African Parks translocated two leopards from South Africa to Malawi for reintroduction to Majete Wildlife Reserve
Majete Wildlife Reserve, situated in Malawi's lower Shire valley, has become the proud recipient of leopards from South Africa. The two young leopards are the first to be introduced to Malawi across international borders and the first leopards to make their home in Majete for nearly two decades.
In a complex translocation project that took months to prepare, the two young leopards were flown to Malawi early on Friday 7 October on-board a private Beechcraft KingAir piloted by Dr Ivan Marx. Wildlife vet Dr. Heinrich Muller had to tranquilise both animals for the duration of the ten-hour journey and keep a constant vigil due to the length of time involved.
The leopards, a male and a female between two and three years old, were captured in Kruger National Park and a private farm near Ohrigstad respectively. Both animals were in conflict with human activity and had been identified for removal. As only one viable population of leopard remains in Malawi - in Nyika National Park - African Parks identified South Africa as an appropriate source of leopards for the Majete restocking programme. A total of eight leopards will be introduced to the 70 000 hectare Majete Wildlife Reserve over the next few months.
Great fanfare and excitement greeted the leopards' arrival at Chileka International Airport in Blantyre on Friday afternoon. After being transferred to purpose-built cages, watched by wildlife officials and park management, they were transported to Majete by road and finally offloaded at bomas on the reserve. Here Dr. Muller administered a reversal drug to revive them. By Saturday both leopards had made a full recovery and had settled down well into their bomas. The male leopard was released into the reserve early on Friday 14th October and the female will be released in the next few days.
African Parks is extremely grateful to all those who have contributed to this milestone event. In particular, we would like to thank the following donors:
- Liberty Wildlife Trust, which contributed $95 000 for the predator-proof fencing at Majete.
- Africom, which donated €5 000 toward the cost of the translocation.
- Dr Ivan Marx, who donated the aircraft, fuel and his time to fly the leopards to Malawi.
- Moholoholo Rehabilitation Centre, which helped to house the leopards in South Africa.
- Adessium Foundation, which contributed towards the translocation as part of their institutional support for African Parks.
Majete Wildlife Reserve has been a conservation success story since African Parks assumed management in 2003, with over 2 550 head of wildlife, including elephant, buffalo, sable and black rhino, introduced to the park over eight years. The introduction of leopard is the penultimate step in the Majete restocking programme, which will culminate in the reintroduction of lion in 2012.