by Sarah Davies It’s all about dust, sweat and gears! In October 2013 the sixth Elephant Charge will take place in the Zambian bush raising funds for wildlife conservation. This year promises to be the biggest and best yet… Originally inspired by the Kenyan Rhino Charge, this fun-filled family event takes courage! Four-by-four enthusiasts are …
Conservation is Politics: Zambia’s Hunting Landscape
On 9 January 2013, the Zambian Minister of Tourism Sylvia Masebo – responsible through its board for the parastatal the Zambia Wildlife Authority (ZAWA) – called a meeting at very short notice in Lusaka of all the hunting-safari stakeholders. Vice-President Scott attended. Rolf Shenton, the former MP for Mkushi whose father Barry brought the first …
Zambia Hunting Ban Update
On Wednesday the Zambian government held a stakeholders meeting in Lusaka in an attempt to thrash out some of the issues surrounding the crisis within the local trophy hunting industry. Chaired by the Vice-President (VP), Dr Guy Scott, those in attendance included a cross-section of hunters, wildlife managers, eco-tourism consultants, outside observers, government personnel and …
Fingers Off the Trigger: Zambia Cancels All Trophy Hunting Licences
Towards the end of last week Zambian wildlife authorities suspended the tender process for hunting concessions and cancelled all hunting licences for the foreseeable future. According to sources and local news reports, Minister of Tourism and Arts Sylvia Masebo has based her decision on corruption and malpractices between the hunting companies and various government departments. …
Meeting and Greeting in Kafue National Park
As I stepped off the plane in Lusaka back in August I was thrown straight back into the unpredictable world of Game Rangers International (GRI). Expecting to be met by Sport (head of GRI) and travel with him to the Elephant Orphanage Project‘s (EOP) release facility in Kafue National Park, I was instead greeted with …
Behind the Scenes: Photographing October’s Cover Star
Shoebills are a rarity that few get to see, but I was fortunate to spend a few weeks in Bangweulu Wetlands, Zambia, up close and personal, with cover model Kapotwe.* This isn’t Kapotwe’s first brush with fame. Earlier this year, Africa Birds and Birding (now combined with Africa Geographic in one AWESOME mag) ran a …
Fantastical Shoebills: 7 Fab Facts
Ladies and gentlemen, I bring you King Whale-Head (the English translation of Balaeniceps rex), cover star of the October issue of Africa Geographic. From the front he appears to me like an old university professor, big-nosed, peering over his spectacles. Very serious, very respectable. From almost any other angle though, he’s a total hoot. In …
Pedalling for orphaned elephants
Numerous young elephants are orphaned every year due to poaching and human elephant conflict. Without help, the chances of their survival in the wild are perilous. The Elephant Orphanage Project does sterling service to rehabilitate the youngsters, but support is needed to quell the poaching crisis. Nestled deep within Zambia’s Kafue National Park (KNP) is …
Mine rejected: A Victory for Lower Zambezi National Park
It seems that a bright semblance of sanity has appeared over the once-murky Zambian horizon. A few weeks ago, I wrote a charged story about the absurdity of a proposed open cast copper mine in the Lower Zambezi National Park. Few of the due processes were being followed, the Australian mining company (Zambezi Resources) was …
End of the road marks the beginning of environmental change…
Tracks of Giants, the epic conservation trek over 5000 kilometres through six southern African countries has come to an end. But the impact of the expedition will have a lasting effect for years to come. Starting on the Namibian coastline on May 01, 2012, the journey saw a team of conservationists travel across southern Africa …
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Anti-Poaching Breakthrough at Odzala-Kokoua National Park
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Chatting to a leopard lover
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Eco-Friendly Camp in the Greater Kruger
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Elephant ‘tramples to death suspected poacher’
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May 2013: 20 years of celebrating Africa
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