Volunteer With Leopards

Zululand, South Africa

Everything you need to know

Wildlife ACT is officially contracted by the international wild cat organisation, Panthera, to conduct Leopard density estimate surveys within South Africa. This involves conducting a number of exciting, short-term Leopard Population Surveys using remote camera trapping survey methods. The survey is one of the largest on Leopards of its kind in the world where we’re working together with provincial protected areas to help inform management to improve Leopard conservation.

Project type

Volunteer

Duration

2 weeks +

Price

R28,800.00 First 2 weeks
R18,200.00 Every following 2 weeks

Requirements

Ages: 18 - 65+
Overview
What Will I Do?
Project Detail
How Do I Get There?
Dates and Costs

Overview

Please Note: We are NOT currently accepting any further applications for the Leopard Survey, and encourage participants to join in our award-winning Endangered Species programme. However, if you are particularly interested in the Leopard Survey please motivate your request by contacting danielle@wildlifeact.com

Wildlife ACT is officially contracted by the international wild cat organisation, Panthera, to conduct Leopard density estimate surveys within South Africa using remote camera trapping methods. The survey is one of the largest on leopards of its kind in the world, where we’re working together with provincial parks to help inform management to improve leopard conservation.

Leopard management is typically guided more by experience or anecdote, than hard science. This project aims to collect real data on leopard population trends which can inform management decisions and assess the impacts of conservation actions.

Wildlife ACT volunteers assist with the leopard monitoring in KwaZulu-Natal. This involves setting up, maintaining, and taking down the cameras at different locations, checking the SD cards and recording data as well as helping with identikits for each animal if necessary. Volunteers also help collate the photographs of non-target, priority species (Black and White Rhino, Elephant, Lion, Cheetah, Wild Dog) for management and monitoring purposes.

Wildlife ACT volunteers can select this project in conjunction with the Endangered Species Conservation project. Most volunteers who come for more than two weeks spend two weeks on the Leopard Survey project and then do a multiple of two-week sessions on the other Wildlife ACT project sites in Zululand.

FAQs

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Download Our Leopard Survey Project Document

 

LOCATION

The Leopard Survey has taken place on various game reserves in KwaZulu-Natal including state protected areas such as sections of Isimangiliso Wetland Park (uMkhuze and Eastern Shores), Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife Parks (Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park, Ithala Game Reserve and Tembe Elephant Park) as well as private protected areas such as Somkhanda and Manyoni.

What Will I Do?

Wildlife ACT’s main focus on these short-term Survey projects involves setting up and or taking down the motion sensor cameras at different locations – (note that this occurs at the beginning and end of each survey – which lasts for a 2-month period). The ongoing fieldwork for the Leopard Survey team involves driving to each camera site within the reserve. At each of the sites the team will check to see that the cameras are active and are still attached to the poles correctly to get the best leopard photos. (The cameras may have been bumped off by curious animals).

The team will change the batteries and download the images from the cameras on to a USB device to work through back at the camp. There may also be a need to clear some vegetation or make natural barriers to protect the cameras and their very important data from inquisitive animals. Incidental monitoring of any other priority species animals on the reserve will be recorded as incidental sightings, during the course of performing the camera trap fieldwork.

Back at camp the team will download all the photos collected and then start the very important task of sorting and categorizing them into different Priority Species Folders.  This may take some time behind a computer at camp, however by doing this you will be greatly assisting the reserve with crucial data for optimal management of the wildlife area.

Free Time

Camera download days are usually only 4 days of the week. The camera downloads take on average 4 – 7 hours on any given day. Once the selected camera-sites have been downloaded for the day and the photographs have been correctly catalogued, you will have some free time.

FAQs

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Project Detail

Wildlife ACT is officially contracted by the international wild cat organization, Panthera, to conduct Leopard population surveys within KwaZulu-Natal. This project was started due to increasing persecution outside of game reserves causing the Leopard populations within protected areas to decline. In response to this Panthera, together with Ezemvelo KwaZulu-Natal Wildlife, worked together to rewrite legislation regulating the trophy hunting and control of Leopards that may enter outside communities.

