Being
avid wildlife aficionados in general, and big cats fans in particular, we have
talked about the possibility to something like Amakhala’s Student/Volunteer
Program for years, without really knowing how to go about realizing such an undertaking.
Slightly less than a year ago we came across a newspaper article (in the Swedish
free newspaper Metro) that described sundry volunteer programs, and after some
“shopping around” we found World Wildlife Experience (in BBC Wildlife
Magazine) and found Amakhala to be the most attractive for us (for several reasons,
including it being located in a malaria-free
area). Consequently, we booked
four weeks, spanning between 3 November and 1 December, and after having spent
one night in Cape Town, and one night in Port Elizabeth, we arrived at Paterson
on Monday 3 November, and was greeted by the ranger David Fellowes and the students
currently active within the program.
Although we came here with the intention
and expectation to learn as much as possible about wildlife conservation and preservation,
we can honestly say that our stay here (with only four days left) have far exceeded
our expectations. We have learnt more about wildlife management than we ever dreamed
of, and that not only included learning about animals and plants per se, but also
economical and political issues and concerns, course programs, tourism and its
inevitable “footprint” on the environment (not only bad, since it helps
raise interest in preservation) and so on. We have increased our knowledge not
only about our favorite animals (i.e. big cats, our main reason for this trip),
but also about insects, birds, plants, and all other animals found on the reserve.
Our ranger, David, has also helped us arrange trips to other reserves and sanctuaries,
which has further increased our knowledge about African wildlife, on top of giving
us a cornucopia of simply unforgettable experiences. In sum, our brains feel close
to overload – in a good way!
The strongest moment is, of course,
impossible to rank our experiences here at Amakhala, but we both agree that the
perhaps most awe-inspiring moment of our stay here (and of our entire lives!)
was the first night we went out on the weekly combined anti-poaching/lion monitoring
mission. After having searched for the lions for a substantial time (in the dark),
we were about to call it a day (well, night) and head back home, when, all of
sudden, the lions all appeared in the headlights of our Land Rover, feasting on
a newly captured springbuck. The female adult and the three subadults were there,
just a few meters from us, in the darkness of the African night. The male lion
was vaguely seen a few meters to the left,
resting in the grass. No walls between
us and them, just African night, and compared to our daily encounters with the
lions, this was a completely different experience! Here, at night, it was obvious
who was in charge, whose “element” the African night is (not ours).
Then Scar, the female adult, walked out a few meters to the right of the road,
still just a few meters in front of our eyes, and vocally signaled her presence
to whatever listeners might be out there, and that sound was quite likely the
most eerie and humbling acoustic experience we have both encountered – and
we are both “acoustically oriented”, being musicians (both of us) and
a linguist/phonetician (Robert).
As we left, with the primeval sound ringing
in our ears, we directed our torches towards the darkness, seeing the green reflections
of big cats eyes staring back at us, and we were in total agreement as to who
are the Masters of the Night at the savannah! |
