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GYC2209 - Hwange National Park Conservation Project Country: Zimbabwe Cost: £1425.00 Cost Includes: The price includes accommodation, food and pickup from airport but does not include flight, insurance, kit or visas     Duration: 1 months Company Rep Nearby: All the time 0845 344 7585 or

 

	This placement would suit... Someone passionate about protecting and conserving one of Africa's few remaining wildlife sanctuaries Based a comfortable 1½ hour drive from the Victoria Falls, the project is uniquely situated on the edge of a vast 14,600sq km wildlife refuge known as Hwange National Park in North Western Zimbabwe. Here you are ideally situated to provide valuable wildlife support and community assistance where it is desperately needed. Hwange (formerly known as Wankie Game Reserve) is one of Africa's best known Game Reserves.  It is Zimbabwe’s largest National Park and with over 400 species of bird and 107 animal species recorded, it is a wildlife enthusiast’s paradise. The Park has close associations with the National Park Authorities, local wildlife researchers and the local rural community who have all revealed many areas where support and assistance is desperately required. The volunteer program was established to meet these needs and will subsequently provide an intensely rewarding and comprehensive insight into practical wildlife research and conservation in Hwange.    Your work will be set in the beautiful unfenced Hwange National Park and its surrounding area. You will assist on several research projects - Hyena, Lion, black Rhino and Cheetah, - so there is plenty to do! Much of the work is actually based on the surrounding areas of the park, but this is where most of the important aspects of the work are needed. For example once an animal leaves the Park boundary they are likely to be poached and hunted by the local community. Efforts are needed to ensure that this is kept to a minimum, as snare and boarder patrols often find many injured animals that are in need of help. You will have access to the most remote areas of one of Africa's premier game reserves and its surrounding areas, where there are huge herds of elephant, buffalo, plains-game, lion and leopard.  You will be helping to protect and conserve one of Africa's few remaining wildlife sanctuaries, and may experience situations similar to some of those mentioned by Paul de Montille. Duties are fairly varied and you will be expected to turn your hands to whatever is required at the time you're there. Generally, your work would include some or all of the following: Dete Animal Rescue Trust: This is a local wildlife organisation known as DART (Dete Animal Rescue Trust) that you will work closely with to alleviate the unnecessary suffering of wildlife in this area. You will conduct regular snare collection and removal patrols along the border of the National Park. Snare and Poacher Patrols: You will help in the fight against illegal poaching within and outside the park. This problem still sadly exists and great efforts are enforced to ensure that minimal to no damage is caused to the surrounding wildlife in Hwange. You may work closely with forestry scouts who possess incredible knowledge of the animals. Not only will you be helping the team and their efforts to reduce illegal poaching and hunting, but you will also gain excellent tuition from them. Local wildlife assistance: In addition to this snare collection and removal work, you will also help the team assist local landowners with practical wildlife estate management including 24 hour game counts, the construction of game-viewing platforms and underground hides, bush-clearing and road clearing exercises. There are also many animal specific projects that occur at various periods of your placement, which you may be involved in during your stay at Hwange. The work is normally that of Hyena and Lion Research. The type of work can follow that below: Hyena Research: Volunteers should have an opportunity to assist the Hwange Hyena Research Project to record visual observations and collect essential data on the nocturnal activities of these fascinating animals. Paul has said ‘what many people do not realise is that the spotted hyena (crocuta crocuta) is actually the dominant large predator/carnivore in Hwange, far outnumbering lions, cheetah and wild dog. Their status as a keystone species in many protected areas in Southern African savanna therefore cannot be underestimated, yet much remains unknown about their activities in a woodland ecosystem. Rhino: DART has now received official approval and a special Permit from the National Parks to establish a Black Rhino Sanctuary. This will effectively give DART one of only 3 permits to hold Black Rhino in captivity in Zimbabwe. Currently enclosures are being put in place, and volunteers’ efforts will be focused on erecting the enclosures and creating a safe habitat for the Rhino. Once the rhino enclosures have been built they hope to immediately be given a nucleus of at least 4 black rhino to rehabilitate and take care of. Your duties will then include: Data collection Observing and monitoring this endangered species throughout the day and night  Feeding and collection of browse Cleaning of cages Assisting in construction of enclosures Moving Rhino from one enclosure to another. Repairing a snare wound on a Zebra lVolunteers work with a Lioness that has been darted Volunteers have fun collaring themselves whilst working at Hwange Taking Measurements from a Hyena's Paw Preparing one of the cages to set up as a humane trap Accommodation: You will be based at a beautiful camp which is conveniently situated literally a stone's throw from Hwange National Park and a 10km drive from the main Park entrance gate. The facilities here include a large thatched central dining complex overlooking a lovely swimming pool. You'll share a room with one or two other volunteers or young staff members. Food: You'll be eating the same food that is prepared for the tourists, so the quality and standard is very good. There is an almost constant stream of overlanders camping on site and they have the choice of either barbecuing for themselves or having meals in the dining area. There are lots of socialising opportunities with the overlanders, which is great fun because they come from all over the world. You will be provided with 3 meals a day and food is prepared and served by the cooks, again under an attractive open-sided thatched roof. There is a wide variety of meals and usually a choice of 2 or 3 for main meals. Breakfast also offers a choice of cereals and cooked meals. Fruit is not abundant owing to scarcity and cost, but this is more than compensated for by the general variety of your meals. Please note: Because of the hyper-inflation Zimbabwe is currently experiencing (it is the highest in the world!) it is impossible to confirm prices for more than 1 month.  While we will make every effort to keep costs to an absolute minimum, there is a possibility that prices could increase even after you have been accepted on the project. If this does happen, you will get a full refund if you choose to cancel because of a price increase. Travellers' placements are very flexible & can be combined with any other Travellers placement & tailor made to your own requirements! 0845 344 7585 Travellers Worldwide: Live and work abroad helping children, adults, animals and entire communities in less advantaged countries. Learn about their culture from the inside! Stay from as little as two weeks to as long as one year - you choose your dates and duration!