Mark Griffiths

No member's circular this month. As most of you know, Mark and family have been on their annual pilgrimage to Jeffrey's Bay. He has however asked that we take note of the following:

Fire Hazards - we are in peak dry season and bush and thatch are extremely flammable.

Water restrictions - Preserve every drop that you can, no watering plants or washing cars. Report any leaks noted. Ellies are seriously on the rampage!

Poaching - Report any suspected shots or suspicious Vulture activity. Management will investigate.

We hope for some feedback from Mark on the Eastern Cape's fishing status and the tide "Highs and Lows"!! Hope that it was a wonderful and restful holiday, Griffiths family!!

N'tsiri AGM

Reminder to all that our N'tsiri AGM is taking place on: Wednesday 6 September 2017 at 18h00. The meeting will take place at Bryanston Country Club. The Ntsheli AGM will proceed first, followed by the N'tsiri AGM. We encourage as many members as possible to attend. Please notify Don Millar, at least 2 weeks prior to the meeting, if you have additions for the agenda: don@claritygroup.co.za 

Protected Areas Act - Theo Van Wyk

As was mentioned in last month's newsletter, a process has begun to align all private nature reserves with the National Environmental Management : Protected Areas Act (NEMPAA). As an update on this: Nkorho and UWCA have set up a Steerco with a number of work streams to address the different topics and to speed up the process. Both entities have signed a MOA with the K2C and each work stream will work directly with allocated resources from SANPARKS and GEF. We intend to have this process explained to all members at the AGM in September. The current aim is to finalise the process and all registrations by early 2019 at the latest.

Insurance matters

Malcolm has asked us to remind members that if they do make any significant changes to their units, to please give all details to Ethel. This ensures that the values on your units are updated and your insurance remains accurate. This is very important and the onus is on you to pass on this information.

Moses in the Wars

On Mark's return from holiday... he was thrown back into work with the daily fun and games that happen on a game farm. One of our male leopards was sighted at Ingwe Dam with a very mangled looking right forelimb paw. Mark immediately notified the Umbabat and the local veterinarian. Advice was, that it was our duty to ascertain the cause of the injury and then decide on what actions to take. An injured leopard is an extremely dangerous animal and he was lying up at one of our popular game viewing locations. After darting the leopard, Mark and the vet were able to identify this boy as Moses. He had a very nasty abscess which was lanced prior to allowing him to wake up and wander off. The board is satisfied that this incident was handled within protocol and with the permission and advice of the necessary authorities.

Building activities

The rebuild of unit 46 is nearing completion and we are hoping that it will be completed by the end of August.

We have had various applications from minor alterations to a complete rebuild.

Members wishing to apply for permission for a new building or for any alteration projects, need to fill in the required application forms. These must be duly signed and submitted to the Building Directors: Peter Smelting – Peter@cellchem.co.za or Dave Joscelyne – daj1@mweb.co.za .

A copy must also be forwarded to Mark Griffiths – mark@ntsiri.co.za

When booking please confirm with the office if there is any building activity happening in your area.

Staff Library

The N'tsiri board and management have made it a goal to significantly improve the well being of the staff that work for us. One of the suggestions, that has been met with great enthusiasm, has been to create a library and recreation center for the staff's children who visit during the school holidays. We would like to encourage members to gather and donate any children's books, games or puzzles that are in good condition. These items can be handed in to Ethel, who will collect and store them for us, until Phase 2 of our Staff Village projects in underway.

Refurbishment of the Sleeping Platform

This project is scheduled to begin in September as soon as most of the schools have gone back. We have planned this project carefully to minimize any inconvenience to members and their families. The refurbishment is necessary from both a safety and an aesthetic point of view. The aim is to complete it before the December busy period. We sure that members will appreciate the time and effort that goes into keeping our facilities in pristine condition.

Our Sodic soils - chemical imbalance!

For a while now your EMP committee has been pondering the problem of how to solve our "Sodic soils" problem. These soils are found in small patches of N'tsiri and are particularly vulnerable to erosion. The solution lies not in brush packing or in planting more grass cover over them, but in improving the chemical structure within the soil. Dr Mike Peel has been instrumental in helping the EMP committee to implement a new project whereby gypsum (Calcium Carbonate) is ploughed into the top 10 cm of soil in these damaged areas. The project has been tested favorably on a nearby farm called Jejani and we aim to try small areas on N'tsiri and see what improvement we can gain in a limited period, before extending this project to other areas.

Knob thorn - Acacia nigrescens

These beautiful knob thorn trees are currently in flower and showing their dazzling colours. This  is causing much excitement among our insect population. They are medium sized, deciduous trees that provide valuable fodder for game and also make very good braai wood.

Knob thorns have been the topic of much discussion at EMP committee level. Our large specimens are currently being decimated at an alarming rate by our growing elephant population. At certain times of the year, elephants are particularly drawn to the cambian in the bark layer and will strip trees relentlessly to gain access. This stripping of the bark causes significant damage to the trees and in many cases actually kills the tree.

Geigeria ornativa - Common Geigeria

Justica flava - Yellow justicea

Abutilon austro-africanum - Indian Mallow

Protect our trees

As mentioned earlier in this edition, our large trees, particularly Marula trees and Knob thorns are under threat from growing elephant populations. What is even more scary is that most ecologists will confirm... we are not seeing significant numbers of young trees around! The EMP committee has been looking into ways to possibly limit this elephant damage and protect our trees. The project is still in its infancy, but some of the methods being used by neighboring reserves are being evaluated. These include: Beehives in trees as deterrents, Creosote in a single small container hanging in the tree and fine "pig mesh" on damaged areas or vulnerable trees. The committee will keep members posted on these developments.  

Strange looking giraffe - Shirley Joscelyne

We have been fortunate over our last two visits to the farm during June and July to have had numerous good sightings of giraffe, with one sighting of more than fourteen giraffe together with a herd of impala in the vicinity of Natural Pan. However on our last visit we had an unusual giraffe sighting on Kuku-Waai-ya Crossing. The giraffe had an abnormality on the left side of his head which looked like his left horn had been severed which had resulted in this abnormality. The giraffe appeared totally unperturbed by this abnormality and was feeding normally.

Breeding herds of Ellies

Yvonne has been wonderful about sending us pictures of interesting game sightings that she sees on her daily rounds. These reports are so well appreciated, especially by those of us stuck in the cities. Keep sending, Yvonne.... we love the news!!

Game Drive Etiquette

It has once again become necessary to remind all members of our game drive etiquette. This is particularly related to sightings of Big Five. These are unpredictable, wild animals and their behavior, especially where children or people on foot is concerned..... may end in disaster. Please educate your visitors and children on these rules. Please remain quiet and seated at all Big 5 sightings. Be respectful of your fellow members, who are also trying to get a good sighting. Use red filters on all nocturnal animals and try to avoid shining on the diurnal animals at night. These rules are in place for the benefit of members and members found breaking the rules will be severely reprimanded. Please click on the link below for the full game drive protocol.

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African Giant Land Snail - Lissachatina fulica

These creatures are molluscs that occur widely throughout Africa. They are known to live for several years and can grow as large as 20 cm. They are hermaphrodites and have both sex organs present, however they still require two snails in order to reproduce.

They are listed in the top 100 of invasive species world wide. They are veracious feeders, eating a wide range of plant matter and thus can cause significant damage to crops and gardens. They are the favorite meal of Ground Hornbills, another of our favorites! We are sometimes lucky enough to see Land snails straight after heavy rains. Their shells are found scattered through the veld the rest of the year.