Landrover

Land Rovers give drivers the freedom to explore some of the wildest and most beautiful areas of our planet, and therefore we feel obliged to do what we can to protect and preserve our environment – such as our support of Wild Dogs.

Land Rover’s commitment to environmental conservation is encapsulated in our Fragile Earth programme, which seeks to encourage care for and preservation of the environment as well as environmentally responsible off-road driving. By adopting Wild Dogs – fragile because of their endangered status – Land Rover contributes towards the preservation of an ecologically important species and one of Africa’s most threatened carnivores.

Land Rover support also allows for ongoing scientific research in the generic mapping and population management of various Wild Dog populations, and the movement of animals to suitable areas where prey is freely available and there is less of a need to prey on farm animals.

In addition, Land Rover supports the survival of an animal that shares many of Land Rover’s characteristics: it travels long distances over all sorts of terrain; it has a gutsy adventurous spirit and a love of freedom and the great outdoors.

The African Wild Dog is the most Endangered large carnivore in South Africa. They are facing an uphill battle to survive in a world where almost every bit of their suitable habitat is being divided up into smaller tracts of land. Over and above running out of space, they face a wide variety of threats including snares, direct persecution, road deaths and disease. The Greater Kruger National Park (KNP) contains the largest viable population of Wild Dog in South Africa, yet Kruger’s Wild Dogs are still under threat with a total estimated population of 130. Photographic census results show a decline in the population over the last 20 years.

Regardless of all the negative aspects affecting the Wild Dogs and the many threats they face they are hanging in there. The simple fact that their hunting technique is extremely efficient and they give birth to pups every year and that there are cyclic variations in nature might give the Wild Dog some hope. Perhaps with our conservation efforts and a greater understanding of the drivers in population decline there is a chance to reverse the trend and see an increase in Wild Dog numbers. The Wild Dogs breed seasonally. The dominant pair does most of the mating and has on average 12- 15 pups during the winter months.  In 2012 five of the eight packs in southern KNP settled down to den.  After 3 months underground the first pups have emerged, and how fitting for it to be pups from the Skukuza pack.



The den site was located in a dense Combretum thicket 1.5km from the nearest road, in a huge termite mound. With the alpha female successfully raising 10 pups in 2011 and the Alpha male, “Lighting”, being a hunting machine with cooperation from the other pack members there were high hopes for this pack to be a great success.  However, the pack moved into a wilderness area that we could not access and were not sighted for a few weeks.  They finally showed themselves this week, but sadly there were no pups with them.  This highlights how Wild Dog packs can fluctuate greatly in size and how difficult is it for them to raise their pups in the presence of other large carnivores.

In August 2010 I wrote an article on the similarities between Marmite and African Wild Dogs. While I still am, prepared to accept that the sludge-like, savoury concoction has little physical similarity to our country’s most endangered carnivore, I still believe the advertising slant once taken for Marmite of “you either love it or you don’t” may unfortunately still hold true for some areas of South Africa and their attitudes towards Wild Dogs. Given this thought, perhaps you’d understand my fascination with the recent news headline that New Zealanders are in panic over an impending “Marmageddon” as it is being dubbed in the media. The island nation has almost run out of Marmite and even their Prime Minister has been feeling the impact enough to make comment on the potential national crisis of a Marmite-depleted future. Now wouldn’t it be great if we had a government and public that was equally “worried” by the precarious state our national Wild Dog population finds itself in, with less than 450 of these animals in the South African veld. Given the past weeks encounters with members of the general public and through receiving reports of “Wild Dog” sightings it is clear we still have a long way to go in just getting across the message that an African Wild Dog is a different animal to a jackal, hyaena or domestic dog.

Work is still ongoing to develop a national, collaborative conservation plan for Wild Dogs but fortunately at local levels there are also private landowners working with NGO’s and local conservation authorities to do their bit for Wild Dog conservation, and to generate tourism exposure for this captivating, and often misunderstood species. On this note I mentioned last month how many of the resident populations of Wild Dogs in KwaZulu-Natal have a history linked to another nearby reserve, and the population in Thanda Private Game Reserve is no different.

Thanda was the first private game reserve in KZN to take on the responsibilities of a resident Wild Dog pack, originally as a result of single-sex dispersal event from Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park in 2004. To establish a relatively stable pack this was followed by supplementary introductions of two males and females from Hluhluwe-iMfolozi and De Beers Venetia-Limpopo Game Reserve respectively in 2006. The reserve has also on several occasions played temporary host to additional dispersing animals from both Hluhluwe-iMfolozi and Mkhuze Game Reserves. In turn dispersers from the Thanda pack have been recorded in both Zululand Rhino Reserve and Mkhuze, further highlighting the potential dispersal routes we are working on establishing to link resident Wild Dog populations within the Zululand area.

Successful breeding, dispersal events and sporadic depredation by lions have all contributed to a naturally fluctuating Wild Dog population on the reserve, a flow which has shown both the vulnerability of a single pack to natural threats but also the resilience and reproductive potential of the species. It is anticipated that the reserves’ current range expansion initiatives will further contribute to the KZN Wild Dog Advisory Group’s intended goal of a establishing and maintaining a healthy, breeding, socially and genetically viable subpopulation of Wild Dogs in the greater Zululand/Maputaland area.

The project to expand the current range, and facilitate proactive management of Wild Dogs in northern KwaZulu-Natal is carried out through collaboration between the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT), Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife, Wildlife ACT, Wildlands Conservation Trust and the participants within the KZN Wild Dog Advisory Group. The EWT’s Wild Dog efforts are supported by Jaguar Land Rover South Africa and Land Rover Centurion.

If any readers observe Wild Dogs outside of protected areas, please note the location of the sighting, whether the animal is wearing a tracking collar and identify, or ideally, photograph any characteristic markings. Please then notify Brendan Whittington-Jones on 072 992 9483

With denning season approaching and the drive for individuals to find a suitable mate Wild Dogs are on the move. Recently two collared males in Southern Kruger National Park (KNP) dispersed from the Phabeni pack and moved south east towards Afsaal in the hope of finding some females and perhaps establish a pack of their own. New packs are normally formed when same sex groups (usually siblings) disperse from their natal packs and join with dispersing, unrelated, groups of the opposite sex. Factors such as food availability and natal pack composition are the most likely factors that influence the rate and composition of dispersal groups. The Phabeni pack consisted of nine individuals, four adults and five pups. Of these adults only one female was present and three males which is the most likely reason for the two collared males dispersing.

