Image: Riveting Stare by a Sibuya Lioness
Sometime during the night of Sunday July 1st and Monday 2nd 2018, a group of at least three poachers entered Sibuya Game Reserve.
They were armed with, amongst other things, a high-powered rifle with a silencer, an axe, wire cutters and food supplies for several days – all the hallmarks of a gang intent on killing Rhino and removing their horns.
One of our Anti-Poaching dogs alerted her handler at about 4.30 am on Monday morning that something was amiss. At the same time the handler heard a loud commotion coming from the Lions, so he suspected that this was what had alerted her and was not concerned. It is not unusual to hear them at night. However, in hindsight it appears likely that the dog had realised that something else out of the ordinary was going down.
Around 4.30pm on Tuesday 3rd July a Field Guide out on a game drive alerted the Anti-Poaching Unit that there appeared to be human remains as well as other items in the immediate vicinity of the Lions. Immediate action took place and the APU rushed to the scene, where they found not only human remains, but a high-powered rifle, gloves, wire cutters and the remains of a backpack containing food, water and other supplies. Indalo (Association of Eastern Cape Game Reserves), Anti-Poaching Cluster and the Police were immediately alerted.
Clearly, the poachers had unintentionally walked into a pride of six Lions and some, if not all, had been killed. A tragic event which inadvertently saved the lives of our Rhino.
As it was already dark it was not possible to investigate the area until first light the next day, at which time we arranged for our Vet to dart the entire pride of Lions so that the Police forensic teams, assisted by our Anti-Poaching Unit, could comb the immediate area for clues. At this stage it was not clear exactly how many poachers had been killed.
The Police forensic team continue to investigate, as to date, there has been no closure.
