Wildlife gets new home
45 zebra and wildebeest have been caught and translocated to Mayibuye Game Reserve.
PHEZULU Game Reserve in Botha’s Hill has successfully caught and translocated 45 zebra and wildebeest to a nearby emerging game reserve, Mayibuye.
According to Tristan Dickerson, general manager of Phezulu Safari Park, Phezulu Game Reserve (which forms part of the Phezulu Game Estate and where Phezulu Safari Park is based) was founded 10 years ago in order to protect the area in the Valley of a 1 000 Hills, between KwaXimba, KwaNyuswa and Drummond. Two thirds of the reserve has been fenced and game previously occurring in the area were reintroduced.
On the southern edge of the game reserve is the Phezulu Game Estate where the animals from the reserve move freely between the residential homes. “In order to remove all alien plants from the valley, the game reserve employs five permanent staff who cut and poison all alien plants, allowing the veld to return to its former beauty and open up more land for the indigenous game. The biggest indicator of success is when the reserve’s animal populations have flourished under our protection to the point that we have excess animals to assist with repopulating emerging reserves. It was due to this excess of animals that we decided to capture and translocate some of our grazers,” said Dickerson.
The game reserve is accessible to the home owners who live in the Phezulu Game Estate and visitors who book a game drive from Phezulu Safari Park. The game reserve also holds organised trail runs, mountain bike races and hikes through it in order for guests to experience its natural beauty in a secure environment.
“Game reserves are not only for the benefit of animals and vegetation, they are also good for the human soul. Spending just a few minutes in a beautiful place like this can clear your mind from the hustle and bustle of daily life. It is literally a breath of fresh air,” said Dickerson.
He thanked Shemungwe Game Capture for professionally and successfully capturing and translocating the animals in as stress-free a manner as possible. All 45 zebra and wildebeest have settled into their new home and are doing well.
