

Another first for Welgevonden in February, the introduction of 2 hippo into Rhino Dam! The young male and female are from Mpatamacha Game Dealers farm between Vaalwater and Melkrivier.

They are the ideal animals for Welgevonden, they are young and from the Waterberg, which means that they are used to the vegetation and should therefore adapt easier to the new environment. Furthermore, they are from a dam and not a river, which should also be an advantage in that they will stay in the Welgevonden dams much easier.

The two hippo were released into Rhino Dam for several reasons, it is in the middle of the reserve which will give them lots of space before they will reach a fence. There is also good grazing on the nearby Fig Tree and Ibhubesi Plains, and the close proximity of Leopard Dam means that there is a dam close by in case Rhino Dam dries up with the very dry weather we are experiencing at the moment.

They have started to explore their new home already, and their tracks were spotted halfway down into the Taaibos Valley in the north, and onto the Grootwater Plains south of the dam. We hope that they will enjoy there new home on Welgevonden.

Roan Antelope Release
February 2007

Welgevonden can add an additional species to the mammal list. Four roan bulls were released on the reserve during January.

Two of them have been fitted with radio collars so that they can be monitored and their movements recorded. The introduction of the four bulls will be used as a test on how roan will adapt to the habitat on Welgevonden. Hence the reason why bulls only were introduced, cows are considerably more expensive than bulls.

With the enhancement of the plains areas, more game are attracted out of the mountains and onto the plains. Roan, not being a good competitor, might find suitable habitat in the taller-grass areas of the plateaus and hills.

The four bulls were captured on a property belonging to Marakele Parks (Pty) Ltd and transported by Mpatamacha.

The intention was to capture five bulls, but due to thick bush and very high temperatures, the capture of the last bull was aborted. The roan was darted from a helicopter, and once it was on the ground, a pipe was fitted over the horns to protect the people. The collar was also fitted before it was loaded with a stretcher onto a waiting land cruiser, and then transported to the truck.

At the truck they were each loaded into their own compartment before the drug was reversed with an anti-dote. The trip to the East Gate area of Welgevonden took about 90 minutes, and although it was feared that they won’t want to come out of the truck easily, the exact opposite was true.

As soon as the doors were opened they were out of the truck. Once on the ground, they stood for a couple of minutes, observing their new surroundings, before making their way into the bush and their new home.

Thanks to the trustees of the East Gate fund for kindly sponsoring the purchase and capture of these animals.

Ringing Blue Crane Chicks
February 2007

Next to the Dullstroom area, the Waterberg is the second most important area for blue cranes in the northern parts of South Africa.

Welgevonden is the most important breeding grounds for blue cranes in the Waterberg with 5 breeding pairs on the reserve. Part of the conservation effort of blue cranes, led by the EWT, is to ring the new chicks before they learn to fly.

This will assist in getting to know the population, and to monitor what happens with the chicks once they grow up, for example, do they come back to the areas they were born in, and will they eventually breed in the same areas?

Kobus Pienaar from the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism is leading the project in the Waterberg district.

Of the five breeding pairs on Welgevonden, three pairs bred successfully, and the fourth pair is still unconfirmed. There are four confirmed chicks on Welgevonden this season. In a joint effort between Kobus, Joseph Heymans and the Welgevonden staff three of the four chicks were ringed. Staff from the next door Shambala Game Reserve also assisted by providing a gyrocopter to search for the birds from the air.

The cranes are ringed with several rings, a large green ring on the right leg, which means that is a Waterberg or Mpumulanga crane, and then three smaller rings on the left leg, in various color combinations which identifies the specific bird. The chick is also ringed with a numbered metal ring from SAFBIRD.

The birds are then weighed and blood samples are collected for genetic tests. It is then released to join up with its parents again, and will hopefully grow up and form a new breeding pair on the reserve.

Please report sightings of birds with rings to Welgevonden Management.
 

Horn Trim for Rhino Bull
February 2007

A rhino bull, who continuously injured females with his very sharp horn, had his horn clipped in January.

After several injuries to females, and one possible death as a result, it was decided to stop his mischievous behaviour and cut the top half of the horn off. The horn was cut with a chainsaw, and the edges of the cut horn filed off to remove the rough edges. However, the bull will soon rub his horn against rocks etc. in an attempt to sharpen it again.

Closer investigation of the part that was cut of revealed that this bull was a master in his craft of horn sharpening and the tip of the horn was extremely sharp. In other reserves where horns were cut, injuries to other rhino reduced drastically as a result. We expect it to have the same effect on Welgevonden with this particular bull. He is still using his old stomping grounds, and time will tell how successful this action had been. He is seen regularly, and is nothing worse for the wear, although his dignity might have taken a blow.