Mafunyane has a new collar by Mphoeng
Category: Uncategorized | Date: Oct 06 2009 | By: elephantsofbotswana
Mafunyane was last sighted in May 2009. There after he disappeared until he emerged again at end of September. Mafunyane’s collar had not been functioning so we had been relying on visual sightings to gather data. We heard first of his presence by guides at Horseback (a nearby camp), it was a relief. Surprisingly the following day he was spotted near Seba Camp. We were delighted to see him though he looked bit skinny. It was imperative that we act promptly to re-collar him before he moved out of the area. We were bearing in mind that he had come before and disappeared for about four months. This was worrying as we did not know where he was at all. So we did not want to be in the situation again. The team took an immediate decision to re-collar him and went about getting Rob-The-Vet up.
On the 28th of September he was re-collared; we went at dawn to locate him. Mainly looking for Mafunyane in his favourite spots, he was later spotted at Dec. 26 near Abu Camp.
The collaring went well, but whilst he was down it was discovered that Mafunyane he had an infection on the left tusk, his left lip was very swollen. An antibiotic was administered for the infection. We were glad that we re-collared him. Though he is smart he has now moved to Seba West where water level too high for us to access, but at least we now have the satellite downloads to know where he is.
-
Hi, I am Kate Evans, or more commonly known as Elephant Kate. I am a zoologist whose great love is elephants. Since 2002 I have been living my dream by researching elephants in the Okavango Delta in Botswana. I decided I was going to be an elephant researcher when I was seven. I was living in Asia at the time and visited the elephant orphanage in Kandy, Sri Lanka. It was there that I made up my mind I was going to work for these majestic and intelligent animals. I made a promise to an elephant and we all know an elephant never forgets!!!! It took me 20 years to finally realise my dream and start my life as an elephant researcher. It was 20 years well spent and now I have to pinch myself most days to make sure it is true and I am living my dream.
I now head up a team who are researching the elephants and trying to work out the social and ecological needs of the largest remaining population of the African elephant. From time to time, other team members will add their thoughts and experiences. I love sharing my experiences - so I hope that this blog is a medium through which you will be able to join the elephants and I on our adventures in the Okavango Delta, Botswana. -
100% of your donation, minus a small bank fee, will go to your intended purpose.
Donations made here are safe.
No Responses to “Mafunyane has a new collar by Mphoeng”
Leave a Reply