Adapting to climate change in the wildlife sector

Due to the environmental risks linked to climate change, greater areas of land will be required to ensure the survival of wildlife species, as numbers rapidly decrease. This was according to Lizanne Nel, conservation manager at the South African Hunters’ and Game Conservation Association.

She said the habitats of many wildlife species were changing due to climate change, which was detrimental to the survival of these animals, and thus placed pressure on maintaining diversity and availability of animals for use in different industries such as hunting, game ranching, meat production and tourism.

According to a recent article by Reuters, industry body Wildlife Ranching South Africa (WRSA) estimated that the Northern Cape had lost more than two-thirds of its game over the past three years.

WRSA was currently conducting a countrywide survey to determine the scale of animal losses and the financial impact on the country’s more than 9 000 wildlife ranches, according to the article.

Nel said that, in the short term, larger game farms would be better off managing environmental risks such as a shortage of grazing land as a result of the reduced rainfall that had been experienced.

“There needs to be corridors for species to be able to move around. For smaller farmers, this would open opportunities for collaborations that will require [taking down] fences,” she said.

“However, animals that have been intensively managed, especially those on small farms, will struggle to adapt to the changes in environment compared with animals in the wild, as they have lost the ability to survive on their own.”

Management costs would also increase when it came to larger farms or ranches, as these areas would require management interventions, such as the continual monitoring of the effects of climate change in order to better manage the risks.

John Hume, rhino breeder and conservationist, attributed the current financial difficulties being experienced in his farming operation to the drought in North West during the past four years, as he needed to buy in lucerne to supplement grazing for his population of almost 1 740 southern white rhinos.

Hume, who farms on 8 000ha, said having a larger area of land had helped him ensure that his animals had enough grazing, but it was an expensive exercise to manage and track them. – Siyanda Sishuba