Magical Kariba

May 5, 2014 Jen

The magnificent Zambezi River rises in North west Zambia. A powerful and supple flow that enters the Indian Ocean in Mozambque at Quelimane. The Zambezi catchment area covers 1 352 000 square kilometres and spreads over eight countries. Under a limitless sky the fast flowing river snakes and roars for 2 650Kms following a river line that has been carved out over time by rough caresses until it reaches the ocean. Kariba dam is a hydroelectric dam in the Kariba Gorge of the Zambezi river basin between Zambia and Zimbabwe. It is situated roughly half way down this river.

It is sixteen years since I stood staring out over this expanse of shimmering water where the sun beams down hot and sticky. Out on this enormous lake there is a peace in the silence as the sweet breath of warm wind caresses your hair. The Matusadona is situated on the shores of Lake Kariba and is home to many large mammals: especially elephants and buffaloes. Panicum, a regenerative grass carpets the shoreline and with this ready access for food, zebras, water bucks, buffaloes and impalas graze. In this open air amphitheater, zebra bend in stripey unison, ears pricked and wary eyes watchful as they take a drink in the long shadows of late afternoon. Their high pitched brays breaking the silence as a huge crocodile like a medieval serpent menaces closer through the shallows, its long tail gently licking the surface. Buffalo swagger with exaggerated arrogance, snorting and formidable in their numbers. Their imposing horns spread outward and downwards from their large heads and their powerful and muscled bodies are bejeweled with tick birds, their personal ‘bug cleaning service’. Rhinos, light on their feet slip through the warmth, private and obscured in the shadows.

On one of nature’s grandest stages, elephants cross the twilight: silhouetted shadows stretching into early darkness and leaving behind hovering moths and a night full of crickets and mosquitoes. This adhesive group of females and their offspring amble away puffing up small whirls of dust that appear to hang motionless. Despite the matriarch’s bulk, she has the lightness and grace of a dancer. For me personally, they are the ambassadors for the bush.. ‘Loxidonta africana.’ The deep rumbles of content vibrate through the evening air reminding me that although I cannot see them, I can feel their presence.

While moon beams float upon the water and the wind carries the neck tingling roar of a lion, the Matusadona pulsates with a subliminal rumble that you feel rather than hear. On this lake, the sky appears deeper and the stars are brighter. This wild paradise with its limitless sky and rugged beauty teems with wildlife. The Matusadona is truly a spectacular place where earth drifts into heaven leaving you floating in tranquil moments adorned in sun washed scenes and bronzed trees. This is Africa…a canvas of vibrant colours and teeming with warmth, sunny skies and wildlife.

Elephants, rhinos and other wildlife are irreplaceable riches and cannot be allowed to simply fade away. These animals in the Matusadona have not been immune to the horror of the poachers angry weapons or the barbaric practice of snaring. These animals are being protected byMatusadona Anti Poaching Project who are a component of the Tashinga Initiative and cover Chizarira, Mana Pools, Matusadona and Victoria Falls. (Please take a look at their face book page…give them some support.) Tashinga was the name originally chosen for the headquarters of the Matusadona National Parks. The Tashinga Initiative Foundation.

Chengeta Wildlife has just spent two weeks providing intensive training in the GachGache . (Take a look at their face book page.. please give them some support.) Chengeta Wildlife is providing a first class and comprehensive anti poaching training. These amazing people on the ground, whether protecting the wild or training the rangers to protect the wild are all doing a difficult but awesome job. Poaching, an ugly reality: one we as civilians can do very little about except to help spread the awareness and donate or raise funds for the different groups. It is a case of all doing our bit.

However, one thing we can control is our LITTER. Photo from Cavan Warren.. Antelope Island and pollution in and around Kariba.

‘Many animals confuse plastic bags, balloons, bait packets, lolly wrappers and rubber with prey and eat them. Many animals are injured, become ill, and die each year due to human carelessness with litter and pollution. Animals can swallow or get entangled in many of the litter items people leave in the environment.’

A sad statistic of this dumping. A buffalo growing thinner and thinner…only after his death was the carcass found: full of plastic rubbish.

On an island in this beautiful paradise, an island empty of all modern things: LITTER, like a lethal mix enticing hungry animals to take their fill. Plastic kills….a slow painful death. Let us take responsibility, bag our litter and return it to the main land where there are facilities to dispose of unwanted rubbish and allow the rangers space to get on with their much needed and important work: they do not need to clean up after us.

