"Q" is for Quelea

CCF has carried out a number of camera trapping surveys, and also maintains a network of cameras positioned for ongoing monitoring of the wildlife on our land.  While we are mainly focused on cheetahs, there are many other species out there, and the cameras will trigger no matter what passes them by.  In this series of weekly blog entries, I will use these pictures to illustrate some of the wealth of animal life in Namibia - one species per week.  I hope you will enjoy seeing a little more of our world here in the bush.

Q is for… human wildlife conflict on a MASSIVE scale.  Sometimes described as Africa's most hated bird, the diminutive Red-Billed Quelea stands just 13 cm (5") tall yet is responsible for more than $50 million US dollars of agricultural damage every year.  Tens of millions are culled on an annual basis using chemical sprays, high explosives, and even flamethrowers. Yet despite the massive effort to reduce the population, it remains stable, with a range spanning 20% of the total area of Africa. Evidence suggests it may in fact be the world's most numerous bird species. The IUCN lists them as Least Concern. 

Although individually small, and consuming just 10g (0.35 oz) of grain per day, flocks can number in the millions, eating tens of tons of grain every single day. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization lists them as one of the most significant threats to grain production in Africa.  Annual international conferences are held to address control methods, but so far all efforts to reduce the impact of the quelea on African grain crops have met with failure.

In the part of Namibia where CCF is based, the landscape is too dry to support large scale grain crops.  We are surrounded by game and cattle farms and the flocks of Red-Billed Queleas that we see are small, numbering in the hundreds.  Since they can also eat insects and wild seeds, there is still plenty for them to eat, but not enough to support the massive flocks seen elsewhere. 

Queleas are monogamous, with each couple laying up to 5 eggs per breeding season.

Although too small to trigger camera traps unless they pass very close to the sensor, queleas are sometimes seen in the background when other, larger animals pass by.

Puppies on the Move!

Today, our intrepid little explorers made their biggest move yet of their young lives. A day trip out into the large, enclosed grazing area next to the kraal! They weren’t too sure at first and didn’t even want to follow mom, Aleya. After much encouragement (and by that I mean having to carry them!), they were safely ensconced in their new environment. But they weren’t happy about being somewhere strange and, at first, tried to find a way out through the fence!

We left them for a while to settle in and to make friends with the dairy goats, and then all went quiet. Who needs a huge field when there’s a lovely spot of shade next to the water trough and under a lovely tree? These little guys aren’t stupid, that’s for sure.

They will spend every day for the next couple of weeks out here, getting used to a bigger area and being able to stretch those short, stumpy legs! Good training for when they go off to their new homes. We’ll keep you updated on their progress! 

"P" is for Porcupine

CCF has carried out a number of camera trapping surveys, and also maintains a network of cameras positioned for ongoing monitoring of the wildlife on our land.  While we are mainly focused on cheetahs, there are many other species out there, and the cameras will trigger no matter what passes them by.  In this series of weekly blog entries, I will use these pictures to illustrate some of the wealth of animal life in Namibia - one species per week.  I hope you will enjoy seeing a little more of our world here in the bush.

Absolutely unmistakable for anything else in the area, the Cape Porcupine is one of three porcupine species in Africa, but the only one to be found in Namibia. They can also be found in southern Kenya, Uganda, and the DRC, and throughout most of the mainland countries further south, though they avoid desert regions in Namibia and Botswana.  They are relatively common, and believed to be stable in numbers, with the IUCN listing them as "Least Concern".

The Cape Porcupine is large for a rodent - up to 1m (39 inches) in length and 24 kg (53 lbs).  They are almost entirely nocturnal and are commonly seen on night game counts, and foraging among the kitchen scraps at CCF's HotSpot cafenhere in Namibia. 

Porcupines are one of the few species that mate for reasons other than procreation.  They mate every day, in order to maintain the bond between the pair.

They are predominantly vegetarian, preferring roots, bark, bulbs and other plant material, but have been known to scavenge from old carcasses.  Although quills are popular souvenirs, porcupines shed enough of them to satisfy the demand and therefore are not usually hunted.  

Puppy Visits!

The puppies that went to their new homes a couple of weeks ago were due their 12 week rabies vaccinations so a dog road trip was in order. The puppies had been placed in the Otjiwarongo, Okakarara and Grootfontein areas so I was able to do a circular trip over two days. I was also visiting four adult dogs for their annuals and boosters.

The trip started nice and early on Monday morning (5.30am) amid a crashing thunder and lightning storm. But the sun soon came out and the temperatures rose! It had rained overnight in certain areas and what a strange sight it was to see great puddles in the road.

I am happy to report that all of the puppies have settled in well at their farms and they are all working well with the young goats and lambs. They have also grown at a rapid rate. One of the females is very advanced for her age and is already going out for a couple of hours in the morning on a leash with the herder! 

Apparently she loves being out in the bush and she’s already becoming an excellent guard dog.

They all received their rabies shot, some more calmly than others, and I gave them a spot-on formula (Advantage Multi) for fleas, ticks and internal worms and parasites. Thanks to some generous donations I was also able to leave de-worming medication for the puppies to ensure they are kept healthy during our hot, wet summer season.

