I recently returned from an exploratory trip to the Umfolozi Park in Natal. I was wanting to see first hand what the situation was and to meet with Alison May, the researcher who is trying to co-ordinate the wild dog program.

The Park is some 200 miles from where I live and encompasses some 96 000 ha of beautiful natural bush. As a matter of interest, it is the oldest protected park in Africa, dating back to 1895 and has traditionally been the hunting preserve of the Zulu kings.

On Sunday at first light we were fortunate enough to spot the ‘Juma’ pack of about 15 individuals hunting close to the road (closely followed by 3 hyena who tend to follow the pack and rob them of their kills.) I can fully understand Alison’s passion for the dogs – they are the total embodiment of African wildlife.

After breakfast we managed to sit down with Alison (a 14 year veteran of the park) and find out what was happening to the program. It transpires that the Smithsonian Institute had been funding the program from 2002 until this year when they pulled out for financial constraints. With their help the park went from 4 dogs in 1997 when they were first re-introduced to the present 90+ individuals split into several packs. This has been possible only due to the dedication of their guardians and financial assistance from generous donors. I suspect that without financial aid, the program could easily unfold and all the hard work done could unravel.

The Park has a great record in the field of conservation. With the plight of both the Black and White Rhino in Southern Africa, the park was stocked with specimens threatened in other areas and have bred to the extent that Umfolozi is in a position to re-stock other regions with their excess. San Diego Zoo assisted greatly in this success.

We are edging ever closer to forming the Forever Wild Foundation to assist this very worthy cause. The name is being registered in Pretoria at the moment, local accounts are being set up and we have been discussing the use of an existing Trust in the USA to act as a conduit between donors and ourselves until we can do this for ourselves. I feel that we are close to achieving our aims and will keep all up to date on developments. Shortly we will have a web site up and running where all who share our concerns can view the dogs and their welfare.


Kind regards to all,

Andrew

 In November 2008, Andrew undertook a Southern African expedition that took him to the extremes that the continent had to offer.

In over one month, 5 000 miles, 5 countries and 6 punctures, he studied, photographed and recorded the fascinating inhabitants of some of the most inhospitable terrain in Africa. Traveling through the oldest desert in the world (the Namib), the largest continuous stretch of sand (the Kalahari), examining the oldest living plant (the Welwichia) and the largest Cape Fur Seal colony in Africa, all of this in temperatures well in excess of 120 degrees.

From the black-maned lion of the Kgalaghadi to the birthing of springbok in Namibia, from the enormous Sociable weaver nests to the comical ostrich, from the belligerent beach-masters of Cape Cross to the zebra herds of Etosha and from the mystique of the Victoria Falls to the elephant of the Kalahari – all now serve as inspiration for a series of oils, studies and sketches being undertaken this year by Andrew.

“ The desert species have adapted remarkably to their harsh environment, although all respect the mid-day truce when shade is the only true ally from the repressive heat. Waterholes, in the evening and morning, bring a constant stream of both predators and prey, and it is here that one can gather the best material.

I have been fortunate in having had access to the Zambezi valley when I was learning how to paint, but now, having traveled through the desert, I have found that there is so much more that has captured my interest.”

In the near future Andrew will be publishing his art journal ‘Brushstrokes of Africa’, a memoir that relives his growing up in Rhodesia, the trauma of the bush war, his career as a guide in the Zambezi valley and the forces that have molded him into the wildlife artist he is today, amidst numerous studies and paintings of his most recent works.