Addo Elephants cross road and return to 'ancestral home'

Addo Elephants cross the road and return to ‘ancestral home’

Guy Rogers writes in the E.P Herald (7^th May 2003):

A HERD of elephants was shepherded over the national railway line and the Addo-Paterson road yesterday, becoming the first jumbos to enter the area since they were shot out here 72 years ago.

The milestone event, part of the Greater Addo Elephant National Park expansion programme, began five years ago. With the population of elephant and other species growing quickly in the main 4 000ha section of the park, South African National Parks began buying up Zuurberg farmland north of the R342. With this accomplished, R5-million was set aside to fence it and some R9-million to remove old fences, buildings, reservoirs and dipping tanks. The new area, which is also about 14 000ha, has been name Nyati (Xhosa for buffalo) and two weeks ago 70 buffalo, 50 eland and about 45 ostriches were moved across the road and railway line, which divides it from the old park. Yesterday was the big day, however.

Using a helicopter, game capture trucks and a grader, 56 elephants were rounded up in five groups and gently encouraged to make the big move – over two strange human thoroughfares, back into their ancestral home.

Branches and dung were strewn across the railway tracks to help disguise their unnatural look and feel. Park manager Lucius Moolman said he was particularly grateful to the roads’ department and Spoornet for their co-operation in controlling road and rail traffic. Spoornet closed the line, the main Port Elizabeth-Johannesburg route, for five hours. In case of curious trunks, it also de-activated the overhead electric pylon. Mr. Moolman said he was thankful it had all gone so well as the other option of darting could have taken as long as five days and would have been much more stressful for the animals.

In line with the SANP policy of growing the gene pool where possible, no mature males were relocated. Instead, four bulls have been brought down from the Kruger National Park and they were due to be released to join their new harem yesterday evening.

More eland as well as red hartebeest from the Mountain Zebra National Park are due to be introduced to Nyati in tow weeks’ time.

And free range lion will be released in August into the main section of the park, completing the Big Five.