Cape Town Ramps Up Anti-Snaring Efforts with Cape Leopard Trust Collaboration

The scourge of illegal snaring in the Western Cape has prompted the City of Cape Town (CoCT) to team up with the Cape Leopard Trust in a concerted effort to address this cruel practice plaguing the region. On Friday, the partnership manifested itself through a critical snare awareness information session and a hands-on snare patrol initiative at the Melkbos Corridor and Blaauwberg Nature Reserve.

An illegal, yet sadly frequent method of capturing animals for bushmeat, snaring deploys simple but deadly contraptions made of wire, rope, or cable that are anchored to the ground. The indiscriminate nature of this method means that both the intended game species and unintended victims, including predators and occasionally domestic animals, are at risk of horrific injuries or slow, agonizing deaths due to dehydration, starvation, and severe tissue damage.

Eddie Andrews, City's MMC for spatial planning and environment, has condemned snaring for its cruel impact on animals, stating that the captured creatures undergo immense suffering, often requiring extensive treatment before they can be released – if they survive at all. Highlighting the urgency to combat this illegal activity, Andrews calls upon residents to halt the use of snares and to proactively report any instances of snaring to the authorities.

In aligning their resources and expertise, the CoCT and Cape Leopard Trust are not just responding to the immediate welfare of animals but are also acting in defense of biodiversity and ecosystem balance. Snares disrupt the natural food chain, removing vital prey species and potentially forcing natural predators to shift their hunting habits with broader ecological repercussions.

Cape Leopard Trust's findings from a one-year snare-monitoring project across the Boland region underpin the severity of the crisis. An alarming discovery of 671 snares across several properties delineates just how extensive and pressing the issue is.

The joint initiative is not merely about removing snares but also about equipping conservation officials from various City reserves with the knowledge and skills they need to tackle snaring proactively. This transferable training session is designed to fuse on-ground actions with long-term educational strategies, a combination that is crucial for the successful elimination of this illegal activity.

Councillor Alex Lansdowne, deeply moved by the environmental toll snaring takes, reiterated the commitment shared between the City and the Cape Leopard Trust. By conducting the snare awareness training and patrol, they fulfill a pledge forged at the Snare Free Campaign launch to combat this pervasive threat effectively.

As the City and Cape Leopard Trust forge ahead with their mission, Lansdowne encourages the wider community to support the Snare Free Campaign and to report sightings of snares through the Snare Free hotline. This collective vigilance is essential for the protection of the region's unique wildlife and natural ecosystems.