“The sanctuary is a jewel in the middle of the suburbs and should be appreciated,” said André Brink, the acting chairperson of the group called On Florida.
The Hamerkop Bird Sanctuary is part of a wetlands situated in Florida, near Florida Lake. Although the sanctuary belongs to the municipality and falls under the jurisdiction of the Wetlands Department and Johannesburg City Parks and Zoo (JCPZ), the members of On Florida have been appointed as its custodians. “We need to take ownership of this beautiful place as a community,” André said.
André has been a passionate bird-watcher for years but was not aware of this sanctuary until he got involved with the On Florida group. “The park was being used as a dumping ground, so I decided to get the community involved to do a clean-up. But during the clean-up, I realised this place was too valuable to just keep clean – we needed to transform it into a place where people can relax and appreciate nature,” he said.
Although he has a full-time job, André is involved in the ongoing clean-up, maintenance and other tasks at the sanctuary on a part-time basis, in conjunction with the other On Florida members as well as members of the community.
“We built a bird-hide about a year ago in an effort to get people to visit the sanctuary to do bird-watching, and it has been very successful. We would love to use this sanctuary for conservation and education,” André said excitedly.
But, before the sanctuary can be opened to school groups or companies wanting to do team-building, some things need to be put in place. Some project visions for the future of the sanctuary have already been proposed and discussed with all parties involved. The sanctuary does not have a fresh water supply for human consumption, or ablution blocks, so these are first on the list. Other things included in the development plans include building gabion walls at the park’s entrance, getting more public participation in clean-ups, placing of benches (which have already been donated by the JCPZ), permanent cleaning staff, making and installing of route markers, building of a new bridge at the planned new lookout spot and the possibility of appointing a caretaker/ gardener.
The sanctuary has a variety of reptile, fish and bird species. According to André, bird-watchers have spotted over 100 species of birds and at least 10 of them are rare. “The best time to visit the sanctuary to do some bird-watching is early morning or evening. This is also a breeding habitat which means the birds’ breeding habits can be observed,” he said.
André encourages anyone who would like to get involved in the sanctuary by donating building materials, offering their time, or in any other way, to contact him on 072 570 1710. The sanctuary and bird-hide are open to the public over weekends, but arrangements do need to be made beforehand.
André concludes, “If we do not take ownership of this sanctuary and conserve it, it will all go to waste.”
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