Joe’s Jabber

October 2017

Balule & Conservation News

Rain and Temperatures

The average minimum No rain was recorded for the month of September leaving us with a total for the temperatures have jumped to 16 season of 16mm. Normal September months could be anything between 18 degrees Celsius with a low of 11 and 24mm. degrees. The average maximum daytime temperatures have risen Sea temperatures in the Atlantic Ocean are in flux and a weak El Nina appears to 28.9 degrees Celsius with a high to be developing. This will mean we can expect a slightly above average amount of 35 degrees. of rain over the next few months. . (Photo by Johann B38) OLIFANTS NORTH '17-'18 140 ANNUAL RAINFALL PATTERN 120

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40 20 (Photo by Kenny B7)

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Sightings

Predator sightings have been good – not as many as last month but still good. There have been fewer sightings and it may be that they are covering a larger area – going to Parsons, Maseke and Grietjie.

The riverine area along the Olifants River and the Old Airstrip still seem to be favourite spots for seeing leopard.

Some of the more uncommon species seen this month included Stripped Pipit, Mocking Chat, White Fronted Plovers, African Hawk Eagle, a Pel’s Fishing Owl, honey badgers and hyena. ·

Guest Contributions

From time to time we have the pleasure of guest contributions from member “experts” on different topics, such as birds and trees, relating to ONGR, included into this newsletter. If you would like to make a contribution or suggest a topic of interest - please make contact with Joe.

Neighbour developments

Balule has expanded with the inclusion of the farm, Pridelands, between Jejane and of 2 000ha. Balule is now 52 456 hectares and stretches from Hoedspruit until 20km before . There is also a good chance that additional farms towards Phalaborwa will be included in the not too distant future.

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Poaching

Balule recorded 5 incursions during the month. None of which resulted in any fatalities. Our anti-poaching teams continue to be vigilant and put in long hours especially during full moon time.

Infrastructure developments

ROADS

At the start of upper River Road an erosion area has been identified. The road makes a curve around a donga and over the years this donga has crept closer to the road. To slow down the whole erosion process we’ve brought in rocks from the river and packed these into gabions. This together with seeding we do will rehabilitate the area in hardly any time at all.

(Photo by James B21)

UNITS FOR SALE

Full Share B9 and B14

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OFFICE & HOUSEKEEPING NEWS

General

NEW GATE PROCEDURES. Personnel at the Grietjie gate will turn people back if they do not have an exit permit. The aim is to help make Balule more secure from a poaching point of During October 2017 all the view. paperwork (indemnities etc.) that would normally be done at the Your understanding and compliance will be appreciated. Olifants North gate will be completed at the Grietjie gate. The gate at Olifants North will become semi-automated – there will be push buttons to open the gate when entering or leaving.

Guests and contractors must obtain an exit permit from the office during their stay and prior to departure.

(Photo by Graham) PHOTOS

Please send all photos for the website to [email protected]

CLUBHOUSE

Members are reminded that the new Clubhouse is used at your own risk. Parents are advised to ensure that children do not walk across the rim / overflow wall of the swimming pool at any time.

Please ensure you leave tables and chairs as you would like to find them on your next visit.

ROAD SIGNS

We started replacing all the wooden signs with reflective metal ones. Termites cause problems everywhere not only in houses.

CLEANING OF THATCH ROOFS.

Olifants North offers an annual service of cleaning thatch roofs before the rainy season. This is especially important where houses are under trees and have valleys. If the leaves are not removed it promotes the rotting of the grass underneath. The cost will vary from R250 to R750 depending on the size of the house and amount of leaves. We have not had much of a response, less than 10 houses, please let the office know if your unit needs doing.

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Olifants River, Balule Nature Reserve Summarized report on river health project: Water Quality Project. (April & August 2017)

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IMPORTANT NOTE TO READERS:

It is emphasized that this is not intented to be a scientific report and the data collected was done as a project for learning at a grassroot level. The small data set collected can at this stage not be seen as statistically feasible to make long-term conclusions, but merely act as a snapshot of the current situation along this section of the river at the time of the project. This report is intented to stimulate an awareness and promote support for a more substantiated river health monitoring program in the BNR.

1. Objectives of the project.

 Determine the ecological heath, quality of habitat and ecological water quality of the pre-selected section of the lower-Olifants river.

 Compare the results from the set of data parameters between the different monitoring sites set along the river from upstream to down stream.

 Identify priority areas along the river that require management or legislative mitigation to improve the state of the river.

2. The study area.

The proposed study area includes a section of the lower Olifants river in the Limpopo Province situated in the Northeast of . The area is acting as a very important buffer zone to absorb various impacts from different forms of land use, prior to entering the . A large part of the study area and thus the buffer zone includes the Balule Nature Reserve as well as neighboring farms, villiages and industries. 5

Above: Basic study area and monitoring sites.

3. Methods and materials.

The assessment is divided into the following components, and each will be conducted at the different sites.

SASS5: Aquatic invertebrate survey.

This is a rapid type of survey that is able to quantify species diversity and relative abundance in each biotope according to the specific microhabitat criteria whether by minimum sampling surface area or a minimum amount of time that was spent surveying a specific biotope. The sampling was done using a standard 300x300mm net as prescribed by the system.

At each of the sites the habitat suitability for high species diversity was also evaluated. The Integrated Habitat Assessment method (IHAS) was used for this purpose. The technique involves the subjective scoring of components of the habitat environment to determine whether the habitat would be suitable for specific invertebrates.

