Amakhala Volunteers represented by Safari Lodge

In addition to the king of the jungle – lions – timid leopards, clumsy rhinos, graceful elephants and mystic buffalo make up the big five. A bio-diversity abundance exploding in a variety of antelope and other species such as giraffe, warthog and jackal roam the plains. Visitors can also see numerous species of birds (from the smallest glossy starlings and radiant sunbirds to the large raptors and fish eagles gracing the sky), slippery reptiles and the creepy crawley’s of the underground (including various winged and wingless insects). A remarkable aspect of this reserve is that it has six of the seven biomes represented in Southern Africa and therefore the highest diversity of veld types in the country.

 THE CONSERVATION ‘PRIDE’ VOLUNTEER PROGRAMME

The Conservation ‘Pride’ (i.e. the student volunteer program run through Safari Lodge owner Mike Weeks), are the veins and arteries behind the heart beat of Reserve conservation. For those “wildlife tourists” seeking an experience which will enable them to explore, no matter how short a time, a new ecosystem and all its inhabitants awaits them.  Not all these visitors have the same motivations.  Some may be seriously interested in the conservation of endangered species, the maintenance of bio-diversity or scientific research in a particular habitat.  Others may just wish to photograph wildlife. All aspects of conservation are addressed in this course, the longer your stay the more in depth your experience will be. 

 No matter how short or how long you have intended to stay, Amakhala Volunteer programme caters for any duration. However, we do recommend a minimum of 8 weeks, as we want you to fully experience the African Bush in as much time as you can possibly cater for.

The reserve is continuously monitoring and managing game throughout the year. As a conservation ‘Pride’ volunteer you will assist ‘behind the scenes’ on various ongoing conservation projects and reserve priorities. Our duty is to provide the correct and up to date scientific information on the reserve and its animals to the people who make the life changing decisions within the reserve. We are The: Conservation ‘Pride’!   

Your conservation experience will be facilitated by Ettiene Larson who has acquired his Wildlife Management and Game Ranging qualifications.  The conservation department whom you will assist includes: Dr. Jennifer Gush (Wildlife and Research Scientist) Giles Gush (Wildlife manager); Dr William Fowlds (Veterinarian).  The Conservation ‘Pride’ also makes use of the Woodbury Conservation Education Centre; the Bushman’s Research Centre and the Born Free Rehabilitation Centre.

THE ‘CONSERVATION ‘PRIDE’’ EFFORT

Through successful eco-tourism strategies and the management of resources, Amakhala aims to achieve an environment as close to a natural equilibrium as possible.

This course provides an insight into the environmental issues and management of a game reserve. I believe in “Jack of all Trades” This includes game and reserve management.  The main focus is having FUN while doing conservation and rehabilitating the land back to its natural environment. The volunteers are also acquainted with the techniques of collecting, analysing and disseminating information on ecological aspects. The course will also allow participants to interact with each other in a life changing environment whilst contributing towards conservation.  

PROJECT DETAILS

As a conservation ‘Pride’ volunteer at Amakhala our primary responsibility is managing the lions. You will also have the chance to assist with many ongoing short and long-term projects on the reserve. Reserve priorities at any one time may continuously change dependent on many external influences, your involvement in certain projects thus may be affected. Therefore the longer your placement the more in depth your involvement across many facets of conservation and reserve maintenance.

CURRENT LONG TERM PROJECTS:
Game counts
Predator ID/Monitoring
Elephant ID/Monitoring
Rhino ID/Monitoring
Animal Tracking using Telemetry
Territorial Ranges and Feeding Ranges(Behaviour monitoring)
Lion Health and Breeding Monitoring
Service to the Children Aids Foundation and venerable children
Local School Conservation Education

GENERAL RESERVE MAINTENANCE:
Erosion Control
Fence Patrol and Maintenance
Vehicle Maintenance
Indigenous and vegetable Nurseries
Herbarium
Alien Plant Control
Bush Clean and Clear ups
Road Maintenance
Boma Maintenance
Fence Maintenance
Educational and Biological Museum
Birding List of Amakhala Reserve

CURRENT SHORT TERM PROJECTS:
Game Capture, counts and monitoring
Giraffe and Elephant ID and competition assessment
Medicinal use of plants and vegetation biomes
Guided walks, tracking and trails through the Reserve

PIPELINE PROJECTS:
Nocturnal Predator Activities
Entomology Collection
Hyena Den sites
Plains game impact assessments
Cheetah coalition and behaviour
Monitoring the release and impacts of lion
Instinct or habituation of antelope to lion release

OTHER 'FUN' PROJECTS THAT THE VOLUNTEERS MAY BE INVOLVED IN:
Bush Survival – Camping out under the stars and survival (Weather dependent)
First Aid Training
Navigation and Compass orientation
Target Shooting
Taxidermy – hunting discussion “Conservation or Not”
Updating Project information onto the computer
Report writing
Canoeing
Boating
Fishing
4 star **** Lodge Experience
Marine day
Crocodile catching
Post mortems
Darting and rehabilitation

Because Amakhala is a fully operational reserve, there may also be the need to assist with work involving both the veterinarian and ecologist from time to time. Please note that it is not guaranteed that you will do game capture or rehabilitation during your stay. Only when the vet need assistance.