| Strategies |
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Caprivi: The Caprivi hippo population should
be managed for maximum sustainable
use.
North Central Namibia: The small populations
of hippo on the Cunene River and Okavango River (upstream
of the Caprivi) should be protected as far as is possible
in situ.
Orange River: Translocate
Hippo to the Orange River
Devolution: Devolve
wildlife management to conservancies
Monitoring: Use Event Book monitoring system
to collect data on grazing range and condition of the
habitat.
Use Event Book monitoring system to collect data on
problem animal incidents involving hippo
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Figure 19: Management of the Namibian hippo population
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Adaptive management:
Habitat Use: In addition to population dynamics data,
the following information needs to collected through monitoring:
The full extent of the grazing range in the Caprivi used
by hippos is not well-defined. This can be established from
the Event Book monitoring, including its seasonal variation
and how it changes with episodic events (e.g. flooding). For
example, if Lake Liambesi and the Zambesi Channels were to
fill it might be necessary to revise the management programme
drastically. This information is useful for management and
for gauging the carrying capacity for hippo. It is also a
valuable starting point for monitoring the condition of the
habitat - which may or may not be needed depending on the
trends in the hippo population under the management regime.
Human/hippo conflict: Incidents involving hippos should
continue to be monitored under the 'Event Book' system (NNF
2005). In the present The Event Book recording system, incidents
involving various species are tabulated by month of the year
and damage is categorised into human attack, livestock attack
and crop damage. The system might be improved if it could
be established which of the various incidents were linked
to the various categories of damage. There may be a lack of
data in areas where there are no conservancies (e.g. parts
of the eastern Caprivi). If crop damage is reduced under a
harvesting programme or if communities are well satisfied
with the benefits derived from hippos this can be used as
a criterion to assess the success of management programmes.
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Capture and Translocation
.Translocating hippo may have application in the Caprivi
as an alternative to killing persistent problem animals and
may arise if it is desired to begin new hippo populations
in areas which have sufficient water and pasture. One possible
flagship project might be the reintroduction of hippo to the
Orange River which lies within their historic
range.
The direct immobilisation of hippo is difficult because of
the likelihood of animals drowning. Some years ago, helicopters
were used in Natal, South Africa, to drive hippos out of water
and keep them out water until drugs took effect. However,
the trauma associated with such operations was considerable.
During the 1991-92 drought in the south-east lowveld of Zimbabwe,
techniques were developed for the capture and translocation
of complete groups of hippo by feeding the animals within
an open boma over several weeks until they were habituated
to the site. The boma door was closed when the target group
was in the boma.
This operation is not as simple as it sounds. Firstly the
boma has to be stoutly constructed to withstand the strength
of large hippos. Secondly, hippo are extremely cautious animals
and are very reluctant to enter enclosures. In the example
given it was only because they were desperate for food that
they did enter the boma. Lastly, the animals are extremely
skittish and the slightest disturbance causes them to run
out of the boma before the door can be closed. A successful
capture can take several weeks (Clem Coetsee 1992).
Translocation of hippo is expensive and the costs should
be sought from donor agencies rather than any local project
seeking financial sustainability.
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