By combining these two methods a poor habitat score can be eliminated as the only reason why there is poor diversity and abundance.

The following biotopes occurred on site at the time of the survey:  Run: Area in stream with tranquil flow and no broken water on the surface.  Pool/still: Where flow of water is extremely slow or even still.  Marginal vegetation: Grasses, reeds and sedges on water’s edge.  Silt, sand, bedrock and mud: The material that constitutes the bottom of the stream.  Stones in- and out of current.

Each of these biotopes was sampled with the standard equipment according to the specified criteria. Invertebrates collected were classified and identified, as well as scored according to their sensitivity to pollution.

A final score was calculated and compared to the result classes with explanations of the water quality.

Figure 5. SASS 5 Tray collected from site 22. Note the member of Coenagrionidae.

IHAS: Aquatic invertebrate habitat evaluation.

Because the habitat plays an important role in the interpretation of the SASS results the habitat was also evaluated. IHAS (Integrated Habitat Assessment System) evaluates the different habitats according to suitability requirements for sustaining life in the specific aquatic environment. With this system, the quality and availability of the mentioned biotopes are quantified as well as the general condition of the water body.

Simplified FAII: Basic fish diversity survey. Electro-stunning. Electricity is passed through the water and allowed to flow in the water from one electrode to the other, creating an electro-magnetic field in the water. All fish within the stunning field of the current is stunned unconscious for approximately 5 minutes. These fish, even the very small species that are usually unnoticed by scientists are thus also

collected in the net, as the stream current carries their paralyzed bodies downstream into the net. The fish biotopes are sampled and include open water, fringing vegetation, banks and overhangs, as well as rapids and pools. Fishes collected are kept in a water container, are identified and inspected for health indicators. Scale diseases, gill parasites such as Argulus and general gill condition and cleanliness are inspected.

4. Results & Discussion.

Following are the data tables and associated graphs depicting the results obtained from the surveys conducted.

Table 1 represents the IHAS and SASS scores as recorded on site. The SASS system scores the occurrence of water insects based on the water quality, but does not take into account the suitability of the habitat and environment in which these invertebrates need to live as well. Hence, IHAS needs to be conducted also in order to quantify any shortfalls in the habitat for these insects. These shortcommings in the habitat would be justifying the possible absence of certain indicator species of aquatic invertebrates and that quantified lack of habitat suitability would need to be added to the SASS score in order to obtain a representativeSASS score, as if the habitat was suitable for the insects and only a deterioration in water quality would thus be responsible for the presence or absence of such insect species.

1st 2nd 1st 2nd IHAS SASS 5 time time time time Plot 30 74 68 Plot 30 102 160 Plot 22 76 74 Plot 22 124 156 LWB 68 64 LWB 148 140

Table 1. Unadjusted scores for habitat and SASS.

Table 2 below contains the data with the adjusted habitat loss and SASS scores. This table will be used for data interpretation.

SASS with IHAS adjustment ADJ and Diff. in IHAS 1st Diff. in 1st time 2nd time AVE time 2nd time IHAS Plot Plot 30 112 171 141.5 30 10 11 6 Plot Plot 22 135 159 147 22 11 3 2 LWB 152 154 153 LWB 14 4 4

Table 2. Adjusted IHAS & SASS scores and differences in adjustment of scores.

IHAS scores are presented as a % whilst SASS5 scores are indices. The higher the score, the better the ecological water quality based on sensitivity to pollution.

In order to make interpretation of the data pleasant and digestable, the average scores of the two site visits are used to present interpretations. It is emphasized that this is not intented to be a scientific report and the data collected was done as a project for learning at a grassroot level. This is a very small set of data collected so long-term conclusions cannot be made. It can merely act as a snapshot of the current situation along this section of the river at the time of the project.

sass ihas Plot 30 141.5 71 Plot 22 147 75 LWB 153 81 Table 3. Average SASS & IHAS scores.

From the above graph it is clear that the water quality as well as the habitat value both improve as the river meanders deeper into the BNR. Lower values around the Parsons area could possibly be attributed to absorbing most of the outside impacts from different forms of land use outside conservation areas, whilst Olifants North area and more downstream seems to act as a stabilization zone along this section of the river.

At this stage on this small scale project, this section of the Olifantsriver seems to be in relative healthy state and this emphasizes the need for land owners to respect the river, the water as well as the riperian vegetation and banks in order to continue improving the aquatic and ecological status of the most important river system in the Balule Nature Reserve and greater Kruger.

We are in the process of compiling a more detailed report combining the August data set with that of our project conducted in April. On completion of the report, it will be circulated. We hope that this small report has opened up a new dimenstion of this amazing natural world we are ao lucky to live in and be the custodians of.

5. References.

Hereby a short list of material that could be useful to the students to read up on prior to arriving and commencing with the project.

 The Kruger National Park River Research Programme. Venter F. Et al. 2000. ISBN 1 86845 622 6

 Research on the rapid biological assessment of water quality impacts in streams and rivers. Chutter F. M. 1998. ISBN 1 86845 419 3

 Effect of pollutants on the physiology of fish in the Olifants river (Eastern Transvaal). Van Vuren J. H. J et al. 1994. ISBN 1 86845 11 43

 An evaluation of SASS (South African Scoring System) as a tool for the rapid assessment of water quality. Dallas H. F. 1995.

CORNELL VERMAAK

DISEASE ECOLOGIST

ENDIP WILDLIFE LABORATORY

WARDEN: PARSONS REGION