Black Mamba Anti-Poaching Unit

Last updated

The Black Mamba Anti-Poaching Unit
AbbreviationBlack Mamba APU
Named after Black mamba
Formation2013
FounderCraig R. Spencer
Type Non-governmental organisation
PurposeConservation. Education. Women Empowerment
HeadquartersGreater Kruger Area
Region
South Africa
Staff
42
Websitewww.transfrontierafrica.com

TheBlack Mamba Anti-Poaching Unit (Black Mamba APU) is the world's first officially-formed, registered and recognised all-female wildlife ranger unit, founded in 2013, with the purpose of protecting wildlife in the regions of the Olifants West Nature Reserve, and the buffer zone in the Greater Kruger of South Africa. The Black Mamba APU was awarded the Champions of the Earth Award, in 2015, by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP). In the period between 2013 and 2022, the Black Mamba APU has won 10 International awards, for innovative approach to wildlife conservation.[ citation needed ]

Contents

About

The unit was created by Craig R. Spencer, the current warden of Olifants West Nature Reserve, [1] and Amy Clark from Transfrontier Africa. [2] The group started out with six members. [3] The Unit [4] is named after the deadly snake, the black mamba snake (Dendroaspis polylepis). [5] There are currently forty two staff members in the Black Mamba APU team, with thirty five of them being women rangers. Each member spends 21 days a month patrolling the reserves. [6] They start each day, military style, with a parade and then issued orders before patrols leave on their missions. [2] Each of the rangers is trained in tracking and combat, but work unarmed: they protect the animals by creating a "visible police presence, like a British bobby." [1]

The Mambas come from the local communities near the Greater Kruger area. [1] For many Black Mambas, becoming a ranger has become big step in life, right after high school. [2] The Unit had been part of the nationwide Environmental Monitor program, that received 30% subsidy from the Department of Fisheries, Forestry and Environmental Affairs, South Africa. Due to internal financial issues, the department stopped the subsidy in March 2022. From April 2022, Transfrontier Africa NPC relies solely on fundraising, grants, and donations to support the project. Currently, a newly formed Black Mamba Alliance, which consists of a group of companies, sponsor 100% of the salaries of The Black Mambas, and its sister project The Bush Babies Environmental Education Program.

The unit assisted with several arrests of poachers, shut down five poacher camps, and reduced snaring of wildlife in the areas of deployment by 62% within its first year of deployment. [4] The Mambas are trained to find and remove snares before animals are trapped in them. [6] During 2015, there was a period of ten months during which no rhinos were poached at all. [6]

At first people were sceptical that "women could do this traditionally male job and be good at it." [2] Now, within their communities, the Black Mambas have become village heroes. [1] Photographer Julia Gunther, who has been documenting the Black Mambas APU, says of the women that "For all of them, the love for nature and its conservation runs deep. Their ethos is to protect this heritage of wildlife." [6] The rangers not only face dangers from poachers, but also from large wildlife; Ranger Siphiwe Sithole said, "I don't know when I am going to face a lion." [5] Another member, Leitah Mkhabela, said regarding poachers, "I am not afraid. I know what I am doing and why I am doing it." [7]

In July 2015, the Black Mamba APU won the Best Conservation Practitioner category in the South African Rhino Conservation Awards.[ citation needed ] Later that year, they won the Champions of the Earth Award from UNEP. [4] [7]

In June 2023, Leitah Mkhabela joined a delegation of rangers and film crew members at the private premiere of the documentary Rhino Man, hosted by Prince William of Wales and his United for Wildlife conservation network. Leitah represented women rangers on this international platform, showcasing the work of the Black Mambas.

