AFRICA TALKED – March 2022 Newsletter– news, views, conservation, people and places.
To all that have visited Africa, the Baobab tree holds a fascination. One of the earliest written references dates back to 1068 by al-Bakri, an Arab travelling in Ghana. Ellen Drake, in her delightful book ‘A book of Baobabs’ (published by Aardvark Press 2006) has collected legends and beliefs about Baobabs, not only in Africa, but in Madagascar and Australia too.
One of the most intriguing is that told to her by a young Bayei woman in Botswana, who claimed elephants carry water in the shell of the baobab fruit, and use it to wash themselves after it has killed a human.
Feedback from guests on our Selected Destinations SHANGANI TRAILS
www.africatalked.co.za/selected-destinations/shangani-trails
“The walking safari with you had to be one of the best experiences of our life. We felt like we were really in wild Africa, everything was so natural and real.” Jack & Alvina MacMurray, British Columbia, Canada
“Our trail with you was an incredible experience, so wonderful to be there close to animals and nature. But what made it absolutely special was your presence, the way you led the trail, explained us the way animals live and communicate, and the way you took care of all us. So warm, so friendly. Thank you so much for this.” Patrizia and Renzo Montagner, Italy
BOOKS http://www.africatalked.co.za/book-reviews
DUSTY ROAD Township Tastes by Sarah Lilford – a fun, colourful and vibrant account of life in Victoria Falls, and a stunning cookbook. No safari camp, lodge or indeed a home, should be without a copy of this beautiful book honouring the people and life in Zimbabwe. (Published by Sarah Lilford, Dusty Road)
A VET, THREE MARES and a HOUND CALLED MAX – A story of an epic journey from war-torn Poland to a farm in Rhodesia by Nicholas Ellenbogen .
This is a charming, heart-warming tale told by master storyteller Nicholas Ellenbogen, a well-known actor and director, who captures the spirit and characters of the old Rhodesia, drawing on personal experiences and knowledge of Matabeleland. A really delightful book, with little illustrations, that will appeal to all ages, with something of interest for everyone. (Published by Footprint Press)
BOOKS TO LOOK OUT FOR:
MY JOURNEY WITH A THOUSAND BIGFOOTS by Gideon Meyer ‘The Elephant Professor’.
Relating an experience of a female elephant putting his hand into her mouth, whilst letting her 3-day old baby smell him up and down, Gideon Meyer shares his passion and life spent with these ‘Bigfoots’. Full of brilliant photos, interesting facts, fables and close-up encounters with these amazing animals, this is not a big coffee-table book, but the right size to keep handy, travel with and delve into constantly. (Published by Gideon Meyer)
FIRST PEOPLE, The Lost History of the Khoisan by Andrew Smith
Archaeologist Andrew Smith examines what we know about southern Africa’s earliest inhabitants, known today as the Khoisan, and represented by the Bushmen (or San) and the Khoe (plural Khoekhoen). Richly illustrated, this is an absorbing and informative record of the hunter-gathers and herders of the oldest lineages in Africa who migrated to Namibia, Botswana and South Africa. (Jonathan Ball Publishers)
AUSI TOLD ME: Why Cape Herstoriographies Matter by June Bam
With fascinating insights into the life of the indigenous inhabitants and their age-old knowledge at the Cape over several centuries, this book delves into untold stories, often challenging assumptions about the influences in languages and cultures of southern Africa. (Published by Fanele / Jacana Media)
DID YOU KNOW that it is normal when a lizard self-amputates its tail when they encounter a predator, it may bleed a little? The tail, containing a portion of the spinal cord, is voluntarily detached by muscular contractions (caudal autotomy) that break the tail at a weak point within a single vertebra. They can re-grow severed tails, but in lieu of the original tail that includes a spinal column and nerves, the replacement structure is an imperfect cartilage tube. Re-growth can take 9 weeks.
