What if Harare had Mammals?
Sorry this is late. Just came back from a trip to Victoria Falls and that area, will post that report soon.
Rewilding is a movement found all across the world. It is a movement to restore wildlife and nature to a specific area. An organization that may come to mind when you think of rewilding is Rewilding Europe. Rewilding Europe is focused on returning the European landscape to a pre-industrial state. They do this in many ways such as reintroducing mammals to a region they were previously extinct. Or by planting native flora into the country. These posts will present 2 areas of the world that I believe are in need of rewilding. First starting with my current home of harare
Harare, Zimbabwe was built on a series of marshes and swamps. There are remnants of these swamps speckled around the city. Near restaurants and horse stables, driving to a friend’s house you can see open fields that follow boggy streams. I live only a 10 minute walk from a swamp. Yet there is a lack of wildlife in the swamps. While on walks to the swamp I have seen a total number of 9 species of bird, 1 species of mammal, and 0 species of reptile and amphibian. While in Singapore, a city with a similar population there are a recorded 459 species of bird, 13 mammal species, and over 200 species of reptiles and amphibians. This comparison may not be fair to Harare as Singapore is a city in the tropics and more developed. Though through many conservation policies Singaporean wildlife has tested the toll of time.
To restore the wetlands of Harare to what they once were, I suggest 2 methods. Reintroducing small mammals and antelope to the area. The mammals that I believe would be best to introduce to the wetlands of Harare are Marsh, White-tailed, and Banded mongoose, Common and Blue duiker, Sharpe’s grysbok, Steenbok, African civet, Common genet, Greater cane rat, Southern african tree squirrel, and Vervet monkey. By reintroducing wetland mammals to the area this will create a food chain and a reason for people to visit Harare instead of just going to Vic falls immediately. The second method would be to add a water source or multiple. There are some ponds around but there needs to be more. They provide drinks to the local fauna and more flora
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