The 2008 Majete Elephant Translocation Project

The Majete Wildlife Reserve is a 700 km2 wilderness area in southern Malawi where wildlife was largely wiped out by poaching. Now an innovative project to rebuild the reserve is being run by a partnership between the African Parks Network (APN) and Department of National Parks and Wildlife (DNPW) in Malawi. APN is a non-profit organisation that rehabilitates, develops and manages protected areas throughout Africa.

In 2003 APN concluded an agreement with DNPW to provide financial and managerial assistance to Majete.

 

The objectives are to rebuild and conserve biodiversity and contribute to the sustainability of Majete by maximizing revenues from tourism and natural resource utilization. A well managed reserve with a viable tourism industry can provide employment and business opportunities for local people. However, Majete has little potential for tourism unless attractive and viable wildlife populations are restored.

Livingstone was the first tourist in Majete
The Majete area was introduced to the Western world by Dr. David Livingstone, the renowned explorer, missionary and campaigner against slavery.

 

In 1859 he established a small camp at Matithi, the present day headquarters of the reserve. When Majete was proclaimed as a sanctuary, almost a century after Livingstone’s stay, wildlife was abundant. By 1990, however, most animal species had been exterminated by hunting and poaching. The fate of the elephants, numbering nearly 300 in 1987, was sealed during the closing years of the Mozambique civil war when thousands of refugees flocked into Malawi. By 1992 the last elephant had been shot. Sable antelope were gone by 1998, while numbers of kudu, waterbuck, reedbuck, bushbuck, hippo and warthog were much depleted.

The loss of Majete’s wildlife occurred when the field rangers of the DNPW were unable to take on gangs of poachers armed with superior weapons. It was a case of automatic Kalashnikov AK-47’s against much older magazine rifles. But the unfairness of the contest was also rooted in the institutional problems, primarily a lack of funding, that inhibited the ability of the DNPW to protect and manage the reserve.

 

Fenced Sanctuary
Malawi being one of the poorest countries in the world lacks capacity, resources and equipment for effective conservation of its protected areas. The partnership between APN and the DNPW turned this situation around. Law enforcement is a priority and the area is now secure. A labour force of 80-100 people employed from local communities is improving the infrastructure. A game reintroduction sanctuary of 14 000 ha was fenced in 2003. A further 110 km of fence following the reserve boundary is being erected to minimize conflict between people and the growing wildlife populations.

Over 1000 Mammals Reintroduced to Majete
By now over 1,000 animals have been reintroduced to Majete including black rhino, waterbuck, sable antelope, buffalo, impala, nyala, warthog, zebra, eland and hartebeest and they are all breeding well. In August 2006 a start was made to rebuild a viable elephant population when 70 animals –bulls, cows and youngsters in complete family groups- were moved from Liwonde National Park to Majete. These animals have settled well and five calves have been born since.

Because of the ecological importance of elephants, and their great value as a charismatic species, a second elephant translocation is now being planned in June 2008. This operation will see another 50 elephants moved from Liwonde NP to Majete and possibly an additional 20 – 80 elephants from the Mangochi area.

Liwonde Elephant Population
The Liwonde elephant population numbers over 700 animals and is growing. They are having a noticeable effect on the vegetation of the park, which is only 550 km2 in area. The fever tree forests along the banks of the Shire River, in particular, are clearly under pressure. Therefore a further reduction of the Liwonde elephant population will be beneficial to the park.

  

 

APN plans to move 10 adult bulls ranging in age from about 20-45 years, with the rest of the elephants being breeding herds consisting of females and their offspring. These 50 animals amount to a viable addition to the elephant population translocated in 2006, with a normal age and social class distribution. They are also genetically the appropriate animals for Majete, as the two areas would have been linked in recent historical times.

Mangochi Elephant Population
There are currently an estimated 20 to possibly up to 80 elephants living outside of protected areas in the Mangochi area. This has led to conflict between local villages and the elephants, resulting in tragic loss of life on both sides. It is planned to remove these elephants from the conflict area and translocate them also to Majete Game Reserve, where they may live free from persecution and bolster the current elephant population.

Operational logistics of the Majete Elephant Project

The necessary logistics for the translocation were established and refined during the 2006 operation. Only two to three adult bulls can be moved at a time in two specially designed trailers, and a family group consisting of 8 – 12 animals at a time in both trailers combined.

Each capture operation begins at dawn, and is normally completed by late morning of the same day. The ground team with their recovery vehicles leave camp early and head for a pre-selected capture site. Once they have arrived, they confirm their position to the helicopters by radio. The capture helicopter and the guest helicopter start searching for a suitable group of elephants close to the capture site. These animals are then herded by the capture helicopter closer to the capture site and darted with a special immobilising mixture.

Once the darted elephants are recumbent the ground team moves in. All elephants are checked and measured before being picked up by a crane and loaded on to a truck for a short drive to the ‘wake-up’ station. Here they are put inside a strong steel container, or ‘wake-up’ crate and given an antidote to the immobilising mixture. The elephants wake up within two to five minutes and are easily reversed from the wake-up crate into the transport compartment of the truck that will take them to Majete. The journey takes from five to eight hours.

