Capturing Gemsbok

What a rush…

It was a spur of the moment thing when I decided to join a couple of farmers for a day of catching game.  We started quite early and first I just observed the craziness.  After the farmer caught two gemsbok I decided to join them in the pipecar.  Everything happens so fast, and the slightest mistake can end up in a serious disaster.  A guy on a motorbike drives ons animal in the herd away and then the pipecar drives up right next to it.  A guy on the back has a netgun and shoots it when we’re really close to it.  As soon as the gemsbok stands still, everybody jumps off and grabs it by the horns.  My job was to inject it with a drug that calms the animal and then make a small fire to heat up the rubber tubes we put over the horns.  And once again everything must happen as quickly as possible to prevent the animal from stressing too much.

I almost got gored by a horn.  We were chasing after a gemsbok and he decided to turn around and come straight at the car.  My side didn’t have a door, so I was completely exposed.  I ended up right on top of the driver’s lap.  Luckily nobody got hurt.  The day ended well and we managed to catch 10 animals and only went home with a couple of bruises and scratches.

What a fun day it turned out to be…

what i’ve been up to

It feels like ages since I’ve last blogged.  mmm, where to start??  We went on a volunteer trip a couple of weeks ago to the Kgalagadi Park.  It was a great break from work and everybody got the chance to relax and not think about work.  We saw loads of giraffes and even saw a cheetah mom with 4 cubs.  That must’ve been the highlight of my trip.  On the day we left the park we got held up by four male cheetahs walking in the road.  They spotted a springbok, but decided that they have too many spectators and just chilled out under a tree.

I’m almost halfway through my Earthwatch season.  After then next group which I’m picking up on Tuesday I will be halfway.  Then I plan on taking some time off to visit friends and family.

It’s been really cold here in the Kalahari, and we spend our mornings freezing next to the meerkat sleeping burrows until they finally decide it’s warm enough to get up.  Parties on the farm is still as crazy as always and it’s fun just chillin’ over the weekends.

Two weeks ago we rescued a two month old meerkat pup from a couple of kids who were walking with it on a rope next to the road.  Everybody at the project played babysitter for him and made it a group effort to find food for him.  We would dig huge holes to get scorpions, run after and pounce on tree skinks and collect termites for the poor hungry guy.  Was loads of fun having little Rob around and a sad moment when we left him at the rehab centre.  But he will have a long happy life there.

Other than that there’s not much happening in my life.

What I’ve been up to lately

It’s getting harder and harder to get internet access in the Kalahari. Our group of volunteers are growing rapidly. We are now 35 people on the farm, and only one computer with internet.

Easter weekend we had our annual Kalahari Olympics.  It was well fun!  We started the day off with 60m sprints and I was surprised when I realized I’m the fastest girl on the farm.  After running 3 legs of 60m sprints it was off to the volleyball court.  Loads of action happening there.  We then had a four legged race which was extremely interesting and fun to watch.  Next on the list of events was ultimate frisbee, a super fast game and very exhausting, but also well fun.  We then split up in four groups and had four different events at the same time, limbo, long jump, rope skipping and throwing lumber.  We ended the day with a water fight.

Group one out of ten Earthwatchers are now currently here.  I’ve really been tested these last couple of days, and almost packed my bags and left.  Some of them are returning for their second or third visit and keeps on comparing me to the previous Coordinator, as if they want to tell me that I’m doing my job wrong.  But when I look pass all the troubles they’ve been giving me, has it been a good two weeks.  I’m looking forward to taking them back to Upington on monday.  Then I have a quiet week until the following tuesday.

We had a camp out on the Big Dune last night for one of the volunteer’s birthday.  It was extremely cold and not even the fire could keep us warm.  I couldn’t stay up there and freeze so I eventually went back to my room and got into a nice warm bed.  Our winter is slowly on it’s way and the mornings are quite cool now.  This will be my first winter in two years, so I’m definitely not used to the cold anymore.

So as you can see I’m not up to much…

work work work

My first group of tourist arrived and are now luckily gone again. It was two weeks of really hard work, and in between I got a terrible virus that had me in bed for three days. It’s some bug that attacks all your organs and one by one they start shutting down and you feel like a living zombie. But all is good now. We also had some excitement with two snakes. First we had a cape cobra in a tree getting mobbed by cape glossy starlings and then we had a puff adder lurking at our bathrooms. Which I was instructed to eventually catch. It was a super terrifying experience. Loads of adrenaline pumping through my veins. We eventually had to kill it after struggling for 20 minutes to catch it. It just got too dangerous. Well, now everyone is gone, and still I’m not able to just chill out for a day or two. Work, work and some more work. I’m heading off to do a first aid course this week and hopefully I’ll be able to switch off from work for a few days. Hopefully I’ll be able to tell you more on what’s happening in the kalahari soon!

Chased

I’m working on a nature reserve with various game roaming the area. We are well aware that they are wild animals. But they still don’t seem bothered when we walk around in the field, except for 8 bachelor wildebeests.

