Student Volunteers
Wildlife ACT is an endangered species monitoring organisation and as such we oversee the daily monitoring of relevant endangered species of wildlife and animals on reserves in Zululand, South Africa.
Before you design a project it is best that you first understand the work which we do and within that the scope of data we have available for analysis and the environment within which you can collect additional data. This requires us to go out into the reserve every day and find these animals using either VHF tracking equipment (which you will be given instructions on how to operate) or conventional spoor tracking techniques. We also develop photo and illustrated identikits of all the species we help monitor.
To give you a better idea, below is an example of the monitoring we are responsible for on Thanda Private Game Reserve and a list of the species we monitor on two other reserves.
Thanda Game Reserve Project
Volunteer at the majestic Thanda Game Reserve where we are currently responsible for the monitoring of the African Wild Dog, cheetah, White and Black Rhino, vultures and Spotted Hyena on Thanda.Although the hyenas are not endangered we have started a program to monitor their feeding behaviour on the reserve. This will help us determine the impact their population is having on the prey abundance, which ultimately affects the African Wild Dog and cheetah populations. Every other night is therefore spent with the hyenas.
On a daily basis we find the resident pack of seven African Wild Dogs and two collared cheetahs. These animals have VHF collars on them which enable us to find them with telemetry equipment. We are in the process of collaring at least one other hyena and another two cheetahs on the reserve.
The Black Rhinos do have transmitters in their horns, but the monitoring of these animals is currently done on foot and is very dangerous - students are therefore not involved, but could potentially access the data if they are interested. If we do see a Black Rhino from the vehicle we record its location and behaviour.
The White Rhino and vulture monitoring is done incidentally, meaning we record them only if we chance upon them. We do similar monitoring for the lion and leopard populations on the reserve, especially gathering information related to their feeding behaviour.
Mkhuze Game Reserve
Our student volunteer opportunities to the beautiful Mhuze Game Reserve will see you monitoring the African Wild dogs, the cheetah population and elephant herds. We also do incidental monitoring of vultures and the White and Black Rhino populations.Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park
In January 2010 nature conservation volunteers are due to start monitoring a number of African Wild Dog packs and the cheetah population in the reserve. We will also do incidental monitoring of vultures and the White and Black Rhino populations.Other data collection: While out on the daily monitoring activities with the monitor there are a number of other forms of data wildlife conservation volunteers could collect. All of these must however fall in line with the daily monitoring activities.
Example 1: A dung analyses - While following the animals you may be able to pick up their dung from which you could evaluate what they are feeding on.
Example 2: An insect study - While out in the field there is an option to collect and record different insect species you encounter. These could be presented to the reserve as a display record.
This should be discussed with us before you arrive so we can ensure your project is feasible.
What can you do with this information?
There are a number of outputs from the data we collect. We have listed a few of them below, but please bear in mind that this is merely an indication of what is possible. A few of them require the use of Global Information System (GIS) software which analyses the information spatially. You may be able to complete a GIS course at your university before coming to South Africa, following which we could organise you additional GIS tutorage for the data you are using. GIS is used widely by conservationists and animal behaviour scientists throughout the world and is a valuable skill to add to your CV. Please contact Simon directly if this is something you are interested in: simon@wildlifeact.com
Outputs which do not require GIS:
Behavioural studies
For example you could calculate whether animal behaviours change during different times of the day and whether these changes occur seasonally.
Distances between locations
This can be done with a formula in a spreadsheet using the longitude and latitude information. You can assess the straight line distance an animal moves from one day to the next or the straight line distance between two animals on the same day.
Example 1: You can test whether elephants travel further during the dry season while searching for food.
Example 2: You can test whether African Wild Dogs keep at a minimum distance from the lion pride.
Distance from locations to known points
Using a similar formula you could calculate the distance an animal is from certain points of interest.
Example: You can calculate the change in distance an individual is from permanent water sources since the first seasonal rains. You might expect the distance to decrease as water becomes more readily available across the landscape.
Analysis of prey selection
You can understand how a predator’s selection of prey species changes over different seasons in conjunction with the abundances of available prey (you can access the game counts which are done on an annual basis).
Example: You could test whether there is an increase in impala and wildebeest prey numbers during the spring calving season when juveniles are easy prey.
Outputs which make use of GIS
This software is very powerful and will be able to supply you with many different angles of analysis. We list only a few examples here, but realistically the applications are vast. Ultimately if you would like to use GIS you will be able to develop a project specifically moulded around the softwares’ capabilities. Remember that we will be able to organise additional GIS tutorage if need be.
Home range analyses
This will allow you to ascertain the area an animal requires, whether males range further than females, whether individuals or different species share the same space or if animals have different ranging behaviours from one season to the next. In the figure below you can see the home ranges of four different animals within a fenced reserve. The software can calculate the sizes of these home ranges and the overlap between individuals.
Habitat analyses
Using a habitat map and an animal’s home range you can ‘cut out’ the area the animal uses and assess which habitats it uses and if this changes seasonally. GIS software can also calculate the size of these areas enabling you to assess which habitats are more preferred than others. In the example below you can see the area of each habitat contained within an individual’s home range.
Distances
Using GIS gap year volunteers can calculate the distance each animal’s location is from the closest source of a number of different features. For example, the distance to the nearest fence, road, water point or building. This will allow you to analyse whether any of those features have any effect on their movement across the landscape.