Let us look after this ‘Magical Place’ (My poem).

PLEASE DO NOT LOOK AWAY

April 28, 2014April 28, 2014 Jen

Apt quote to start off my post for today

While we all drift in the streams of this beautiful world, there is an uneasy magic as we paddle against these turbulent realms of the unknown. Because I am passionate about elephants, and want nothing more than everyone else to feel the same way, I realise that I am and always have been a ‘dreamer’. However these attacks on our elephants, rhinos, lions and all other endangered species does concern all of us: it is our children’s childrens heritage at stake.

“Something will have gone out of us as a people if we ever let the remaining wilderness be destroyed; if we permit the last virgin forests to be turned into comic books and plastic cigarette cases; if we drive the few remaining members of the wild species into zoos or to extinction; if we pollute the last clear air and dirty the last clean streams and push our paved roads through the last of the silence. .”
Wallace Stegner, The Sound of Mountain Water

What of the future?

Last week I wrote about our Presidential Herd of Zimbabwe and the fact that Sharon Pincott had been stunk out. The above link is an update from five days ago. There has been a frenzied focus on the current poaching trends sweeping the southern African countries, and sadly these trends appear to be obscured in political murk.

However, the good thing is that images or video clips are taken, posted and set free in this wonderful world of ‘cyber space’, taking only minutes to circumnavigate the world. There is nothing more distressing than watching a rhino whose horn has been ripped from it’s face staggering aimlessly around the game reserve. This clip reached millions of people in all corners of the world before the rangers had even had a chance to find the animal and put it out of it’s misery. This clip made for stressful viewing and I know I felt a deep gut wrenching sadness at man’s cruelty. Once the photo or clip is posted, it is out there: an ugly reality of what our wildlife is suffering because of man’s unquenchable greed. Sadly, harmony in the bush appears to be lost in the storms of political currents.

While I write up my blog, which sometimes feels like crumbling pages of inadequate words, there are many brave people on the ground. So let us celebrate the human spirit by helping these wonderful men and woman on the front line by spreading the word and helping their causes.

Chengeta Wildlife…Rory Young is a wildlife tracker and activist who has been fighting against the dark and hungry greed of poaching all his life. He is at one with the bush reading all the signs and stories left by different animals and humans. Rory, with the help of Chengeta is implementing a full time, comprehensive training program which will also enable him to provide the rangers with the resources to carry out their important work.

What happens to the orphans of these horrific and grisly attacks on the wildlife. Care for Wild represents the courageous efforts of a lady Petronel Nieuwoudt who operates in the scenic area of Barberton – just outside Nelspruit in Mpumalanga. Please take a look at the link.

‘Care in hand rearing, management and capture of infant, injured and/or orphaned animals are the passions that drive CARE forWILD AFRICA. Petronel is also one of a few who has specialized in the care of orphaned and injured rhino’s! The centre has a designated area that is especially built to cater for these magnificent species (Night pen, Day camp, Scale, etc).’

Let each and every one of us walk with purpose on our chosen paths, remembering that the majority of us two legged creatures want to stand tall and be counted. I have met and feel that I know many of my contacts through this wonderful world of technology. Like me, each and every one of them are full of weighty concerns regarding our wildlife and can no longer be silent witnesses to the carnage taking place in the bush.

My computer is one commodity I would keep in a paradise devoid of all other modern trappings. The social networks are a powerful tool to force a state of profound change.

Our African bush, the womb of the universe used to be full of vibrant scents, rich earth and animals. It was survival of the fittest. Let us not allow our wildlife to become pages of smudged photographs and memories.

As much as we feel repulsed and saddened by ugly clips and pictures, I beg each and every one of you. DO NOT LOOK AWAY. Where there are animals there is HOPE. (My poem)

We need to stand up against this corruption and greed, spread the word and help the men and women on the ground to protect the wildlife during these dark times.

Only by listening can we hear their cries

Only by looking can we see their pain.

Our elephants, rhinos and other wildlife need us. Let us celebrate their existence.

ZIMBABWEAN ELEPHANTS

April 21, 2014 Jen

What will be the fate of the Presidential Herd of Zimbabwe?. This is a question that burns and tightens the knot in my stomach to breaking point. The cyanide poisoning of the Hwange elephants last year, was for me a dramatic turning point. Although I live far from the country in which I was born, I can no longer pretend that all is well in the animal kingdom. All is far from well. The bush, ‘the womb of the universe’ is fast on the tracks to becoming ‘The big empty.’

