We know all too well that many species in Africa continue to struggle against the ravages of human activity, be it from pollution, poaching, or the widespread destruction of natural habitats.
The battle to protect many of the continent’s most endangered animals rages daily, and of course news media plays a key role in keeping us up to speed on how our collective efforts are working out. Unfortunately, we’re more accustomed to hearing bad news than good.
While that’s partly to do with what makes for a compelling headline, it’s also because really uplifting conservation stories are a much rarer species in themselves. However, there have been some genuinely heroic achievements made in African conservation in recent years, even if not all of them seem to be as widely reported as we’d hope.
Here’s a quick look at some recent examples that should help inspire us all to keep up the valuable fight.
The Black Mambas
The Black Mamba APU (Anti-Poaching Unit) was founded in 2013 by Transfrontier Africa NPC, and is the first majority female (32 women and 2 men) anti-poaching unit in South Africa. Initially formed to protect the Olifants West Region of Balule Nature Reserve, it quickly expanded into other regions and now protects all boundaries of the Balule, part of the Greater Kruger National Park.
As well as protection of rhinos and other species through the reporting and destruction of poacher camps and bush meat kitchens, the group serves as a dynamic conservation action role model for its communities. In four years, they’ve helped reduce poaching levels in the Kruger by up to 76% and received global recognition – including last year’s Innovation in Conservation award from Helping Rhinos, and a 2017 Eco-Logic Silver Award from the Enviropaedia.
Echo Parakeets
The Echo Parakeet, indigenous to Mauritius, is often seen as one of the more remarkable examples of a species saved from the brink of obliteration. The bird was all but extinct in the early 1980s – just a dozen individuals remained in the wild, with breeding activity hampered the destruction and predation of its tree nesting sites.
After a dedicated conservation programme that continued through the turn of the millennium, the numbers were successfully raised to around 60 breeding pairs; enough for the Mauritian Wildlife Foundation to start intensive population management activity. Fast forward to today, and although still classified as rare, the Echo Parakeet is no longer viewed as under immediate threat: around 350 breeding pairs remain on the island and, according to the most recent data reports from BirdLife International, the population is growing all the time.
Namibia
More than 40% of Namibia is now under active conservation management, the most notable result of which has been a marked upswing in its native populations of lions, oryx, zebras, black rhinos and cheetahs (the latter of which now form the largest single population anywhere in the world). After gaining independence in 1990, Namibia became the first African country to incorporate environmental protection directly into its constitution, passing governmental laws that put the ownership and benefits of natural resources into the hands of local communities.
The effect of the conservation projects those communities set up has been dramatic: today, Namibia is thought to be the only African country where wildlife numbers are actively growing year on year.
Sine-Saloum Delta (Senegal)
Coastal mangrove forests are among the most productive ecosystems on the planet, and the Sine-Saloum Delta, just north of the Gambian border, provides a lush home to a diverse array of fish, birds, monkeys and hyena. It was almost lost nearly a decade ago – but, once again, it’s now a thriving example of community conservation in action.
Its status as a healthy, well-protected environment today is largely thanks to the work of village leaders from the nearby communities of Dassilame Serere, Sourou, Bani and Nema Bah. In 2013, they stepped in to put a halt to the rapid destruction of the Sine-Saloum mangroves by clumsy and overzealous harvesting of the vegetation for oysters, food fish and fuel. Backed by a dedicated reforestation programme and careful shoreline management, the mangroves now form part of a Unesco World Heritage-listed, 1,800-sq-km delta that is rightly described as one of West Africa’s ecological jewels.
