Leopards and caracals are among the wild animals at risk from the scourge of hundreds of snares being set to catch a meal, in this case outside Stellenbosch.
Cape Leopard Trust spokesperson Jeannie Hayward said research by the trust showed the most common species targeted by snares were small antelope, such as the Cape Grysbok, porcupine and ground birds including guinea fowl.
A patrol in late August at Bottelary Hills, northwest of the university town, organised by the Bottelary Hills Conservancy, revealed snares were an ongoing problem.
“It is difficult to quantify how many species have been affected without reports of animals found in snares, but there has been at least one caracal found caught in a snare in the Bottelary Hills Conservancy area,” said Hayward.
“Since the launch of the Snare Free initiative and the Western Cape Snare Response Plan, at least one caracal has been successfully rescued and released the same day. Another caracal unfortunately had to be euthanised due to the extent of its injuries.”
Hayward said depending on the evidence, snaring incidents could involve a fine or jail time, as well as an additional fine related to the commercial value of the animal.
The Snare Free initiative — a group of conservation, animal welfare and volunteer organisations — has painted a grim picture of the result of snares. In the space of a year, since 2023, 671 snares were found during patrols by members, 209 patrols were conducted on foot, 112 properties were scanned for snares and 1,332km were covered.
“The illegal practice of setting snares to hunt animals is a serious and widespread problem in the Western Cape,” the organisation said previously.
“Snares are often set to catch game meat species like small antelope and porcupine, but are indiscriminate and take a huge toll on the entire ecosystem, also impacting predators like caracals and leopards.
“Preliminary research suggests that bushmeat is the main motivation for setting snares in the Western Cape, though the illegal trade in animal parts is also an important factor. The method is exceedingly wasteful as set snares are often not checked, resulting in captured animals dying and simply rotting away.”
Eastern Cape traditional healer Nosiphiwe Mfokazana said traditional healers had a “healthy relationship” with nature.
Though they relied on plants on animals for medicine, traditional healers were trained not to “deplete the environment”.
“For plant-based medicine, we only take the bark, sometimes we take the leaves. When we go for the roots, we take a few roots to allow the plant to grow,” she said.
“Unfortunately, an animal has to die when we need a particular part like the skins or horns. But animals are not used all the time. We educate young traditional healers about nature conservation. Even the Western doctors rely on plants to manufacture medicine.”
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