Karingani - Wildlife Ranger Challenge 2022
Karingani is taking part in the Wildlife Ranger Challenge to raise awareness of the role of 75 rangers working to protect Mozambique's Karingani Game Reserve ecosystem, and support an estimated 260 livelihoods.
My story
Rangers are Africa’s unsung heroes. They don’t just fight poaching - they are conservationists, teachers, community support workers, leaders and much more.
The Wildlife Ranger Challenge, organised by Tusk and culminating on 17th September, celebrates their many roles, and is raising much-needed funds to support their work.
Karingani Game Reserve is a 150,000ha private Game Reserve situated in Southern Mozambique, in the heart of the Greater Limpopo Transfrontier Conservation Area.
At Karingani, our rangers secure the territorial integrity of Karingani Game Reserve for the ultimate purpose of restoring the reserve as an ecological expansion of the Kruger National Park (South Africa), into Mozambique. Karingani Rangers are responsible for 73km of international Kruger fence in an area of Mozambique that was historically attributed to over 75% of the rhino poaching incursions into KNP. Key activities include patrolling, gathering and reporting environmental data and minimising incursions into Karingani and KNP, safeguarding the rhino populations in both reserves.
Support from the WRC to date has assisted Karingani in providing training for our rangers - through the development of skills, motivation will be improved - along with the purchase of equipment for the K9 unit support team.
In 2022, we plan on being even more proactive within the WRC challenge and hopefully join other teams across Mozambique to provide some friendly competition within the Mozambique WRC competitors.
Give today, and the Scheinberg Relief Fund will match every dollar donated, amplifying your impact. Follow campaign updates on social media with #ForWildlifeRangers
World Ranger Day
Jul 31, 2022, 7:45:12 AMToday, across the world we celebrate wildlife rangers and here at Karingani we cannot express enough the value that our rangers provide. World Ranger Day is a day dedicated to celebrating those men and women who risk their lives every day on the frontlines of conservation as well as a day to remember and honour the Fallen Rangers who bravely gave their lives or have been injured in the line of duty protecting wildlife. Rangers are the front-line defenders of Africa’s wildlife. But to protect species and ecosystems into the future, they must be so much more. Across the world, these courageous individuals leave home, often for long periods of time. They work year-round, regardless of season and weather, and often in harsh environments. They face dangerous, and sometimes even deadly situations. They do this to protect our planet's biodiversity. Here at Karingani, our ranger force includes a Special Operations Group, K9 cold scent hounds and trained handlers, specialised man-trackers, as well as control room operators, drivers and support staff which together make up our devoted team. Today we celebrate the accomplishments and work done by our rangers and all the rangers across the globe, dedicating their lives to protect natural and cultural resources. Karingani has once again entered into the Wildlife Ranger Challenge where Wildlife Ranger teams unite across Africa, a race to raise awareness of the threats facing Africa’s wildlife and the vital role of rangers who stand between species and extinction. We are grateful for our dedicated rangers here at Karingani safeguarding our ecosystems and wildlife!!
What are we fund raising for?
Jul 31, 2022, 7:41:15 AM£19 covers the cost of SATIB #RangerProtect Life Insurance for one ranger for one year The Game Rangers’ Association of Africa (GRAA) and SATIB #RangerProtect project aims to garner financial support to ensure the wellbeing of Africa’s rangers and their families is improved through the provision of adequate insurance cover in the event of injury or death. Rangers across the world are subject to an increasing risk of life-threatening encounters. They operate in extreme environments, and in their efforts to protect our natural heritage, face the risks associated with dangerous wild animals, sickness, community backlash, and the increasing threat of armed poachers and militia groups. Over 1000 rangers have lost their lives in the line of duty in the past 10 years. Working in the African bush is not for the faint-hearted. Protected areas in Africa with species such as rhino and elephant have become war zones where armed contacts with poachers are a frequent occurrence. Rangers work uninterrupted for long periods under these harsh conditions with little reward or recognition. Biodiversity and thriving ecosystems provide both tangible and intangible benefits to society and rangers play a crucial role in ensuring healthy ecosystems. It is therefore of great importance that rangers receive all the support necessary to perform their duties within these challenging environments. £60 covers the cost of one full set of K9 protective boots. Some sections of Karingani have very rugged and rocky terrain. This terrain not only gets hot, but also can be sharp and dangerous to the unprotected feet of our dogs. Protective boots will not only protect the dogs' feet against the hot and sharp terrain, but also help to prevent the penetration of nasty thorns which could cause pain and infections putting our dogs out of work. £75 covers the cost of one Ranger Head Torch. Oftentimes ranger deployment operations continue even after the sun has set. The dangers operating in a Big 5 reserve increase at night. Having reliable head torches would enable our rangers to be able to light up their path during night-time operations and aid in safely returning back to camp once the job is complete. £75 covers the cost of one 3L CamelBak 3L Hydration Pack to supply our rangers and K9s with water while working out in the field and on deployments. £120 covers the cost of one K9 Body Cooling Vest and additional cooling packs which will safely increase work tolerance time and reduces the negative effects associated with heat stress increasing the efficiency of detection dogs. Summers in Mozambique can easily reach temperatures of 45-50° C which puts great strain on our canines and limits the amount of time in which they can safely operate during hot weather deployments. £140 covers the cost of food for the APU canines for one month. £230 covers the cost of one K9 Tactical First Aid Field Kit designed to enable handlers to provide lifesaving treatment to injured canines at the point of injury or when veterinary care is not immediately available. £300 covers the cost of one Wireless Outdoor Security Camera Unit. These camera traps can be deployed anywhere in the reserve providing real time images when triggered by human or wildlife movement and an effective early warning system. £415 covers the cost of operating the helicopter for one hour. The large-scale, remoteness and limited road network of Karingani make accessing many sections of the reserve by vehicle near impossible which puts a huge impediment on rapid deployment of scouts along with vital tracking K9s to remote areas of Karingani. Having a helicopter momentously affects the timing for rapid deployments allowing rangers to respond to tracks swiftly even in the more inaccessible areas. The operating costs of running the helicopter include the cost of the specialised fuel, skilfully trained helicopter pilot and general maintenance for the machine and are charged per hour of operation. £903 covers the cost of one Garmin Dog GPS Tracker and Handheld GPS Unit to allow real time reporting of dogs and unit in pursuit of poachers and aerial support for the K9 teams. £1,300 covers the cost of one K9 Tracking Harness to allow real time reporting of dogs and unit in pursuit of poachers and aerial support for the K9 teams.
Karingani Game Reserve - African Community and Conservation Foundation
Jul 11, 2022, 3:11:54 PMKaringani has an integrated and enduring vision to become a world-leader in sustainable conservation. Karingani’s goal is to restore, enhance and maintain the natural ecological processes and biodiversity through an effective and sustainable partnership between the Mozambican Government, private investors and participating communities. To utilise, exemplify and demonstrate the viability of world-leading investor-funded sustainable conservation practice in order to re-establish and preserve the presence of wilderness and wildlife, alongside thriving and like-minded communities in this vast and strategically important habitat, which, without careful, long term and responsible stewardship, faces the stark risk of being lost forever. Image Credit: Delport Boma
