DOCUMENTED PROOF OF BIODIVERSITY AND HABITAT DESTRUCTION IN KRUGER

**CorditeCrazy** · 08-08-2022, 07:50

Originally Posted by Roguemeister

Let me play devils advocate here for a bit

Ok, so theres too many elephants, and we need to get rid of some. How many? What is the right number to have? 3000? 3500? 5000? 10 000? Show me the exact number that is the “right” number. Not just around 3500, because thats not good enough, now we are thumbsucking a number. 100 years ago there were no records of elephants. Should we shoot them all?

Following on- How do we determine that number? Theres less trees now then there was 50 years ago. What about 100 years ago? 500 years ago? The woodland is getting less and less? Ok who says there should be that much woodland in the kruger? And when do we stop? When theres the same amount of woodland as 50 years ago? 100 years ago? 500 years ago? Until the whole kruger has become forest again? What is the kruger supposed to look like? Like it did in 1950? Cause i guarantee you it didn’t look like that 1000 years ago, 10 000 years ago.

Oh but humans have changed it in the last 100 years and have affected the natural balance? Hominids have been around for thousands and thousands of years. We are part of the natural balance and what we do is part of nature, no matter how drastic the changes are

Food for thought

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9000 elephant is what the park can handle. This was determined by the men, like Clive Cheney, who dedicated most of his life to management of the park

**Tayls** · 08-08-2022, 08:44

I have been saying for years that the growing elephant population in the KNP is a massive problem. This video (by an established conservationist) and the video footage is shocking.

Sadly all of the “bunny huggers” and other animal rights groups are anti-hunting and anti-animal control. Tied to this is the CITES ban on the ivory trade and on the transporting of animal curios etc, which, IMHO, is complicating things and which means that the current KNP management is loathe/unwilling/unable to re-introduce the previously applied (and necessary) elephant control measures in the park.

We were involved for 35+ years in a private nature reserve (PNR) situated about 60-80kms to the west of central KNP and, a number of years ago, the KNP allowed its western boundary fence to be dropped and moved westwards so as to encompass and incorporate a number of PNR’s (this area is known as the “Greater KNP”). It is my belief that the KNP’s management at the time felt that this initiative would assist with and alleviate the growing elephant problem and resultant habitat destruction within the park….

My/our observations of the adverse effects of the elephant population (as broadly set out in this video) were experienced in this and adjacent PNR’s too. These PNR’s went from having a rich and healthy tree population (despite being in slightly drier areas), instead to being areas where wide-scale habitat destruction occurred (including massive areas where there has been huge and worrying destruction of the tree populations). In addition, I have personally seen herds of elephant in much, much, much larger numbers than we had ever previously experienced.

All of these observations point to a growing and more and more serious elephant problem, the result of which could seriously damage conservation efforts in large swathes of the Limpopo Province (and SA’s conservation efforts in relation to its elephant and other populations (including rhino)).

In this regard, things are now really getting to the point where the KNP’s management and their ongoing dithering, poor conservation planning and decision-making and the political interference needs to stop and tough decisions need to be taken for the benefit of the KNP, the associated PNR’s which have been encompassed into the “Greater KNP” (and which are subject to and fall under the KNP’s requirements and policies).

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**oafpatroll** · 08-08-2022, 08:47

Sadly 'tough decisions' aren't something our government is wired up to make. In addition I very much doubt that wildlife and habitat management features in the top 100 things that get discussed at ANC policy conferences.

**Messor** · 08-08-2022, 08:57

There is no such thing as a “park” in nature, once you figure that out then you’ll realize what that area looked like 500 years ago is irrelevant. It’s like a sheep farmer, how many sheep can he keep before it becomes unsustainable is up to the farmer, he must now manage his unnatural environment.

The trick is he MUST manage, God’s water oor God’s akker does not apply anymore. Your goal when it comes to conservation is to try and balance everything as much as humanly possible, elephants are but one creature that must be conserved, the millions of other little creatures that live in or from the trees they destroy is another.

**Tayls** · 08-08-2022, 08:59

Originally Posted by oafpatroll

Sadly 'tough decisions' aren't something our government is wired up to make. In addition I very much doubt that wildlife and habitat management features in the top 100 things that get discussed at ANC policy conferences.

Agree 100%.

The result of a lack of decision making by the powers that be will be that the KNP and close-by PNR’s will suffer ecologically and from a conservation perspective. This will probably then mean that their attraction to local and international guests and visitors is massively reduced …. (like happened in many national parks in Zimbabwe, Mozambique etc etc). Jobs both within the KNP, the PNR’s as well as in related hospitality, tourism and associated sectors will also be shed, all as a result of this looming disaster.

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**oafpatroll** · 08-08-2022, 09:22

Originally Posted by Messor

There is no such thing as a “park” in nature, once you figure that out then you’ll realize what that area looked like 500 years ago is irrelevant. It’s like a sheep farmer, how many sheep can he keep before it becomes unsustainable is up to the farmer, he must now manage his unnatural environment.

The trick is he MUST manage, God’s water oor God’s akker does not apply anymore. Your goal when it comes to conservation is to try and balance everything as much as humanly possible, elephants are but one creature that must be conserved, the millions of other little creatures that live in or from the trees they destroy is another.

Exactly. The environment is constrained by being fenced off. It is unnatural by definition so leaving it to nature and hoping for the best is guaranteed to be a fuckup.

**Koebelwagen** · 08-08-2022, 09:46

Sadly, there are many activists that would rather the entire wildlife population be destroyed than allow for sustainable use. More than once I was told straight up it is better for the elephants and all the other animals that will go down with them to starve to death than allow culling/ hunting because "feelings".

The great reset for the animals of the KNP is coming. As someone who loves animals it breaks my heart to think of the misery and suffering these animals will be subjected to. It also angers me greatly that these activists will simply move on to the next "cause" without as much as a second thought to the destruction they realised through their ignorance and virtue signalling.

**MSW2** · 08-08-2022, 10:15

Originally Posted by Sean KZN

Fair enough, first point to make is that I find it hard to believe that there were no elephant in that area 100 years ago as stated in the video. Limpopo was pretty much good elephant territory then if old hunting books are to be believed.

Harry Wolhuter saw them in the area in 1902 or 3.