After numerous attempts to locate the two males and determine where they had dispersed to, reports came in from rangers at Jock Safari Lodge where it was confirmed that two collared dogs had been sighted in their resident pack, both males were together and appeared to be doing well in what may be a new pack. I followed up on the reported location within an hour but, unfortunately luck was not on my side as I was unable to get a signal from the collars that evening as shortly after the dogs had been sighted they swiftly moved off into the bush while on the hunt. I would have to attempt to locate them the following morning with the telemetry set in the hope of getting signal from the collars. Early morning wake up and the follow up on the collared dogs begins just after 05:00 am. As far as an early mornings go watching the sun rise on route to find South Africa’s most endangered carnivore sure beats fighting off road raged commuters on the N1 while stuck in bumper to bumper JHB traffic, but believe it or not there are however some frustrations. Hours are spent anxiously listening to the receiver in the hope of hearing that first beep and confirmation of the collared dogs nearby.  The anxiety builds to the point where you could almost convince yourself that you have heard a beep. Then suddenly you feel like a child on Christmas morning,” beep beep”.  The collar range is approximately 5km and the signal is faint at first, but coming from a definite direction straight ahead. The closer the proximity to the collar the louder the ‘beeps’ become. Now within a few hundred meters of the dogs I become optimistic that in any minute I would get a visual of the pack trotting down the road in typical fashion, but nothing.  The signal slowly starts to weaken and once again I have just missed them. While still in range I located the GPS collar using a remote download unit to download GPS movement data and determine the route taken by both males when dispersing from their previous pack. With the download complete I had at least achieved something that would make the disappointment of not getting visual of the dogs a little easier.

After downloading the data the routes the males had taken were clear, as well as the core range of their new pack. The pack they have joined appears to be spending most of their time north east of Afsaal Picnic spot and are called the Afsaal Pack containing eight individuals.  Now that I knew where the collared males were, the next plan was to get visual of them in their new pack, update the pack profiles and demographics and edit the data base. 
Almost two weeks passed by with no reports of the Afsaal pack or any of the collared dogs until finally a message came through, “07:00 Wild Dog H3 1km South of Afsaal Picnic spot, 8 dogs in the pack mobile”. After quickly putting all the equipment into the Land Rover I was ready to go and set off to find the dogs. Perhaps my luck with the collared males had changed, when arriving at the reported location I had full signal from the VHF collar and the dogs were close by but 50m off the road, but to my surprise there was no signal from the GPS collar, perhaps the collar was no longer working…. The only solution was waiting out the heat of the day for the dogs to move onto the road when it cooled down in the evening.  In the mean time I would follow up on reports of two other packs near Malelane Gate and Berg en Dal Rest Camp. Both were unsuccessful and my day was looking pretty bleak, but I still had high hopes to get visual of the collared dogs. After returning to the location, the dogs were still lying off the road but the temperature had finally started dropping below 30°C by 16:30. I was positive that the dogs would be on the move soon, the signal from the collar was strong and still from the same direction, then all of a sudden the direction changed and the dogs started to run out the bush onto the road. A total of eight dogs were present in the pack including one collared male. As I feared the male with the GPS collar was missing…

The Kruger National Park Wild Dog Project is a partnership with SANPark's, Jaguar-Land Rover South Africa, Vaughan de la Harpe and Richard Bosman, supported by Global Supplies and Sabi Sand Wild Tuin. Follow the project on Twitter @KNPWildDogs, or Face Book: Grant Beverley.

Land Rover Supports the EWT Research Programme

The African wild dog shares many of Land Rover’s key characteristics: it travels vast distances over all sorts of terrain, has a gutsy, adventurous spirit, and a love of freedom and the great outdoors. Land Rover also supports the EWT’s ongoing scientific research program, which includes the generic mapping and population management of various wild dog populations.

Outside the Kruger National Park, packs have been introduced into several small reserves including Marakele National Park, Madikwe Game Reserve, Pilanesberg National Park, Hluluwe Imfolozi Park, Venetia Limpopo Nature Reserve, Mkuzi Game Reserve and Tswalu Kalahari Reserve. These small isolated populations are managed as a metapopulation. The ‘metapopulation approach’ involves translocating excess dogs within these reserves in order to keep a healthy gene flow.

Land Rover Sponsored Wild Dog Project Commenced in Limpopo in 2002

Land Rover-supported wild dog projects commenced on the De Beers Venetia Limpopo Nature Reserve in the Limpopo Province which is a metapopulation reserve. The wild dog population in Venetia has fluctuated between five and 27 individuals in one to two packs. Between 2002 and 2006 a multidisciplinary study was conducted to examine the demography, biology, ecology and socio-economics of conserving wild dogs on small reserves.

During 2006 the project expanded its scope to incorporate a study that examined two critical components of wild dog behavioural ecology: pup provisioning and pack formation. The project also involved a wild dog-based ecotourism component – through research trips and den-site visits – in an attempt to ascertain potential economic benefits of wild dogs in the area.

KZN Wild Dog Project Has Land Rover Support and Sponsorship

The Kwa-Zulu Natal Wild Dog project also supported by Land Rover includes the Hluhluwe IMfolozi Park which is a metapopulation reserve. Recent developments of private land owners and tribal authorities consolidating large tracts of land into conservancies, as well as changing attitudes towards conservation, biodiversity and the value of ecotourism make the region particularly important for the future survival of the wild dog. The project studies the spatial attributes of the ecological features, especially in the form of wildlife corridors, necessary for supporting self sustaining populations of wild dogs. In addition a sound basis for the trouble-free and successful expansion of wild dogs throughout Kwa-Zulu Natal, and eventually all of South Africa, is being developed while maintaining a consistent network of communication among local communities, private land owners, wildlife managers and conservation scientists.

Land Rover Defender Assists in Photographic Census Project in the Kruger National Park

The Photographic Census project in the Kruger National Park was made possible with the assistance of a Defender 110 station wagon. It is home to one of the last viable populations of wild dogs in South Africa and draws public attention to the plight of wild dogs and has provided important scientific information on the ecology of the species.

Visitors Can Assist in Estimating the Wild Dog Population: Sponsor, Support and Assist Where You Can

An understanding of population dynamics in the park is essential for developing national strategies to improve the conservation status of these species. A novel approach has been developed to estimate population size; as individuals have unique coat patterns the identification of individuals from photographs is possible. Visitors are asked to send their photographs in so that individuals can be identified, counted and the overall population size estimated. This information has been used to improve management programs for the wild dog both in Kruger National Park and outside.

Land Rover is proud to be a supporter and sponsor of this initiative.

Click here for more information about the EWT, and the work that they do. 

While rhino poaching dominates South African media, the plight of the African Wild Dog Lycaon pictus does not seem to get the same level of attention. Wild Dogs are South Africa’s most threatened carnivore with less than 450 of the so-called ‘painted dogs’ remaining in the wild in South Africa.

“Carnivores are charismatic, important members of the food chain and a valuable tourist attraction” said Kelly Marnewick, Manager of the Endangered Wildlife Trust’s Carnivore Conservation Programme.  “While rhino poaching is a huge problem, there are many other species that are facing threats too. African Wild Dogs once occurred throughout sub-Saharan Africa but now occupy only a fraction of the area they used to. Conflict with humans resulting in persecution, fragmentation of habitat, snaring and infectious diseases – often transmitted from domestic animals – are the main factors contributing to the decline in Wild Dog populations.”