KENYA. Five mountain bongos have been released into the Mawingu Mountain Bongo Sanctuary by the Mt Kenya Wildlife Conservancy in early March. These bongos are descendants of 18 that were originally repatriated from 14 zoos across the USA as part of a breeding and rewilding programme to prevent the critically endangered mountain bongo from becoming extinct. (See more about bongos below)
THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO. Students at the Djolu Technical College, founded as part of an agreement to establish the Kokolopori Bonobo Nature Reserve are dedicated to the protection of Bonobos, our closest nonhuman relatives. The DR Congo rainforest is the only place on earth where bonobos are found in the wild.
NAMIBIA. The controversial Canadian company ReconAfrica, already searching for oil and gas in the Kavango basin, northwest Botswana, and undertaking a 280-mile-long seismic survey in north-east Namibia, has reportedly ploughed through virgin forest, local croplands and have widened existing roads—actions prohibited by the company’s seismic survey permit.
MALAWI. Leading global travel publisher, Lonely Planet, has included Malawi as a Best in Travel, Top Ten Countries. This is the second time in 8 year
(Central African Wilderness Safaris )
MALAWI. The annual opening of the tree planting season, which usually falls in December, was delayed until February this year due to heavy rains. Presiding over the inauguration of the 2021 / 2022 National Tree Planting season President Dr Lazarus Chakwera simultaneously launched the Malawi Green Corps project and National Forest Calendar. Malawi is earmarked to plant 40 million trees this season. The Malawi Green Corps project is designed to impart skills to over 2000 youths in the restoration of degraded forest landscapes across the country.
BOTSWANA. Commenting on the controversy of animal/human relationship, president Dr Mokgweetsi Masisi is quoted as having said “It bamboozles me when people sit in the comfort of where they come from and lecture us about the management of species they don’t have” He was speaking about the feelings of many of Botswana’s parliamentarians, community leaders and – especially – of Batswana who live in rural areas alongside potentially dangerous and destructive wildlife.
To them it seems that Western animal lovers and animal-rights NGOs, and their African allies, appear to cherish wildlife above any concern for people who suffer crop damage or loss of livestock.
DISCUSSION POINT – Do we want a permanent cable car up the slopes of Kilimanjaro? It may not be “in harmony” with nature and the landscape, but it may provide an opportunity for those that cannot climb the mountain, to discover the wonders of it as well?
Temperatures will be cooling soon in Africa, as we awaiting our ‘winter’ months, especially early mornings while on safari, so don’t forget to take a jacket to wear with your SAFARI GEAR BY KUSHNER CLOTHING, https//www.kushnerclothing.com/ Proudly made in South Africa – for the whole family info@kushnerclothing.com
Barry Gordon Lovegrove author of the highly acclaimed The Living Deserts of Southern Africa was an academic and world-class researcher, Professor Emeritus at UKZN and A-rated NRF scientist. He has published around 100 peer-reviewed scientific papers and book chapters, and was the author of ‘Fires of Life: Endothermy in Birds and Mammals’ (Yale 2019). Barry passed away on 6 March. (https://www.africatalked.co.za/book-reviews/the-living-deserts-of-southern-africa/
EAST & SOUTHERN AFRICA. The International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) is planning to extend elephant corridors to allow them to move more freely. Jimmiel Mandima, vice-president of Room to Roam points out that “we know that climate change models are pointing to some areas getting drier and others getting wetter, and elephants need to move.” There is a need for elephants to cross borders, whilst still protecting the livelihoods of people, development and human population growth.
THE FLIPFLOPI : In February, Ben Morrison of Far & Wild Travel (UK) headed back to Lamu, Kenya to lead the beautiful, multicoloured, ( first ever dhow made from recycled plastic) Flipflopi Dhow on its third expedition. This time they are focusing on promoting innovative local waste management solutions that will benefit the local communities.
“Whereas before, ocean plastic in and around Lamu was just fact, there is now real hope that the community can be part of minimising the amount of plastic that goes into the sea, instead ensuring that it is being properly recycled,” said Ben. Our Newsletter in March 2021 featured the Flipflopi expedition around Lake Victoria.
