Bradley preserves the natural order

The latest ally in the fight for our grasslands is a self-proclaimed nature lover.

While Bradley Gibbons may joke his strength is talking a lot, he becomes a vision of seriousness when discussing his new position and topics relating to nature conservation.

On paper, Mr Gibbons is a field officer for the Threatened Grassland Species Programme.

In his own words, however, Mr Gibbons said that as a part of the Endangered Wildlife Trust since September 2013, his position was to save the grasslands and the species under threat.

These species include the Sungazer Lizard (Ouvolk), the Yellow-breasted Pipit and golden mole species, among others such as the Oribi.

“People develop without any idea of the consequences, and it’s my job to let them know.”

Describing the three species he has been tasked with protecting, Mr Gibbons said the sungazer lizard was endemic to Southerh Mpumalanga areas such as Volksrust and the Northern Free State, and held separate colonies for males and females.

They are reportedly under threat from the muti and pet trades.

Pipits, he continued, preferred high altitude grasslands such as those near Memel, while golden moles are found throughout the country, although he is focused on species occurring in the highland grasslands.

The latter had gained a negative and misguided reputation for destroying lawns and gardens.

“People say they don’t like moles because they dig up their gardens, but golden moles form fewer hills and cause less damage.”

Laying the blame for damaged gardens at the feet of mole rats, Mr Gibbons said golden moles were carnivorous and ate worms and insects, not plants as many believe.

Golden moles, he added, were under threat from mining activity.

“In a nutshell, I protect the area because of the many animal populations which have become extinct.”

Mr Gibbons said he was already busy with a number of programmes linked to preservation of the grasslands, including the review of mining applications across his sphere of authority, as well as conservation stewardship and the development of biodiversity management plans.

While he must cover a large area, Mr Gibbons said it was far smaller to his previous work area, the entire Karoo.

“The new threat to that area was fracking (a controversial mining technique where fluid is combined with sand and chemicals and injected into the ground).”

Speaking on his love of nature, Mr Gibbons said he had always harboured a passion for the environment, and was ‘mad’ about birds and other animal species.

Eventually, his passion transformed into a budding career, which is not without its challenges.

“My job does involved a lot of office work and seeking funding.”

Mr Gibbons completed his tertiary education in George and then secured a three-year tenure protecting and monitoring blue cranes residing in the Memel area.

To date, he now has a decade of experience working for the Endangered Wildlife Trust.

“As you can see, I know Newcastle well. Later, I moved to the Karoo to continue crane conservation and after nine years, I am back.”

Proclaiming his career was more than just a job, Mr Gibbons said he was blessed to do what he truly loved, instead of being bound to the average nine-to-five.

This, he continued, was a major portion of his strength as a field officer.

“I appreciate what people do for me and my passion for nature overall is a positive.”

His advice for those seeking to become more involved in nature efforts was to join a club (such Bird Life Northern KwaZulu-Natal) and define where their passion lay.

More importantly, however, was to experience the wonder of nature first-hand.

“It is the greatest and you discover its beauty and learn more each time.”

On a personal note, Mr Gibbons has been married to Lee-Ann since 2006, and the couple have two children, six-year-old Brenna and Brett, who was born in December last year.

Brenna is already exhibiting her father’s love of the natural world.

“She loves to point out different things in the wilds,” he said with a smile.