Ford celebrate World Ranger Day

Every year on 31 July the world celebrate Ranger day, not to be confused by the Ford bakkie, it rather relates to wildlife rangers. However, the company that creates the product with the namesake not only recognizes the important role game rangers play in preserving our wildlife but also organisations conducting environmental education, research and conservation projects. Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa assists organisations through the loan of locally assembled Ford Ranger Double Cab 4x4s through its Ford Wildlife Foundation (FWF).

The Ford Ranger vehicles are loaned to Ford Wildlife Foundation partner organisations for a period of two years in which they can be used to carry out the important work they do in remote and hard-to-reach locations. Since the launch of the Ford Wildlife Foundation in 2014, twelve vehicles have been donated while 25 Ranger bakkies are currently on loan to partner organisations.

“At Ford Motor Company, wildlife conservation is something that is near and dear to our hearts, and we take the opportunity today to acknowledge the men and women throughout South Africa that work as rangers and conduct invaluable service to us all. The Ford Wildlife Foundation plays a crucial role in providing mobility for the wide-ranging and far-reaching conservation projects across Southern Africa, and we are exceptionally proud to be supporting the important work of these dedicated organisations, men and women in protecting our natural resources for future generations,” Conrad Groenewald, Director of Marketing, Sales and Service at FMCSA and chairman of the FWF.

While the day aims to support and encourage those individuals protecting the world’s fauna and flora and ensures sustainability thereof, it is also to pay respect to the game rangers that have passed away whilst carrying out their heroic duties. While one might think that game rangers only monitor animal behaviour and give guided tours, they are responsible for much more including; ensuring the continued well-being of wild animals, population management in collaboration with ecologists, management of soil erosion, alien vegetation management, water shortages, wildlife surveillance, as well as fence and infrastructure management. These duties are up and above the valuable teachings, they give to communities surrounding caring for ecosystems and how to reduce the exploitation of animals and natural resources.

The Ford Wildlife Foundation partners with a variety of conservation projects focusing on an array of fields including but not limited to preserving and expanding precious grasslands and the protection and growth of critically endangered animal species populations. The projects use Ford Ranger vehicles to conduct important work like relocating cheetahs from one reserve to another like the Endangered Wildlife Trust’s Cheetah Metapopulation project does. This ensures that the cheetah population flourishes while maintaining long-term genetic and demographic integrity within the small fenced areas.

“It is fantastic that we have Ford working with us on the Cheetah Metapopulation Project. Ford has provided us with a comfortable and extremely capable vehicle so that we can carry out the job in any location. This animal rotation we do for the metapopulation project ensures genetic diversity within the cheetah species,” Vincent van der Merwe, Cheetah Metapopulation Coordinator, Endangered Wildlife Trust.

Similarly themed the EWT Wildlife and Transport Programme focusses on mitigating the negative impact of transport infrastructure on wildlife. The project aims to improve driver safety as well as the reduction of animal deaths in wildlife-vehicle collisions and is also supported by the Ford Wildlife Foundation.

“Our programme benefits enormously from the use of our double cab Ranger, since we do a vast amount of travelling, and are active on all roads in the country, from protected areas to regional and national highways,” concludes Wendy Collinson-Jonker, manager of the EWT-WTP.