When I started my inner journey, a friend asked me at question ‘This passion you have for elephants, it comes straight from your heart. How the hell do you put in all into words?’

I did not hesitate in my reply. ‘I know and feel the fear from these animals. I also know what it is like to own something that others want. The only difference was that to take what we owned was done by intimidation and yes…violence, but we survived. These animals do not survive. They are killed for their ‘personal treasure’ which is then butchered from their faces. It does my head in.’

In 1990 President Robert Mugabe decreed that the plus minus 450 herd of elephants that roamed on the the state land bordering Hwange should never be culled or hunted. In essence, he gave them ‘safe passage’. This was done to symbolize Zimbabwe’s commitment to ‘responsible’ wildlife management. However, this short lived promise was soon to be whipped away and scattered amongst the leaves. The ‘master of illusion’, or ‘delusion’ had been weaving his wicked magic. By 1997, his promise to this special herd was null in void as Zimbabwe lobbied CITES to sell off a stock pile of ivory to China, claiming that Zimbabwe’s elephants now had to ‘pay for their rent’. Licences were then dished out and suddenly Mugabe’s lips were stitched tight on the subject, and this herd’s protection was short lived.

Sharon Pincott, an Australian wildlife enthusiast arrived on the scene on 5th March 2001. Like an angel of mercy, she took this special herd of elephants under her wing. She has spent 13 years with these elephants…dedicating her time and love while monitoring and protecting them. Sharon founded and has run the ‘Presidential Elephant Conservation Project’ since 2001…a long uphill battle all the way. Shadows of corruption and the stench of greed have soured the air, but she had the courage to take a stance…often standing alone as she fought on the side of these elephants. These raw and violent battlefields are now including land claims that have resurfaced in early 2014. Despite a directive being issued in December 2013 by Zimbabwe’s Cabinet that offer letters be withdrawn,the claimont Elisabeth Pasalk / Freeman has totally disregarded these orders and gone ahead to build a safari lodge. She has changed the name of the Kanondo area to ‘Gwango Elephant Lodge.’ She is understood to be an American resident, and the sister of a well known safari operator.

Sharon Pincott has sadly been stunk out. After 13 years of dedication and love to these animals, she has now written her last post ‘Who destroyed the Presidential Elephants of Zimbabwe?’ I read this last post with my heart pounding like a 10 pound hammer against my ribs cage. As a Zimbabwean who is passionate about my country, I again feel fear as it menaces up and against me. What will become of these ambling giants who wear their huge hearts on their sleeve. I can see and smell the bush that echoes with their rumbles and pulsates with their personalities. These intelligent and sentient creatures will have to wonder why ‘their beloved friend’ has had to leave. I feel fear for them as their ‘echoes of harmony are lost in the storm of political currents.’ What an uncertain future lies ahead for them? Like all living creatures in Zimbabwe, they face the threat of falling through the ever widening cracks into chaos. To Sharon Pincott, I wish her well and can only say thank you….You truly have been an inspiration to us all. God Speed.

‘Who will watch over the Presidential Elephants?’ ( My poem…dedicated to the elephants and their human friend.) Thank you to all those incredible men and women out there on the ground…the thin line between our wildlife and ‘the big empty.’ We salute all of you.

When will us humans learn that these elephants, rhino and other wildlife need our protection. We need to ‘Chengeta Wildlife’ . Now more than ever, our rangers need help to fight the fight because ‘when the earth beings grow greedy, the animals will slowly disappear’.

Rory Young is not only a wildlife tracker and activist who has been fighting against the dark and hungry shadows of poaching all his life, he is also a prolific and exceptional writer. Born in Zambia and brought up in different parts of Africa, he learnt to treat the earth well, reading the signs and stories left by different animals and humans in the bush. He managed to blend in with the natural surroundings that had become his playground and feasting on the wonders of nature. The songs and calls of the bush speak to him. The passion for the bush never left him and he decided to make it his life’s work to combat the poaching problem.

Let’s spread the word.

