Black Rhino Poached in iSimangaliso Wetland Park

iSimangaliso Wetland Park (formerly the Greater St Lucia Wetland Park) suffered the loss of an adult male black rhino through poaching on 3 September. The dehorned carcass was found in the Ozabeni section of the wetland park within 24 hours of it being poached.

The park authority is "outraged" at the crime and plans to follow in Limpopo province's footsteps by offering a reward of R100 000 to any member of the public able to provide sufficient evidence leading to the conviction of the poacher/s. Perhaps this will encourage the park authority to spend the monies raised through recent fund raising events on the prevention of poaching and the protection of the park's rhino population, thus preventing the need for the offering of such large sums as reward after the fact.

Although tragic, it must be said that this is only the second rhino poached in the wetland park in two years and while some may say that two is two too many, most of the country's other large reserves have suffered far greater losses.

Flooding Umfolozi Flows into St Lucia Estuary

St Lucia Estuary, to which many scientists in South Africa have been paying very close attention over the past year, has today been the recipient of excess water from the flooding Umfolozi River.

Channel providing Umfolozi River a way to enter estuary

Since Spring 2011 conservationists have been trying to open the mouth of St Lucia estuary in order for the estuarine system to revert to as close to its natural state as possible. Earlier this year, after Tropical Cyclone Irina failed to re-open the estuary mouth, KZN Wildlife employed the use of earth moving equipment to dig a channel for the Umfolozi River to flow into the estuary during times of flood. Following a week of heavy rain throughout KZN, it is this channel through which today's deluge is feeding the estuary.


Archive photo: taken 8 July & provided by Dennis King