Melissa Whitecross completed the five-year programme strategy and the 2021 strategic framework for the LCP and finalised the programme’s staff performance appraisals for submission to the Head of Conservation. Melissa attended the organising committee meetings for the Virtual African Bird Fair, Flock 2021, Learn About Birds (LAB) Conference and the Kruger Challenge. Melissa attended the Ingula Partnership Steering Committee meeting where she presented on the threatened species work currently being carried out by BirdLife South Africa (BLSA). Melissa attended a meeting with Bronwyn Maree and Hanneline Smit-Robinson to discuss opportunities for European Roller monitoring in Kruger National Park with the South African National Parks (SANParks) Honorary Rangers (West Rand region). Melissa attended a meeting with the Buffelskloof Nature Reserve and Herbarium. Melissa presented the guest lecture at the virtual BirdLife Northern Gauteng (BLNG) AGM, providing an overview of BLSA’s raptor conservation work. Melissa also presented in the weekly webinar covering the Ingula Partnership’s work. Melissa was interviewed by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) radio team on Barn Swallows and their conservation ahead of the team’s trip to Ingula Nature Reserve. Kyrone Josiah developed a draft social media plan for the LAB Conference and conducted various administrative tasks for the LCP.
Protecting Species
Linda van den Heever presented a talk on the Vulture Safe Zone Project to the Witwatersrand Bird Club. Linda met with Professor Vinny Naidoo from the University of Pretoria, to discuss progress on her lead isotope research. Linda developed a presentation for an upcoming Conservation Conversations webinar on the link between vultures and disease. Linda attended a meeting of the LAB Organising Committee and dealt with various administrative matters related to the BLSA Animal Research Ethics Committee.
Christiaan Brink met with potential funder, Laetitia Steynberg from BLNG, to discuss her interest in contributing towards the Secretarybird Project. Christiaan assisted in making slides and presenting during the Ingula Partnership Steering Committee meeting. Christiaan wrote a project proposal for the 2021 financial year for funding from Eskom for the Southern Banded Snake Eagle Transformer Box Study. He also wrote a funding request to Chamberlain’s Hardware to sponsor equipment for this study. Christiaan reviewed and reassessed the transformer boxes chosen for this study. Christiaan responded to queries from provincial environmental permit offices regarding his applications to track Secretarybirds. He also wrote an article for the BLSA e-newsletter and contributed to the Board of Directors’ report for 2021.
Kyle Lloyd conducted fieldwork for most of the week which involved servicing camera traps, measuring environmental variables, and deploying acoustic devices for the White-winged Flufftail Conservation Project. Kyle reported on the 2020 achievements of the project. Kyle met with Ernst Retief to discuss the Blue Swallow Habitat Suitability Model.
Protecting Ecosystems
Giselle Murison participated in Estuary Advisory Forums along the West Coast, including the Berg River Estuary Advisory Forum, where she provided feedback on BLSA’s work in the area, detailing upcoming monitoring, training and research initiatives. She also provided an update on the organisation’s ongoing Bankside Habitat Rehabilitation and Erosion Control Project. Giselle commented on several funding applications, as well as drafting comments on an environmental management framework and a number of estuarine habitat management plans.
Carina Pienaar hosted the BBC News and Radio team on the Ingula Nature Reserve in their covering of the Barn Swallow Migration and the Ingula Partnership. Carina presented at the Ingula Partnership Conservation Conversations webinar, attended and presented at the Ingula Partnership Steering Committee meeting, and assisted in the compilation of the Annual Plan of Operation (APO) for the Ingula Nature Reserve. Steven Segang conducted the Bedford and Chatsworth surveys, completing all four avifaunal surveys for February. Interesting species seen included Lesser Kestrel and an African Snipe male displaying. Steven has started the analysis of data as part of his skill development process. Steve McKean met with Carina Pienaar and Jabulani Hlophe, the Eskom manager at Ingula Nature Reserve, to discuss and complete the APO for Ingula, whereby management tasks for 2021 were agreed upon. The APO is designed to assist managers to track their tasks and reports while minimising the administrative burden and this has been sent to both Jabulani and Carina for their use.
Steve continued Blue Swallow monitoring and survey work with Brent Coverdale from Ezemvelo KwaZulu-Natal Wildlife (EKZNW), and also travelled to the Harding area in southern KZN, to locate Blue Swallow nests at Sunnyvale and nearby communal areas. Despite unfavourable weather conditions, a previously unknown active Blue Swallow nest was found on the Sunnyvale property. It is suggested that there are at least two Blue Swallow breeding pairs at Sunnyvale. Steve intends to re-initiate meetings with landowners in the Sunnyvale area to discuss the property’s possible declaration. Steve distributed over R10 000 worth of herbicide to Trewirgie Nature Reserve to assist them with alien plant eradication at this site, which contains breeding Blue Swallows.
Renewable Energy
Samantha Ralston-Paton drafted a discussion document and met with the South African Wind Energy Association Environmental (SAWEA) working group chairs to outline some problems and potential solutions with operational-phase monitoring and mitigation at wind energy facilities. Sam attended a webinar on an Africa-Europe Perspective on Wind Energy which was hosted by the African-European Union Energy Partnership. Sam contributed to BLSA’s comments on the draft Environmental Management Framework for Saldanha Bay.