Samara Private Game Reserve is a 28,300 hectare private
game reserve
A game reserve (also known as a game park) is a large area of land where wild animals are hunted in a controlled way for sport. If hunting is prohibited, a game reserve may be considered a nature reserve; however, the focus of a game reserve ...
, located near
Graaff-Reinet
Graaff-Reinet (; Xhosa: eRhafu) is a town in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. It is the oldest town in the province and the fourth oldest town in South Africa, after Cape Town, Stellenbosch, Simon's Town, Paarl and Swellendam. The to ...
in the
Eastern Cape
The Eastern Cape ( ; ) is one of the nine provinces of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho, and its largest city is Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth). Due to its climate and nineteenth-century towns, it is a common location for tourists. It is also kno ...
,
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
. Previously a network of 11 livestock farms, Samara was created in 1997 with the vision to restore the area to its natural state. This is being achieved by slowly rehabilitating the land and reintroducing the natural
biodiversity
Biodiversity is the variability of life, life on Earth. It can be measured on various levels. There is for example genetic variability, species diversity, ecosystem diversity and Phylogenetics, phylogenetic diversity. Diversity is not distribut ...
. The
South African cheetah
The Southeast African cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus jubatus'') is the nominate cheetah subspecies native to East and Southern Africa. The Southern African cheetah lives mainly in the lowland areas and deserts of the Kalahari, the savannahs of Ok ...
s are at the forefront of Samara's conservation initiatives, and forms part of the Cheetah Metapopulation Programme, managed by the
Endangered Wildlife Trust
The Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) is a non-governmental, not-for-profit South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, n ...
.
Research projects
Samara promotes research on the reserve, and is currently supporting the following research projects:
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Cheetah
The cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus'') is a large Felidae, cat and the Fastest animals, fastest land animal. It has a tawny to creamy white or pale buff fur that is marked with evenly spaced, solid black spots. The head is small and rounded, wit ...
and
Jackal
Jackals are Canidae, canids native to Africa and Eurasia. While the word has historically been used for many canines of the subtribe Canina (subtribe), canina, in modern use it most commonly refers to three species: the closely related black-b ...
research, through the Centre for African Carnivore Ecology at Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University
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Vervet monkey
The vervet monkey (''Chlorocebus pygerythrus''), or simply vervet, is an Old World monkey of the family Cercopithecidae native to Africa. The term "vervet" is also used to refer to all the members of the genus '' Chlorocebus''. The five distin ...
research through the University of the Witwatersrand and the University of Lethbridge.
Tracker Academy
Samara is home to South Africa's first Tracker Academy, aimed at teaching outstanding underprivileged individuals the art of tracking. Samara Volunteer Programme is also based on the property, aimed at giving individuals the opportunity to contribute to hands-on conservation.
Vuyani Safe Haven
Samara supports Vuyani Safe Haven as its community initiative.
See also
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Eastern Cape Parks
Eastern Cape Parks are the national parks, marine protected areas, nature reserves and other nature conservation areas in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. Eastern Cape Parks and Tourism Agency (ECPTA) is the governmental organisation resp ...
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Protected areas of South Africa
The protected areas of South Africa include national parks and marine protected areas managed by the national government, public nature reserves managed by provincial and local governments, and private nature reserves managed by private lando ...
References
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External links
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{{coord missing, South Africa
Game reserves of South Africa