Conservation Stories
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The Fall and Rise of the Bontebok
I was reminded this week of the remarkable story of the Bontebok, the first African antelope to be saved from extinction, dragged back from the precipice when there were just 17 left in South Africa. I feel very privileged to… Continue reading
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The Wonderful Return of the Little Egret
Eight years ago, when first arriving on the Isle of Wight, I visited the Alan Hersey Nature Reserve at Springvale for the first time. It is a small marshland reserve shoe-horned into one of the few pieces of the coastal… Continue reading
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The Demise of Malawi’s Elephants: Part 2 – The Nightmare Years
We are watching a breeding herd of elephants at a muddy wallow, babies frolicking in the mud, tumbling over each other as they spray muddy water in all directions. Their aunts are just behind and often standing over them as… Continue reading
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The Demise of Malawi’s Elephants: Part 1 – Before the Slaughter
Malawi was once famous for its huge herds of elephants, described in the 18th century as an “elephant rich country” with the land between lake Malawi and the Luangwa River in Zambia “teeming with elephants”. A country where, in 1859,… Continue reading
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Sowing the Seeds of Extinction
Where Did all the Lions Go? We are all too aware that the demise of wild life in Africa is as a result of human activity and it is well recognised that this started in the colonial era but, naively… Continue reading
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Three Zebras and Two Rhinos: William J Burchell
In 1810 a slight-figured, personable, young English naturalist travelled northwards from Cape Town in a huge 7,242 km loop into what is now the Northern Cape and beyond before returning via modern day Port Elizabeth and the Garden Route to… Continue reading
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Last Chance to See: African Wild Dogs
The predator with many names; Mbwa mwilu, painted dog, painted wolf, Budzatje, African hunting dog, Cape hunting dog, Hlolwa, ornate wolf, hyena dog, Nkentshane, painted hunting dog, Lycaon pictus and African wild dog. The horrible truth is that despite being… Continue reading
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The Imperial Zebra
Grevy’s zebra (Equus grevyi) is the largest species of zebra and the most endangered. It was once found across the horn of Africa but is now restricted to northern Kenya with possibly only 100 individuals left in a small area… Continue reading
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Malawi’s First Naturalist? Richard Crawshay and his Zebra
There are three species of zebra, the Plains zebra, Grevy’s zebra and the Mountain zebra and then there are several sub-species of Plains zebra and two of Mountain zebras. There might be as many as nine different types of zebra… Continue reading
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Last Chance to See: Luangwa Giraffe
With as few as 550 living in an isolated population in South Luangwa, Zambia Luangwa giraffe (previously know as Thornicroft’s giraffe) is classified by the IUCN as vulnerable. This places it in the IUCN’s overall “Threatened with Extinction” category. In… Continue reading
Travelogues and Other Memories 