Often misunderstood, the public has not always been sympathetic to the cause of the Wild Dogs. Perceived as callous killers, Wild Dogs are in fact efficient, organised hunters that are highly sociable.  Occurring in packs of 10 to 20 they are led by an alpha pair that is monogamous and the whole pack is dedicated to the raising of the pups, typically produced by only one dominant pair at a time.

Wild Dogs’ social nature is often a threat in itself.  When one of the canines is caught in a snare, other members of the pack are reluctant to leave the trapped pack mate behind and so they often remain in the area while the injured dog tries to free itself. This, unfortunately, usually results in further members of the pack succumbing to the same fate.

“Land Rovers give drivers the freedom to explore some of the wildest and most beautiful areas of our planet, and therefore we feel strongly about doing what we can to protect and preserve our environment.  We feel passionate about contributing towards the preservation of an ecologically important species and one that is particularly challenging to conserve,” said Kevin Flynn, Managing Director Jaguar Land Rover South Africa.

Land Rover South Africa has made two Land Rover Defenders available to the EWT in order for them to carry out their valuable work no matter how rough the terrain may prove. The vehicles are stationed at the Kruger National Park and the Hluhluwi Mfolozi National Park in KZN.

The stronghold for Wild Dogs in South Africa is the Kruger National Park, but the Wild Dog population within the park has decreased consistently over the past 20 years from over 400 to less than 130 today.  With Land Rover’s support, this decline is being researched to ensure that this crucial population remains safe.

 Land Rover’s support also allows for ongoing management of Wild Dog populations in small fenced reserves.  These populations were largely set up to ensure effective conservation of Wild Dogs outside of the Kruger National Park.  Land Rover’s support allows the movement of animals between suitable reserves to ensure the genetic diversity of these populations.

The Land Rover - EWT partnership is supporting the survival of a species that shares many of Land Rover’s characteristics: it travels long distances over all sorts of terrain; it has a gutsy adventurous spirit and a love of freedom and the great outdoors.

Wild Dog facts:

• The Wild Dog is South Africa’s most endangered carnivore.

• The entire South African Wild Dog population is less than the number of rhinos that were killed in 2011.

• Wild Dogs are considered to be extinct in 23 countries in Africa.

• Wild Dogs are considered to be extremely efficient hunters

• Wild Dogs can run for long distances at speeds up to 55km/h.

• If a packs numbers drop below five their organised, cooperative hunting and pup-rearing tactics become ineffective.

• Wild Dogs have long tails with bushy white tips; they serve as flags to keep the pack in contact with one another.

• Wild Dogs are also known as Painted Dogs. Each dog’s markings are unique, much like a fingerprint. Conservationists use these markings to identify different dogs.

• A Wild Dog uses up to twice as much energy as a working Border Collie.

We humans are quite strange creatures in many ways; we have a tendency to engage in activities that are a little perplexing, dangerous or just odd; all in the name of fun. Some people jump out of aeroplanes to test their mettle while others roll wheels of cheese down hills in the name of sport. One of the more noticeable aspects of human nature that seems to crop up quite regularly when trying to work with a another rather mobile species, is us human’s are often surprised that many other species of animals choose to ignore us and our wisdom. Beastly I know! That Wild Dogs may choose to move beyond a human planted fence seems rather incredible or heinous to some; almost as incredible as some people believing that 20 or 40 kilometres of electrified game fencing may be completely impenetrable. More often than not Wild Dogs have some respect for such a boundary, but at times they simply don’t.

Many of the resident populations of Wild Dogs in KwaZulu-Natal have a history linked to another nearby reserve, often as a result of visiting animals from elsewhere. In this regard I thought it may be of interest to track back a little to let you know over next few months how each of our resident populations started up.

The Hluhluwe and Umfolozi game reserves were separately proclaimed in 1897. Connected through a corridor of state-owned land, the reserves were formally joined in 1989 to create the 940 km² Hluhluwe-Umfolozi Game Reserve. Completion of the integrated management plan and formal proclamation of the reserve as Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park (HiP) is still in process. Lions, Wild Dogs, Brown Hyaena and Cheetah were extirpated from the reserves by 1920 through vermin control and it was only the work of visionaries many decades later which sought to restore some natural balance through targeted predator reintroductions.

Twenty two Wild Dogs, 16 of which were captive reared, were reintroduced into HiP in four stages from 1980 until September 1981 and formed a single pack. Four additional Wild Dogs were introduced in 1986 but emigrated from the reserve shortly thereafter. The maximum pack size fluctuated between 28 animals in 1986 and seven animals in 1995. Additional introductions took place in 1997 (three males + one female), 2001 (two males + two females), 2003 (five males + three females), 2006 (three females), 2008 (one male) and 2008 (three females). This provided momentum to the population to kick on past just a tenuous couple of packs, finally bringing an element of stability (if any Wild Dog population could ever be classified as stable).

The population currently comprises 106 adults and yearlings in eight packs; the single largest population of Wild Digs on a South African game reserve outside of the Kruger National park. Although Wild Dogs were recorded to have left HiP sporadically since 1984, with the exception of ad hoc reports from members of the public or from private game reserves, the routes or fates of many of these dogs remain unknown. In more recent years, and with greater interest shown in the fates of such dispersal animals we have been able to build a better picture of potential dispersal routes and understand the significance of the growing number and sizes of conservation areas, government, private and community reserves in northern KZN.

An example of this was the dispersal of two female wild dogs from HiP to Thanda Private Game Reserve in 2004 which was the catalyst for a formal wild dog reintroduction into that reserve in 2005. More about that next time...

The project to expand the current range, and facilitate proactive management of Wild Dogs in northern KwaZulu-Natal is carried out through a partnership between the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT), Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife, Wildlife ACT, Wildlands Conservation Trust and the participants within the KZN Wild Dog Advisory Group. The EWT’s Wild Dog efforts are supported by Jaguar Land Rover South Africa and Land Rover Centurion.

If any readers observe Wild Dogs outside of protected areas, please note the location of the sighting, whether the animal is wearing a tracking collar and identify, or ideally, photograph any characteristic markings. Please then notify Brendan Whittington-Jones on 072 992 9483.

As a conservation biologist it is inherent that the problems related to the protection of an endangered species such as the African Wild Dog are rather complex. Wild Dogs are facing a number of conservation challenges and one needs to follow a series of scientific procedures in order to obtain statistically viable data to better understand the requirements of the species. Setting out with a number of key objectives and implementing them in a methodical way. Data obtained is then used to answer a set of questions by analyzing the results, making deductions and then implementing them in an adaptive management approach. Research on African Wild Dog in Kruger National Park has been ongoing for a number of years with the first population census using photographs and sightings data conducted in 1989. A census has been conducted every 4-5 years since then in 1995, 2000 and 2009. Population trends reveal a consistent decline in the number of Wild Dog from approximately 435 in 1995 to 132 in 2009. The current picture appears to be a bleak one.  With all the complexities surrounding the conservation of the endangered African Wild Dog it is sometimes necessary to take a step back and enjoy the simple things, like discovering the triumph of an individual Wild Dogs.

