AgriEco June 2014

March 2014 Agri(&2 1RUWKHUQ.ZD=XOX1DWDO June 2014 AVAILABLE IN PRINT AND ONLINE www.agrieco.net 2 Fire season starts now be prepared The teacup is back, but the danger still remains 3 Evidence of spiky fortresses at Ingula Storage Scheme 6 Sporting action... More

March 2014 Agri(&2 1RUWKHUQ.ZD=XOX1DWDO June 2014 AVAILABLE IN PRINT AND ONLINE www.agrieco.net 2 Fire season starts now be prepared The teacup is back, but the danger still remains 3 Evidence of spiky fortresses at Ingula Storage Scheme 6 Sporting action Page 16 Newcastle - Bruce Douglas I f current trends persist, local herds of the endangered Oribi may be extinct in the next few years. While volunteers and wildlife representatives persevere for nature’s sake, Oribi numbers at the Chelmsford/Ntshingwayo Nature Reserve this year are almost a quarter of what they were in 2012, from 200 in that year to only 58 in this. Once one of the largest Oribi populations in the country, it is a scandalous reality. 7KHRI¿FLDOFDXVHIRUWKLVGHFOLQH is currently under investigation, explained Geoff Müller, an KRQRUDU\RI¿FHUDQGWKHFKDLUPDQ of KwaZulu-Natal Ezemvelo Wildlife’s Newcastle branch. In his experience, he had noted primaryreasonsforOribipopulation decline in KwaZulu-Natal. These included illegal Less