With increased human habitation along the Okavango River in Namibia, came increased pressure on the riverine vegetation, other natural resources, and particularly wildlife. Uncontrolled hunting took its toll, with illegal firearms being readily available. Being restricted to the river only, and concentrated in groups, hippos were relatively easy to kill. The result was that 20 years ago, there were few to be found anywhere outside the Mahango Game Park, where only the odd single animal was to be found in sparsely populated areas along the river.
With the escalating conflict between UNITA and government forces in Angola in 2000, the situation in the region began to change. The Namibian military moved into the area and the local inhabitants were discouraged from using the river, for safety reasons. The river system became almost deserted, and pressure on the wildlife and other natural resources was significantly relieved.
All our investments were tied up in Shamvura Camp, so we had no choice but to endure the disturbing military activity around us. Although the river was declared unsafe, I spent many hours there enjoying the absence of people. Regular wetland-bird counts and other observations on the river indicated that a remarkable recovery was taking place during this absence of ‘people pressure’. Birdlife numbers and diversity increased. Fish populations were also recovering and the river had a general aura of rejuvenation.
During August 2001, while drifting along quietly on the river near Matondoti, I noticed two hippos in the water. It was a very brief sighting from some 300 metres before the extremely wary animals submerged and were lost from sight. Shortly afterwards the two hippos appeared again, snorting loudly. They were rather too close for comfort, and left me in no doubt as to their identity and attitude towards our unexpected appearance. To this day, I have no idea where they came from, as the only significant population then was in the Mahango/Bwabwata National Park some 180 kilometres downriver, a mammoth journey for these animals moving upriver against the current.
Surprisingly the two hippos were seen again some weeks later and confirmed as sub-adults. They remained in the Matondoti area for a few months and became gradually more accepting of me and my boat, the only human activity of any consequence on the river. This group then became five animals and ranged downriver as far as Kashika Island about 10 kilometres from Shamvura Camp. By November 2004 the group size had increased to 15 animals.
During October 2002, the hippos suffered their first tragedy. The first calf to be born in the group was shot! I heard gunfire from Shamvura Camp and alerted Willibald Muketu, from the Ministry of Environment and Tourism (MET) offices in Rundu, who responded quickly to investigate the incident. We went to the area where I’d heard the shots. As expected, there was no sign of the carcass, any hippos or the poachers. We spent a few days questioning, with everybody accusing the Angolans. The exercise, although not conclusive, did, however, make people aware that prompt action would be taken with this kind of incident. Predictably, my ‘watchdog’ presence was not welcomed by people who, until now, had practised uncontrolled hunting.
In December 2004, a three-month old calf was seen at Shikova-Shikenke and again in May 2005, with the mother and another adult, presumably a bull. They were out of the water on a sandbank extension of the Mahangi Island. Another small calf was seen in July 2005, with a group of fourteen adults at Kashika Island. Then, in August, a group of three calves, all about 4–5 months old, made its appearance with a group of eleven adults.
The group of some twenty animals was now well established, and stable enough to divide into smaller splinter groups, using an area of about 10 kilometres of river between Mahangi and Shiroli. More encouraging was that the local people, the Gciriku, seemed to be quite tolerant and even proud of these large animals and their return after so many years. The hippos, apparently in return for this consideration, confined their nightly foraging activities to the adjoining flood plains, leaving the crops of the local people untouched, thereby eliminating conflict.
In March 2006, the first calf was born on Kayaru Island close to Shamvura Camp, expanding their territory to 12 kilometres. By the end of the rainy season, there were 38 animals.
In 2007, the stability and group size caused inevitable disputes, and adult bulls began breaking away to establish their own territories further along the river, a clear indication of a healthy population. Four bulls were evident, each with their own territory: Kashika Island, Ngcwaha, between Rukwekwe and Matondoti, and Kayaru Island. Each bull had a following of cows and sub-adults, which visited the territories only for short periods of connubial bliss before gravitating back to the ‘core’ area at Kashika, which seemed to be the favoured gathering point.
This situation persisted through 2008 with only a small change, the addition of a fifth bull’s territory nearer Makena, upriver but very close to Kayaru Island. There were some very vocal disagreements, before eventually, in 2009, they settled their differences, one bull claiming from Kakeni upriver to Shamvura Camp, the other Kayaru Island and Makena. These two bulls now share a group of eight cows and sub-adults between them.
Currently we have 51 hippos, 17 of which are calves that were born in the area. They occupy about 12 kilometres of river with five distinct territories. The core area is still Kashika with the biggest group, where they all seem to gather after the rainy season before settling into their respective territories. It remains a mystery where the additional adults originated from, and makes you realise how little we know of this majestic and dynamic river system, and how little effort it takes for its recovery.
This is apparently the largest concentration of hippos on the Okavango River, in Namibia, outside the conservation areas of the Mahango/Bwabwata National Park. This should be considered a real credit to the Gciriku people, who have allowed these animals to flourish without persecution.