A few main Objectives of the current research are to determine differences in range use and habitat selection, obtain longitudinal data on population dynamics by investigating pack structures and conducting focal monitoring of collared individuals. A primary activity in order to do this was to set up a Wild dog hotline where tourists report sighting information, giving details of the time, date, location and the number of Wild Dog seen.  The packs reported are then located and photographed. Identification shots of both left and right hand sides are taken and the sex and age class is recorded. While comparing the photographs to previous photographic records I found that one of the adult males had been photographed as a pup during a 2007 genetics study. The individual was also recorded during the 2009 photographic census. The average lifespan of an African Wild Dog is 10 years although I personally would consider this to be one of the lucky ones.  Annual adult mortality varies between populations with the average being between 20-40%. In addition to this pup mortality in the first year of life is often as high as 50%. One of the main causes of mortality in nature is though interspecific competition with other large predators such as lion and hyena. With all the challenges facing Wild Dog in their natural environment, who knew exactly how long the young pup would survive, however the chances of an individual surviving from a pup through to adulthood appears to be fairly rare. 

The first pack identified during 2011 was the Skukuza pack, which contained 18 individuals at the time (4 adults and 14 pups).By responding to regular sightings sent through to the Wild Dog hotline I was fortunate enough to see some interesting behavioral interactions of the Skukuza Pack many of them being of the male with the lightning bolt marking on his left flank. Some of the interactions included all the adults returning from a hunt and feeding the pups and the pack having a close call with hyena but watching my new favourite male outpacing the enemy.  These sightings of this male developed into a keen interest of his history and I decided to study our records of the individual I named “Lightning”.

In 2007 as a young pup Lighting was part of a pack that contained 7 individuals in total, (3 adults and 4 juveniles).  Lightning was only next observed in the 2008 where he managed to survive through the first year of life, just over a year old he was fully mobile and keeping up with the adults in the pack.  During the 2009 photographic census a considerable amount of change within and between packs had taken place since 2007 and new members had been added to the population. There had also been a number of individuals falling victim to the survival rate statistic as there was no longer record of them, but Lightning was still alive and well. He was sighted 49 times from October 2008-May 2009. Lighting was sighted at a number of locations during the census in the southern section ranging as far west as Kruger gate to just outside the entrance of Crocodile bridge camp.  Since late 2009 Lighting appears to be the dominant male of a pack that spends most of their time around Skukuza often seen travelling between Skukuza and Kruger gate on the H11, heading south on the S114 towards Renoster Pan and heading west on the S65.  I hope Lightning continues to avoid all the challenges facing him, perhaps given his lightning bolt markings and triumph over all challenges I should call him “Zeus”.

The Kruger National Park Wild Dog Project is a partnership with SANParks, Jaguar Land Rover South Africa, Vaughan de la Harpe and Richard Bosman, supported by Global Supplies and Sabi Sand Wild Tuin. Follow the project on Twitter @KNPWildDogs, or Face Book: Grant Beverley.

Ask anyone who has monitored Wild Dogs at some point and they’ll have their favourites. Those individuals who commit extraordinary time to keep us up to date with the various pack’s social intricacies are more susceptible than most to the charisma of Wild Dogs since they are the ones most often exposed to the theatre. It’s tricky not to get sucked into some emotional tie with this species because they’re such vibrant animals and individuals often have clear personality traits. With their sleek and slightly spindly physique they almost seem quite precious and fragile at times; even when they constantly impress upon us that they are tough as nails. They can hunt even when missing limbs or have snares slicing deep into their flesh, they kill other animals to survive themselves and it is apparent that given a break from human persecution and habitat fragmentation they can persist. It is a bit of a charismatic, tender and yet brutally efficient liaison that Wild Dogs can have with observers, prey and amongst themselves; essentially a real-life Sopranos or Godfather series.

Tambo was one of those characters which, in part because of his two crumpled, rather unsavoury looking ears, stood out. He just looked a little more bad-ass than his pack mates. His history showed us the potential that Wild Dogs have to capture our imagination and achieve popularity among tourists and the general public. His ignominious death, killed in a snare, represented how much work we have ahead of us to create safer reserves and range land for Wild Dogs, despite the hard work put in by many people already.

In late 2009 he led a dispersal group of eight males out of the south-western corner of Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park in a roughly circular route of over 300km (past Ulundi, Vryheid and Hluhluwe) for nearly two months. He was the last of his crew to be caught, darted from a helicopter while hurtling through the grass of Phinda desperately trying to avoid capture. Reunited with his five remaining (two died during this dispersal event) travel companions in the Tembe Elephant Park boma, they were all later transferred to the Mkhuze Game Reserve (MGR) boma  as we tried to source them appropriate females with which they could establish a new pack. The fact that their release into MGR only took place in mid- 2011 was an alarming indication of the lack of available, “spare”, female Wild Dogs nationally.

It would have been all too Hollywood though for this Hugh Hefner cross Bakkies Botha of a Wild Dog specimen to have retired subtly. His physical prime had been passed prior to release from the boma, and to highlight the complex and hard nature of the pack dynamic, he was displaced as the alpha male by a member of the original dispersal posse; relegated to an average member of the rather extraordinary Mantenga pack.

The project to expand the current range, and facilitate proactive management of Wild Dogs in the diverse landscape of northern KwaZulu-Natal is carried out through a partnership between the Endangered Wildlife Trusts’ Carnivore Conservation Programme, Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife, Wildlife ACT, Wildlands Conservation Trust and the KZN Wild Dog Management Group; supported by Jaguar Land Rover South Africa.

You, the reader, are our eyes and ears through the region. If any readers observe Wild Dogs outside of protected areas, please note the location of the sighting, whether the animal is wearing a tracking collar and identify, or ideally, photograph any characteristic markings. Please then notify Brendan Whittington-Jones on 072 992 9483

The wheel turns! I have no idea who Wild Dogs offended while they were hitchhiking around the galaxy of evolving creatures, but they’ve apparently irritated someone or something. It appears that just when the provincial population is heading on a concerted increase and we are considering how to most sensibly manage the population on the available land, the hammer comes down.

An alpha female was shot dead by a poacher in Hlambanyathi, an alpha pair and one additional pack member were killed in a snare line in Mkhuze game reserve and at least one (but possibly four) Wild Dog(s) was killed by a vehicle on the R618 “corridor road” which bisects Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park. All of these unfolded in a period of less than ten days. Each of the scenarios has their own unique complications; police apathy to register the seemingly insignificant cases, field rangers encountering the same poachers time and again because snaring is largely ignored as a problem by our judiciary, and vehicles speeding unimpaired and unchecked on a road through one of the provinces premier game reserves. So, short of starting a Tunisian-style uprising, how does one get the relevant authorities to start taking these issues seriously?

