FLOWER FOUNTAIN – A groundbreaking program has been launched at the Amanzi Private Game Reserve near Winnie Mandela (Brandfort) in the Free State that will give a huge boost to international giraffe research.
With this move, the University of the Free State (UFS) is taking wildlife research to new heights.
A unique, special Giraffe Research Program was introduced at the launch on Wednesday 29 October in the reserve outside Brandfort. This will be dedicated to promoting international scientific cooperation in the study and conservation of giraffes.
The launch marks the next stage in a research journey that has already placed the UFS at the forefront of giraffe science and research excellence. Over the past decade, a team of researchers, led by Prof. Francois Deacon from the Department of Animal Sciences, has made important contributions to understanding the behavior, physiology and ecology of giraffes.
Despite their enormous presence on the African continent, giraffes are quietly disappearing. Today, fewer than 100,000 remain in the wild – a sobering reminder that their future is far from secure and that excellent research like this is crucial to ensuring their survival.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) calls them vulnerable, with populations declining by more than 40% over the past thirty years.
This new infrastructure in the Amanzi Private Game Reserve combines on-site research laboratories with spacious, stress-free habitats. In this hands-on environment, veterinarians, scientists and students can work closely with giraffes.
Over the past seven years, Deacon’s team has performed 254 successful stunning and captures, carefully building the expertise needed for the next delicate step: the first embryo transfer in wild giraffes.
PHOTO: Lientjie Mentz
Deacon explained the need to provide a safe and controlled environment for research. In an encampment built near Amanzi’s main building, researchers hope to make major progress in giraffe conservation.
“The facility will provide a safe and controlled environment where the world’s first giraffe embryo (in this environment) can develop and grow, and where we can work together to produce the science needed to reverse giraffe extinction,” he said.
The general public may not see the results immediately, but twenty years from now, what we do today will be critical in creating a biobank of viable giraffe embryos and calves that can be used in surrogate animals, supporting sustainable conservation practices for future generations.
– Prof. François Deacon
The program is not only a testimony to academic and private collaboration, it goes much further. About twelve departments at the UFS are already involved in the research project in one way or another. This includes researchers from the Department of Animal Sciences to the Departments of Zoology and Entomology, as well as Chemistry – and even Information and Communications and Technology Services, which contribute to 3D modelling, software and monitoring of the animals.
The project also provides opportunities for collaboration with conservation organizations and universities around the world, positioning the UFS as a leading hub for giraffe and large mammal research in Africa. Current partners who share Deacon’s vision for giraffe conservation on the African continent include Save the Giraffes (a US-based NGO), Absolute Genetics, Ramsem and the Kroonstad Animal Hospital.
Deacon explained that the encampment at Amanzi would not only provide a wide range of research opportunities, but would also bring giraffes close to visitors to the game reserve. A deck was built that takes visitors above the camp, where the giraffes will hopefully be tame enough for visitors to interact with them up close. It is reminiscent of the Giraffe Center in Nairobi, Kenya, where visitors can feed the animals.
Lientjie Mentz
novanews.co.za
