This study, undertaken under the auspices of the Centre of Wildlife Management and the former Centre for Indigenous Knowledge (University of Pretoria) was conducted in Maputaland, with special reference to the Tembe Elephant Park, Sileza Nature Reserve and in the neighbouring traditional wards (izigodi) of Mbangweni, Bhekabantu, Kwandaba, Zama-zama, Tsokotho, Manqakulani (which includes the Tshanini Community Conservation Area), Lulwane, Mntikini, Ndlondlweni, Ndovu and Sibonisweni. The main objective of this study was to evaluate the range condition and grazing capacity of the natural veld. A management plan for the Tshanni Community Conservation Area is presented, which could potentially serve as template for similar areas. To accomplish these objectives a cattle as well as a vegetation survey were conducted. The cattle surveys were conducted among the local communities (mentioned above) to identify and to evaluate the role played by cattle in the everyday lives of the communual people and to identify the types of grazing regime (practices). The vegetation surveys were undertaken to evaluate the range condition, grazing capacity and grazing quality of the herbaceous vegetation. The study also included methods to determine the number, distribution and health status of cattle present in the study area. The results indicated that social and religious values that were associated with cattle in the older Zulu culture have clearly faded in the Tembe Traditional Area. The current values of local communal people regarding cattle were concentrated on utilization and investment for future uncertainties. Cattle were still seen as wealth and status symbols in the local communities and were highly prized possessions if they could be obtained. The official cattle numbers did not seem to reflect the actual cattle numbers in the study area at the time of study. It was also clear that cattle were distributed in areas where the water supply was sufficient. The main grazing areas were thus in the east of the study area in the hygrophilous vegetation to the east of Manqakulani and mainly in Ndlondlweni. No specific grazing management practices could be identified and the grazing system could be best described by a continuous grazing practice. Grazing was not restricted to any part or piece of land inside the specific isigodi as long as the cattle stayed out of other people’s cultivated land. Overstocking the grazing area was not occurring at the time of the study as the stocking density was well below the area’s capacity. The general perception of the majority of the cattle owners was that their cattle were in a good condition. An analysis of the results obtained from the vegetation survey indicated that the herbaceous biomass yield did not vary noticeably among the management units within a site as well as among the different sites. The small fuel loads in the Tshanini Community Conservation Area did not necessitate burning and were probably below fuel loads needed for fires to spread. However, it was frequently observed that fire could be maintained in areas where the herbaceous biomass yield was below 2 000 kg/ha. The results represented in this study also indicated that the management units of the Tshanini Community Conservation Area were generally in a good condition and that the range condition of the Tshanini Community Conservation Area compared relatively well with the other reserves in the study area. The modified Ecological Index Method was reliable and time saving, yet simplistic enough for assessing the range condition of the management units of the Tshanini Community Conservation Area and the entire Tembe Traditional Area. The stocking density must be adaptable and based on the quantity and quality of grazing available at any time. The model that was used to calculate the stocking density of the study area allows for several elements to be modified to suit the conditions on a particular wildlife reserve at a particular time. For example, in future it may become necessary to adjust the percentage composition of graze and browse in the diet of some animal types for the calculation of Grazer Units (GU) and Browser Units (BU), mainly because the diet of the same type of animal may vary regionally. Finally, changes in the choice of the types of wildlife can be accommodated depending on the preferences and objectives of the management and steering committee of the Tshanini Community Conservation Area. This model can be applied as a tool for active adaptive management because it allows more control over the quantity and quality of available food plant resources and hence the stocking density of animal resources. It is proposed that the results of the present study be combined and integrated into a Geographic Information System (G.I.S.) database that could form the ecological basis for future management planning of the Tembe Traditional Area as part of the Usuthu-Tembe-Futi Transfrontier Conservation Area. / Dissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2009. / Animal and Wildlife Sciences / unrestricted

The African Elephant is a key component of the savanna ecosystem. They contribute to the generation of habitat for smaller vertebrates, as well as invertebrates, by the breaking of branches or uprooting of trees. Elephants also play a role in seed dispersal, germination and sapling recruitment. All these functions are advantageous to the ecosystem if the elephant population size is acceptable for the size of the reserve and the amount of available forage. The Tembe Elephant Park covers an area of 30 013 ha and is situated in northern KwaZulu Natal. This reserve has a diversity of vegetation types and is part of the Maputaland Centre of Plant Endemism and the Maputaland-Pondoland-Albany Hotspot of Biodiversity. Elephant numbers in the park are currently high and the elephant population is still increasing. This is threatening, especially to the endemic Sand Forest communities within the park. The extent of elephant impact in Tembe Elephant Park, South Africa, was investigated and compared to data collected six years prior to the current study. Elephant impact was determined in 44 transects within nine communities across the park. Percentage canopy removal was calculated for the woody individuals found in sites and with this data the targeted size classes and species could be identified. The preferences of elephants for specific woody species were determined by three electivity indices. Elephant utilisation in Tembe Elephant Park, as reflected by percentage canopy removal, increased since 2004 as the elephant population increased. Communities that experienced high values in 2010 of elephant utilisation were the Closed Woodland 1, Mature Sand Forest, Open Woodland 1 and the Closed Woodland 3. Not only did the actual canopy volume removed by elephant increase with approximately 57%, but the total canopy volume available for browsing decreased extensively since 2004. The size classes targeted by the elephants remained approximately the same from 2004 to 2010 although the 2010 results showed that elephant canopy removal percentage increased in the large size classes. This was expected as elephants target individuals with large stem diameters. A change in the selection for woody species by elephants was clear, but the change in species preference made future projections of canopy removal problematic. Elephants seem to utilise a species at extreme levels until the species is almost extirpated, then they move onto the next target species. This routine is evident in the results as highly preferred species in 2004, with high canopy volumes available and removed, had low canopy availability and electivity ratios in 2010, consequently the elephants moved on from these species as individuals became scarce. It was clear that the structure of individuals, populations and communities were being altered, selected species were facing extirpation and composition of communities was changed through the browsing manners of elephants. Management actions should be implemented to prevent irreversible damage to the vegetation and to conserve the woody species currently under threat. / Dissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Plant Science / MSc / Unrestricted