Yes our leaders may be tested by apparently more pressing concerns like cleaning towns, fixing roads, deciding on how many cars to have in a blue-light cavalcade or deciding on whether a sizzling, red, gull-winged Mercedes Benz would fit into such a small parking space, but the reality is that there is no excuse for apathy.

If government budget (read: tax payer money) is put into combating poaching within a provincial game reserve, and reserve management need to spend precious days attending court cases, what is the point of the judiciary not following through to effective prosecution when the infrastructure exists?

Surely a deterrent of some sort saves resources, saves the dedicated but frustrated field rangers having to arrest the same poachers time and again, and saves them removing snares from the same culprits time and again. Yes, there are other underlying social problems at hand within some communities, however commercial poaching through snaring, and its indiscriminate maiming or killing impact on non-target species like Wild Dogs, Spotted Hyaenas, Zebras, Rhinos, Elephants etc needs to be taken seriously when it comes to sentencing. Apart from a purely preservationist perspective this scourge of snaring is wasting precious, yet dwindling conservation funds, and is theft of wildlife that could be more effectively used to generate income through tourism, live sales or meat sales. As a start, at least effective prosecution would make it an unpalatable lifestyle option for those poachers who view it as a hobby rather than a commercial endeavour. Rhinos aren’t the only species under the cosh at the moment! They may be in dire straits but when compared to Wild Dogs and Vultures they’re sitting pretty. A sobering reality!

However, the wheel turns and we need to decide on whether the balance will eventually favour the sustainable option of biodiversity and our spectacular natural heritage; or memories of what once was. Now that’s Ayoba!

There is still a pervasive, unjustified perception in rural communities in Zululand that African Wild Dogs are rampant pursuers of goats and a danger to human safety. The reality is that they aren't, but without many of these communities being exposed to some form of contact with these animals, being in a position to witness the actual daily Wild Dog behaviour, educational initiatives are facing an uphill slog fighting the misperceptions which imaginations and historical rumours conjure up. In certain circumstances, most especially when wild prey is limited or non-existent through localized overutilization, Wild Dogs have been known to depredate livestock. This has been prevalent in areas in Zimbabwe and Kenya where such conditions have prevailed around unfenced game reserves, although again it rarely reaches the proportions the Wild Dogs are actually accused of.

In the past three years of the Endangered Wildlife Trust's KZN Wild Dog project 29 reports of livestock losses blamed on Wild Dogs have been received. Only two of these cases, one bordering Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park and one bordering Mkhuze Game Reserve, have proven accurate with feral dogs (domestic dogs which have escaped from their owners and prowl the landscape in search of food; often in packs) regularly the real culprits. Spotted Hyaena and Leopards are on occasion also guilty of depredating livestock, but it appears the biggest danger to livestock is insufficient effort and preparation put into husbandry. Despite threats posed by theft of livestock, animals being struck by vehicles or trains, there is still inadequate effort being put into guarding livestock or creating secure kraals for the evenings when predators are most active. Information being gathered through our community attitude surveys is showing that most incidences of depredation of livestock are occurring at night in cases where livestock haven't been collected and secured.

So what is the answer? Taking responsibility for the assets has to be key; that includes livestock and domestic dogs. At the same time though there needs to be an appreciation of the different behaviours of the predators being blamed and the actual threats (simply hearing a Hyaena calling at night cannot be enough evidence to convict it of having killed a cow, nor can witnessing a scavenger feeding on the carcass of an animal which could have died of illness be solid evidence of depredation). It also requires an understanding that negating threats through simple measures such as collective grazing, guarding and kraaling is absolutely possible without persistent attempts at extermination and maiming of predators. The project to expand and understand the current range of Wild Dogs through the diverse landscape of northern KwaZulu-Natal is carried out through a partnership between the Endangered Wildlife Trusts' Carnivore Conservation Group and Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife; supported by The Green Trust and Land Rover South Africa, and in collaboration with The Smithsonian Institute.

Sometimes I feel a little too pragmatic to be sensational. And I don’t mean the Australians crossing the try-line in the Tri-nations sensational (who would want to encourage that anyway?). I mean that I was flicking around on the internet to see what’s happening in the world news, getting the latest gossip on Wild Dogs and conservation of course; and was struck at how fleeting so much of the news is. Even news that is acute and dramatic like you’ve toppled a president, or arrived in Davos to work out how to squeeze your drop of sweaty oil from the world’s economy, generally doesn’t last long in the headlines. It appears that chronic problems like extensive flooding and a bit of turmoil in the natural order of the planet are a bit too dramatic for the world to really want to be reminded of on a daily basis. OK I stand to be corrected, there is some pretty wild news out there which I’m sure will persist. I did just see that “Lee-Ann opens up about the Caprice scandal” and that Victoria Beckham is having another baby (I know. Great hey! It might be ready for show-and-tell just in time for the royal wedding!). If you know where I saw those headlines, then shame on you for reading those sites.

But in amongst that mix, and admittedly you have to search a little more specifically than “celebrity baby news”, the release of the Tembe Elephant Park (TEP) Wild Dogs made international headlines for a day (and is now on YouTube). It really is big news; and for good reasons. Reintroductions of wild dogs are less frequent than introductions to new Beckham babies (I can’t even begin to explain how I know that). The concept was fairly straight forward. 1) Find reserves prepared to reintroduce Africa’s second rarest carnivore; 2) if a reserve is keen and committed, decide if it can support at least a pack of afore mentioned second rarest carnivore on the continent; 3) engage all stakeholders to explain the potential reintroduction process; 4) understand and resolve concerns of all stakeholders; 5) prepare contingency plans for management and potential escape of members of the pack from the park 6) begin to source an appropriate pack for reintroduction; 7) defend the concept.......82) defend the concept; 83) secure absolutely final authorization for reintroduction release; 84) release a pack of South Africa’s rarest carnivore into the 300km² TEP; 85) WildlifeACT team monitors the pack daily; 86) continued liaison with neighbouring communities and the Tembe Tribal Authority to ensure collaborative management of South Africa’s rarest carnivore.

Twenty months after step one; the release-day finally arrived! With much excitement a large group of people gathered at the Tembe Elephant Lodge. The journalists armed with note pads, television cameras, microphones and cameras with huge lenses, mingled with Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife management, conservation NGO’s and representatives from the community.

The hungry dogs stared longingly at the Nyala carcass on “the outside” of the boma. However, with a crowd of spectators gawking, and the gates finally being opened to the rest of the reserve, the dogs lost their nerve and retreated. Courage built up slowly and eventually one of the pups took the lead. Just over an hour after opening the gates, the dogs overcame their suspicions, dashed over the threshold and settled down to feed on what is hopefully their last catered meal. 



