RESEARCH grey ghosts OF THE WETLANDS TeXT & PHOTOGRAPHS RALF MULLERS Swamps heave with many different life forms: leeches, mosquitoes and damselflies, snakes and crocodiles, fish and fishermen, birds and birders... In swamps in Central and eastern Africa, the bird- ers are almost certainly braving insects and rep- tiles in the hope of seeing something more rare: a prehistoric-looking creature that seldom moves and is extremely hard to find – a Shoebill. LOOKING FOR A Shoebill Bal- can protect it before it goes the way aeniceps rex is undoubtedly a chal- of that other strange-looking bird, lenge. Quite apart from the travails the Dodo. of scouring swamps, the species’ habitat is often remote and inacces- he Bangweulu Wetlands in sible and the political situation in Zambia were my home for some of its range states is far from two years while I studied inviting. But a successful search is TShoebills for a research project at well worth the effort, for this weird the FitzPatrick Institute at UCT. bird is truly mesmerising. It didn’t take me long to come to For such a sought-after spe- terms with the fact that most of my cies, surprisingly little is known trips into the swamps would result about the Shoebill’s general biol- in no data. For hours I would pad- The first year of the Shoebill re- above Humans and ogy, distribution and demography. dle my boat or pull it over floating search project generated little data Shoebills share the same At present we think there are be- vegetation as I searched for one of as it was discovered that there was wetlands but they do not tween 5 000 and 8 000 individuals, these elusive birds or tried to follow a lively, and illegal, trade in Shoe- compete for the same Lalthough we cannot even be sure of a particular individual. Visiting a bill chicks. Because of their bizarre food source because they these numbers. Some populations nest often involved hours of wading appearance, the birds are sought have different hunting were last monitored and counted through water and mud, jumping not only by birders but by private strategies. in the 1980s and updates of their over fish weirs and trying to bal- collectors too. The trade proved to status are urgently needed. What ance on an unsteady mat of floating be more extensive than anticipated opposite Shoebills spend we do know is that all populations vegetation, all while swatting away and was clearly posing a serious a considerable amount are in decline, thanks to the de- mosquitoes. The local people are threat to the population in the of time loafing around. gradation and destruction of their swift and light-footed, but the big Bangweulu Wetlands. You are lucky if you see a habitat, human encroachment into muzungu had difficulty in moving So to begin with, reports read Shoebill catch its prey; we their habitat, and the loss of indi- gracefully – or, indeed, moving for- more like detective stories than estimated that they take viduals to the live bird trade. We ward at all. It was easy to develop a surveys. ‘The team met as ar- only one item roughly urgently need to learn more about respect for each and every creature ranged and proceeded at 06h00 every 10 hours. this enigmatic species so that we that lives in this tough environment. towards the Shoebill location in > 24 AFRICAN BIRDLIFE JULY/AUGUST 2014 SHOEBILLS 25 the same vehicle,’ wrote researcher David Ngwenyama, describing an undercover operation set up by the Zambia Wildlife Author- ity (ZAWA). ‘At 06h15 I made contact and began negotiating a sale... At 06h40 I negotiated the “price” down to K7-million [about upbringing by US$1 400] and got positive con- humans as they do firmation that the bird was in the not have parents to house. At this time I phoned the teach them crucial Bangweulu Wetlands scouts in the taxi (‘my driver’) and survival skills, such gave them the agreed codeword as how to catch fish. for the raid to go ahead. The arrest The management and retrieval was carried out suc- of Bangweulu Wet- cessfully with both suspects and lands (a partnership the Shoebill chick... The Shoebill between African Parks, was transported to Chikuni where ZAWA and the community it arrived after 16h00.’ resource boards of six chiefdoms) The decision was made to hand- transported the chick to Chikuni, Typically, Shoebills rear the chick at the research station built an enclosure for it and hand- lay two eggs, both of at Chikuni, where it was welcomed reared it with the intention to re- which hatch. However, by another Shoebill. Given the lease it back into the wild. invari ably only one chick name Kapotwe, this bird had been The chick that had been rescued fledges because the confiscated a few weeks previously from the traders, named Bwalya, weaker sibling is driven from a fisherman who had taken it was ready to fledge and stayed from the nest. It takes from its nest and kept it in his hut only a few weeks at Chikuni. It about 100 days for the to show to tourists. Chicks in this was fed plenty of catfish to gain transmitter before being set free in deeper into the swamps, where to above Foraging on the surviving chick to fledge. situation seldom survive their weight and then fitted with a GPS the swamps about 3.5 kilometres date it still seems to be doing fine. flooded plain in front from the research station. It was of the research station monitored at the release site for t about only five weeks old at Chikuni, Kapotwe did a few days to make sure it caught when confiscated, Kapotwe not seem to be fussed by fish and found shelter at night, and proved to be a far more dif- the attention she elicited researchers were relieved to see Aficult subject for release. The female from some local com- that it appeared to be coping well. chick became quite habituated dur- munity members. Bwalya initially stayed close to ing the long period of rehabilita- where it had been released but tion and growth, which made her left An easy catch. then gradually moved to an area preparation for departure a lengthy Helping the fishermen with more suitable habitat and process. We dug a pond in her en- to empty their nets plenty of catfish. It remained there closure and kept it supplied with made Kapotwe slightly for more than 18 months, only catfish that she eventually managed less popular with the leaving in 2013 when the water to catch for herself, albeit some- community. It took only levels were very low. It then moved what clumsily. When she was fully fish, but that resulted in her be- them, but once she had driven the a week for all the fisher- grown we opened the gate so that coming very at ease with people. fishermen away from the plain she men who set nets on the CHICKS [REMOVED she could move freely around the Whenever researchers or scouts needed to look for an alternative flooded plain to move FROM THEIR NEST] research station, and this she did by went outside or visitors arrived at food source. elsewhere. SELDOM SURVIVE day but always returned to the en- Chikuni, she would go up to them This marked the beginning of closure at night. and beg for food. Tourists’ cameras a period when Kapotwe would THEIR UPBRINGING BY Kapotwe’s first foraging spot was were tested for their fishiness, and move from one fishing camp to the HUMANS AS THEY DO the pond in front of the research one evening I had difficulty drink- next to take a share of the catch. NOT HAVE PARENTS station, although she was seldom ing a whisky in front of the house At first the fishermen found this TO TEACH THEM successful. The small fish she caught because Kapotwe took a liking to quite amusing, but soon they had from time to time were not enough the glass. Then one day she made had enough of losing part of their CRUCIAL SURVIVAL to sustain her and she began to lose a great discovery: the fishermen’s income to a large bird too lazy to SKILLS, SUCH AS HOW weight. Still responsible for her nets on the flooded plain were full catch her own food. We needed to TO CATCH FISH wellbeing, we gave her additional of fish. She began feeding from make a plan. The strategy we’d > 26 AFRICAN BIRDLIFE JULY/AUGUST 2014 SHOEBILLS 27 breeding sites to monitor and look above Kapotwe enjoying after a nest. These Shoebill Guards the sunrise at Chikuni. would receive a salary to protect She stayed around the the nest during the breeding sea- research station for sev- son, assist the management and eral months, entertain- researchers if necessary, educate ing scouts, visitors and their neighbours about Shoebill photographers. conservation and, if it were feas- ible, guide tourists to the nest. below Kapotwe’s first After some start-up problems, steps to freedom. We the programme proved to be a opened the gate of her wonderful success and in 2014 enclosure, allowing her Bangweulu Wetlands manage- to move around freely ment hopes to employ 10 Shoebill and seek shelter if she Guards and their assistants. In wanted to. Initially she this way, the local community will was reluctant to venture benefit directly from looking after any distance, but after a the Shoebills while the birds, by > few months she would disappear for days at a time.