Field guides are the face of South African nature- and wildlife-based tourism products. However, research on the work and careers of field guides in South Africa is lacking. To our knowledge, only two studies have researched field guides in other African countries. Therefore, the aim of this research is to delve deeper into the field guide work and career. Indeed, the management literature includes countless studies on how work characteristics and career motivations influence the performance of (service) employees. It is therefore crucial for the literature on South African nature-based tourism to begin to include research on field guides, as their performance is central to the largest sector contributing to South African tourism revenues. This exploratory study includes 24 in-depth interviews with field guides working in the Pilanesberg Game Reserve in South Africa. Conservation implications: he study makes two key contributions: Firstly, as a contribution to the literature, we advance scholarship on tourism labour and precarity by offering an empirically grounded account of field guide career trajectories within the South African nature-based tourism industry. Secondly, a managerial contribution. This includes: (1) Organisations should formalise and improve communication on entry pathways for field guides by providing clear, accessible information on training routes, requirements, and points of contact. (2) Lodges and other operators could benefit from rebranding field guides as a high-status group. (3) To elevate safari guide training beyond short courses towards a more comprehensive and accredited qualification.
Accurate estimation of vegetation composition is essential for effective conservation management strategies in protected savannas. In this study, we integrated annual temporal metrics from Sentinel-1 (S1) and Sentinel-2 (S2) time series at a 10 m resolution for 2017-2021 in Benfontein Nature Reserve (BNR). We trained a Random Forest Regression (RFR) model using training data derived from very high-resolution imagery (VHR) from Google Earth Pro© and later used for results accuracy assessment and validation. Error metrics for predicting trees, shrubs and grasses were derived at each year. We selected the most important features for the most accurate models. Model error metrics were further derived by simplifying pixel fractions into broader fraction categories. Shrubs S1+S2 and S2 models produced the lowest mean absolute error (MAE) of 3.91%, while grass produced the highest MAE of 13.71% from S1 data. Trees produced the second-best accuracies obtained consistently with S1+S2 data. Trees achieved the highest R2 values of up to 0.76% from S1+S2 data, followed by grass highest R2 of 0.74% from S2 data. When predicting based on broader pixel categories, errors decreased significantly for near-pure pixels; with the largest decrease observed for pixels with 76% – 100% grass cover. Contrastingly, MAE for woody covers (shrubs and trees) increased as fraction in the pixel cover increased. Visible green and blue bands, VH and SAVI were the most important features for estimating trees. In addition to blue, VH and Coherence ranked high for shrubs, while blue and green ranked high for grass as well. Conservation implications: The study is conducted in a nature reserve. Accurate information on composition and dynamics of vegetation is essential for parks management. Predicting change in woody cover is critical for monitoring woody encroachment that impacts herbivory and fires.
Protected areas (PAs) are key for conserving biodiversity and can act as partial barriers against the regional spread of alien species. Yet, the number of invasive species and the magnitude of their impact on PAs are increasing globally, creating an urgent need to establish effective management actions. Increased public interest in biological invasions in PAs may lead to increased support for their management. To assess recent public interest, we extracted and analysed data from Twitter/X, which was one of the most popular microblogging social media platforms during the study period. Firstly, we extracted all tweets posted between 2010 and 2020 containing the scientific name of any plant species recorded as naturalised anywhere in the world, or the term ‘invasive species’, together with the name of any national park globally and the term ‘national park’. This approach allowed us to capture potential mentions of species across their native and non-native ranges. Mentions of species in their native ranges were identified and flagged in the dataset. Secondly, using Kruger National Park (i.e. one of the oldest and most widely known protected areas in the world) as a study case, we extracted all tweets posted in 2010–2020 containing the term ‘Kruger’ together with: (1) the scientific name of any of the 146 taxa recorded in the recently updated naturalised alien flora of the park, (2) the genus name of some of the most well-known naturalised plant species in the park, some of which also function as common names, and (3) the term ‘invasive species’. We found a very limited number of tweets. These results suggest that public engagement with the topic of invasive plant species in national parks on social media was limited during the study period. Conservation implications: Public awareness campaigns are needed to support successful management of plant invasions in protected areas globally.
The two oxpecker species (Buphagus spp.) in Africa’s savanna habitats have undergone drastic changes in distribution in the wake of anthropogenic landscape changes. The yellow-billed oxpecker (Buphagus africanus) was extirpated from South Africa by 1907, but since the late 1970s has naturally and progressively recolonised the Kruger National Park (KNP) and the neighbouring Associated Private Nature Reserves (APNR). Using available historical and current records, we aimed to describe the recolonisation and current status of yellow-billed oxpeckers in the KNP and adjoining conservation areas, and to investigate mammalian host and habitat selection. The yellow-billed oxpecker may now be encountered throughout the KNP and APNR so long as suitable host mammals are present. We found evidence for distinct host choice and significant habitat preferences (χ2 = 4362.4, df = 9, p < 0.0001), but the interactions between the birds, the hosts and the choice of habitat by hosts made evaluating oxpecker preferences a complex task. Fourteen wild and two domestic host species were recorded, with African buffalo (Syncerus caffer) the most frequently used host species, followed by giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis). Yellow-billed oxpecker sightings decreased with increasing latitude across the study area, and some regional and seasonal differences in host selection were apparent. The success of the yellow-billed oxpecker in the KNP is testimony to the benefits of the long history of game and ecosystem preservation in the KNP and surrounding areas. Conservation implications: The yellow-billed oxpeckers of the KNP constitute the only breeding population of this species in South Africa, and significant additional range expansion is unlikely. Given the numerous protected areas in South Africa’s savanna habitats, reintroduction of this species into other suitable areas of its former range is recommended.
The alpine soils of the northern Maloti–Drakensberg site are fundamental to carbon (C) sequestration, biodiversity conservation, and water provisioning, yet remain vulnerable to degradation from grazing and tourism pressures. Soil microbial activity is central to alpine soil functionality through its influence on nutrient cycling, organic matter (OM) turnover and structural stability, but microbial community patterns in the alpine zones of southern Africa remain poorly understood. This study provides the first coordinated quantitative characterisation of soil microbial and physicochemical properties on the Amphitheatre summit of the uThukela catchment, thereby establishing a baseline for long-term soil health monitoring. Thirty topsoil samples were analysed for monitoring their physical (texture, bulk density, aggregate stability), chemical (pH, soil organic carbon or soil organic carbon [SOC], total C, total N and active C) and biological (microbial activity and community-level physiological profiling) attributes. The soils were uniformly acidic (pH 4.9), sandy loam in texture, and exhibited relatively low bulk density (1.01 g cm−3) but high SOC (9.8%). Soil organic carbon, active C, total N and microbial activity showed strong correlation, indicating consistent links between organic matter pools and microbial functioning. Community-level profiling further distinguished three microbial functional groups, primarily driven by variation in SOC, active C and microbial activity, rather than by soil forms or physical properties. The study indicated that SOC and total N are the most informative soil indicators for evaluating microbial functionality in alpine soils of the northern Maloti-Drakensberg. Conservation implications: The baseline generated in this study enables the future detection of soil changes in response to land use or climate pressures in the northern Maloti–Drakensberg. Soil organic carbon and total N emerged as key indicators of microbial community functioning, underscoring the importance of maintaining soil organic matter through sustainable grazing and tourism management to enhance the resilience of high-altitude ecosystems.