Earlier this week I was at the group Aztecs doing the normal stuff, walking with them and doing weights. I was busy with lunch weights when my meerkats all of a sudden decided to run off. I thought their might be a raptor in the area, but as soon as I looked up I looked right into a lone male wildebeest. He seemed quite agitated with my presence. He started swaying his head sideways and grunted at me. Seven other males joined him and they charged me. I just grabbed all of my things and ran like the wind. They chased me for about 300 meters before deciding to leave me alone. I had to run through three torn bushes to get away and only after catching my breath realized that I ran through thorny bushes and that my legs are bleeding. My radio didn’t work either, so I couldn’t call for help and had to walk back to the farmhouse. What a terrifying experience. I officially do not like the wildebeests on the farm anymore.

That surely was an eventful morning and one that I won’t forget for a very long time.

A glimpse of life in the Kalahari

The Kalahari is a semi-arid area, loads of sand and not much vegetation.  The main trees around here is the very big camelthorn tree, the smaller grey camelthorn tree and then the shepherds tree which gives you a lovely shade and escape from the scorching sun.  After the rain sourgrass can be seen everywhere and is also there because of overgrazing.  The flats are all white sand and then you walk over to the dunes and you get the most beautiful red dunes.  Wild life is abundant, and you get to see loads and loads of Eland, Wildebeest, Springbucks, Hartebeest and when you are lucky the occasional Gemsbok.  Reptiles can be seen underneath every rock or fallen tree and one must be extremely careful to not step on a puff adder or walk past a cape cobra.  Temperatures in the summer range from a cool 30 degrees Celsius to the every so often 45 degrees Celsius (and that’s in the shade).  The rainstorms are amazing and lightning fills the heavens with bright flashes. 

I can now finally say that the field is my office.  Ever since I can remember I always knew that I will never be able to sit behind a desk and work a 9 – 5 job.  It’s just absolutely great to get up at 5am (never thought I’ll ever say that), see the most beautiful sunrise and spend the whole morning walking with meerkats.  Sunsets in the Kalahari are just as beautiful, the whole sky turns from blue to orange to pink to purple.  Not one day do you see the same sunset or sunrise. 

Walking with the meerkats is another great experience.  You get to know each and every individual, and each and everyone has its own personality.  The pups are too adorable and you just want to pick them up and cuddle them.  Learning their behaviors gives you a little bit more of an insight into their social structure.  They truly are an amazing species.  When you’re in the field, it’s just you and nature and that’s how I like it.  There’s a sort of calmness in the Kalahari that makes you fall in love with the place.

I hope to keep all of you more up to date on what’s happening in the Kalahari more often.

life in the kalahari

this post is long overdue.  I’ve been quite busy with training and are finally going to the field on my own.  I can’t believe I’ve been here for a month already.  Time just flies.  My days consist of getting up at 4.30am, something I’ve never really done before.  Then we get the bags ready, make sure all our equipment is charged and then leave for the field at about 5.30am.  We normally wait for the meerkats to get up and then we do morning weights.  After weighing the group, we start with data capturing which takes about 3 hours, and then we do lunch weights.  I usually get back from the field around 11.30am and then I still need to do my data analysis which can sometimes take up to an hour.  If it’s not too hot, I can take a quick nap before we go to the field at 5pm.  Get back at around 8.30pm and do some more data analysis, have dinner and then it’s bedtime.  The nights are much cooler, and one can have a good night’s rest.  I’m in charge of doing the towntrips, and that takes me a whole day.  Upington is about 4 hours drive away and we normally leave at 5am and only get back at 6pm.  The beautiful farm makes up for everything and I usually can’t wait to get back to the farm to have some sundowners on one of the dunes.  Hopefully I’ll be able to add some pictures soon.

Loads of love

xxxx

Friends

Playing golf with my dear friend Elmine

Supporting the Springboks

Sharks

Sharks, the apex predators of our oceans numbers are decreasing.  Various reasons can be given for this, but it all comes down to us humans killing them for our own consumption.  It makes me sick to my stomach when you realize how brutally these animals are killed.  One of the most inhumane practices is finning.  With this method the fins gets hacked off and the living body gets thrown back into the ocean.  The sharks either starve to death, are eaten alive by other fish, or drown.  According to some estimates, between 50 and 100 million sharks are killed each year.  Many of these sharks are “unintended bycatch”, but still get sold at the markets.  Sharks are especially vulnerable to overfishing because they grow slowly and produce few young.

A little more on shark fin soup:

While shark fin has no flavor and very little nutritional value, it does provide texture to soup, not to mention handsome profits to an industry estimated to be worth $500 million per year. Fins are dried, de-skinned, boiled and sometimes bleached, and then made into soup by the addition of chicken or fish stock, which provides the flavor. The fins of certain species are considered more valuable because of the length and thickness of the “fin needles” that they contain.

Until the 1980s, the consumption of shark fin soup was discouraged in China. However, the Chinese government relaxed its attitude towards what had been seen as an elitist dish, and consumption soared. Mainland China is now the world’s biggest end-market for shark fin: the effect on shark populations has been disastrous.

A bowl of shark fin soup can sell for as much as $100. Because of its perceived value, serving shark fin soup at private functions is a way of honoring one’s guests and signaling one’s wealth and status. Chinese people frequently express the view that no self-respecting host would ever leave shark fin soup off the menu, particularly at weddings and other important social functions, for fear of losing face.

Why do we need to protect sharks:

• Many shark species are strongly endangered and some are even on the brink of extinction.
• Sharks are highly specialized wild animals that play a very important role in the marine ecosystem.
• Sharks help to maintain a healthy marine fisheries environment by mostly preying on the sick, injured weak or diseased.

Asia’s gentle giants