Facebook: Facebook.com/chengetavalley
Twitter: Twitter.com/ChengetaTusk
Thunderclap: Let’s kick some poacher *ss
Crowdfunding: Terrorists Are Targeting Africa’s Elephants

DISTANT MEMORIES

April 14, 2014 Jen

Many memories have been stored away from our numerous trips floating down the magnificent and rather forbidding Zambezi river. I have been embraced by the warm sultry breeze and lain under the African half moon hanging suspended in the endless sky. They say,’ once you have been bitten by the mosquito, you cannot get Africa out of your blood.’ Well I can certainly vouch for that. There is nothing more awe inspiring than the seductive lapping of water against the boat and the melancholy call of the fish eagle as he spreads his wings cruising the empty air pockets. BUT: nothing will ever beat watching an elderly elephant bull, his large ivory tusks weighing down his massive head as he romances the river line. A river line that has been shaped over time by the rough caresses of fast flowing waters. These images leave an everlasting imprint on the mind. To view these magnificent animals in their natural surrounds is truly like balm on the soul.

These imprints on my mind are now over eight years old and they do not fade. However that is what they are : only imprints and distant memories. This leads to questions that leave a lump the size of a large green apple lodged in my throat. If we don’t stop this rampant poaching…what does the future hold? I have seen these animals in the wild and am so scared that they will become just that…and imprint and distant memory. Portraits of a ravaged land by Nick Brandt says it all.

The fate of Africa’s elephants along with other wildlife hangs by a thread. It is on this thread that we as custodians of the earth need to concentrate and secure. There are many selfless and dedicated people out there who have been involved in conservation, and without them these magnificent animals would surely have been lost to the world. Each and every person dedicating some of their time to saving the elephants and other wildlife are needed and appreciated. Each and every one of them brings something different to the table. The Tashinga Initiative in Zimbabwe is a cause close to my heart and guys we salute you all. You are doing an amazing job under difficult circumstances.

While habitat loss is a real threat to these animals, nature has always had ways of keeping their numbers under control. Severe droughts would ravage the land and a large percentage of elephants throughout the entire elephant populations in the region would be lost. During these harsh and stressful times, elephant cows do not conceive, and with the losses from the drought the pressure on the land is relieved. These natural disasters, though cruel are efficient in keeping down the numbers. However mother nature and her hot dry winds are not where the biggest problem lies.

Corruption and greed are decimating Africa’s elephants. The men on the ground need our support. They cannot fight this war on their own. African Governments also need to take action and to be a part of the solution. Those with clout need to stop the demand so that poaching makes no economical sense at all. But while all these cogs are turning, we need to ‘CHENGETA WILDLIFE‘ (look after the wildlife) before it is too late.

Now more than ever, these ambling giants are so vulnerable. Their social structures have been pulled apart by the cruel efficiency of the gun. Every piece of ivory, whether carved or in it’s original form is an evocative memory of a once proud and regal elephant, who has suffered unjust cruelty in the most unspeakable way. This has all been in the name of ‘a piece of dentine’ or ‘teeth’ for humans to own trinkets or jewelry.

HOW, I ask can any human want to own something that is so symbolic of suffering and death?

SAY NO TO IVORY

RESPECT THE IVORY BAN

TUSKS BELONG TO ELEPHANTS

THEY DON’T BELONG TO MAN

Ask yourselves a question. ‘What does it say about us as humans when an elephant is worth more dead than alive?’ Let’s celebrate their life.

Rangers vs Poachers

April 7, 2014 Jen

I often think back to the day when I was told that there was absolutely nothing that I as an individual could do to help in this continual fight against the evils of poaching. All to often we close our minds to the blood red streaks that mar our African landscape. While the world watches, the images of butchered animals, bodies slightly bloated and legs suspended up in the air leap out of the computer or television, eyes staring unseeingly: pleading for somebody to take notice.

I cannot sit and do nothing. I feel their pain and anguish and beg all of you, ‘courage does not always need to be a huge roar.’ I started jennysjumbojargon in November 2013 with the thought of putting into words through poetry about the continual attack on these animals. I describe the pain and torment that these creatures must feel: this flanks me, the acrid smell of gunfire and the metallic taste of blood that clogs my throat. This is not a violent storm that has bullied its way into the African bush. This is a dark menacing chaos of greed, corruption and destruction. These ruthless killers are turning the African bush into a wild sweltering inferno, flames devouring any animal with tusks or horns. These animals are being hemmed in by a force of angry heat and unrelenting attacks. At the rate these pachyderms are being poached, mortality shadows them and it does not matter how large or small their personal treasure.

