Firstly, I am a botanist and ecologist. Secondly, I love the KNP. And thirdly, I had the unique opportunity to live for almost eight years inside the park itself, in the Pafuri area. Over the years I met some interesting people working and just visiting in the park and saw the comings and goings in the far north of the park. What I find interesting is how many of the scientists and people ‘intricately’ involved in the conservation of our most precious asset, do so from the comfort of their air-conditioned offices in Johannesburg and Pretoria.
I admit that I am not an expert on conservation (although I have worked for years in the field as well), but what intrigues me is the so-called ‘non-intervention’ policy of the scientists mentioned in the article. I often heard about it while living there. How can it be ‘non-intervention’ when you take a narrow strip of land and put a fence around it, restricting the movement of animals?
Already just there you have a problem and not only have you not ‘not intervened’ but now you have to do further management and controls simply because of this restriction of movement. Please don’t get me wrong, I am glad it is fenced, but don’t now start talking about ‘non-intervention’, especially when it suits your agenda. My wife and I lived in the old Teba/Wenela camp, very close to Crook’s Corner at Pafuri. On winter evenings we would hear the elephants destroying the mopani trees, literally a few metres from our bedroom window. In winter there is no grass in that area.
The only green you see are the leaves on the mopanis (except of course along the Levhubu and Limpopo Rivers). Eventually most of the mopani trees would be destroyed up to a certain height. Not to mention the ever increasing damage to the stunning jackal berry, sausage trees and other large trees along the Levhubu River.
Please don’t misunderstand me. I love elephants, but I also love other creatures. My point is there is more to the Kruger National Park than elephants. Too often management thinks there are only the Big 5 in the park. What about the amazing diversity and intricate balance between the Big 5 and the other 2 million inhabitants in the park? Over the years, the overwhelming opinion of many knowledgeable people working in KNP is that it is overpopulated with elephants.
I think we have two choices. Either come up with some real, workable ‘intervention’ solutions, or rename the park and call it what it is becoming, namely the Elephant National Park.
Read Ron Thomson’s article on The wildlife industry rises to the challenge
