MunicipalNewsUpdate

Dassies killed to end suffering

For years animals at Norscot and Kingfisher nature reserves have been neglected by Johannesburg City Parks

That allegation was from the reserves’ civic committee that have battled tooth and nail to have overpopulated dassie herds at the reserve culled, and to have blesbok antelope moved elsewhere, since grazing had become scarce in the 17 hectare reserve.

“We have been discussing these issues with increasing importance for three years now,” said civic committee member Mary Borkett.

“It started as a city parks plan to manage the reserve, its occupants and its resources, to avoid the situation we now have.”

Apart from a few bales feed in winter and some fence repairs, nothing was done about the dassie and blesbok population.

In July a permit to cull dassies at Norscot was obtained from the Gauteng department of agriculture and environment.

“Dassie culling will be done by a professional marksman to prevent suffering,” said city spokesman Nthatisi Modingoane.

Last week, Shane Spencer of the Bushveld Conservation Bureau arrived to start the hyrax dassie cull, and a hundred had to be removed.

According to Borkett, delays in culling were due to city parks delaying the permit since July.

The reserve is still home to hundreds of dassies, not sustainable since grass stocks are rapidly depleting.

City parks plan to monitor the effects of the first cull on the reserve’s ecosystem.

“The long-term objective remains a holistic plan to manage the urban dassie population on a sustainable and ecologically sound basis, where a balance can be maintained between the needs of urban wildlife and human residents,” said Modingoane.

Looklocal Fourways have been covering the plight of the dassies in urban nature reserves since last year. This year marked a turn with less complaints about the animals, though a population boom is eminent according to environmental specialist Paul Fairall.

  • In February 2012 complaints from residents over a new menace, dassies reached the front page of Fourways Review.
  • We also reported on how urban growth puts the squeeze on dassies.
  • Last April Fourways Gardens residents had a meeting with environmental experts and Johannesburg City Parks in regards to the dassie explotion within this community.
  • By June we reported on the hefty cost involved removing dassies that escape the reserves and live in storm water drains.
  • In July the first word of a plan of action to cull dassies at Lonehill, Norscot, Kingfisher and Fourways Gardens Nature Reserve was published.
  • Later that month we reported on Blesbuck at the reserve was facing starvation due to overgrazing by dassies.
  • Since then we reported on the battle to have some of the reserves’ buck relocated and the logistical nightmare it caused.

At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
Stay in the know. Download the Caxton Local News Network App here.

Related Articles

Back to top button