Humans are modifying animal populations, indirectly accelerating or reducing the geomorphic alterations caused by animals. Species have been monitored and studied with focus on domesticated animals but little research has been undertaken on wild animals. This study analyses the geomorphic impact of elephants on Tembe Elephant Park, so that the changes they cause to the landscape may be quantified. To conduct this research four sites were chosen: an area where elephants had been excluded for twenty-five years, where excluded for five years, where elephants exist at present and where elephants mud wallow. Three of the four study sites were classed as sand forest (twenty-five-years exclusion, five-years exclusion and where elephants exist) and were analysed and compared to determine the similarities and differences in climate, microclimate, vegetation and the soil’s physical and chemical properties. The wallow site was not compared to any other study site, but was observed and mapped to quantify the geomorphic impact of elephants wallowing. When the sand forest sites were compared the climate, vegetation type and soil were found to be similar. Where elephants were present: the vegetation was inconsistent in basil cover, canopy height, structure and class. Soils were more compacted with a low infiltration rate, higher temperature, lower soil moisture, higher pH and a lower electric conductivity and air relative humidity was the highest. Where elephants have been excluded for twenty-five years, the opposite trends arose from the data analysis. The vegetation was consistent in basil cover, canopy height, structure and class, and the soils were less compacted with a high infiltration rate, low temperature, higher soil moisture, lower pH and a higher electric conductivity. The microclimate showed a trend where the air relative humidity was the lowest. At the elephant wallow site data showed that the wallows were in general circular in shape, 52.5m3 of soil was removed per month for the last nine months and the surface area of the wallows increased by 165.5m2 per month for nine months from April to December 2008. All the results from this study show that the elephant activity in Tembe Elephant Park has geomorphic consequences. From the results, it is possible to conclude that the geomorphic impacts of elephants on Tembe Elephant Park are contributing to a nutrient cycle shift in the sand forest biome, as they change aspects of the vegetation, microclimate, soil and landscape, which are the foundation of the cycle. / Dissertation (MA)--University of Pretoria, 2011. / Geography, Geoinformatics and Meteorology / MA / Unrestricted

The present study compared Sand Forest bird assemblages found in a communal land area with that of the Tembe Elephant Park, and determined the habitat preference and status of selected herbivore species within the park. The study forms part of the Maputaland Conservation-based and Integrated Rural Development Programme of the Centre for Wildlife Management from the University of Pretoria and is linked to the activities of the Lubombo Transfrontier Conservation Area (LTFCA). The main purpose of the study was to compare Sand Forest bird assemblages found in the Tshanini Community Conservation Area, which is characterised by low levels of human utilisation, with that of the Tembe Elephant Park, which is characterised by wildlife utilisation. This approach was used to determine the biological importance of this communal land area in contributing towards the conservation of the rare Sand Forest habitat. Visual and auditory bird surveys revealed that the communal land area contains unique Sand Forest bird assemblages, which demonstrated the biological importance of the communal land for Sand Forest conservation, especially from an avian perspective. The second purpose of the study was to identify possible competition between selected herbivore species within the Tembe Elephant Park and/or a decrease in numbers of rare species. Herbivores that might be adversely affected by the destruction of the Sand Forest, or who may themselves have a destructive effect on the Sand Forest were also identified. Target herbivores included the nyala Tragelaphus angasii, impala Aepyceros melampus, Burchell’s zebra Equus burchellii, greater kudu Tragelaphus strepsiceros, red duiker Cephalophus natalensis and suni Neotragus moschatus. Road transects were used to record the spatial distribution of the target herbivores, and the vegetation types that were used more or less often than expected were subsequently determined. None of the target herbivores showed a preference for the Sand Forest or appeared to have a destructive effect on the Sand Forest. The suni, however, reached its highest density within the Sand Forest and the destruction of this habitat will therefore negatively affect the suni population. In several parks and reserves that aim to conserve a variety of species, it has been necessary to control the populations of highly competitive species. Both the nyala and the impala are highly competitive and occur in relatively high numbers within the Tembe Elephant Park, and consequently their population numbers should be kept sufficiently low in order not to have a negative influence on the vegetation or the survival of less competitive ungulates. Total aerial counts and transect distance sampling counts indicated an increase in the numbers of all the target herbivores. It is important to protect a viable portion of the preferred habitat of every target species within a reserve, and to keep competition with rare species to a minimum for the long-term survival of the regional biodiversity. Key aspects of wildlife and their habitat should be monitored so that trends are noted in time, and management adjustments can be made accordingly. / Dissertation (MSc (Wildlife Management))--University of Pretoria, 2007. / Centre for Wildlife Management / unrestricted

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Pretoria, 2008. / Title from PDF title page (viewed on Nov. 11, 2008). Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.S.)--University of Pretoria, 2004. / Title from PDF t.p. (viewed Mar. 11 2005). Includes bibliographical references (p. 99-107).

Thesis (M.S.)--University of Pretoria, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references.