I would love to be in a position to stop the demand. All I can do is to share work done by others, support all the wildlife groups and leave that enormous part of the problem to those that have clout. Yao Ming and Jackie Chan are doing amazing work to raise awareness in the Asian countries on the plight of the African elephants and rhinos.

And then of course we have the good men on the ground. Those bush warriors who put their lives on the line to ensure the safety of the wildlife.

It is a life changing experience for the rangers who are witness to the ‘desolation’ long after the poached animal has unburdened its enormous wrinkled body into a spiritual updraft of lightness. Sadly for these animals death does not always come in a single violent stroke.

“I found that the very people who had knocked back the poaching in the 90’s were now old, or were replaced with younger, less experienced people who had grown up after the liberation wars and counter insurgency operations of my generation and who had had no training or experience in the very skills needed to win. Very few could track properly and almost none knew how to follow-up poacher spoor as an effective team. Furthermore, the will to win was gone and there was no money because there was also no publicity about what was happening.”

Africa needs many more teams on the ground, doing the actual anti-poaching work. Without them there is really no hope.

Rory has already volunteered much of his time in providing much needed training to wildlife protection teams, but violent groups in the region have now started to look to the ivory trade to fund terrorist activities. Rory is now seeking to implement a full time, comprehensive training program and provide the rangers with the resources they need to carry out their important work.

Chengeta Wildlife.org was started by Lisa Groenweg of Rock Valley, Iowa.

Chengeta Wildlife is a group of people from around the world who formed a nonprofit organization to support Rory Young and the work he does. He has skills and knowledge that the teams protecting wildlife badly need to protect themselves and wildlife. If enough funding is generated we would like to purchase tactical equipment needed by the teams. Things like night vision goggles, thermal sensing equipment and motion sensing cameras. Chengeta Wildlife is run by volunteers. So far 100% of funds raised have gone directly to the field where it is desperately needed. WE HAVE ZERO OVERHEAD COSTS!

Like Lisa, we too can do our bit to help combat the horrors of poaching. Collectively, we can ensure the continuation of Chengeta Wildlife’s ability to adequately train and equip the necessary new generation of rangers required to assist the continuation of the circle of life in elephants within their natural habitats in Africa.

Some people may think it is too late, but where there are elephants and other wildlife….there is hope. Let’s all give a growl of thunder. (My poem)

WILDLIFE RANGERS

March 31, 2014 Jen

As I sit in the comfort of my lounge..in the UK, my mind is constantly wandering to the far reaches of the sun kissed land that feeds my soul, and a land that I love so passionately. The horrors of poaching and animal trafficking leaves an ugly taste in my mouth and an even uglier scar on the land. These horrors of poaching invade my life through the social media network that even governments are unable to control and each and every time another elephant and other wildlife is poached, I feel like I have been kicked in the stomach. What can I do to help has been a constant chirp in my ear? What started as a slow wave of destruction has now reached tsunami proportions as wave after wave of attack leaves desolation in it’s wake.

The African bush, the womb of the continent has taken a perilous descent into the underworld leaving brushstrokes of blood and tortured scenes of desolation deep in the shadows. Death however, does not only stalk the wildlife. It also shadows those brave rangers who face unprecedented onslaughts from ruthless and well armed criminal gangs, who are determined to leave with their booty. In the deep stillness of the African bush, unquenchable greed has turned this beautiful bronzed land into a raw and violent battlefield.

The haunting cry of the ‘coucal’ is often overpowered by the the unwelcome ‘ k-k-k-k-k’, an irate bark from a machine gun. These are not random thugs after a piece of bush meat. These are highly organised gangs who poach for profit which in turn funds terrorist activities. The Rangers in Africa are often underpaid and ill-equipped as they fight to protect our precious wildlife.

Going on patrol is like doing a duty on the front line and just as, if not more dangerous. They are braced for the continual onslaught but need our help. Without donation support, they are unable to run a well oiled business. These Wildlife Warriors (My poem) need comprehensive training and the resources to carry out their important work. These brave men and woman are up against towering storm clouds that threaten our wildlife’s existence.

The earth will provide plenty: but never enough to fulfill man’s greed and these courageous men are fighting to stop our bush from becoming a no-mans land of external waste.

Let us all salute these men and women and celebrate the power and resilience of the human spirit.

CHENGETA WILDLIFE is completely volunteer run and this investment will allow the rangers the much needed skills and resources to defend themselves and protect the magnificent elephants.

