Bait

The goal of this picture was to bait a lion to dart and then collar for monitoring. This team is from the neighbouring management block where there is a long-running carnivore research programme. They work across the Reserve to track and assess the population of lions, leopards, wild dogs and hyenas using different methods such as three-yearly ‘call-up’ surveys and by affixing satellite collars.

Attracting predators to the bait involves a soundtrack of a squealing pig that may be the most horrific noise one could hear. Hardy researchers have to endure the sound through the night for weeks on end when surveying an area the size of Niassa Reserve. Forget drips of water on the forehead, the best torture treatment would be this pig sound played endlessly, as it itself sounds like it’s being tortured.

Even though lions roared in the vicinity first thing this morning, unfortunately this evening’s baiting drew a blank. The meat, already humming pretty terribly, was untied from the tree to be used later in the night. These researchers work through the night hours and doze during the heat of the day. Their noses and ears both get a battering and they deserve one hell of a rest when their fieldwork is done.