To date the WildlifeACT monitoring team has reported the pack has successfully hunted, all pack members have survived and importantly, they’ve managed to avoid any dire confrontations with Lions!
You, the reader, are our eyes and ears through the region. If any readers observe Wild Dogs outside of protected areas, please note the location of the sighting, whether the animal is wearing a tracking collar and identify, or ideally, photograph any characteristic markings. Please then notify Brendan Whittington-Jones on 072 992 9483

The Venetia Wild Dog group are still going strong, and wounded comrade Fender soldiers on. It appears that she has a broken foreleg (radius & ulna), and although she doesn't seem to exhibit pain, there is undoubtedly discomfort when moving about. The pack moves short daily distances of between 1 - 2 kilometres, and on some days they are completely immobile. Stellar and Rory spearhead all hunting, while Fender trails at some distance behind in the vanguard. They are however getting their kills, and Fender is provided for, as is evidenced by their distended stomachs. It appears that when the hunting members have made a kill they 'hoo' call to bring her in. This is what one can expect from these intensely co-operative species.

The amalgamation of Venetia into the Transfrontier Park has experienced a temporary set back, with some success and some short fall. The success was approval from the provincial roads agency to drop fences between Venetia and Mapungubwe National Park. This was part and parcel of a meeting with the local farmers, where their major concern was a reduction on the speed limit on that road section – affecting their transport trucks. The snag is that the extension of the transfrontier park has been hampered by veterinary restrictions that have halted all plans in the short-term.

The road that separates Venetia and Mapungubwe is in fact the red line that buffers wildlife (a reservoir for foot-and-mouth disease) and disease-free commercial livestock areas. So it’sback to the drawing board for the time being...Wild Dogs are very wide-ranging and their only realistic chances of long-term survival are areas being enlarged through transfrontier parks. I have been undertaking a status survey on Wild Dogs outside Venetia in the Limpopo valley, and it is apparent that the Wild Dog number appears to have declined, when compared with a survey that my colleague, Dr. Peter Lindsey undertook a few years ago. I think there may only be 30 Wild Dogs left in the whole Limpopo valley, and in 2002, there were 23 in just one pack ! Regional level conservation of the species does require more space for this species, whether it is conservancies or transfrontier parks. This will hopefully motivate the cause for a protected area extension into Venetia... The other rare carnivore, the cheetah is more prevalent near Alldays, and equitably distributed in the Musina area as with Wild Dogs. The leopard is simply presented as a common carnivore so as to show the difference, and as one sees they occur almost everywhere.

One of the positive outcomes of the farmer surveys that I have undertaken is that farmers are willing to report Wild Dogs on their farms, as long as there is co-operation with conservation (ie. EWT, Limpopo provincial authorities) to do something about the problem – and in this they advocate capturing and removing them.

When trying to decide what to report on in this newsletter I thought about writing up the Wild Dog themed soccer tournament held at KwaJobe near Mkhuze Game Reserve’s Ophansi gate. It was an unequivocal success with over 60 participants and more than 100 spectators. But then I thought it may be good to let on that it appears the seven dispersing males within Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park (HiP) have lured across three females from the Ume pack, that Lightening as a lone male has found four dispersing females, or that the Nombali pack from the Hluhluwe side of the park has recently been seen with six late-inthe- season pups which sets the park’s Wild Dog population at 87.

Yesterday we saw a pack of dogs select a young impala, separate it from the herd with sleek, agile, high-speed herding and then rush through the dinner in less than 55 seconds; but Mduna also needs a mention. As a single dispersing Wild Dog from Thanda Private Game Reserve he was introduced to HiP in September and has negotiated the high density of lions and hyaenas, found a Wild Dog pack, then another, and then finally settled with pack he first encountered.

It is also worth noting the assistance and safe passage provided by Nkonka, Bayala, Kube Yini, Sungulwane, Thanda, Lulu Bush and Phinda game reserves which all helped as the three Wild Dogs of the Mkhuze Pack once again went walkabout for four days before returning.

But perhaps this all just needs to be put in context of our country’s Wild Dog population. Beyond Kruger National Park’s boundaries there are only two game reserves in South Africa with more than seven Wild Dogs, Hluhluwe-Imfolozi and Madikwe. That’s it! Small reserve-based packs occur in Mkhuze, Thanda, Pilanesberg, Venetia Limpopo and Tswalu and occasionally reports surface of Wild Dogs outside of protected areas here in KZN and in the northern provinces. With this perspective there is no doubt that this precious heritage needs to be treasured and hopefully 2009 will be the watershed year with a few significant re-introductions into the province.

The project to expand and understand the current range of Wild Dogs through the diverse landscape of northern KwaZulu-Natal is carried out through a partnership between the Endangered Wildlife Trusts’ Carnivore Conservation Group and Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife; supported by The Green Trust and Land Rover South Africa, and in collaboration with The Smithsonian Institute.

One of the more appealing attributes of Wild Dogs is their unpredictability in the face of decades of research. While publications have detailed hormonal changes, survival strategies, home range sizes, seasonal fluctuations in litter sizes, prey preferences and such-like, the Wild Dogs still continue to deliver exceptions and enough appetizing moments to keep us interested; and guessing.

Weeks of discussions and hours of planning finally concluded a strategy for a new reintroduction into Hlambanyathi Game Reserve and a further reintroduction into Mkhuze Game Reserve (MGR). The plan relies on the bonding of the single MGR female with the two females from Thanda Private Game Reserve (TPGR); siblings which were separated when Kanga from TPGR dispersed the approximately 30km to MGR in 2008. It is planned that these females will then be bonded to a captive reared group of male Wild Dogs before being released as a functional pack. This may still be the case in months to come, however a new potential obstacle to this plan is the unusually early pregnancy and denning of the alpha female at TPGR. Wild Dogs in South Africa generally start looking to den in about June/July (or occasionally at times later in the year due to a loss of pups and a return to estrus) towards the end of their gestation period of 70 days.

So with the alpha female in the den before the plan could be enacted it raises many questions. What will be her chances of survival given that the pregnant female from 2007 and the alpha female and pups in 2008 were killed by lions? Will the remaining male and female, not in the den, be able to hunt sufficient prey to keep the denning female alive while avoiding contact with lions? If the move is to go ahead, at what point is it safe or logistically practical to try move such a female? How will a group of unrelated males respond to such a female with young pups if the plan moves forward? The Wild Dogs have for now called the shots and it remains to be seen how they cope with the current state of play.