This project is continued, now with the aid of Wildlife ACT, to ensure that the new regulations are adhered to and are sustainable for the years to come. For more information visit the Panthera website.

With the use of Camera Trap Surveys we are able to estimate the density and gauge population trends over time. At specifically chosen reserves, the project sets up a minimum of 30 camera-trap stations, each of which has two camera-traps (to capture the left- and right-hand side of the animal). The stations are set-up along roads, animal paths and other areas (such as riverbeds or drainage lines) which Leopards may frequent.

The surveys are spread across an area that covers 100 – 120 km2 and runs for 50 days before moving to a different reserve. Estimates of Leopard population size in any given area are determined using capture-recapture models which is why this survey will run within KwaZulu-Natal for years to come.

How Do I Get There?

We collect all arriving participants from the Richards Bay Airport, since that is our closest Airport.

You will need to book your international flight to land at Johannesburg (OR Tambo International Airport), and then book a short domestic (internal) flight, from Johannesburg (JHB) to Richards Bay (RCB).

For your ARRIVAL flight (on the Monday), you will need to book a flight to Richards Bay Airport scheduled to land at 12:30 PM, or earlier. Any flight scheduled to land later than 12:30 will not be suitable, since we will not be able to get you to the projects in time.

For your DEPARTURE flight (on the Monday), you will need to book a flight from Richards Bay Airport scheduled to depart at 12:25 PM, or later.
Any flight scheduled to depart earlier than 12:25 will not be suitable, since we will not be able to get you to the Airport in time.

If participants cannot find flights to fit in with the timing guidelines for Arrival Monday, then they will need to fly to Richards Bay on the Sunday, and overnight near the Airport, and make their way back to the Richards Bay Airport by 12:00 midday, on the Monday, to meet the driver for collection.

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RICHARDS BAY OVERNIGHT ACCOMMODATION :

Participants should please book accommodation options situated close to the Richards Bay Airport (i.e. within the leafy suburb of the “Birdswood” area of Richards Bay).

The “Serendipity Guesthouse” , and “Gecko Inn” options (both located within 5 kilometers of the Airport), have been used by our previous participants.

Caution: Please be advised that accommodation options in the Meerensee area, or near the Tuzi Gazi Waterfront, are significantly further from the Airport in terms of travel time (30 minute drive), and traffic congestion on that busy route may cause additional delays.

Transfer Service:

When you arrive at Richards Bay Airport you will be collected by an organised responsible transfer company. The driver will have a copy of the transport schedule including, all your photographs. They will find you in the (VERY) small Airport: either in the small arrival area or in the little coffee shop within the airport if you arrive early.

All arriving conservation volunteers will be transported by the transfer company to a central meeting point where you will be met by your respective Wildlife ACT monitors, who will then take you into the reserve on the back of a monitoring vehicle. On the Monday of your departure you will be transported back to Richards Bay Airport to catch your departing flight home.

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FAQs

Dates and Costs

ZAR USD EUR GBP
2 Weeks 28800.00 2021.76 1739.52 1532.16
4 Weeks 47000.00 3299.40 2838.80 2500.40
6 Weeks 65200.00 4577.04 3938.08 3468.64
8 Weeks 83400.00 5854.68 5037.36 4436.88
10 Weeks 101600.00 7132.32 6136.64 5405.12
12 Weeks 119800.00 8409.96 7235.92 6373.36
TRANSPORT FEE 2800.00 196.56 169.12 148.96

Starting Dates

2024

18 March
01 April
15 April
29 April
13 May
27 May
10 June
24 June
08 July
22 July
05 August
19 August
02 September
16 September
30 September
14 October
28 October
11 November
25 November
09 December
23 December

2025