Serval Release

Wednesday 18th August 2010

Today we found out we were going to be present for the release of a Serval that was captured at Forever Resorts in Warmbaths. We travelled out to the Vleilande along the fence of the 400 hectre. There we found Sieg and the guy who brought the Serval to Sondela. We were each given a chance to look at the Serval in the cage, whilst Sieg explained the release procedure to us. There were a few beautiful Kudu bulls present for the release as well though they lost interest once everyone was there. The Serval was a large, beautiful male, although he was very wild. Once we ere all done looking at him, the cage was offloaded from the back of the bakkie and placed so that we could watch the motion of the Serval once he was released. The cage was placed on the floor and the door was opened. The Serval took off in a hurry straight into the long grass. It was incredible to see just how quickly they move and how well they camouflage in the long grass. Thereafter we had a debrief and headed back to the academy. It was overall a fantastic experience, a first for me.

Cultural Heritage

17 August 2010

We did the cultural heritage part of our course today. We got taken out to the Waterpunt Koppie to go look at Stone and Iron Age artifacts that could possibly still have bn there. Cobus explained alot about the history of the people here long before Sondela was ever born, how they lived, what they used the Koppie for, the different types of rocks that were found there and how they were shaped into weapons and tools. We then looked for artifacts ourselves, I found an old pot rim and a cuck used for breaking and shaping rocks into tools or weapons. There were lots of photos taken, it was an interesting and enlightening experience... and we got to play in the dirt and get our hands dirty.

Crocodile Farm

Monday 2 August 2010

We went to the Thaba Kwena Crocodile Farm and had alot of fun. Learned quite a bit about crocodiles while we were there. All the students did presentations about crocodiles, where I learned about evolution of crocodiles, their scientific names, who Piet and Battleaxe are, I was assigned to find out about Crocodile Ranching, who CITES is and threats to crocodiles in the wild and in captivity. Making the posters was also fun, explaining what we had learned while on our visit. Then just before we left we had to do a sort of welcoming for a guest as if we were tour guides there ourselves. For me, CITES is a fantastic initiative. CITES is the Convention for International Trade of Endangered Species. Formed in 1975 to limit trade on Endangered wildlife. Until I had to cover it, I didnt know CITES existed. I noted what was required to open and run a crocodile far, what conditions are necessary for crocodiles to thrive on a farm, and what can be done to prevent harm from other threats to the crocodiles. Overall it was an amazing, inciteful and very enjoyable trip.

Fire Breaks

Tuesday 22 June 2010
Fire Breaks

I helped Marno with the fire breaks today on the Sondela Service Road. I was put in the position of walking in front of the tractor while the tractor slashed. The morning, whilst cold was worked through quite quickly, despite the veld being very thick & the ground very unstable. Found a few beautiful termite mounds while I was busy, as well as a few holes made by ground digging snakes, possibly Rinkhals. All these things needed to be watched by the tractor while it was slashing. We then encountered a couple of problems with the tractor. After lunch we couldnt do much because the slasher had a problem. But over all it was a good experience, I learned alot from Marno about the slasher & cutting the grass.

World Cup Weekend

Friday 11 June 2010

Today is the start of the World Cup. I was working welcoming at the main gate, my first trip to main gate to welcome guests. Listening to the radio waiting for Bafana Bafana to play Mexico, the atmosphere at the main gate was electric, more than half the guests were in before the kick off at 4 o clock. All the guests were wearing Bafana shirts, were in a good mood, excited and it just built the whole atmosphere. When talking to the guests, we would talk about the soccer, our predictions for the game and who we thought would win the world cup. Then when Bafana scored and Mel called on the radio Go Bafana, we had a guest come in at that moment and he was celebrating in his car, it was an unforgettable moment on just how much having the world cup in South Africa meant to every South African. The unity in diversity that I saw was absolutely amazing. Things went quite after seven but the whole atmosphere still didnt die down. Viva Bafana Bafana!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Saturday 12 June 2010

Saturday morning started very early with a game walk from the Maroela pool. We had two families go with us, they asked alot of questions about the bush, myself and the english speaking guests spoke alot about Sondela and its history while Eddie and Lydon dealt mostly with the afrikaans guests and the things I was unsure of. Then I helped out at Piccininis the rest of the morning just so that the waitresses could manage a bit easier. Saturday afternoon I helped in the hall while the rugby was on. Once again there was a great vibe as the Boks beat France. Saturday evening I worked at the bring and braai for a while until Mel asked me if I could go home.

Sunday 13 June 2010

Sunday was a quiet day, I pretty much just helped out around Piccininis the whole morning. Then after lunch I went to clean fire equipment and fill the water tanks, as well as made sure everything was in order. thereafter we had our report back meeting and did chicken run. The whole weekend I was student on duty.

Bundu Bashing

Well two weeks in the bush, minus the two days I had on the first aid course, they were two intersting weeks. It was fun working in the bush, cutting trees, shrubs and grass, using different equipment (my particular favourite being the panga), sawing trees was the one thing I had done a bit before I started my course so it was the one thing I was adept at. Found a large Puff Adder on the first day of our course, it showed us the potential dangers of what we were doing, I walked away looking like a person who fought with a thorn tree, scratches on my arms, legs, head, back and ribs were all worth the potential reward in knowing we have protected Sondela for the most part from fires. The speeches and lunch with Mel, Ian, Diederick and Sieg was also entertaining, we definately developed as a team through the course of the two weeks.

My first course at Sondela Acadamy

My first course went very well. I had an awesome time going to the widlife centre, working at the wildlife centre nd then completing my assessments accordingly. I learned alot over the past month, like the difference between turning a computer on and off, playing with the baby Serval, the feeding routine of all the different animals, what they eat, how to prevent escapes, what safety hazards to look for and that the girls are scared of Safrina when she is on the loose. I cant wait to start the next course so I can learn more about the bush, the place I love the more. Thank you Sondela Acadamy for giving me the opportunity.