Goro game reserve, day 4 (9th June)

Got two shrews this morning, not great, but not bad either. Think I'm getting better at the processing. These two were quite feisty and one even made a bid for freedom. It was a bit of a scramble until we managed to recapture it.

Making progress slowly, but steadily on the programming; wrote my first function today. One forgets how spoilt one is to have the ability to Google questions immediately.

Sasha is a great cook! At this rate I might gain weight despite all the stairs here, and the twice daily trudging through the bush. We settled in with some wine this evening, and were very relaxed.

Goro game reserve, day 3 (8 June)

Up at 6 for coffee, then off to check traps. It's a little bit like Christmas - you pick up your trap line and don't always know until the last second if a trap is full or empty. And if the trap is closed, you get to peek in and see what you've caught!



We catch alot of Namaqua rock mouse:



You have to be careful because they will launch themselves from the trap, but sometimes they're not very keen to leave.



I didn't get any elephant shrews, but Sarai and Sasha managed to get three between the two of them. So back to the lodge for breakfast.

Sasha did the behaviour studies with the shrews first, then we processed them. Measurements, tissue samples, blood samples, and ticks if any drop off. After that Sasha waits to see if she can bag some urine samples.

The rest of our day is our own so I worked on my R programming. Sasha later did some test marking of the shrews with fabric paint and hair chalk.

At about 15:00 we headed out again to release the animals, and then the cycle starts again - with us laying down the traps at a new site.

Goro game reserve, day 2 (7th June)

Since we arrived too late to set traps the day before, we could get up leisurely. I am glad to be able to report that it looks as if the cold front has passed us, and the mercury has definitely climbed. After Sasha spoilt us with a fry-up for breakfast, we set out to test the radio collars.

This involved the other assistant, Sarai, and I running around in the bush, pretending to be elephant shrews while Sasha tracked us.





After being successfully tracked Sasha showed us around a bit. The game reserve is amazing. We didn't spot many animals in the thick brush, but the vegetation is lovely. I honestly don't think I've ever seen such a variety of trees and plants before. Thanks to the heavy rain this year, everything is lush and green, and due to the time of the year there is a variety of fruit decking branches.
On our way back to base we got caught in sand, and couldn't get free. The roads here are very rough and the field vehicle that Sasha's been assigned doesn't seem to have the pulling power one would expect from a large twin cab. After a trek to a high spot with some signal, we managed to contact the caretaker who kindly came and rescued by us.

When we got back we found a visitor guarding the steps to the kitchen! Although not fully grown, this little cobra was scary enough, thank you. Fortunately it mostly cooperated with us during its relocation, but it did leave us a tad nervous about where we put our feet.



Late afternoon we made our way to the first trapping site. Here us field assistants learned how to set up and bait the traps, before promptly practicing our new new found skills by putting down 50 traps each in parallel trap lines.

Goro game reserve, day 1 ( 6th June )

For those of you who didn't know, I've volunteered to play "field assistant" to my friend Sasha for a week. I get to lend a hand, not only while she traps, processes and releases elephant shrews, but also while she does a pilot test with tracking equipment.

Goro is situated in Limpopo, close to Vivo (which isn't a real town, as it doesn't have a Wimpy or Spur). It's beautiful here, and it's also one of those rare places that offers perfect silence. The terrain is rocky, mostly sandstone, and covered with probably some of the thickest growth I've seen in South Africa short of a costal forest.



The road to the lodge we're staying at is a bit of a climb, alternating between sand, loose rock, and potholes. Not an attempt for the weak of heart or any "normal" car. The lodge has a central social area, surrounded by grass thatched huts to sleep in. My room's walls are made of reed and it is fairly open to the elements as my visitor can testify!



Absolutely lovely except for the fact that, that cold front that has hit Gauteng has stretched its fingers up to here! And I packed light...