Ecosystem Archives - Nikela: Helping People Saving Wildlife

Living off the Grid to Conserve Nature in Zimbabwe

Oct 31, 2018 · by Wildlife Margrit · In: #NikelaAfrica, conservation, Ecosystem, Human Wildlife Conflict, Nikela Blog Tagged: Brent Stapelkamp, conserve nature, Hwange National Park

You might remember Brent Stapelkamp in connection with the sad story of Cecil the Lion a few years back. Today Brent and his wife Laurie are making a much quieter, yet remarkable difference to conserve nature outside Hwange National Park. [Watch the video of our visit below] Could you give up all your creature comforts? Well, at least most of them, especially those modern conveniences we get so used to. Conveniences like running to the shop for bread at 10pm to make school lunches. Brent and Laurie gave it all up to live in a native village bordering Hwange National…

Why Legalizing the Rhino Horn Trade Seems To Be More About Money Than Conservation

Aug 30, 2017 · by Wildlife Margrit · In: Ecosystem, Nikela Blog, rhino, rhino poaching, wildlife conservation Tagged: farming rhino, John Hume, legalized rhino horn trade, Natalie Rogers, Peter Milton, rhino horn, rhino horn trade, rhino poaching

The debate regarding legalizing the rhino horn trade has raged for a while now. It first raised its head as a solution to end the relentless poaching of rhino for their horn. Rhino horn, especially wild rhino horn, is highly prized in some Asian countries. For ages it was used in Traditional Chinese Medicine. Some believed it would cure anything from cancer to the common cold. However, in recent years it has become more of a status symbol for the new rich. Owning a rhino horn is probably not unlike owning a Rolex watch in the western world. However, this…

Illegal bushmeat hunting threatens tourism in Okavango Delta

Jun 13, 2017 · by Nikela Volunteer/Guest blogger · In: conservation, Ecosystem, Nikela Blog, Poaching, Sustainability Tagged: Botswana, bushmeat, Conservation Action Trust, Derreck Joubert, hunting, illegal hunting, Okavango Delta, tourism

With all the focus on syndicate poaching of elephant and rhino these days are we forgetting the impact of illegal bushmeat hunting? The threat posed by illegal bushmeat hunting to the Okavango Delta‘s tourism industry has been exposed in a recent report. Botswana is not normally associated with high levels of poaching, however reportedly illegal bushmeat hunting is occurring at such as significant scale in the Delta that, “the large quantities of bushmeat reported by some hunters suggests the existence of an organised commercial element to the industry, with capacity to harvest, transport and dispose of signiﬁcant volumes.” Approximately 1,800…

Why the praised biodiversity notion is not working in Africa

Mar 8, 2017 · by Wildlife Margrit · In: #NikelaAfrica, Ecosystem, Human Wildlife Conflict, Nikela Blog, Sustainability, wildlife conservation Tagged: biodiversity, human-wildlife conflict, Kenya, Maasai, Malawi, over grazing, pastoralist, Tanzania, unsustainable

This commentary is purely based on what we saw and learned during our months traveling and visiting with people in Malawi, Kenya and Tanzania. Wildlife conservation as a concept has morphed from preserving fauna and flora in natural ecosystems to a biodiversity notion. Phrases like, “sustainable use” and “wildlife management” have made a commodity out of what we once revered as sacred. There was a time when animals, birds and nature were reverenced, respected and deemed as rightful inhabitants of planet earth. Today, the “if it doesn’t pay it doesn’t stay” mentality has become the norm. Trophy hunters, wildlife farmers…

Why I have this Love-Hate relationship with Africa!

Feb 22, 2017 · by Wildlife Margrit · In: #NikelaAfrica, Ecosystem, Human Wildlife Conflict, Margrit, Nikela Blog, Sustainability, wild animals, wildlife conservation Tagged: Amboseli National Park, habitat loss, human-wildlife conflict, love-hate relationship

Traveling Africa is exciting, adventurous and can also become a real love-hate relationship by what we experience from day to day. I didn’t stop to help! I walked by the rubbish on the beach! Suddenly I caught myself. What’s going on? In my right mind I never go on by without offering help. In my right mind I pick up the rubbish when I walk on the beach. We’d just been in the Amboseli National Park in Kenya. On outlook hill you have a fabulous view across the large pan, the unique marsh, the immense variety of wildlife, and over…

Ecosystem

Living off the Grid to Conserve Nature in Zimbabwe

Why Legalizing the Rhino Horn Trade Seems To Be More About Money Than Conservation

Illegal bushmeat hunting threatens tourism in Okavango Delta

Why the praised biodiversity notion is not working in Africa

Why I have this Love-Hate relationship with Africa!

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