It was a cold and windy night when the Zandvlei Estuary Nature Reserves (ZENR) held its last quarterly night count on 20 September. Despite the conditions, however, it still turned out to be time well spent.
Among other discoveries, the conservation team counted three porcupines and a spotted eagle. They also saw three grysbok on Park Island and the resident population appears to be in good health.
Many residents have asked to join ZENR’s regular night counts. This sounds like a wonderful idea and, in fact, it has been tried before. However, the counting team discovered that residents were particularly keen to ask questions about the night life they were seeing. Understandable, of course. But their curiosity made it difficult for team members to move quietly.
Even so, Kyran Wright, who manages ZENR, is open to the idea of holding an informal community event that would give residents a chance to ask questions and learn more about why ZENR’s night counts are so important. The feeling is that we should wait until the weather gets a bit warmer. So, if you’re interested, watch this space for more details.