South African National Parks (SANParks) announced today that while on patrol in the early evening of 21 November 2010 rangers from the Kruger National Park (KNP) fatally wounded a suspected poacher inside the park.
According to the SANParks Head of Communications, Wanda Mkutshulwa, the rangers were patrolling in the Houtbosrand section of the park, in the eastern border with Mozambique, when they came across three suspected poachers who opened fire on the rangers. The SANParks rangers returned fire and one of the suspects was wounded, while other two escaped.
Efforts to revive the suspect before medical help arrived were unfortunately unsuccessful.
The other two are still at large. The police and rangers have been following their spore. Investigations are continuing.
A rhino carcass was found in an area near the scene but it is unclear at this stage if this is related to the spotted suspects.

With the Rhino poaching disaster on everyone’s lips, one cannot help but to feel angry, indignant, sad and such a myriad of emotions that it is hard to capture in one expression. The question it raises has much deeper answers though! The poachers should in my opinion be treated with no mercy.

The question is: are we any better than they are? How many of the very same people who are now jumping to join every social networking group regarding this issue have thrown rubbish out their car window in the last month? How many have flicked a cigarette butt out the car window in the last month? How many recycle their rubbish, save water, don’t kill the bees in their garden shed, swat the spider in the corner of the lounge, etc, etc?

In December I had a short break from safaris and had arranged to go on a birding course in the far north of Kruger. I had three objectives for that week– 1) to learn more about birds plus see some of the unique species of the area; 2) to have a holiday in Kruger Park which involved a lot of walking; and 3) to have that holiday in the Parfuri / Makuleke region which is relatively inaccessible to the general public. So on the 8^th December I travelled to the far north of Kruger, the Parfuri region, to a training camp located on the southern banks of the “great, green, greasy” Limpopo River for a wonderful week of birding. I saw many new (for me anyway!) birds and learnt a huge amount more about their calls and habits. There were 15 of us on the course with 2 instructor guides and we walked for 3-4 hours every morning while it was still relatively cool and drove every afternoon when it was generally too hot to walk.

To get a first hand feel of the pulse of Africa, the experience of a safari tour is a must. Being a part of the travel group is more advantageous as it allows one to be guided by a travel leader, while you can relax and get the most out of the experience. The most probable means of transport during a safari tour is either an open vehicle or an air-conditioned mini bus. Medical and travel insurance are an important part of any travel venture. Also make sure you carry sun block and light, comfortable clothing as a defense against the scorching heat. A camera is also a must to capture those unforgettable fleeting moments of bird watching or an unexpected coming face to face with wild life.