Awards won

The unit has won the following awards:

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Poaching</span> Illegal hunting of wildlife

Poaching is the illegal hunting or capturing of wild animals, usually associated with land use rights. Poaching was once performed by impoverished peasants for subsistence purposes and to supplement meager diets. It was set against the hunting privileges of nobility and territorial rulers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kruger National Park</span> First national park in South Africa

Kruger National Park is a South African National Park and one of the largest game reserves in Africa. It covers an area of 19,623 km2 (7,576 sq mi) in the provinces of Limpopo and Mpumalanga in northeastern South Africa, and extends 360 km (220 mi) from north to south and 65 km (40 mi) from east to west. The administrative headquarters are in Skukuza. Areas of the park were first protected by the government of the South African Republic in 1898, and it became South Africa's first national park in 1926.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rhinoceros</span> Family of mammals

A rhinoceros, commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant species of odd-toed ungulates in the family Rhinocerotidae; it can also refer to a member of any of the extinct species of the superfamily Rhinocerotoidea. Two of the extant species are native to Africa, and three to South and Southeast Asia.

Zakouma National Park is a 3,000 km2 (1,158 sq mi) national park in southeastern Chad, straddling the border of Guéra Region and Salamat Region. Zakouma is the nation's oldest national park, declared a national park in 1963 by presidential decree, giving it the highest form of protection available under the nation's laws. It has been managed by the nonprofit conservation organization African Parks since 2010 in partnership with Chad's government.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Garamba National Park</span> National Park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Garamba National Park is a national park in the north-eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo covering nearly 5,200 km2 (2,000 sq mi). It is among Africa's oldest parks and was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1980 for its protection of critical habitat for northern white rhinoceroses, African elephants, hippopotamuses, and giraffes. Garamba National Park has been managed by African Parks in partnership with the Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature since 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">International Rhino Foundation</span> Texas-based charity

The International Rhino Foundation (IRF) is a Texas-based charity focused on the conservation of the five species of rhinoceros which include the White Rhinoceros and Black Rhinoceros of Africa, and the Indian Rhinoceros, Javan Rhinoceros and Sumatran Rhinoceros of Asia.

The Kruger National Park is a South African National Park and one of the largest game reserves in Africa. Originally known as The Sabi Game Reserve, it became a game reserve in 1898. The park became known as Kruger National Park in 1926, when it was named after Paul Kruger.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">International Anti-Poaching Foundation</span> Environmental organization

Akashinga, is a non-profit organisation registered in Australia, predominantly operating on the African continent. The group initially created a structured military-like approach to conservation, employing tactics and technology generally reserved for the modern-day battlefield, and has since moved to a community oriented approach. This has included the training of local women as rangers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Damien Mander</span> Australian anti-poaching activist

Damien Mander is an anti-poaching activist and the founder of Akashinga. He is a former Australian Royal Navy Clearance Diver and Special Operations military sniper. He is also a director of the Conservation Guardians. In 2019, he received the Winsome Constance Kindness Trust Gold Medal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SanWild Wildlife Sanctuary</span>

The SanWild Wildlife Sanctuary is a 5,000 ha (50 km2) wildlife rehabilitation center and reserve in South Africa's Limpopo Province, located a few kilometers south of Leydsdorp, and near the western boundary of the Kruger National Park.

The African Wildlife Defence Force (AWDF), Kikosi cha ulinzi ya wanyama pori barani Afrika (Swahili), is a private park ranger and anti-poaching organization based in Dungu, in the north-east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. AWDF uses direct action tactics to protect wildlife and rainforests. The organization was founded in 2012 by Congolese-Belgian philanthropist Jean Kiala-Inkisi. It is proposed as an alternative to regular park ranger organizations who struggle with corruption, and seeks to eliminate the increasing levels of violence which poachers face.