Easter weekend in Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park (HiP) was not without its share of Wild Dog attributed spirit when, despite the electric poly-wire barriers, a pack of 15 Wild Dogs escaped at one of the reserve’s river crossings and into communal land. The reports, while rather exaggerated in the number of animals allegedly seen, came through quickly from the neighbouring tribal authority. With spoor found and then lost, and for many hours no apparent signal from a fitted VHF collar which had shifted frequency, they proved frustratingly elusive.
Fortunately, as has happened on previous occasions, the pack moved briskly, without controversial incident, and returned to the river-course bordering the park later that same day. Despite taking advantage of the bright moonlight conditions, moving again late in the evening, the dogs didn’t stray further than the fringes of the river. The following morning, with the assistance of field rangers, the dogs slid through the riverine
thickets into the river bed, dashed under the lifted boundary fence and cavorted their way downstream into HiP’s Wilderness area. The project to expand and understand the current range of Wild Dogs through the diverse landscape of northern KwaZulu-Natal is carried out through a partnership between the Endangered Wildlife Trusts’ Carnivore Conservation Group and Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife; supported by The Green Trust, Wildlands Conservation Trust and Land Rover South Africa, and in collaboration with The Smithsonian Institute.

This last month has seen two exciting activities take place on Venetia – first there was the BIKE4BEASTS Mountain Bike challenge, and then there was the reintroduction of two new male Wild Dogs to the reserve. At the last Wild Dog Advisory Group (WAG) meeting the future of the Venetia Wild Dog pack was discussed – which was impossible to do within the structure of the metapopulation reserves as either none were available, or those that were, were related to the Venetia dogs. Shambala Private Game Reserve is not one of the metapopulation reserves but offered its two remaining males to the metapopulation.

We initially made two trips to Shambala to try and capture the Wild Dogs – we aborted the first owing to the risk of darting from the ground through rocky terrain and the other option of helicopterborne darting was deemed too stressful. We thus remained on standby for a time at which they would be darted. When they were darted by the local vet, we immediately jumped into the Land Rover and drove through the night to collect them at midnight and then return back to Venetia at sunrise for their release. The operation went smoothly and the two new males made Venetia their home on 15 April 2009. At the release into the boma there was naturally an audience, though we packed everyone onto one vehicle to minimise disturbance. Upon opening the crates – the dogs propelled out into their new home – only those with fast shutter speeds on their cameras would have captured that! Of the two new males, the old alpha – whom they refer to as ‘Alph’ invariably emerges as the dominant male in the group. Since Alph, or Alpha is not an original name, I’m tentatively calling them Able
and Baker, which is the American radio-code language – the equivalent to Alpha, Bravo, Charlie and so on.

At present there is a lot of boma care to be done – food provisioning, watering and testing fence electrification to be done. Kath Potgieter, who has just completed her master’s degree on pack formation in bomas, has been around to assist me and advise. What we are hoping is that our free-ranging group of three will somehow arrive at the bomas and find, and acknowledge the new occupants. From their observed behaviour we will see whether the bonding may be successful or not. One concern is that Rory, the young adult male, will be attacked by the two new male dogs, and so this will have to be monitored carefully. In the meantime I have collected scent from the dogs in their capture crates so we can use that as a lure and see whether we can lure our free-rangers straight toward the bomas

So with the memory of a brisk jaunt south to Thula Thula still n mind, the Veggie pack males have once again left luhluwe-Imfolozi Park. The instability of the pack caused by he disappearance of the alpha female several months ago has manifested itself further with the eight males separating from the remaining females (their whereabouts are unknown) and heading 30 km west from HiP to Opathe Game Reserve.
Having spent several days in the hills and valleys around Ulundi they finally crossed the R34 highway and entered the Zulu royal heartland of the Emakhosini valley before moving south to Mtonjaneni. What could have been a public relations disaster as the dogs were guilty of killing a cow was saved by the proactive and enthusiastic approach of members of the Melmoth Conservancy.

Despite the livestock loss, the energetic, good humored and selfless assistance to locate the dogs, and track them north as they shot across the landscape into the mists which enveloped Babanango’s farms and plantations was unexpected and greatly welcome. I was expecting a ‘klap’ and instead got offered coffee and an extra few sets of eyes and hands. It’s encouraging to know that despite the persecution that Wild Dogs face in much of their home ranges, there are still farming communities which can see beyond the occasional negative and believe that cooperation and a sensible, conservation orientated approach to landscape management can reap benefits.

Finding ourselves at the mercy of thick mists, fallen trees and technological glitches we lost the dogs for three days before the report of seven (one is missing) feeding on a calf 20 km east of Vryheid. Again it was a mixed blessing of a rapid report and exceptional support from local Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife Honorary officers but the frustration of another stock loss case; a rarerity as only the second cow recorded killed by Wild Dogs since we started this KZN project three and a half years ago. Put into perspective by the farmer who has so far in 2009 already lost 31 animals to stock theft we know we will need to continue to respond immediately and deal with the case at hand effectively to maintain any goodwill which we have received. A decision was taken to relocate the dogs to Mkhuze Game Reserve until suitable females can be found to bond them with, however this is proving far trickier and frustrating than hoped. Darting attempts have only allowed us to catch
one dog so far with the wind and the hyperactive nature’s of the dogs playing havoc with our solitary opportunity to date.

With movements on some days of over 30 km, locating the dogs as they have headed east to Mkhuze has turned into the proverbial “needle in a haystack” scenario. Now all we can hope for is a lucky sighting, cooperative weather, open veld and a jumble of energetic dogs resting just long enough for the immobilizing darts to fly straight and true. Small mercies!

The Venetia Wild Dog group are still going strong, and wounded comrade Fender soldiers on. It appears that she has a broken foreleg (radius & ulna), and although she doesn't seem to exhibit pain, there is undoubtedly discomfort when moving about. The pack moves short daily distances of between 1 - 2 kilometres, and on some days they are completely immobile. Stellar and Rory spearhead all hunting, while Fender trails at some distance behind in the vanguard. They are however getting their kills, and Fender is provided for, as is evidenced by their distended stomachs. It appears that when the hunting members have made a kill they 'hoo' call to bring her in. This is what one can expect from these intensely co-operative species.

The amalgamation of Venetia into the Transfrontier Park has experienced a temporary set back, with some success and some short fall. The success was approval from the provincial roads agency to drop fences between Venetia and Mapungubwe National Park. This was part and parcel of a meeting with the local farmers, where their major concern was a reduction on the speed limit on that road section – affecting their transport trucks. The snag is that the extension of the transfrontier park has been hampered by veterinary restrictions that have halted all plans in the short-term.

The road that separates Venetia and Mapungubwe is in fact the red line that buffers wildlife (a reservoir for foot-and-mouth disease) and disease-free commercial livestock areas. So it’sback to the drawing board for the time being...Wild Dogs are very wide-ranging and their only realistic chances of long-term survival are areas being enlarged through transfrontier parks. I have been undertaking a status survey on Wild Dogs outside Venetia in the Limpopo valley, and it is apparent that the Wild Dog number appears to have declined, when compared with a survey that my colleague, Dr. Peter Lindsey undertook a few years ago. I think there may only be 30 Wild Dogs left in the whole Limpopo valley, and in 2002, there were 23 in just one pack ! Regional level conservation of the species does require more space for this species, whether it is conservancies or transfrontier parks. This will hopefully motivate the cause for a protected area extension into Venetia... The other rare carnivore, the cheetah is more prevalent near Alldays, and equitably distributed in the Musina area as with Wild Dogs. The leopard is simply presented as a common carnivore so as to show the difference, and as one sees they occur almost everywhere.

