Luanda
Missing giant sable antelope spotted



Luanda– Three specimens of the long missing and critically endangered giant sable antelope were finally spotted Saturday at Cangandala National Park and Luando Game Reserve, Angola’s northern Malanje province, reviving hopes that the animal has actually survived the country’s long lasted civil war.




The information was released by the national director of Environment, Vladimir Russo, who said this followed an expedition of specialists of the ministry.




Speaking to Angop, Vladimir Russo said the expedition was part of the specie’s conservation project, adding that collars have been attached to the animals in order to monitor their movement within the Cangandala Park and Luando Reserve, their natural habitat.




According to the source, collars have been attached to a female, at Cangandala, and another two to a female and a male at Luando.




The official who would not add details, said the animals will soon be captured and relocated at a 400 hectares sanctuary built at Cangandala Park for studies.




The project of conservation of the Hippotragus niger variani, also known in Portuguese as "Palanca Negra Gigante”, is under the Angolan Ministry of Environment, with support of the Centre of Studies and Scientific Research of the”Universidade Católica de Angola” and the Malanje province Government.




Also sponsoring the giant sable antelope conservation project is the oil company “ESSO Angola” and the privately-owned mobile telecommunication firm “UNITEL” and German Technical Cooperation (GTZ).




The giant sable antelope is evaluated as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.




The Cangandala National Park, in northern Malanje province, was established in 1963 and stretches over an area of 63.000 hectares.




The Luando Reserve that is shared by the provinces of Malanje and Bie (central Angola), was set up in 1938, over an area of 828,000 hectares

Wow - really great news and hopefully this will keep them from going totally by the wayside. This should raise hopes that there are actually more of these great animals out there somewhere?

Larry Sellers
SCI Life Member

There's a more informative article out there on this matter. This actually isn't the first time they've spotted specimens of the giant sables in recent years. The news is---that they plan to capture these and put them at the sanctuary in the Cangandala Park with others.

Hopefully they'll breed in captivity, and who knows? The hope is that with breaking news of more of them found---three new specimens, more funding can be channeled to save Angola's national symbol.

FWIW, I was sent the pic (taken with a trail cam) below of the first or second group to be found some years ago.

They've been trying for some time to raise funds to monitor the various groups for some considerable time. I'd guess they failed to find enough sponsors, which is why they're now going to try to bring them into a captive breeding programme (probably) as a last resort.

Let's hope it works!

http://www.google.com/hostedne...pxBA-GW1lnpGEge9TUkA

The above is the article I'm referring to. The link takes you to an article written by an AFP reporter.

I know of one farm in SA that has produced a calf. I'm thinking there must be others.

Dave

quote:

Originally posted by nopride2:
I know of one farm in SA that has produced a calf. I'm thinking there must be others.

Dave

A Portuguese fellow named Vas Pinto has been getting trail camera photos of giant sables in Angola for several years, and some of his reports say the animals are cross-breeding with roan antelope.

This is the first I've heard that anyone has them in captivity in South Africa, though.

I'd be leery of such reports. Many common sable antelope in Zambia have giant sable markings (mine did), and I would not be surprised to hear that someone in South Africa was breeding sables with such markings and calling them "giant" sables.

Bill Quimby

ditto what Bill Q said!
David

quote:

Originally posted by billrquimby:

quote:

Originally posted by nopride2:
I know of one farm in SA that has produced a calf. I'm thinking there must be others.

Dave

A Portuguese fellow named Vas Pinto has been getting trail camera photos of giant sables in Angola for several years, and some of his reports say the animals are cross-breeding with roan antelope.

This is the first I've heard that anyone has them in captivity in South Africa, though.

I'd be leery of such reports. Many common sable antelope in Zambia have giant sable markings (mine did) , and I would not be surprised to hear that someone in South Africa was breeding sables with such markings and calling them "giant" sables.

Bill Quimby

I read an article that stated(and showed an example of) a bump that giant sable have between the ears. It is said that common sable don't have this bump.

Did your sable have this bump?

It is said that some sable in western Zambia do have the bump, which lends some weight to the idea that the isolated population of giant sable in Angola is not the only population of giant sable.

quote:

Originally posted by JBrown:

quote:

Originally posted by billrquimby:

quote:

Originally posted by nopride2:
I know of one farm in SA that has produced a calf. I'm thinking there must be others.

Dave

A Portuguese fellow named Vas Pinto has been getting trail camera photos of giant sables in Angola for several years, and some of his reports say the animals are cross-breeding with roan antelope.

This is the first I've heard that anyone has them in captivity in South Africa, though.