ZIMBABWE. Zimbabwe National Parks and Wildlife Authority (ZimParks) spokesperson, Tinashe Farawo said about 90% of people who died in human-animal conflict in Zimbabwe last year, were killed by elephants. A total of 72 people were trampled by jumbos while about the same number of people were injured resulting in terminal disabilities.
ANGOLA “The Ghost Elephants of Lisima”. A region at the highest point in the Kalahari sand basin, it is believed that elephants with memories of the Angolan war are hiding there. Though many are thought to have travelled down to Namibia and Botswana, these elephants went into hiding, and they don’t want to be found. In the misting mornings they blend in and disappear, ghost-like, into the fog.
THE BONGO (Tragelaphus eurycerus) is a herbivorous, mostly nocturnal forest ungulate. Living in rainforests, dense forests and forest savannas, there are two recognised species of bongo – the mountain/eastern bongo and the lowland/western bongo. In some historical ranges, bongos have become extinct.
The largest, heaviest and most colourful African forest antelope they grow up to 1.2 Metres (50 inches) at the shoulder, have big ears and eyes, reddish-brown coat, black and white markings, white-yellow stripes down their sides, and long slightly spiralled lyre-shaped horns. They are the only tragelaphid in which both sexes have horns, the male’s horns being slightly longer and thicker, that grows up to 1 metre (40 inches) and has a lifespan of up to 19 years.
The lowland/western bongos live in rainforests with dense undergrowth across tropical Africa, particularly in the lowland rainforests of West Africa and the Congo Basin to the Central African Republic and southern Sudan. They thrive at the forest edge and in new growth areas that occur after disturbances.
The mountain/eastern bongos are currently only found in four completely separate populations in Kenya, where they live in montane forests in the highlands. They prefer areas of forest with tall shrubs, such as forest edges or areas where the forest has been disturbed and new growth is occurring.
Bongos are quite timid and easily frightened. They run away at a considerable speed, seeking cover where they stand still with their less-conspicuous backs to the disturbance. Their distinctive coloration may help bongos identify one another as they have no special secretion glands to find one another by scent as with other antelopes.
Male bongos tend to be solitary. Even though they are relatively non-territorial, they will meet and spar with their horns in a ritualized manner. Though a serious fight may happen they are usually visual displays, in which the males bulge their necks, roll their eyes, and hold their horns in a vertical position while slowly pacing back and forth in front of the other male.
Males seek out females only at mating time, usually between October to January. The gestation period is 9 months with females preferring traditional densely protected birthing grounds. The newborn calf stays in hiding for a week or more, with short visits by the mother to suckle it. Calves grow rapidly and are quickly able to accompany their mothers in the nursery herds.
Being herbivorous browsers they feed on leaves, bushes, vines, bark, grasses, roots, cereals, shrubs, flowers, and fruits and have been known to eat burned bark. They require salt in their diet and will visit natural salt/mineral licks.
Even though there are taboos against eating bongo meat by locals, the lowland bongo are still subject to snare hunting, as well as expanding commercial forestry exploitation and urbanisation. Young bongos are vulnerable to pythons, leopards, and hyenas. Lions have also been reported to kill bongos.
The number of bongos in the wild is decreasing rapidly and conservation efforts are underway.
We received this lovely comment on our last newsletter from Carol in Cornwall, UK “Such an interesting read, especially about antlions! I’d never given them too much thought as a kid as to what they “turned into” but so, so loved them. Please keep me on your mailing as I do so enjoy receiving all your wonderful newsletters.”
It did make us realise how little we all know about the “small things” – Editor.
Make the time – enjoy nature and tread safely
(Photo from Elias Mugame,
Lake Bunyoni Child Development Centre,
Uganda)
Lesley & Ian Thomson
AFRICA TALKED
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JUST BECAUSE IT IS SO BEAUTIFUL **
Black Bee-eater by Itai Shanni, Kibale, Uganda
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