DO

Travelling between locations is a perfect way to contribute to a huge range of different conservation work, learning from highly experienced and skilled individuals in each site.

Wildlife research and monitoring

Research is key to conservation. Each area and ecosystem tells its own story and it’s only by consistently monitoring species and recording data that we can improve conservation efforts.

• Record wildlife sightings and map their movements to build up a detailed database of animals’ territories
• Monitor priority species and identify individual animals such as black and white rhino, elephants, cheetahs and lions, to help protect from poachers
• Study the behaviour and population dynamics of animals such as elephants and predators
• Use GPS equipment to record transects and wildlife sightings
• Record specific animal’s age and gender as well as predatory, feeding and breeding behaviour
• Track animals on foot through the bush
• Set up infrared camera traps at waterholes to monitor elusive species
• Take a riverboat trip and see animals from a unique and tranquil perspective  
• Gain insight into the behaviour of nocturnal animals such as leopards, hyenas, porcupines and bushbabies during night drives
• Witness natural wild behaviour in expansive settings, such as lions hunting or elephants playing in a waterhole

Wildlife management 

You will be directly involved in animal management with the opportunity to learn alongside highly-skilled professionals. Activities will vary dependent on the animals being managed:

• Watch rhino ears being notched, enabling researchers to identify, monitor and protect individual animals
• Assist with humane rhino de-horning, an effective anti-poaching strategy
• Learn about contraceptive programmes to manage the populations of elephants and predators
• Get involved with wildlife relocation programmes, helping to move species such as rhino, lion, cheetah and antelope
• Go behind-the-scenes at an animal rehabilitation centre and work alongside the team on the ground

Learn

By visiting three projects, across two countries you will be introduced to the value of conservation in large intact wildlife areas as well as the specific impact of a smaller scale community-owned reserve.

Conservation

• The different wildlife conservation approach in different areas
• The roles that animal rehabilitation centres play in protecting species
• Rhino poaching, anti-poaching methods in the field, and relocation programmes
• Breeding programmes for rare and endangered species – such a black rhino custodianship programme
• Wildlife relocation programmes – including the WWF’s black rhino range expansion project, the rhinos without borders programme, and lion relocation to Rwanda
• How wildlife conservation in Africa is funded

Ecology

• How large areas of protected wilderness differ from smaller reserves
• The natural environment of the Big 5 and other African species
• The role of different species in the ecosystem
• The impact of population growth or decline of certain species, such as lions and elephants, on the ecosystem as a whole

Bush skills

• Tracking animals on foot
• The medicinal uses of various plants and trees
• How to approach animals safely on foot
• How to identify some of the many insects, reptiles and birds in the area

Behaviour

• The hunting, breeding and social behaviour of Big 5 and other African species 
• The relationship between predator and prey species
• Behaviour of animal groups, such as the hierarchy systems in prides of lions, troops of primates and herds of elephants
• Predator hunting behaviour and the differences between social predators such as lions and wild dogs, compared with solitary predators such as leopards and cheetah

Biology

• The physiology and natural diets of the Big 5 and other African species
• Native African plants, reptiles, amphibians and birds
• The movement of herd species such as elephant, buffalo and antelope