The Landmark Foundation have had camera traps placed in the Riviersonderend Mountains above Greyton and Genadendal since mid 2011. We now know, thanks to the Landmark Foundation, that there at least two leopards in our area, a male and a female. Zebra Moon is planning to sponsor a camera in 2012.

We can offer environmental education activities focussed on leopards’ place in the ecosystem. These activies include:

# a hike to a camera trap, downloading the images and experiencing the excitement of viewing the recorded images that evening.

#learning about the  large mammals of our mountains and their role in the ecosystem.

# the leopard’s position as apex predator, and learning more about the leopard habits, distribution and life cycle.

# interaction and conflict between man and leopards, hunting, trapping, poison, livestock, habitat reduction.

# animal messages- spoor and droppings.

# wild animals – poetry and art. t shirt making

# an introduction to maps through Landmark Foundation data from collared leopards, plotting of camera trap positions on maps.

#  a discussion of disappearance of several species from the Overberg: Blue antelope, hippo and rhinoceros.

We will use educational material provided by the Landmark Foundation. If possible the Landmark Foundation education officer will personally present some of the activities.

More information is available on www.landmarkfoundation.org.za .