Repairing a bank wall of P3 where soil erosion had started.
All photographs by Erica Essig.
Erica Essig reports;
- After the last report we had the hippo isolated in pan S2. Unfortunately due to an illegal trespassing quad bike driving around the pans and breaking the fence line. Bilbo (hippo) managed to escape as the electric fence line short circuited.
The fence lines have been dropped and we are monitoring pans S1 and S2 in hope that the hippo returns again, so that we can erect the electric fencing around it! A very disappointing outcome to say the least! - We have now hired a new member of Staff. Ryno Coetzee is now the Foreman for the Strandfontein Birding Area. He will be in charge of the alien invasive’s, namely tackling the Tree Mallow at the back of the pans, and keeping tabs on all the water hyacinth follow ups.
- The volunteers and I did a night drive on the 06 December, and we found Blackcrowned Night Heron, Grysbok, Helmetted Guineafowl, Water Mongoose, Spotted Thick Knee and Grey Mongoose.
- We have also started tackling the water hyacinth that is present in P8. We used the bakkie sakkie and a 2% mixture of glyphosate and sprayed the edges of the pans which are infested with hyacinth. The results are great, we do however need to get in and do a second and third application to the harder to reach areas.
- We also started on the soil erosion at P3, using sand bags and sour fig plants to try and repair / halt any further damage.
- Birds spotted this Month : Eurasian Swallow – Hirundo rustica, Souhern Masked Weaver – Ploceus velatus, Pintailed Whydah – Vidua macroura, Ruddy Turnstone – Arenaria interpres, Kittlitzs Plover – Chanradrius pecuarius, Ringed Plover, Peragrine Falcon – Falco peregrinus, Hottentot Teal – Anas hottentota.
See what we have been doing this month.
