In Africa, giraffes are losing habitat year after year. Since 1700, their range has shrunk by almost 90 percent. In Namibia, however, giraffes are reclaiming territory. One such area is the private ProNamib Nature Reserve (PNNR), located about 70 km southeast of Sesriem/Sossusvlei .
Since 2022, giraffes have been living there again, as they did around 150 years ago. They roam along the riviere (dry riverbeds) just as they did back then. A year ago, they even had an addition to their herd. There are now twelve giraffes.
However, the reintroduction was not a routine catch-and-release operation. It was carefully prepared over a period of more than a year. Biologist and ranger Zazapamue Hange, who conducted the feasibility study and wrote his master's thesis on it, described the process in a lecture at the Namibia Scientific Society.
The PNNR borders the NamibRand Nature Reserve to the west. Giraffes have been living there for decades. Hange observed them for 13 months. He identified each of the animals by their spot patterns, studied their interactions and social structures, and noted the trees and shrubs they fed on.
In a second step, Hange examined the PNNR area: Does it offer giraffes sufficient food and a suitable environment? Only when he was able to answer this question in the affirmative with his study were the first giraffes released.
The study also yielded findings that were of interest beyond the project. For example, the observation that giraffes also eat grass. Or that the giraffe population of NamibRand is similar to that of the 'desert' giraffes in north-western Namibia.
Incidentally, neither population is a separate species, but rather Angola giraffes (Giraffa giraffa angolensis). Almost all giraffes found in Namibia belong to this species. According to the Giraffe Conservation Foundation (GCF), the latest counts and projections put the total number at around 15,660 animals.
Sven-Eric Stender