I'd be leery of such reports. Many common sable antelope in Zambia have giant sable markings (mine did) , and I would not be surprised to hear that someone in South Africa was breeding sables with such markings and calling them "giant" sables.

Bill Quimby

I read an article that stated(and showed an example of) a bump that giant sable have between the ears. It is said that common sable don't have this bump.

Did your sable have this bump?

It is said that some sable in western Zambia do have the bump, which lends some weight to the idea that the isolated population of giant sable in Angola is not the only population of giant sable.

I've never heard anyone else talk about a bump. All of the reference books I've seen refer only to the distinctive markings on the faces of giant sables -- and their outlandishly long horns.

It's been said that far western Zambia produces sables with the best horns outside Angola, but as far as I know the giant subspecies is supposed to be confined to only a small region of Angola.

What is a shame about all this is that SCI, DSC and/or CIC -- or individual hunters -- are not listed as sponsors of the current project.

Bill Quimby

quote:

Originally posted by billrquimby:


I've never heard anyone else talk about a bump. All of the reference books I've seen refer only to the distinctive markings on the faces of giant sables -- and their outlandishly long horns.

It's been said that far western Zambia produces sables with the best horns outside Angola, but as far as I know the giant subspecies is supposed to be confined to only a small region of Angola.

Well Bill, now I am going to have to track the article down. If I remember correctly it was written by a PH who had conducted hunts in western Zambia. I will PM you with the info.

Did anyone else see this article? It would save me some time if someone could tell me where to find it.

I think you'll find that the only way to be 110% sure is to DNA test them like they did with the Roosvelt's sable in the Selous.....and that'll only prove anything on the individual animal rather than the the entire sub species.

As for claims of farms elsewhere in Africa having them. I'd treat such claims as highly dubious as it's highly unlikely to be true and also that if somone did have them, they'd presumably have broken the law to get them into another African country and who in his right mind would freely volunteer that fact. ......

To say nothing of any hunter who tried to move such a trophy would also be in very hot water if he got caught.

I read an interesting book on them a year or so ago, and the final chapter basically dealt with what was emerging as confirmation that Giant Sable did not exist as a separate species.

Kensco wrote
I read an interesting book on them a year or so ago, and the final chapter basically dealt with what was emerging as confirmation that Giant Sable did not exist as a separate species.


IMO this Angola Antelopes http://www.africahunting.com/h...wphoto.php/photo/619 are a LITTLE different than Sables in the rest of Africa.

Seloushunter

quote:

Posted 04 August 2009 13:46 Hide Post
I read an interesting book on them a year or so ago, and the final chapter basically dealt with what was emerging as confirmation that Giant Sable did not exist as a separate species.

Kensco,
Was the book, "A Certain Curve of Horn, The Hundred-Year Quest For The Giant Sable Antelope of Angola" by John Frederick Walker?

The book, as DAL said, indeed was "A Certain Curve of Horn." It's a great book, but it was written before vas Pinto proved that the giant sable had survived Angola's war. The author explored various reports of sightings and speculated whether or not any specimens survived, without sticking his neck out.

However, I have never heard of any knowledgeable person -- including that book's author -- suggesting that the giant sable might be anything other than one of the three known subspecies of the African sable antelope (Hippotragus niger).

Bill Quimby

Angola: Three More Giant Sable Antelopes Relocated to Cangandala National Park
6 August 2009

Luanda — Three more giant sable antelopes, two females, were on Wednesday relocated to Cangandala National Park, northern Malanje province by environmentalists from the wildlife services for reproduction purposes.

The operation was held by wildlife's experts from Botswana and South Africa, hired by the Centre of Studies and Scientific Research of the Angola Catholic University, as part of an expedition to the National Cangandala Park, which started on July 28.

According to the head of the National Department of Coservation of the Ministry of Environment, Joaquim Lourenço Manuel, the relocation of the giant stable antelope for reproduction, represents a relevant achievement for the sectors of environment, hotels and tourism.


Meanwhile, US environmentalist, Richard Estes, who witnessed the relocation of the antelope at the reproduction sanctuary, expressed delight at the reappearance of the animal, saying this represents an opportunity for him to carry out his study.

The operation of capture of the sable antelope is supported by the oil firm, ESSO Angola, through its Associates of Bloc 15, the privately owned mobile telephone operator, "UNITEL" and the German Technical Cooperation (GTZ).

The giant sable antelope is evaluated as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. The Cangandala National Park, in northern Malanje province, was established in 1963 and stretches over an area of 63.000 hectares.

The Luando Reserve that is shared by the provinces of Malanje and Bie (central Angola), was set up in 1938, over an area of 828,000 hectares.