THE CONSERVATION STATUS AND DISTRIBUTION OF NILE CROCODILES IN THE OLIFANTS RIVER: MPUMALANGA, SOUTH AFRICA
OBSTRUCT
The outlook for Nile Crocodiles in the Olifants River does not look optimistic since the increase in capacity of the Loskop and Flag Boshiela Dams, Crocodile population was left with no basking or nesting sites and has and has declined over the past 30 years shortly after the massingire Dam in the Mozambique filled to full capacity an estimated 160 Crocodiles died in the Olifants River gorge, a couple of kilometres upstream from the Dam. The Oliphants River is acknowledged by many experts as one of the most polluted rivers in South Africa and acid mine drainage, industrial pollution and untreated sewage in the river are all contributing …show more content…
The status survey and Conservation Action plan of the IUCN Crocodile Specialist Group( Ross, 1998) states that among the 20 African countries where some indication of the status of C. niloticus is known, their numbers are considered to be severely depleted in Six( 30%), somewhat depleted in 12(60%) and not depleted in two countries ( 10%).
Crocodilians are threatened by many human activities. Pooley (1969) argued that the most significant of those is destruction or alteration of the wild habitat and those concerns continue to this day. Commercial over-exploitation and indiscriminate killing have resulted in many crocodilian species suffering a decline in numbers and reductions in destruction. As with many other large commercially valuable species, hide hunting during the 1940’s to 1960’s resulted in dramatic declines in population size throughout most of the Nile crocodile’s range. Overexploitation combined with loss of habitat has brought several crocodilians to the brink of extinction. Rural communities are often intolerant of large potentially dangerous crocodiles and the deliberate destruction of nests and killing of adults are widely reported. In general, crocodilian populations became threatened in direct proportion …show more content…
The Olifants River originates in the Highveld grasslands of the Mpumalanga province (figure 2). It flows in a north- westerly direction where it is joined by the Wilge River upstream of the Loskop Dam. From the Loskop dam the river flows through a relatively flat landscape past the town of Groblersdal and Marble Hall to the Flag Boshielo Dam at the confluence of the Islands and Olifants River. Down Stream of the Flag Boshielo Dam, the Olifants River flows through the springbok Flats which forms part of the Bushveld Basin. After passing south of Strydpoort Mountains, the Olifants River is joined by the Mohlapitse River. The Steelport River flows in a north-easterly direction and converges with the Olifants River in the Drakensberg near Kromellenboog. The Ohrigstad River joins the Blyde River at the Blyderivierspoort Dam in the Blyderivierspoort Nature Reserve after which the Blyde River meanders through the Drakensberg to enter the lowveld where it joins the Olifants River. In the Lowveld, the Olifants River flows eastwards through the Kruger National Perk. It is joined by the Letaba River just east of the Olifants Rest Camp before it flows through a narrow gap in the Lebombo Mountains and into
OBSTRUCT
The outlook for Nile Crocodiles in the Olifants River does not look optimistic since the increase in capacity of the Loskop and Flag Boshiela Dams, Crocodile population was left with no basking or nesting sites and has and has declined over the past 30 years shortly after the massingire Dam in the Mozambique filled to full capacity an estimated 160 Crocodiles died in the Olifants River gorge, a couple of kilometres upstream from the Dam. The Oliphants River is acknowledged by many experts as one of the most polluted rivers in South Africa and acid mine drainage, industrial pollution and untreated sewage in the river are all contributing …show more content…
The status survey and Conservation Action plan of the IUCN Crocodile Specialist Group( Ross, 1998) states that among the 20 African countries where some indication of the status of C. niloticus is known, their numbers are considered to be severely depleted in Six( 30%), somewhat depleted in 12(60%) and not depleted in two countries ( 10%).
Crocodilians are threatened by many human activities. Pooley (1969) argued that the most significant of those is destruction or alteration of the wild habitat and those concerns continue to this day. Commercial over-exploitation and indiscriminate killing have resulted in many crocodilian species suffering a decline in numbers and reductions in destruction. As with many other large commercially valuable species, hide hunting during the 1940’s to 1960’s resulted in dramatic declines in population size throughout most of the Nile crocodile’s range. Overexploitation combined with loss of habitat has brought several crocodilians to the brink of extinction. Rural communities are often intolerant of large potentially dangerous crocodiles and the deliberate destruction of nests and killing of adults are widely reported. In general, crocodilian populations became threatened in direct proportion …show more content…
The Olifants River originates in the Highveld grasslands of the Mpumalanga province (figure 2). It flows in a north- westerly direction where it is joined by the Wilge River upstream of the Loskop Dam. From the Loskop dam the river flows through a relatively flat landscape past the town of Groblersdal and Marble Hall to the Flag Boshielo Dam at the confluence of the Islands and Olifants River. Down Stream of the Flag Boshielo Dam, the Olifants River flows through the springbok Flats which forms part of the Bushveld Basin. After passing south of Strydpoort Mountains, the Olifants River is joined by the Mohlapitse River. The Steelport River flows in a north-easterly direction and converges with the Olifants River in the Drakensberg near Kromellenboog. The Ohrigstad River joins the Blyde River at the Blyderivierspoort Dam in the Blyderivierspoort Nature Reserve after which the Blyde River meanders through the Drakensberg to enter the lowveld where it joins the Olifants River. In the Lowveld, the Olifants River flows eastwards through the Kruger National Perk. It is joined by the Letaba River just east of the Olifants Rest Camp before it flows through a narrow gap in the Lebombo Mountains and into