The iSimangaliso Wetland Park Authority has introduced a pair of Serval into the Eastern Shores section of the wetland park.
The pair was found by a Vryheid farmer in snares on his farm and were relocated by KZN Wildlife to the well established Emdoneni sanctuary for rehabilitation before they were released into Eastern Shores. This section of the wetland park, with its numerous vlei areas, is an ideal habitat for Serval, a medium sized cat adapted to living in wetland areas. Serval eat predominantly rodents but also birds (including water fowl), fish and small reptiles. Due to their rarity, Serval are listed as one of the "threatened or protected species" (TOPS) as they have fallen victim to poachers for their spotted pelt.
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| Serval pair (female left, male right) introduced into Eastern Shores, photo courtesy of iSimangaliso press release |
“It
is fantastic to be releasing the serval cats into the pristine
wilderness of the iSimangaliso Wetland Park where they are now free to
wander in the wilderness without having to worry about any human
pressure and can enjoy an abundance of delicacies of a well-balanced
ecosystem. We hope we will see more of these threatened cat species
being released in iSimangaliso in the future” said Louis and Cecillie
Nel, owners of Emdoneni.
In the past year St Lucia News has spotted two Serval, on separate occasions, in the vlei areas along Beach Road in St Lucia.
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