One of the positive outcomes of the farmer surveys that I have undertaken is that farmers are willing to report Wild Dogs on their farms, as long as there is co-operation with conservation (ie. EWT, Limpopo provincial authorities) to do something about the problem – and in this they advocate capturing and removing them.

A pack of 14 Endangered African Wild Dogs was reintroduced into the Tembe Elephant Park today, following extensive community liaison and preparation work over the past year.

It was an emotional occasion, as many people present have been involved in this project from the very beginning and are deeply aware of the extreme importance of this release. “The release of this Wild Dog pack into the Tembe Elephant Park is vital to the survival of South Africa’s managed Wild Dog metapopulation,” says the Endangered Wildlife Trust’s Kelly Marnewick. “It’s incredible to finally see them stepping into the wild and we are all holding thumbs that they will do well.”

The formal Wild Dog metapopulation programme was initiated in 1998 to expand the species’ range throughout South Africa. Tembe will be the 12th reserve to receive Wild Dogs as part of the programme.

The Wild Dog Metapopulation Programme is coordinated by the Wild Dog Advisory Group (WAG). The Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) has held the WAG chair since its inception and has implemented many projects under the WAG umbrella, including projects in the Venetia Limpopo Nature Reserve and Marekele National Park (both in Limpopo Province), and the Northern Tuli Game Reserve in Botswana. Much of the support for these activities in KZN has come from Land Rover South Africa and the Green Trust, while Wildlife Act, the Wildlands Conservation Trust, Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife ( EKZNW), Tembe Tribal Authority, Dr M. Toft and Tembe Elephant Park Lodge have been key partners.

Wild Dogs Lycaon pictus are South Africa’s rarest carnivore and were extirpated from KZN in the 1930s. There are less than 400 Wild Dogs remaining in South Africa, of which approximately 130 are in the Kruger National Park and 160 in northern KZN (approximately 110 of which are in Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park).

Reintroduction initiatives for Wild Dogs into KZN began in 1980 and there are currently four reserves in KZN with resident Wild Dogs, namely Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park, Mkhuze Game Reserve, Thanda Private Game Reserve and Hlambanyathi Game Reserve. In 2006 the EWT started a project to expand the range for Wild Dogs in KZN, in partnership with EKZNW , Land Rover South Africa and the Smithsonian Institution. EKZNW has been instrumental in expanding Wild Dog range in the province under this project.

In December 2009 four male Wild Dogs from the then De Wildt Cheetah and Wildlife Trust were relocated to Tembe Elephant Park and accommodated in a boma, with the intention of later reintroducing them into the reserve. In February 2010 three females from Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park joined them. The pack produced seven pups while communities in the area were prepared for their release.

The potential for conflict between reintroduced Wild Dogs and neighbouring landowners is high. Wild Dogs may attack livestock, while they are also often confused with domestic dogs, which can do a great deal of livestock damage. As such, WildlifeACT, with support from the Endangered Wildlife Trust and Wildlands Conservation Trust, began to actively engage community stakeholders regarding the project in March 2010. This was the first time that a KwaZulu-Natal tribal authority had been actively engaged in the decision making and preparation process for the reintroduction of Wild Dogs and the result was that the Tembe Tribal Authority, the Tembe Local Board and the local municipality gave their support for the initiative.

African Wild Dogs once occurred throughout sub-Saharan Africa but now occupy only a fraction of that range. Habitat fragmentation and isolation, exacerbated by human persecution, are the main factors contributing to this decline. There are currently about 5 500–6 000 Wild Dogs left in the wild globally and the species is listed as Endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Only a handful of countries contain viable Wild Dog populations, with the largest populations occurring in northern Botswana, Tanzania and northern Mozambique.

Wild Dogs are particularly challenging to conserve because they range widely and occur at low densities. As such even the largest protected areas are able to support only small populations. The conservation and management of small, fragmented populations has therefore become an unavoidable necessity.

Wildlife Act will be monitoring the Tembe pack, while the EWT will remain involved in its role as coordinator of the KZN Wild Dog Management Group. The group aims to promote the national Wild Dog Range Management Project and establish safe corridors between reserves for natural dispersals of the species.

The year-end report for the Kruger western boundary project is near completion with the movements, distributions and demographics of both cheetahs and wild dogs being finalized. From preliminary analysis of the wild dog data there appears to be four packs that regularly cross the park boundaries and one pack that currently operates solely outside the boundaries of the park. The Balule pack that was introduced in 2005 and moved onto Blue Canyon Conservancy has somewhat disintegrated with only three males remaining on Raptors View Wildlife Estate.

A pack of nine wild dogs, frequently seen on Sabie Sand Wildtuin (Sabi Sand) was identified as Pack 24 from the 2009 Kruger Wild dog and Cheetah Census. Since 2008 individuals from Pack 2 in the KNP and Pack 24 have been sighted together both in Sabi Sand and the KNP. Incidentally, three dogs from Pack 2 and one dog from Pack 24 were sighted amongst the pack that denned on Singita in Sabi Sand this last year. The dogs had seven pups.

Another pack of 17 wild dogs from Orpen, identified as Pack 17 from the 2009 Kruger Wild dog and Cheetah Census, denned on the western boundary of Klaserie in 2009. This pack appears to be moving large distances and has been sighted in Klaserie Nature Reserve and on Olifants River Nature Reserve within Balule. Four males, thought to be dispersing males from Blue Canyon Conservancy, moved through Thornybush and Timbavati Nature Reserves and Royal Malewane towards the end of July and beginning of August this year. Three of the four dogs have since been identified as dogs from Pack 17. The identity of the fourth dog is still unknown. In addition, Pack 14 from Tshokwane within the KNP has been seen in Mala Mala and Sabi Sand, and Pack 22 from Talamati within the KNP has been seen in Manyeleti and Timbavati Nature Reserves

Cheetah movement beyond the boundaries of the Kruger appears to be less wide ranging than that of the wild dogs although long distance movements have been recorded for a particular individual often seen in Sabi Sand and referred to as “Tuesday”. This old male has been sighted in Sabi Sand, Manyeleti and Timbavati covering large distances in a short period of time. Reports of four cheetahs that moved south of Kruger into Marloth Park during 2010 have unfortunately gone missing. It is known that one male was killed by a train just outside Marloth Park but the fate of the other three is still unknown.

Field work will continue along the southern boundary between February and March 2010 focusing on sugar cane, citrus and other agricultural lands. This is to further investigate the movement of cheetahs and wild dogs into these areas.