Initiative to find and remove traps, snares

The relevance of snares as a critical danger to wildlife populations has long been acknowledged

THE Limpopo National Park has put the spotlight on the often dubbed “forgotten side of poaching” – snares and traps – after a waterbuck and three endangered African wild dogs were killed by a snare line in the park last week.

Conservation organisation the Peace Parks Foundation said snares and traps killed millions of animals around the world every year.

Throughout Africa the snares are most often used to capture antelope for bushmeat, although other animals are indiscriminately trapped.

The foundation said it had removed more than 20 000 snares from conservation areas across southern Africa, training rangers and putting more feet on the ground.

Recently in the Limpopo National Park, Mozambique, a snare line concealed in a high-density antelope movement area killed four wild dogs.

The foundation said it was clear from analysis that the wild dogs had not been the target of this trap. The carcasses were intact with no body parts removed.

“Most likely responding to the distress calls of the trapped waterbuck, the dogs had also been caught in the snare line,” the foundation said.

Wild dogs are one of the most endangered carnivores in the world, with only a few thousand believed to be living in southern and eastern Africa.

According to the Wildlife Act, the dogs are particularly susceptible to being caught as bycatch in snares because, if one dog gets caught, the rest of the pack are likely to go back to find the missing individual, becoming ensnared themselves.

“The relevance of snares as a critical danger to wildlife populations has long been acknowledged by Mozambique’s conservation authority, the National Administration of Conservation Areas (Anac). Working closely in collaboration with the Peace Parks Foundation, Anac has intensified efforts to rid protected areas from these ‘wildlife landmines’,” the foundation said.

Various operational activities have been enhanced in the Limpopo National Park. Along the park’s western border – a boundary shared with the Kruger National Park – an intensive protection zone was established to enable focused tactical application of 80% of anti-poaching resources.

A central command centre equipped with the latest technology has been set up with the help and support of the Dyck Advisory Group, and 29 additional rangers have been employed. They are trained through the Southern African Wildlife College.

In addition, through a partnership with Panthera, a specialised anti-poaching team was launched in the park last year, dedicated to assisting the park and the Greater Limpopo Carnivore Programme with the conservation of wild cats and canines. This unit patrols the carnivore range areas, removing snares and responding to other risks that threatens the lives and well-being of all carnivores.

Over the past five years more than 5 500 snares were removed from the Limpopo National Park.

To donate towards the protection of the animals of the Limpopo National Park visit www.peaceparks.org/donate/