Posted August 2, 2023 in News
Field Ranger Donation Received
In July, we were lucky enough to receive a donation of £2000 from the UK to put towards some vital Field Ranger equipment. The pound has been very strong against the Rand so we picked an opportune time to purchase the items, meaning we could get a little more for our money.
In total, we purchased 5 pairs of waterproof binoculars which will assist the Rangers in seeing any poachers approaching the fence line from a distance, evaluating any injured animals and looking after our endangered species on the Reserve.
We also purchased 4 Game Pro torches, used by Field Guides for night drives these torches use a red filter which is able to pick up eye shine in the distance up to 750m and 4 Trail cameras (camera traps) which will be dotted around the Reserve to pick up both animals and poachers – these cameras take high resolution videos.
And finally a silent Field Ranger – a fabulous solar powered camera trap which sends pictures to our phones to pick up anything unusual. They can be deployed anywhere on the Reserve and we don’t have to keep changing batteries and checking the SD card on the camera. Once we receive a picture, we can then deploy Field Rangers to the incursion area and deter any would be poachers from entering the Reserve.
An amazing sum of money that has enabled us to kit out the Field Rangers with some vital equipment for the bush and will really make a difference to their ability to do the job effectively.
A massive ‘thanks’ to our donor for thinking of us and allowing us to spend the money on our team and helping us in the continued fight to protect our endangered species for future generations.
Why Help UmPhafa?
UmPhafa is a 6000-hectare Nature Reserve near Ladysmith and we have a 44km fence line. We are home to a wide range of species including giraffe, zebra, leopard, lots of plains game as well as White Rhino. UmPhafa has been set up as an educational Conservation Reserve, teaching and showing students and Interns that visit us how a Reserve passionate about Conservation is run, which is why we need you to support and help UmPhafa.
