SNARE Aware’s fight against poaching saw its members comb through Lower Illovo where they stumbled upon two dead monkeys ensnared on two separate sweeps over the weekend from May 15-17.

Also read: Snare Aware reflects on its impact combating poaching

Snare Aware is an environmental awareness and conservation non-profit organisation which specifically focuses on a method of poaching using snares.

A poacher’s snare is essentially a noose designed to tighten as an animal moves through it. It is typically made of wire, cable or rope.

A Snare Aware member, whose identity will remain anonymous for their safety, said that on May 15, one member who scoured the Lower Illovo area found eight new active snares and a dead monkey in a snare.

Further inland, seven members assisted at Bisley Nature Reserve in Pietermaritzburg, where anti-poaching ranger Nick Duranty, who boasts a social media following of almost 150 000, was conducting an educational presentation and snare sweep.

Duranty and his dog, Nitus, found one active snare, and the Snare Aware members found three active snares.

“Five of those members went out again in the afternoon at Bisley, covering more ground, but no further active snares were found. On May 17, three members and a first-time volunteer trekked into a hotspot area in Lower Illovo to cover more ground. They were able to find another five active snares and another dead monkey entrapped,” said the member.

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