A NIGHT FULL OF ELEPHANTS

March 3, 2014 Jen

In the golden silence of early evening, the shimmering leaves appear to be holding their breath. Africa’s giants ghost into view, puffing up small whirls of dust that appear to hang motionless. Their matriarch, her large and noble head held high, swings her trunk back and forth. She is at one with the peace that only early evening can bring. Despite her heavy bulk of 10 000 lbs (10 tonnes), she has the lightness and grace of a dancer. She is an ambassador for her kind, ‘Loxodonta africana.’

Her fluid movements ooze with confidence as she leads her herd into the darkening shadows of nightfall. They follow her through the swirling dust along the well worn game trail. Their survival depends on her guidance and they trust her implicitly as she has led them for the past 30 years. They are a cohesive group of females and their delightful offspring. She, the matriarch and her daughters have assisted with many births, forming an impenetrable wall of muscle and tusks around the cow in labour. The birth of a calf causes much excitement in the herd as they encompass the new born with joy: a cacophony of trumpeting screams and rumbles shred the air. All the females welcome and encourage the newborn to get onto it’s feet as this short video clip shows. An elephant’s emotional attachment to their family members rivals our own.

The mother is responsible for providing the +-250 lb newborn with milk. Like all mothers, her newborn is a precious seed and it will never grow unless nourished and nurtured. In the elephant world, the new born will be raised within this warm and caring environment, learning life skills from all the females in the Matriarchal herd. Young aunties or elder siblings will take on baby sitting duties and this all important for their development, preparing them for the responsibilities of ‘Motherhood.’

These young elephant calves learn how to become independent by watching and mimicking the others. A calf will begin to experiment with it’s trunk around 4 months of age, but it will take a lot of practice to become proficient at taming more than 40 000 muscles that gives an elephant’s trunk such dexterity.

Elephants will spend from 12 – 18 hours a day fulfilling their enormous appetite. An adult can consume between 200 – 600 lbs of food. As herbivores, their ‘smorgasbord’ will consist of grasses, tree foliage, bark and twigs washed down with up to 50 gallons of water per day. Their choices of menu change with the varying seasons. Nature knows best. According to this report, elephants concentrate on the bark, stem and roots rather than foliage or fruit and plants. In this way it reduces the elephants overlap of food selection with other animals.

The information passed down over generations is imperative to their survival. Discipline is necessary for unruly youngsters who will receive a cuffing from one of the elders’ trunks to keep them in line. To survive, they need to be team players. They have learnt all the right skills and they use them effectively. The matriarch has taught them that clear roles within the herd: communications, co-operation, respect for one another, decision making and the art of skillful reconciliation ensures cohesive bonding between the elephants. When in crisis, they will trust and follow the matriarch who has earned their respect, and she will not rule by force or fear. Her impeccable memory serves them well.

Through the darkness, two adult cows stand like sentries: their large ears gently fanning the warm and heavy air. With a low frequency purr that you can feel rather hear, the herd rouse themselves, their need for food fueling them on. As the golden light stitches the horizon together with the coming of dawn, lazy light sneaks through the leaves freckling the ground. This charming family of elephants have lived to face another day. These ambassadors of the wild have shared with us their intelligence, love and compassion. They are a source of great peace and wisdom that us humans should take note of. Over centuries they have been treated with a total disrespect from humans and things need to change. Us, as ‘rational thinking animals’ have the ability to alter our destructive ways. The thought of a world without these sentient beings is unthinkable. We have already caused such disharmony in their lives, but there is still time to change. The challenge is now to reshape outdated perceptions about these animals.

China, PLEASE ‘KILL THE IVORY TRADE’ not the ‘ELEPHANTS.’

DRIVING THE ELEPHANT TO EXTINCTION?

February 17, 2014February 17, 2014 Jen

1979 – The elephant population was 1.3 million.

2014 – We see a figure of 500 000 being bandied about. How long will these soulful animals leave their footprints on the sand when a 100 are being slaughtered per day? Are elephants being poached faster than they can breed. One elephant every 15 minutes is being slaughtered for its personal treasure ‘white gold’. In layman’s terms: they are being slaughtered for their incisors. What sort of society are we a part of? Tragically, the illegal wildlife trade is enormous. Annually £12 billion ($20 billion US) worth of ill gotten gains is butchered from these sentient (my poem) creatures leaving the putrefying stench of rotting flesh in their wake. WHAT FOR?

