By Jofie LamprechtNamibia 2017 There are some stories that must be written. If they are not, they will only be remembered by those who were there in the heat and dust, with thirst on their thick tongues, and their minds wandering far away when they should be concentrating on the task at hand. Stories lost because they were not written. For some stories, not all the cast be named – dignity and pride is involved. Not all hunts are error-free and glorious. Not all hunters have glory every day, even though every day is glorious in Africa. I write this…
Author: Longhunter
13th May 2023 For centuries, the phenomenon of bird migration has awed humanity. So much so, that the 4th Century BC Greek philosopher Aristotle, noting that the types of birds around him changed with the seasons, suggested that birds hibernated in trees or underwater and magically changed into different types of birds during winter. In the 17th Century, English scientist, Charles Morton wrote a paper claiming birds migrated to the moon and back every year. These attempts to explain migration illustrate the keen interest humanity has taken in these birds as they travel thousands of kilometres on migration routes known as flyways, traversing continents in…
May 14, 2023 Ten lions have been killed in southern Kenya this past week, including six on Saturday alone, as human-wildlife conflict escalates in the region, according to the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS). This is “an unusually large number of lions to be killed at one go,” a spokesperson for the KWS told CNN on Sunday. It comes after conservationists announced the killing of one of Africa’s oldest lions, Loonkiito, at the age of 19 earlier this week. Loonkiito the lion One of Africa’s oldest lions killed in Kenya, conservationists say He had ventured out of a protected area and…
A total of 5,000 microchips, the size of a grain of rice, were donated by Parco Natura Viva, a safari park and zoo in Italy, to the ministry for the census.
Opposition party Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) has called on Zimbabweans to demand arrests of individuals fingered in Al Jazeera’s ‘Gold Mafia’ investigation documentary. The recently broadcast four-part documentary series exposed a cartel of individuals involved in gold smuggling and money laundering. In a statement, CCC expressed disappointment over the lack of arrests and investigations despite numerous calls to apprehend and prosecute individuals featured in the film. “It is a matter of regret that state institutions that are constitutionally mandated to investigate and bring to book those reasonably suspected of corruption, maladministration, and criminal abuse of office including the Zimbabwe…
Having recently completed a free-lance safari for a local hunter/landowner in the Gwaai Valley, I was spending my ‘down time’ with my good friend Stuart Campbell on his Lion Ranch. He asked me to travel to Hwange town to collect some extra groceries, in preparation for the imminent arrival of a small group of South African visitors. Late that afternoon the guests arrived and one of them, an Air Steward with South African Airways expressed his eagerness to ‘shoot something’.Understandably, Stuart regarded the game on his ranch as a business asset but agreed that this fellow, we shall call him…
The Seychelles white-eye is classified as vulnerable on the IUCN red list. (Island Conservation Society) 9 MAY 2023 Seychelles’ Ministry for Environment is in the process of reviewing all its action plans to better conserve and protect endangered species, especially those under threat of extinction, such is the case of the Seychelles white-eye bird. The principal secretary for environment, Denis Matatiken, told SNA that the ministry has started to engage with local stakeholders for the protection of this endemic species as well as other endangered species, following reports regarding an alarming decline in the population of the white-eye bird on the main island…
Spotted hyenas are known to jump at the chance to crunch a porcupine or warthog, both herbivores who don’t stand a chance against formidable predators. © Creative Commons CC0 License
When visiting Humani in the Savé Conservancy, one can be assured of being introduced to the newest member of the Humani clan. This extraordinary new addition is an orphan rhino calf named Jimmy, who is being raised by Anne Whittall. When Jimmy arrived at the Humani homestead, weak and in a generally sorry state, Anne was forced to play the part of foster mother rhino. Many will agree that there could be no one better for the role. Jimmy joined the family under the most dreadful circumstances, his mother having been shot by a poacher. Rhino poaching has been a…
Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Thursday that Tokyo would help Mozambique counter Islamist insurgents in the restive north. Mozambique’s gas-rich northernmost province, Cabo Delgado, is struggling with an insurgency waged by militants linked to the Islamic State group. “Japan will financially support the fight against terrorism,” Kishida told a press conference in the capital, Maputo, the final leg of an African tour. “Security is crucial for the operation of Japanese companies in northern Mozambique.” Mozambique has set high hopes on vast natural gas deposits — the largest found south of the Sahara — that were discovered in the Muslim-majority northern province in 2010.…