K9 Killer was a Belgian Malinois dog that worked with the Kruger National Park's Special Operations team to apprehend rhinoceros poachers in South Africa. On 6 January 2016, he was awarded a PDSA Gold Medal for his anti-poaching work. Amos Mzimba is the owner of K9 Killer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Khama Rhino Sanctuary</span> Animal sanctuary in Botswana

Khama Rhino Sanctuary is a community-based wildlife project in Botswana, located about 25 kilometres (16 mi) outside of Serowe. It covers approximately 8,585 hectares of Kalahari sandveld and is home to white and black rhinos as well as over 30 other mammal species and more than 230 species of birds. The sanctuary was established in 1992 to help save the vanishing rhinoceros and restore historic wildlife populations, as well as to develop the surrounding community. In addition to breeding rhinos, the sanctuary also has an environmental education centre, campsites, property chalets, and a restaurant onsite. Funds are mainly generated from tourism and from selling animals to other farms when capacity is exceeded on the property.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Smart Parks</span> UK-based charity

Smart Parks is a UK-based charity that specializes in providing aerial surveillance and monitoring services through the use of unnamed aerial vehicles (UAVs), commonly knowns as drones. The organization was founded in 2012 and launched publicly in 2013, and operates as a registered charity in the UK and a private foundation in the Netherlands. The organization was formerly named ShadowView.

The Big Life Foundation is a non-profit conservation organization created to preserve the wildlife and habitats of the Amboseli-Tsavo-Kilimanjaro ecosystem of East Africa through community-based and collaborative strategies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rhinoceros poaching in Southern Africa</span>

Rhinoceros poaching in southern Africa is the illegal act of slaughtering rhinoceros in the southern African countries of Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe and South Africa, where most of Africa's rhinos live. The most common reason for rhino poaching is to meet the high demand for their horns in Asian countries, where the horn is predominantly used in Traditional Chinese Medicine but is increasingly being used as a symbol of wealth and prosperity. In previous generations, the most common rhino poaching activity was hunting for recreational purposes. Because of excessive poaching, rhino populations have decline rapidly since the 1970s, leaving some species critically endangered and facing extinction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anti-poaching</span> Organized activities to combat the illegal poaching of wildlife

Anti-poaching is the organised act to counter the poaching of wildlife. However, it is generally used to describe an overall effort against the illegal wildlife trade. The act of anti-poaching is normally carried out by national parks on public land and by private security companies on privately owned land. Anti-poaching takes many forms and which depends mainly upon the habitat being protected. Typically, it is the act of actively patrolling land in an effort to prevent poachers from reaching the animals.

Hemmersbach Rhino Force is a direct action conservation organization acting with a focus on the African rhinos. Rhino Force's main activities consist of anti-poaching rangers in the Greater Kruger National Park, a biobank called Hemmersbach Rhino Force Cryovault to preserve rhino genes and the Black Rhino Reintroduction to bring back rhinos to the Mid Zambezi Valley in Zimbabwe.

The Akashinga Rangers is an all-female anti-poaching group in Zimbabwe. The group is the subject of a 2020 documentary titled Akashinga: The Brave Ones.

How Many Elephants is an anti-poaching conservation charity based in the United Kingdom. The charity supports female and mixed ranger teams in Africa.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Barbee, Jeffrey (26 February 2015). "World's First All-Female Patrol Protecting South Africa's Rhinos". The Guardian. Retrieved 22 September 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Hahn, Julia (30 March 2015). "'Black Mambas' on South African Rhino Patrol". DW. Retrieved 22 September 2015.
  3. "Help Us To Stop the Slaughter". Transfrontier Africa. Archived from the original on 23 September 2015. Retrieved 22 September 2015.
  4. 1 2 3 Iyengar, Rishi (10 September 2015). "The Black Mambas, a Mostly Female Anti-Poaching Force, Have Won a Top U.N. Environmental Award". Time. Retrieved 22 September 2015.
  5. 1 2 Epatko, Larisa (10 September 2015). "'Black Mamba' Female Rangers Awarded for Anti-Poaching Efforts". PBS. Retrieved 22 September 2015.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Frank, Priscilla (10 September 2015). "Meet The Black Mambas, South Africa's Majority-Female Anti-Poaching Unit". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 22 September 2015.
  7. 1 2 "Mostly Female Anti-Poaching Unit From South Africa Wins Top UN Environmental Prize". UN News Centre. 8 September 2015. Retrieved 22 September 2015.