‘Mark Lederle’s crusade to rescue birds’
Remembering the history of Birds Sanctuary
In the early 1900s, a brick making factory was set up on the outskirts of Pietermaritzburg. This factory, which became known as Corobrik, excavated raw materials to build, among other things, the Pietermaritzburg city hall. The deep excavations they left behind filled with water and became a haven for birds.
In 1935 the then mayor of Pietermaritzburg, Albert Allison, was so enchanted with the profusion of birdlife in these old pits that he declared the site to be a bird sanctuary. Over time, the five acres of bird sanctuary became the roosting and breeding site for egrets, herons, ducks and geese.
By 1941 there were over 60 bird species recorded living in and around the sanctuary.
But, in the late 1990's the Pietermaritzburg municipality decided it needed to create a drive to increase business investment in the city, and the bird sanctuary (and the adjacent polo fields) were developed (for the most part) into huge car dealerships.
A tiny remnant of the original bird sanctuary remained where desperate birds still tried to roost and breed in the few remaining trees the surrounding businesses had not cut down. The irony is that while businesses cut the trees down because of the noise and mess the birds created, conversely, the birds were trying to survive in the noise and mess the humans had created. It became a common sight to see birds entrapped and tangled in rubbish, often hanging to their death in the trees.
Until one man stepped in.
Mark Lederle became a business owner who cared enough to become the unsung hero of these birds. Lederle set up a network of rescuers, including a street sweeper, climber, and tree feller (not to fell the trees) who monitor the site, and rush in to rescue and retrieve beleaguered birds. Lederle pays these people a total of R600 per bird rescued. He himself often opts to bring these birds (at his own cost), through to Freeme Wildlife for help.
We have lost count of the number of birds from the bird sanctuary that have been admitted to our centre over the years. Thanks to Lederle, many of these birds have recovered from their injuries and been given second chances at life in much safer locations with a far less tragic history or hopeless future than the old Pietermartizburg bird sanctuary.
If you would like more information, please contact Freeme on 033 3303036
Content supplied by Tammy Caine of Freeme.