Our field site: Mbuluzi Game Reserve
Mbuluzi Game Reserve is in the north of Eswatini, not far from the border with Mozambique. It forms part of the Lowveld, a geographical region characterised by low altitude, warm weather and dry savannah habitats. The reserve is named after the Mbuluzi River, which runs through the reserve. The river gives a clear structure to the habitat: rich, green riparian habitat along the waterways, dry, scrubby bushland further from the river, and a more wooded area on the highest parts of the reserve.
Life in the bush
Mbuluzi is an ornithlogical hotspot that provides habitat for over 300 different bird species. We get around this fantastic reserve using mountain bikes, on foot, or for some tasks in our trusty field vehicle Inyoni (pictured right).
We are lucky to be supported in our research by the wonderful staff and shareholders in Mbuluzi Game Reserve and see a key part of our work as communicating our findings and discussing potential implications for bush management with those working both here and in other local reserves.
The Savannah Research Center
The home of our team when they are collecting data in the field, the Savannah Research Center is a field research facility that caters for researchers and students from various different organisations and institutions from around the world. Constructed and run by All Out Africa (see Our Team for more information), the facility offers a warm and well-equipped base for our team.
The SRC lies right on the river, meaning that the camp is very green and often a lot cooler than the rest of the reserve. It’s full of wildlife and has a huge campfire, as well as a deck for looking out over the river. The camp consists of around twenty permanently-standing tents, two shower and toilet blocks, a kitchen, dining area, and a research building.
Complementing local science
New aviary facilities at the SRC
As part of ongoing research into the role of disease and immune defence in shaping social life, we were recently able to add to the SRC's excellent facilities: thanks to funding from KNAW, we've been able to build an in-situ field aviary for temporarily housing birds and other small animals under safe, semi-natural conditions. We're really excited to see how this addition will bring our research further!
You can read more about our aviary research here. We hope that our aviary can be a facility for all researchers at the SRC - if you'd like to discuss potential collaborations, please do get in touch!
Lessons in Conservation
We are really happy to be involved in the Lessons in Conservation programme, an Africa-wide non-profit initiative which brings ideas about ecology, science and conservation to schoolchildren in rural Eswatini. Together with Phiwo Masimula and the staff of Mbuluzi Game Reserve, we give demonstrations, lessons and science camps in the bush where promising young scientists can get a feel for concepts like evolutionary biology, physiology and animal behaviour.