At Majete the elephants are released from the transport vehicle to walk down a ramp into a holding stockade or ‘boma’ where they stay the night. This boma is built of poles and cables, with several electrified wires carrying 6000-8000 volts. The purpose is to familiarise the elephants with an electrified fence, and to teach them about the deterrent effect of being shocked by the electric current. The elephants quickly learn not to touch the wires and when they are released the next day they respect the boundary fence of the reserve.

You Can Join and Participate In The Relocation Programme
An adventure expedition for paying participants is linked to the 2008 elephant translocation. This will use the elephant translocation experience as a mechanism for generating funding to monitor the elephants and to raise funds for further restocking programs for Majete.

Ten capture operations, each consisting of two separate captures of bulls and a family group, respectively are planned at this stage. Each guest group will be limited to ten participants who will be part of two capture operations, one of which will be experienced from the air and the other one from the ground. The total package covering the direct costs of participation and a $5,000 contribution to Majete comes to US$8 960 per person sharing.

The participation of the guests during the elephant capture will be facilitated by a Bell 407 helicopter in the air and a dedicated game-viewing vehicle on the ground. The guests in the helicopter participate in locating the elephants and driving them towards the capture site. From the air they are able to watch the capture helicopter move in and dart the elephants.

The Bell 407 accommodates five guests per capture operation comfortably and each passenger can observe the capture from a window seat. Guests on the ground join the ground crew and move in to the pre-selected capture site from where they participate in the capture operation. The positions of the guests are reversed for the second operation thus ensuring that all participants experience the capture operation from the air and from the ground.

 

Once the elephants are on the road to Majete the guests in the helicopter are taken by helicopter to Majete to meet them there later in the afternoon and watch their offloading and release into the boma. The night is spent at Thawale. In the morning one of the African Parks community projects is visited. A scenic flight along the Shire River takes the group back to Liwonde NP.

Guests participating as part of the ground crew go back to Mvuu camp and have a chance to relax and join an afternoon game drive or boat cruise. The following morning one of the experienced guides of Mvuu camp will take them out on a game drive or bush walk.

Both groups will join for lunch again and their positions will be reversed for the next operation.

After the completion of the capture program guests will be transferred via light aircraft back to Lilongwe / Blantyre or to the next destination on their itinerary. An extension of the adventure expedition to a luxury lodge or bush camp in other wilderness areas in Southern Africa (e.g. the Nyika National Park of Malawi; the South Luangwa National Park or the Lower Zambezi National Park of Zambia; the Okavango Delta or Chobe National Park of Botswana) can easily be done - please contact Dr. Sybille Quandt (syqu@gonet.co.za).

Accommodation
Comfortable en-suite tented accommodation is provided by Central African Wilderness Safaris (CAWS) at the Mvuu Wilderness Camp in the Liwonde National Park (www.mvuucamp.com).

Accommodation at Majete will be in en-suite tents at Thawale Camp. Good quality cuisine will be offered at Mvuu while Thawale offers a more rustic and traditional Malawian menu.

Project leaders
Dr Sybille Quandt is responsible for the planning and organisation of the adventure expedition, as well as flying and guiding the guests during the actual translocation operation while Dr Anthony Hall-Martin is APN’s overall supervisor of the Majete Project.

Sybille is a qualified veterinarian who has practiced widely in Africa and has immobilized elephants for research purposes in South Africa, Botswana, Mali and Tanzania. She is particularly concerned about the ethical treatment of animals in the wildlife trade. Sybille is also a qualified commercial pilot and takes guests on helicopter and fixed wing aircraft adventure safaris to the famous wildlife areas of Botswana and other wilderness areas in southern Africa.

Anthony has wide experience in conservation biology, research and conservation management in Africa. He served as a scientist and senior manager for South African National Parks for 25 years. Anthony was one of the co-founders of African Parks and is currently the country co-ordinator for African Parks’ projects in Malawi and Zambia. He has been closely involved in all game translocation projects carried out in Majete, and in particular with the reintroduction of species such as the African elephant and the endangered black rhinoceros.

Price: US$8,960 per person sharing

Includes: return light aircraft transfer from Lilongwe or Blantyre to Mvuu; accommodation, all meals, two game activities per day, laundry and park fees at Mvuu; participation in two elephant capture operations – one in the helicopter and one on the ground; return helicopter transfer to Majete

Excludes: international flights and drinks.

Payment. Confirmation of participation requires payment of a non-refundable deposit of 25% of the tour fare. Final payment is due 8 weeks prior to departure.

Contact details for all enquiries and bookings:
Dr. Sybille Quandt
Exclusive Air Safaris
P.O. Box 67623
Bryanston 2021 South Africa
Tel & Fax: +27 11 477 61 46 Cell: +27 82 950 25 22
Email: Dr. Sybille Quandt (syqu@gonet.co.za)