95% of the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s forests are devoid of elephants.’ What for? I know, I am repeating myself. Sadly what collectors call ‘white gold’ represents wealth and nobleness for the Chinese people. What does a tragic misconception like this mean to the elephants? DEATH. The lust for ivory that puts Chinese people in a class of their own is for these charismatic creatures, a death warrant. The bush, the elephants home has become a battlefield, and they are often slaughtered in the cruelest and most primitive ways.

Despite the global ban in 1989, the illegal ivory business is flourishing. Beijing’s ‘elephant graveyard’ shows how China is still in the driving seat, and these people hold the destiny of the African elephants in their hands. Hot on China’s heels is the USA who have now implemented a ban on commercial ivory which I hope will set a precedent for other countries to follow.

Hong Kong is a key transit point for ivory and other illegal wildlife entering from Africa on route to destinations which include Philippines, Vietnam, Taiwan and Malaysia. Hong Kong has however declared it is in the forefront in the fight to halt the ivory trade, and has shown it’s support by announcing it will destroy 28 tonnes of seized ivory. This is all good news for elephants?

The ‘blood ivory’ trade has reached such alarming proportions that Governments from around the globe are being urged to go into ‘battle’ against the illegal trade. Prince Charles and Prince William hosted a two day summit in London last week which was attended by decision makers from 46 countries. I joined the throng of animal lovers outside to show our relief and support that this positive action had brought so many countries together.

Now, as an animal/elephant lover and as a responsible custodian of our wildlife, I want action, and we want it now before it is too late. I am hoping that this landmark agreement to halt wildlife trafficking is just a beginning. With so few elephants remaining, it is a fight we all need to concentrate on. Once these sentient beings are gone, they are gone. For those who can afford to buy ivory, take that money and go and visit the last few remaining countries where these magnificent creatures roam. Kenya, South Africa, Tanzania and Zimbabwe: to and see them in the wild and fall in love with them. You too can become a voice for the voiceless as we change our outlook on ivory. Fighting wildlife crime can no longer be viewed in isolation: some of it is linked to terrorism, which is funded by ‘blood ivory’. In many instances, it has become a case of killing elephants to fund killing people. To me, it all seems a little obscene.

You as a consumer, a thinking consumer can decide the fate of these soulful creatures: it is as easy as the choice TO BUY or NOT TO BUY. As a consumer of ivory, your demand for the product is responsible for not only the death of elephants, but also the collapse of elephant society brought on by extensive poaching. Elephants transmit elephant cultures from one generation to the next. Echoes of harmony are quickly lost as survivors of poaching incidents are left traumatised and rudderless. Elephants are close knit and emotional creatures with strong family bonds. What we see in behavioral patterns with elephants after a ‘genocide’ is frighteningly close to how humans react. Let us not be the ones who destroy this magnificent species.

DO NOT TAKE ELEPHANTS FOR GRANTED

November 29, 2013 Jen

My first recollection of seeing a herd of elephants was on my 5th birthday. They were large and grey and not at all like the ‘Dumbo’ images that I had in my head. My yellow haired doll with her unblinking blue eyes proved to keep my interest more than the elephants.

Looking back, I had not appreciated the freedom of space, the warm breeze caressing my hair and the warmth of the wooden slats toasting my bum and bare legs. There I was, sitting on the floor of a viewing platform overlooking a water hole in the heart of the Hwange Game Reserve. The sleeping water reflected the gold trimmed clouds scudding happily across the painted sky. Noisy doves policed the trees, their melodious calls filling the late afternoon. Small midges floated and whirled around my face… it was perfect, and yet I kept playing with my doll.

The peaceful afternoon erupted with trumpeting bellows as a small herd of elephants bathed in a warm bronzed glow emerged from the deep shadows in the bush. I did not watch for more than a few minutes as they did a lumbering shuffle, kicking up clouds of dust making for the water hole. Enormous, grey and stately: and they were just…there. I did not have any idea on how privileged I was.

Now I have grown and so has my passion for these majestic and gentle giants. I will never take them for granted again. I have joined this fight against poaching to spread awareness of their plight, and to make sure our children’s children will be able to see them in the wild.

I would dearly love to be on the ground… but I am not. I am only doing what I can from afar… but I do do various trips back to Africa through all the different links I have found on the internet, and tonight I am going to take you back to Hwange…help spread the word.. these elephants need friends.

The Presidential Elephant Conservation Project – Hwange