The puppies will receive another visit when they reach six months to check on their progress and we’ll post another update then.  

--Anja Bradley

The donations that Anja is referring to is an example of our "Wish List" in action -- click here and see if there is something that you can donate to assist our team in Namibia.

A Small Event with Lifelong Impact

Todays blog post comes courtesy of one of our visitors, Beirne Konarski, and provides a terrific example of the notion that even small experiences when we are children can have a lifelong impact on the adult we become:

I was about 11 or 12 the first time I ever saw a cheetah, at a Big Brothers event north of Los Angeles.  The picnic was held at a park and the thing that stood out was a cheetah that a man had brought.  I went up to see it and the cheetah licked my hand.  It's tongue was rough, like number 40 sandpaper, but it was real neat having my hand licked.  I then got to have the photo taken that appears below, one that I've been able to keep through the years, including two times where I moved and could only keep what I could fit in a suitcase.

Years later after looking at the picture again I got curious and searched for "cheetah" on the Internet.  I discovered the CCF and soon became a sponsor.  I followed their work and when I found that they accept visitors I put together a trip to Namibia to see the CCF with my fiancee.  This took a few years but I'm real glad I went.  We had a great time seeing cheetahs up close and learning more about the creative work that the CCF is doing.

You never know how an experience will affect your life years later but I'm real glad I got to meet the cheetah when I was a kid.

Beirne "Bern" Konarski
http://www.genvoyage.com

To learn more about planning your own visit to CCF, click here.

"O" is for Oryx

CCF has carried out a number of camera trapping surveys, and also maintains a network of cameras positioned for ongoing monitoring of the wildlife on our land.  While we are mainly focused on cheetahs, there are many other species out there, and the cameras will trigger no matter what passes them by.  In this series of weekly blog entries, I will use these pictures to illustrate some of the wealth of animal life in Namibia - usually one species per week.  I hope you will enjoy seeing a little more of our world here in the bush.

Today’s blog will highlight the oryx.This antelope is one of four large species belonging to the Oryx genus.  Three of these four are native to arid parts of Africa, and the oryx (gemsbok) in particular inhabits southern Africa.  They have pale fur with dark markings on the legs and face with long, almost straight horns.

This species prefers semi-arid conditions and can go without water for long periods of time.  They are grazers, eating mostly grasses, and can live in herds consisting of up to 600 individuals.  Horns of an oryx are lethal and it has been known to kill lions.  Oryx are listed as not threatened on the IUCN red list. Although the oryx in southern Africa is not particularly threatened, the subspecies of the Oryx genus that live in the northern parts of Africa and in the Arabian peninsula are severely decimated, in many instances killed for their distinctive horns.

Puppy Day!

It’s amazing how quickly time goes, especially when you’re a little puppy! But Feliz’s little ones have grown big and strong, and it’s time for them to make their own way in the big wild world of a livestock guarding dog.

At CCF we hold a ‘Puppy Day’ for our future owners of the puppies. This gives us a chance to hold informal training sessions on raising and training, problems and advice as well as basic healthcare and nutrition. This day gives CCF a chance to get to know the farmers and is always good fun for all! Especially when it comes to choosing which puppy to take home.

This time round we placed five puppies: three females and two males. One of the females has been placed as a future breeding dog for CCF so we look forward to reporting on that once she is fully grown and ready to have puppies of her own!

The puppies will be closely monitored over the coming months with a visit at 12 weeks for their rabies vaccinations, followed by a six month progress check. They will then be visited at a year old to receive their booster vaccinations and to check on their progress as by this time they should be mature working dogs.

In the meantime we wish them luck in their future careers, protecting small-stock from predators  and helping to save cheetahs across Namibia! 

-- Anja Bradley

A Volunteer's Story: Colleen Kelly

My name is Colleen Kelly and I am from the San Francisco Bay area in California.  I discovered CCF through Earthwatch and decided to volunteer to learn about working for animal conservation: I have learned a lot!

CCF is a dynamic organization filled with people who are fascinated about caring for the cheetahs under their guardianship and saving the wild cheetah.  I worked with experienced, intelligent, creative people.  Everyone is incredibly generous, friendly and welcoming and has a great sense of humor.  It was a pleasure and an honor to spend 2 weeks with them and to get to know them.

The highlights of my time at CCF start with the work I did with the cheetah husbandry team.  Learning hands-on about how to care for cheetahs and working closely with the team to feed them, water them, clean their pens, etc was an energizing experience.  Watching the cheetah run was thrilling – the cheetah is truly a remarkable and beautiful animal. 

Another highlight was participating in the 12-hour waterhole count, which exposed me to so much beauty of the Namibian wildlife.  Even working with the camera trapping photos was a good laugh – and gave me a much-needed respite from the heat.

Overall, being at CCF, learning about how they care for cheetahs and hearing about all the aspects of running a conservation organization on a daily basis has opened my eyes to the challenges they face and how truly inspiring their accomplishments are.

Thank you to all of the staff, interns and volunteers at CCF for a remarkable time.